2025 Honda Accord and Toyota Camry, which one should you buy? That’s what we’re going to find out. Welcome to Neftin Editorials, where we help you, the consumer, master the process of car buying and car ownership.
Table of contents
2025 Honda Accord vs. Toyota Camry
- The Toyota Camry is now exclusively sold as a hybrid, while the Honda Accord offers both conventional and hybrid engine options.
- Both cars feature highly efficient and smooth hybrid systems, with the Accord offering a slightly smoother transition between power sources.
- Toyota provides a longer warranty on the hybrid battery, along with easier access to replacement batteries due to their extensive hybrid production.
- The Camry offers more interior choices and additional features like a panoramic roof and surround 360 camera, while the Accord provides a roomier feel, especially in the back seats.
Design and Features
The Honda Accord and the Toyota Camry are the leaders, the top guns among midsize sedans, and as far as I’m concerned, they’re two of the only ones that you should be considering if you want to have the best build quality, the best reliability, and get the best value for your money.
Now that Toyota has completely redesigned the Camry for 2025, it’s time to get these two back together for a comparison and find out which is the better one to go with. But first, let’s start with the major changes that Toyota has made to the Camry for 2025.
Aside from the styling updates, there are two major changes that are important to be aware of. The first one is that the Camry is now only sold as a hybrid, which means you can no longer get the conventional four-cylinder engine or six-cylinder engine.
It’s hybrid or nothing. I actually think that this is a really good thing because when it comes to the previous generation Camry, the hybrid was already the much better choice in so many ways.
It was quieter, smoother, a little bit more powerful, much more fuel-efficient, just as reliable, so it really was the no-brainer option.
The second important change that Toyota has made is that they’ve now made all-wheel drive available on the hybrid, which means you can choose between either front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive for those who really want it.
Those are both two really important distinctions between the Camry and the Accord. In the case of the Honda Accord, you can still choose between either a conventional engine or the hybrid.
The lower trims are sold with a regular four-cylinder engine, whereas the higher trims are sold as a hybrid. With the Accord, you cannot get all-wheel drive; it’s front-wheel drive only.
Performance and Efficiency
Now, the great thing is that when it comes to the hybrid systems in both of these cars, they are both exceptionally well-designed in so many ways.
Take the fuel economy as an example. Both of these cars are able to achieve roughly between 45 to 52 miles per gallon or roughly 4 and 1/2 to 5 1/2 liters per 100 kilometers, which means you’re going to get exceptional efficiency whichever way you go.
And that really is the main reason you buy a hybrid in the first place. Not only are they fuel-efficient, but they also have excellent performance.
In the case of the Camry, you now get 225 horsepower with front-wheel drive and 232 horsepower with all-wheel drive, making this the most powerful standard engine that the Camry has ever had.
The Accord does have a little bit less power on paper; its hybrid system produces 204 horsepower. But in the real world, there really isn’t a huge difference between them. They’re both able to get up to highway speed in around 6 and 1/2 seconds, and they both feel plenty powerful with more than enough performance.
There are some distinctions though between how they make and deliver that power, and I actually believe that it’s the Accord that might have the slightly smoother hybrid system.
The thing with the Accord is that it has an extremely smooth and seamless hybrid system. You really cannot tell when the gas engine is turning on and off as you drive.
You really have to be paying attention and listening extremely carefully to hear anything. And not only is it remarkably refined, but the way it delivers the power is phenomenal.
Even though it technically doesn’t have a transmission, Honda has programmed the hybrid system to still mimic the feeling of changing gears as you accelerate really hard, and that gives it a fantastic feel.
Accord Vs. the Camry. Now, the Camry has a very smooth hybrid system as well. Toyota has been making hybrids longer than anybody else, and they really have this technology figured out.
It’s extremely smooth and quiet as you drive, and again, you really don’t notice the engine turning on and off as you drive down the road. But it is a little bit more noticeable than the Honda.
And because it has an eCVT planetary gear type transmission, the same one that’s used in all Toyota hybrids, the acceleration is not quite as smooth. You still get a little bit of that droney CVT feel when you accelerate really hard, although Toyota has improved it dramatically for this new Camry.
I do prefer the feel of the Accord a little bit more, but I might be splitting hairs here because, at the end of the day, these are both remarkably well-designed and extremely well-sorted vehicles. And it really just goes to show with how long both Toyota and Honda have been making hybrids for that they have the technology this well sorted.
And that’s because of the expertise that both of these companies have with hybrids. In the case of Toyota, they’re now in their fifth generation of this hybrid system, and in the case of Honda, they’re now in their third generation. Both companies have been making hybrids for an extremely long time, and their quality and reliability now are really well proven.
Fundamentally, they both have a fairly similar design. Both have a simple, naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine, which means no turbos with either one.
They both have their hybrid battery located underneath the rear seats, and they both have a two-motor hybrid system, where you have one electric motor that powers the wheels and a second electric motor that works as a starter generator.
There are some differences, of course. Toyota does use a planetary gear-type eCVT as a transmission, and if you go for the all-wheel-drive version, you do get a third electric motor that powers the back wheels.
But the major takeaway is that these are both exceptionally well-designed and properly sorted hybrid systems that should deliver phenomenal reliability for an extremely long time.
