Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

Long gone are the days of being judged for driving a minivan. Now, minivans include luxury features and still have plenty of room for the whole family. Depending on what you and your family are looking for, the best minivans this year deliver top-notch quality in a variety of areas.

From the Honda Odyssey’s high-tech ranking to value-driven Kia Sedona, there is plenty to choose from. Some focus on sustainability and eco-friendly options, while others target family-friendly convenience with built-in vacuums.

At a glance

Product Category Chrysler Pacifica Best minivan overall Toyota Sienna Best AWD minivan Honda Odyssey Best high-tech minivan Kia Sedona Best value minivan

Chrysler Pacifica

The best

Why you should buy this: It does everything a minivan should, and more.

Who it’s for: Style-conscious parents.

How much it will cost: $33,745+

Why we picked the Chrysler Pacifica:

Every automaker seems to be dialing up the effort when it comes to minivan styling, but Chrysler’s designers created the most handsome model in the segment. While other brands have added elaborate styling features in an apparent attempt to combat the minivan’s reputation for sedative-like boringness, the sleeker-looking Pacifica is simply a pleasing design.

On the inside, the Pacifica’s cabin has a high-quality feel. Particularly on higher trim levels, the quality of the materials is a cut above most mainstream vehicles. The upscale atmosphere of the interior is matched by a refined ride, which is a benefit of the new platform Chrysler developed specifically for the Pacifica.

On top of those fundamentals, the Pacifica offers clever features like the Stow N’ Go folding seat system, which allows the seats to disappear flat into the floor and create a cavernous cargo space. You can even get a built-in vacuum cleaner, and an AT&T 4G LTE connection that provides Wi-Fi for up to eight devices.

The Pacifica is also the only minivan available with an electrified powertrain. The Pacifica Hybrid adds an electric motor, along with a floor-mounted lithium-ion battery pack. Fully charged, it can cruise for up to 33 miles on electric power alone. The 3.6-liter V6 in non-hybrid models also offers a healthy 287 horsepower, so the Pacifica is quicker than its proportions suggest.

At the other end of the spectrum, Chrysler resurrected the Voyager nameplate on an entry-level minivan with fewer standard features, less bling, and a more affordable price. It starts at $26,685.

Read our Chrysler Pacifica first-drive review

Toyota Sienna

The best AWD minivan

Why you should buy this: It’s the only minivan with available all-wheel drive.

Who it’s for: Families who live in snowy climates.

How much it will cost: $31,640+ ($37,000+ with all-wheel drive)

Why we picked the Toyota Sienna:

One of the main reasons many people buy SUVs is the availability of all-wheel drive. It’s a useful feature that the minivan segment admittedly doesn’t offer many options for. In fact, as of 2019, the Toyota Sienna is the only minivan currently sold in the United States with all-wheel drive. The Sienna may be the only choice, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad one.

The Sienna is sensible and reliable, which is exactly what you’d expect from Toyota. While the basic design is fairly old, the styling still manages to look fresh. The sole available engine option is a 3.5-liter V6, which produces 296 hp and 263 pound-feet of torque, and shifts through an eight-speed automatic transmission. Toyota also offers Wi-Fi connectivity for up to five devices, and a bundle of standard electronic safety features that includes pedestrian detection, adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning, and automatic high beams.

While the words “sporty” and “minivan” don’t typically go together, Toyota at least tried to make the Sienna fun to drive. An SE model adds sportier suspension and 19-inch wheels, plus some boy-racer styling elements. In 2017, Toyota actually sent two Sienna vans on the One Lap of America, a cross-country marathon where entrants drive to a series of racetracks to compete.

Honda Odyssey

The best high-tech minivan

Why you should buy this: It will keep your kids quiet.

Who it’s for: Parents in need of peace.

How much it will cost: $30,790+

Why we picked the Honda Odyssey:

Fully redesigned for the 2018 model year, the Honda Odyssey gains an impressive array of tech features to help parents keep a car full of kids pacified.

The list of available tech features includes ones you might expect, like an 8.0-inch central touchscreen for the infotainment system, and a rear-seat entertainment system. However, the Odyssey can also tell passengers in the back seats exactly how much longer they need to wait before getting to their destination. It’s also offered with a camera system that monitors the rear seats, and an intercom to let rear-seat passengers talk to the ones up front.

An appropriate feature for a vehicle that can seat up to eight people is Social Play List, which allows everyone in the Odyssey to upload songs from their smartphones to the audio system. 4G LTE technology provides Wi-Fi connectivity to power all of those smartphones.

On the mechanical side, the Odyssey is offered solely with a 3.5-liter V6, which produces a stout 280 hp. Base models get a nine-speed automatic transmission, but a 10-speed automatic is also available as an option.

Kia Sedona

The best value minivan

Why you should buy this: You want a lot of space for not a lot of money.

Who it’s for: Budget-conscious buyers.

How much it will cost: $27,600+

Why we picked the Kia Sedona:

As you might expect, Kia offers the best value proposition in the minivan segment. The Sedona’s $27,600 base price undercuts its Toyota and Honda competitors, and just about matches the Chrysler Voyager, which starts around the same price but gets expensive quickly with options. Kia continues to offer a 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty. But the Sedona has other good qualities as well.

In terms of styling, the Sedona offers something for buyers who wish they were driving an SUV. The blunt nose and distinct hood line help give it a less van-like profile. The interior is sensibly laid out, and Kia offers reclining second-row captain’s chairs on higher-end models to provide a more luxurious feel.

The only available powertrain is a 3.3-liter V6, which sends 276 hp and 248 lb-ft to the front wheels. An eight-speed automatic transmission replaces the old six-speed automatic for the 2019 model year. As with other minivans, no one will ever mistake the Sedona for a sports car, but Kia claims the structure is among the most rigid in the segment, which imparts good handling qualities.

How we test

The Digital Trends car team tests vehicles through a comprehensive scrutinizing process. We closely examine every part of the car and judge it based on our expertise and experience in the context of the vehicle’s category and price range. Infotainment and connectivity technology is thoroughly tested, as well as safety features that can be tested in controlled environments.

Test drivers spend extensive time behind the wheel of the vehicles, conducting real-world testing, driving them on highways, back roads, as well as off-road and race tracks when applicable.

What makes a minivan a minivan?

If you look at modern minivans, it’s hard to find anything “mini” about them. What complicates this category even more is that you’ll see car manufacturers advertise smaller vans that look like minivans, but don’t qualify as one.

Chrysler created the template for minivans when it launched the first generation of this automotive species in the late 1980s. Minivans use two main elements: a unibody platform, and a design that’s meant for carrying passengers (like kids) rather than storing cargo. Even if they’ve only gotten bigger, minivans don’t stray too far from their origins.

The new breed of small vans — including the Ford Transit Connect, Nissan NV200, Ram Promaster City, and Mercedes-Benz Metris — are designed more like conventional vans. That means they are meant to be commercial vehicles as well as passenger vehicles, a distinction that is reflected in their relative lack of refinement and amenities compared to minivans.

Editors' Recommendations