Kia Ev4 vs Kia Ev3
What's the difference?

Kia Ev4

$49,990 - $64,690

2026 price

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Kia Ev3

$41,888 - $71,548

2025 price

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Summary

2026 Kia Ev4

2025 Kia Ev3

By Andrew Chesterton

By Chris Thompson

Safety Rating

Engine Type

Not Applicable, 0.0L

Fuel Type

Electric

Fuel Efficiency

0.0L/100km (combined)

Seating

Likes

Comfortable, competent drive experience
Long range from bigger battery
Sharp pricing on entry-level grade

Impressive range
Fun but not tacky styling
Useful standard features

Dislikes

Design will polarise
Boot is a missed practicality perk
Service costs higher than most

Steering feels heavier than necessary
GT-Line is pricey, less convenient
Better than EV5 but won’t outsell it

2026 Kia Ev4 Summary

Kia admits that, even a handful of years ago, a car like the EV4 likely wouldn't exist in Australia. With a forecast of 70 sales a month, or 840 a year, it won't come close to the brand's biggest all-electric sellers, and senior executives and product planners alike would have been wondering if it was worth the effort.

But times have changed, and so have regulations, and Kia is happy to roll the dice on as many EVs as it can get its hands on to lower its fleet emissions in the wake of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).

If you'll forgive the long and rambling intro, I'll now get to the point. Long live the NVES, because the EV4 is a good (if a little bizarre-looking) thing. It's quite lovely to drive, will cross vast distances in its long-range guise, and will undoubtedly make our roads a more visually interesting place.

But would you have one over the Tesla Model 3 or BYD Seal? Read on.

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2025 Kia Ev3 Summary

Kia Australia has big expectations for its littlest EV.

Not only is the small SUV priced to take on some of the very popular offerings from China, but it’s also packed with enough features to make a Euro buyer think twice. In fact, it starts from less than $50,000 drive-away.

We drove it at its global launch in South Korea and came away pretty impressed, so now the big question is - does it hold up now that its rubber is on the road here in Australia?

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Deep dive comparison

2026 Kia Ev4 2025 Kia Ev3

Verdict

An electric sedan is really shrinking the buyer pool, which is why Kia has such gentle expectations for the EV4 in Australia. But it's a lovely driving EV with plenty of perks, and the design alone will brighten up Australia's roadways. For my money, I'd either be going for the cheapest one that's sharp value with plenty of kit, or the flagship GT-Line that gets the big battery and the works in terms of equipment. The Earth for me sits in no-man's land.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

Note: The author, Andrew Chesterton, is a co-owner of Smart As Media, a content agency and media distribution service with a number of automotive brands among its clients. When producing content for CarsGuide, he does so in accordance with the CarsGuide Editorial Guidelines and Code of Ethics, and the views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.

Verdict

The GT-Line is relatively expensive, yes. The Air Standard Range isn’t groundbreaking even at under $50,000, no. But the sweet spot in the EV3 line-up is being able to pay $53,315 for the Air Long Range and come away with a roomy small SUV that can realistically cover almost 600km in the real world.

And it does everything properly, no big red flags or dealbreakers.

Its steering weight at speed on winding roads being the biggest complaint isn’t the end of the world for how otherwise comfortable the EV3 feels on-road.

Put it this way - I recently spent a few days in a Mini Aceman, a five-door electric SUV not too far from the EV3 in size. It is about as fast, and costs a little more, but it doesn’t have a lot more to offer in terms of features and it’s nowhere near as good on range with about 400km to its longer-ranged versions.

The EV3 might still have a bit of ‘sensible’ about it compared to some other electric small SUVS, but when it looks this cute and can get you an extra round trip out of the city compared to ‘Euro’ brands at the same price, it’s hard not to be impressed.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

Kia Ev4 vs Kia Ev3 What's the difference?

Summary

Deep dive comparison

Verdict

Verdict

Kia Ev4 vs Kia Ev3
What's the difference?