And both should last a long time without giving you any major issues. If I had to give the edge to one, it would be Toyota for two reasons. Number one, although both have a very good hybrid warranty of 8 years, Toyota does give you a 10-year warranty on the hybrid battery, which is a nice bonus.
And the second reason is because Toyota has been producing so many hybrids for such a long time, and there are so many more on the road.
When these vehicles are really old, say 12 to 15 years old and have really, really high mileage, it will be easier to find a replacement battery option for the Toyota, whether it’s a rebuilt or a used battery. You can easily find them for around $2 to $3,000.
So battery replacement with the Camry is not going to be a big deal, whereas with the Honda, it could be more expensive.
Both of these cars are really exceptional to drive, though, and even though Toyota has made a lot more changes to the Camry, making it quieter, making some suspension tuning updates, these really are minor changes as opposed to major revolutionary ones.
Both the Accord and the Camry have now been through so many generations that I really feel that they’re as sorted and polished as you can more or less possibly get.
And the real takeaway with both of these is that we’ve now truly reached the point where regular mainstream cars like these are every bit as good as the luxury cars that used to be only reserved for the rich and famous.
Interior Comfort and Technology
These are now extremely high-quality vehicles with excellent build quality, excellent reliability, and excellent technology. And because they’re so refined and polished, they now drive and feel just as good as luxury cars. And they both have that feel-good factor that makes you feel like you’re getting into something special every time you drive them.
I think “polished” is really the word to describe them. Where you start to see some more significant differences is with the interior designs and the features that you get.
Now, both cars do have a very high-quality interior with excellent build quality, fit, and finish and excellent material that are used throughout, and they both have very functional, well-designed control setups.
They both have a very straightforward climate control system with conventional buttons, which is really nice to see, and both cars also come with an excellent infotainment system with a large 12.3-inch touchscreen display.
The touchscreen interface on both cars is actually really well-designed. Both have very good-looking graphics, are responsive, and the user interface is quite good.
I think the one the Accord though is a little bit better; it’s a little bit snappier to use, and I like the fact that it has built-in Google features like Google Maps, and it even has Amazon Alexa for voice commands, which is nice to see.
Feature-wise, both cars do come really well-equipped with features like a fully digital driver display on the higher trims, you can get both heated and ventilated seats, wireless charging, lots of connectivity features, and you get a lot of active safety features that come as standard.
Both cars also have exceptional safety ratings, so you’re going to get a really safe car either way you go. One thing that is nice about the Camry, however, is that it does give you more choices and even a few extra features that you can’t get on the Accord.
For example, unlike the Accord, which only gives you a choice between a basic cloth interior or a black leather interior, with the Camry, you have standard synthetic SoftTex leather or genuine leather on every single trim except for the base LE, which is only sold in the US.
You can choose between having a black interior, a bolder color, or even a red leather interior, which is really nice. And you even get a few extra features that are not available on the Accord, like a full panoramic roof and a surround 360 camera, which is a really valuable feature to have. But if your priority is space, then you might be a bit more comfortable in the Accord.
Now, both of these are extremely spacious cars with plenty of room, but the Accord does feel a little bit roomier, and it does have more spacious back seats.
Both cars, however, do have a fairly spacious trunk, and you can fold down the rear seats to give you even more room.
Pricing and Value
Now, these cars are very similar when it comes to their pricing. In the case of the Camry, the pricing ranges from around $30,000 to $40,000 US or around $37,000 to $47,000 Canadian.
And in the case of the Honda Accord, the pricing range is again from around $30,000 to $40,000 US or around $40,000 to $47,000 Canadian.
But there is a very important difference when it comes to their pricing because in the case of the Accord, again, the lower trims only have a conventional gas engine.
So even though the pricing is very similar when you compare the higher trims, if you compare hybrid to hybrid, only the least expensive Accord Hybrid is actually $5 to $7,000 more expensive than the least expensive Camry, which is a significant price difference.
So if you’re comparing the higher trims, they are fairly similar in price, but if you just want a more basic car and you don’t need to have all the options and all the features, then you are going to save a lot of money and get much better value with the Camry.
So, I think the takeaway when comparing these two is this: either way, there’s no question you are getting a phenomenal car.
Either way you go, both of these cars are extremely comfortable to drive, they both have more than enough performance, they both have well-designed spacious interiors that have great technology and great safety features, and both cars have excellent reputations for quality and reliability.
But there are a few things that the redesigned Camry does a little bit better that do make it a better buy. Number one, it has the option of all-wheel drive, which you cannot get on the Accord.
It offers a lot more options and features with the interior that you can’t get on the Accord. It has a better hybrid battery warranty and easier replacement options when these cars are much older way down the road.
But most importantly of all, it just offers better value, especially if you just want to have a lower trim model. You’re getting a lot more for your money at a much lower price.
So, even though there are a few things that I do like more about the Accord, the smoother hybrid drivetrain, the balance between comfort and handling, and so on, if I were to pick one as the standout winner, it would be the Camry.
In summary, both the Accord and Camry are excellent choices, offering comfort, performance, and reliability. However, with its all-wheel drive option, interior choices, and better value for lower trims, the Camry edges out as the preferred choice.
After considering these factors, which car would you choose? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
