Toyota Corolla vs Toyota Prius

If the disparity between your income and the cost of living is getting you down, but you need a new set of wheels, consider the 2024 Prius. The Prius recently won the 2024 World Car Design of the Year, carries up to five people, and holds up to 575 litres of cargo behind its back seat. All-wheel drive (AWD) is standard in Canada, a plug-in hybrid powertrain are available, and the hybrid Prius goes as low as 4.8 litres per 100 kilometres in combined driving. Starting prices just barely tip over $40,000.

Verdict: The 2024 Toyota Prius is the right car for lots of people. Blending intriguing design with comfortable front seats and a practical interior at an appealing price, the Prius is perfect for daily driving and will save you plenty of money at the gas pump.

The Toyota Corolla needs no introduction. With 12 generations spanning over five decades of production, the Corolla is the bestselling nameplate in automotive history. And it continues to be a popular choice for new car buyers looking for a reliable and sensible compact car, competing against other established names like the Honda Civic, the Hyundai Elantra, the Kia Forte, the Nissan Sentra, the Subaru Impreza, and the Volkswagen Jetta for sales.

The only significant change for 2022 is the addition of two new colours: Ruby Flare Pearl and Wind Chill Pearl. What hasn’t changed is the number of other choices buyers get. Toyota offers sedan and hatchback body styles, manual and automatic transmissions, and multiple powertrain options—including a hybrid. The Corolla Cross SUV also launched for 2022 but, while it shares a basic platform with the Corolla sedan and hatch, it’s effectively a different vehicle.

Finally, you get the expected array of trim levels. The Corolla sedan is available in L, LE, XLE, SE, and XSE grades, plus Apex Edition and Nightshade Edition versions of SE and XSE, with more limited options for the Corolla hatchback and hybrid (both of which will be covered separately). For this review, we tested the Apex Edition sedan, which is based on the SE grade (US model shown). The Apex is the sportiest Corolla variant, at least until the GR Corolla hot hatchback arrives for the 2023 model year.