Best 7-seater cars in 2026

The seven-seater that makes the most sense for the most people is the Škoda Kodiaq, we reckon. The Kodiaq isn't the cheapest car here, starting from just under £40,000, nor is it the biggest nor the most luxurious, but it gets basically everything right.

There's plenty of space in the first two rows, the third row is perfectly usable for children and smaller adults — and when you fold the rearmost seats flat, the boot is 845 litres. Even with all seats up, the remaining boot space is substantial at 340 litres.

In classic Škoda fashion, there's a broad choice of petrol and diesel engines, an all-wheel-drive option and an equally broad smattering of practicality features around the cabin. Stuff like an umbrella hidden in the driver's door and a boot light that doubles as a removable torch.

And it never feels especially massive on the road, either, despite being big enough to do almost anything you’ll ask of it. It’s mint.

If you want seven seats and don't want to burn a drop of fuel, the electric Kia EV9 is one of the most convincing options around. To be honest, it’s one of the best seven-seater SUVs ever made regardless of how it's propelled.

It’s huge, but that size brings some significant advantages when you're trying to accommodate seven people. The flat floor and clever interior design make it feel supremely spacious, while the boot is big enough to film an episode of The Wheel inside it. The only minor criticism we have is that with all the seats in place, the remaining boot space is on the small side at 333 litres, especially for a car so big — the shorter Škoda Kodiaq trumps it.

This is otherwise a spectacular SUV. Stunning to look at and sit inside, luxuriously quiet to drive and impressively priced all things considered. Approaching £67,000 isn’t cheap for the least costly version, but the Kia EV9 feels more expensive and with up to 349 miles of battery range, it’s also easy to live with.

As Gwyneth Paltrow possibly said before agreeing to film Shallow Hal, if you're going to go big, you might as well go properly big. The BMW X7 is so enormous that it almost looks out of place on the average UK road. But it’s brilliant — an exceptional luxury car that happens to have seven seats.

The interior design and material choices are wonderful, while technology including BMW's curved display incorporating the highly intuitive iDrive infotainment system, makes it feel properly special.

The sheer size of it means that both the middle and rearmost rows are spacious enough for adults. The back row still isn't the easiest thing to access, mind, albeit that's always the case when you're clambering around middle-row seats to get there.

Once you're in, refinement is exceptional and even the most 'basic' xDrive40i engine is powerful — 381PS from a 3.0-litre, six-cylinder petrol engine, plus all-wheel drive is standard.

The Hyundai Santa Fe is the big SUV to consider if you actually intend to use all seven seats regularly. There’s plenty of room in all three rows, with enough space in the back to prevent the adults there moaning like a pair of kids.

Like Rasputin, it’s not especially good looking, but it is very clever and attractive in its own special way. The second row bench slides a good way forwards to make access to the rearmost seats easy-ish, while the cabin is packed with useful storage cubbies and USB charging points. Unusually, there are two seating options — a six-seater version replaces the second-row bench with two luxurious captain's chairs, giving passengers their own armrests and powered reclining. Nice.

Two power options are available for the Santa Fe — a 239PS 1.6-litre self-charging hybrid and a 288PS plug-in hybrid model that will drive up to a claimed 33 miles on its battery alone.

Prices for the Santa Fe begin at just over £49k, putting it firmly into expensive SUV territory, but when you consider all the space and quality — and the fact that it rides like a luxury car — it’s very appealing.

Well what a surprise — the seven-seater Dacia Jogger is the best value way to drive yourself and six passengers around. By some distance the cheapest seven-seater here, the Jogger starts at a five under £19,000, giving you an extraordinary amount of usable space for the money.

It's not remotely luxurious and the cabin contains more hard plastic than a Lego factory, but the simple, practical and flexible nature of the thing means you won't care. The third row is best suited to children, but the boxy shape means there's a massive 1807-litre boot with the rearmost seats folded. And with the rearmost seats actually removed that rises to 2085 litres. As a recycling centre machine, it's… Oof.

Running costs are just as impressively low as the list price. The Jogger TCe 110's 1.0-litre petrol returns a claimed 47mpg, while the Hybrid 155 can manage up to 61mpg. It's cheap to insure, too.

