Compare the2025 Kia NiroVS 2025 Jeep Compass

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

© 1999 - 2025Advanta-STAR Automotive Research, all rights reserved. This vehicle comparison and all of the content in it are provided only by license from Advanta-STAR Automotive Research Corporation of America (“Advanta-STAR”). If you are not a legally licensed user of this vehicle comparison, it is against federal law to access it, copy it, forward it, or use it in any manner whatsoever. Any unauthorized use of this vehicle comparison is a violation of U.S. and international law and is punishable criminally and civilly. Removal of this watermark/notification without prior written license and approval received from Advanta-STAR is an agreement, understanding, and/or stipulation by the person(s), entities, agents, attorneys, and any other persons involved in the removal of this watermark/notification (including but not limited to Search Optics, LLC and any and all parent entities, sister entities, and subsidiary entities of Search Optics, LLC and/or any other entity, agent, attorney, and persons related in any manner to Search Optics, LLC) to: 1) an agreed upon amount of liquidated monetary damages of a minimum of $1,250,000.00 US Dollars in favor of Advanta-STAR; 2) the jurisdiction and enforcement of any legal claims associated with this matter asserted by Advanta-STAR in the United States Federal District Court in Portand, Oregon; and 3) service of process of any legal claims asserted by Advanta-STAR associated with this matter may be accomplished by First-Class Postage by the United States Postal Service or comparable service. G3CVW-7VXQU 2a06:98c0:3600::103 2025/07/15

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Kia Niro have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Jeep Compass doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Niro EX/SX has standard Parking Collision-Avoidance Assist that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Compass doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

Both the Niro and Compass have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Niro has Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Compass’ Rear Cross Path Detection doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Niro and the Compass have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available front and rear parking sensors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Kia Niro is safer than the Jeep Compass:

	Niro	Compass
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	29%	41%
Neck Stress	201 lbs.	445 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	106/154 lbs.	326/489 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.8 inches
Neck Injury Risk	29.1%	36%
Neck Stress	107 lbs.	235 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the Kia Niro is safer than the Jeep Compass:

	Niro	Compass
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	919 lbs.	928 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Niro, with its four-star roll-over rating, is 8.6% less likely to roll over than the Compass, which received a three-star rating.

Warranty

The Niro comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Compass’ 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Niro 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Jeep covers the Compass. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Compass ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

Reliability

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Niro’s reliability 12 points higher than the Compass.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia fourth in initial quality, above the industry average. With 37 more problems per 100 vehicles, Jeep is ranked 19th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in long-term dependability. With 3 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Jeep is rated lower.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Jeep vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Kia 10 places higher in reliability than Jeep.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Niro gets better mileage than the Compass:

		MPG
Niro
	1.6 4-cyl. Hybrid	53 city/54 hwy
	Touring 1.6 4-cyl. Hybrid	53 city/45 hwy
Compass
	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/32 hwy

Regenerative brakes improve the Niro’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Compass doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Niro has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Compass. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Transmission

The Niro offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Compass doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Brakes and Stopping

The Niro stops much shorter than the Compass:

	Niro	Compass
60 to 0 MPH	121 feet	144 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	144 feet	151 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Niro’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 60 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Compass Trailhawk’s standard 65 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Niro’s wheelbase is 3.3 inches longer than on the Compass (107.1 inches vs. 103.8 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Niro is 1.4 inches wider in the front and 2.3 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Compass.

The Niro SX handles at .84 G’s, while the Compass Trailhawk pulls only .73 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Niro SX executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.7 seconds quicker than the Compass Trailhawk (27.9 seconds @ .59 average G’s vs. 29.6 seconds @ .53 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Niro’s turning circle is .5 feet tighter than the Compass Trailhawk’s (34.8 feet vs. 35.3 feet). The Niro’s turning circle is 1.5 feet tighter than the Compass 4x4 Sport/Latitude/Limited’s (34.8 feet vs. 36.3 feet).

Chassis

The Kia Niro may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 350 to 550 pounds less than the Jeep Compass.

The front grille of the Niro uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Compass doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The Niro has 5.5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Compass (105.1 vs. 99.6).

The Niro has 1.3 inches more front headroom, .3 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more rear headroom, 1.5 inches more rear legroom, 3.8 inches more rear hip room and .3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Compass.

Cargo Capacity

The Niro has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Compass with its rear seat folded (63.7 vs. 59.8 cubic feet).

Servicing Ease

The Niro uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Compass uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Niro SX’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Compass doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

On a hot day the Niro’s driver can lower the front windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Compass can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

When the Niro SX is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Compass’ mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

Both the Kia Niro and Jeep Compass offer exterior mirrors that can be folded to provide convenience. The Niro offers available power folding mirrors, which allow for easy, one-touch folding or unfolding at the driver’s discretion. This provides added convenience when maneuvering or parking, as well as when walking past the parked vehicle. In comparison, the Compass’ foldable mirrors are manual, requiring the driver to get out and physically fold them once parked and unfold them before getting in.

The Niro has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Compass and isn’t available on the Compass Sport.

The Niro’s standard automatic temperature control maintains the temperature you set, automatically controlling fan speed, vents and temperature to maintain a consistent, comfortable environment. The Compass Sport doesn’t offer automatic air conditioning.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Kia Niro, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Jeep Compass isn't recommended.

See Available Inventory