Most Reliable Used Small Cars Under $20k for 2026
These are the most reliable used small cars under $20k , ranked by iSeeCars’ reliability rating which is based on a data-driven analysis of a vehicle's longevity.
The most reliable used small car under $20k is the 2021 Volkswagen Golf based on iSeeCars’ analysis of 12 million vehicles to assess their reliability. The 2021 Volkswagen Golf has an average used vehicle price of $17,760 and an iSeeCars reliability score of 9 out of 10. Behind the Golf is the 2020 Mazda Mazda3 Hatchback with average used car price of $19,504 and a reliability rating of 7.9. The number 3 most reliable used small car under $20k is the 2021 Mazda Mazda3 Sedan at $18,579 which has a 7.7 rating and is priced on average at $18,579. For this analysis, iSeeCars looked at used small cars under $20k that are 1 to 6 years old to determine the latest model year vehicles that are within the price range of $15,000 to $20,000.
The most reliable used small car under $20k is the 2021 Volkswagen Golf based on iSeeCars’ analysis of 12 million vehicles to assess their reliability. The 2021 Volkswagen Golf has an average used vehicle price of $17,760 and an iSeeCars reliability score of 9 out of 10. Behind the Golf is the 2020 Mazda Mazda3 Hatchback with average used car price of $19,504 and a reliability rating of 7.9. The number 3 most reliable used small car under $20k is the 2021 Mazda Mazda3 Sedan at $18,579 which has a 7.7 rating and is priced on average at $18,579. For this analysis, iSeeCars looked at used small cars under $20k that are 1 to 6 years old to determine the latest model year vehicles that are within the price range of $15,000 to $20,000.
1. 2021 Volkswagen Golf
-
Reliability score
9.0
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 17760.306306
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
9.0
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.1
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.9
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19504.013661
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.9
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.3
/ 10
-
Safety
10
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.7
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 18578.604571
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.7
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.4
/ 10
-
Safety
10
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.7
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19862.791813
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.7
/ 10
-
Value Retention
9.1
/ 10
-
Safety
9.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.6
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19508.309067
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.6
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.3
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.4
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19311.630918
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.4
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.8
/ 10
-
Safety
9.0
/ 10
7. 2022 Subaru Impreza
-
Reliability score
7.3
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19069.609053
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.3
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.7
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
8. 2023 Kia Rio 5-Door
-
Reliability score
7.3
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 16376.210191
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.3
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.5
/ 10
-
Safety
Not Available
9. 2024 Kia Forte
-
Reliability score
7.2
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 18507.043508
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.2
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.4
/ 10
-
Safety
7.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.1
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 18687.613043
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.1
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.4
/ 10
-
Safety
Not Available
-
Reliability score
7.1
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 18915.08011
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.1
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.4
/ 10
-
Safety
7.0
/ 10
12. 2024 Mitsubishi Mirage (hatchback)
-
Reliability score
7.1
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 15162.983367
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.1
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.3
/ 10
-
Safety
7.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
7.0
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 19290.588916
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
7.0
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.2
/ 10
-
Safety
10
/ 10
14. 2021 Hyundai VELOSTER
-
Reliability score
6.9
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 17323.84
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
6.9
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.7
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
6.8
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 18706.937327
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
6.8
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.5
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
16. 2023 Kia Rio
-
Reliability score
6.7
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 15995.989097
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
6.7
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.6
/ 10
-
Safety
Not Available
-
Reliability score
6.7
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 16439.636931
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
6.7
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.4
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
18. 2022 Hyundai ACCENT
-
Reliability score
6.6
/ 10
- Average Used Car Price: 15267.812227
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
6.6
/ 10
-
Value Retention
8.5
/ 10
-
Safety
7.0
/ 10
-
Reliability score
Not Available
- Average Used Car Price: 19954.779683
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
Coming soon
-
Value Retention
8.9
/ 10
-
Safety
8.0
/ 10
2024 Mitsubishi Mirage G4
-
Reliability score
Not Available
- Average Used Car Price: 15623.843958
iSEECARS SCORE
iSeeCars Best Car Rankings are calculated based on an analysis of data from over 12 million cars that assesses how long each vehicle lasts and how well it retains its value over time, along with safety data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association
See how we rank these cars
-
Reliability
Coming soon
-
Value Retention
8.0
/ 10
-
Safety
Not Available
Related Rankings
How We Rank These Cars
The iSeeCars Reliability Rating indicates how dependable and long-lasting each vehicle is through a calculation of a vehicle's useful lifespan and its ability to last 200,000 miles or more.
Each vehicle is rated on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest Reliability Rating. Vehicles within a given category are sorted to show the most reliable ones first. If two cars have the same ratings, the tie is broken by the higher overall iSeeCars Quality Score. iSeeCars displays comprehensive Quality Scores along with the Reliability Ratings for each model because multiple factors should be taken into account when buyers are seeking the best overall vehicle. Two of these factors are safety and resale value, both of which are included in the iSeeCars Quality Score system.
The overall iSeeCars Quality Score combines analyses of these three factors: reliability, resale value, and safety. It is calculated based on the latest research and analysis by our data science team. The data analysis comes from over 312 million vehicles as reported in our Longest-Lasting Cars and 5-Year Depreciation Studies. These two factors are combined with NHTSA and/or IIHS Safety Ratings to determine a car's Quality Score.
Vehicles are scored in three categories:
Reliability
The reliability score represents an analysis of iSeeCars' proprietary research on the longest-lasting vehicles.
Value Retention
The value retention score is based on our data science team's statistical analysis and prediction of 5-year depreciation from MSRP to determine which cars hold their value best, using US Bureau of Labor Statistics data to adjust for inflation.
Safety
The safety score is calculated based on the last five years of crash test ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and incorporates the latest Top Safety Pick information from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).