The Dacia Jogger is, without doubt, one of the most sensible seven-seaters you can buy new today.

Want seven seats but don't fancy driving something that looks like it should have its own bus lane? The Citroën C3 Aircross is the answer. At just 4395mm long — shorter than a MINI Countryman — it’s super-compact by seven-seater standards. It feels like a small hatchback from behind the wheel.

It's available with petrol-only or with additional hybrid power and the two extra seats fold neatly into the floor when they're not needed. Don't expect to take seven people and their luggage on holiday, though — with all seven seats in use, there's just 60 litres of boot space. Fold the third row away and that increases to 420 litres.

Prices start at £24,460 as the extra two seats are optional and only availablein conjunction with the pricier C3 Aircross Max specifiction, yet it’s still one of the cheapest ways into a brand-new seven-seater. It's not a full-time people carrier, but if you only need those extra seats occasionally, it's a very clever solution.

The Land Rover Defender 110 can tow up to 3500kg, which is enough for pretty much anything you're legally allowed to attach to the back of the thing.

It's also one of the few cars here that genuinely deserves to be called an off-roader. With all-wheel drive, serious ground clearance and a 900mm maximum wading depth, it will go places that would have a typical family SUV owner phoning for helicopter rescue.

But arguably more impressive is how luxurious it feels, despite being that good off-road. The previous Defender was, erm, highly compromised as a day-to-day vehicle. This isn't. The seven-seater option offers a full-size third row, rather than two tiny emergency chairs and despite having almost Range Rover levels of refinement, the cabin still feels durable enough for a farmer.

All this ability costs money, of course. The cheapest seven-seater Defender 110 is about £68,500 before you've even glanced at the other optional extras available. And it'll go through fuel like a dissertation student goes through cans of Monster, with the D250 diesel managing a claimed 33mpg — don't expect it to be that efficient in real life.

If you spend a lot of time on the motorway, the Volvo XC90 will make things considerably more easy-going. It’s big and expensive, obviously, but it has the sort of calm, comfortable character that makes long journeys melt away. Absolutely mega stereo too, if you’re willing to pay for the Bowers & Wilkins upgrade. Totally worth it.

The seats are excellent, the cabin is beautifully finished without being too showy and there’s loads of space in the first two rows. Even the third row is properly usable, while the boot holds 244 litres with all seven seats in place — not enormous, but still useful.

You get a choice of a 250PS 2.0-litre mild-hybrid B5 petrol or a 406PS T8 plug-in hybrid, both with all-wheel drive. The latter can cover up to 43 miles on electric power alone, making it cheap to run if your daily driving is usually short. The electric Volvo EX90 has the same basic qualities while adding a lovely layer of refinement, albeit at extra cost.

The Volkswagen ID. Buzz formula is clear to see — take the classic VW camper van shape, stretch it, add battery power and drag the styling into the 2020s. It works beautifully.

It isn’t just a styling exercise. The long-wheelbase version is available with seven seats and because it's basically a van, there's loads of room for people and luggage. The seats can be folded over to create an enormous amount of carrying space, while sliding rear doors make getting everyone in and out considerably easier than with most cars.

The seven-seater ID. Buzz uses an 86kWh battery and a 286PS electric motor, with an official range of up to 298 miles. It’s expensive, with seven-seat versions nudging £60,000 for the cheapest version, but if you're going to spend that much on a practical family bus, why not have one that makes you grin every time you look at it?

Now we’re talking. If you really need all seven of your seats to be proper, actual seats, here you go — the Volkswagen Multivan is a big, van-like family car. It’s enormous, hugely versatile and capable of carrying seven people in considerably more comfort than you’d assume given its van-like stance.

The really clever and most useful bits are what you can do with the seats. The second and third rows sit on rails, so you can slide them backwards and forwards, fold them, remove them or rearrange the cabin depending on what you're carrying. There's even a table that can be moved around the interior. In other words, this isn't just a seven-seater, it’s a room on wheels.

The 2.0-litre TDI diesel will return around 40mpg in the real world, so it makes sense if you're going to cover big miles, although the eHybrid PHEV version makes for a great off-kilter company car, with its relatively low Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) taxation and potential for battery-powered commutes .