Compare the2027 Nissan Kicks VS 2027 Kia Seltos

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

The Nissan Kicks has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags help prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Seltos doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Kicks SR offers an optional front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Seltos doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Nissan Kicks achieved a “Acceptable” rating - the second highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Kia Seltos has not been tested.

The Kicks has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Seltos’ blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kicks has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Seltos S/EX/X-Line S/X-Line SX offers Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning.

The Kicks offers optional NissanConnect Services, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Seltos doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Kicks and the Seltos have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, 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, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all-wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Kicks’ 5 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Seltos runs out after 100,000 miles.

There are over 32 percent more Nissan dealers than there are Kia dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Kicks’ warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than Kia vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan second in initial quality, above the industry average. With 12 more problems per 100 vehicles, Kia is ranked 8th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2026 Auto Issue reports that Nissan vehicles are more reliable than Kia vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Nissan 4 places higher in reliability than Kia.

The Kicks’ 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 8 lbs.-ft. more torque (140 vs. 132) than the Seltos’ standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Nissan Kicks is faster than the Kia Seltos 4 cyl.:

	Kicks	Seltos
Zero to 60 MPH	8.7 sec	11 sec
Quarter Mile	16.6 sec	18.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	85.8 MPH	77.1 MPH

On the EPA test cycle the Kicks gets better mileage than the Seltos:

			MPG
Kicks
	FWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	28 city/35 hwy
	AWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/34 hwy
Seltos
	FWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	28 city/33 hwy
	AWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	26 city/30 hwy
		1.6 turbo 4-cyl.	24 city/30 hwy

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Kicks’ engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Seltos doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

The Kicks has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Seltos doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Nissan Kicks higher (7 out of 10) than the Kia Seltos (6). This means the Kicks produces up to 1.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Seltos every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Kicks’ standard front brake rotors are larger than those on the Seltos:

	Kicks	Seltos
Front Rotors	11.6 inches	11 inches

The Kicks stops shorter than the Seltos:

	Kicks	Seltos
70 to 0 MPH	176 feet	181 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	127 feet	131 feet	Motor Trend

For better traction, the Kicks has larger standard tires than the Seltos (215/65R16 vs. 205/65R16).

The Kicks has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Seltos doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Kicks has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Kicks flat and controlled during cornering. The Seltos 4x2 suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Kicks SR AWD handles at .84 G’s, while the Seltos X-Line SX pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Kicks SR AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Seltos EX AWD (28 seconds @ .59 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .57 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Kicks has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Seltos LX (8.4 vs. 7.5 inches), allowing the Kicks to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Kicks’ minimum ground clearance is .3 inch higher than on the Seltos X-Line SX (8.4 vs. 8.1 inches).

The Kicks has a much larger cargo volume than the Seltos with its rear seat up (30 vs. 27.8 cubic feet).

The Kicks’ front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Seltos’ standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. With the Seltos EX/X-Line SX’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

The Kicks’ speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Seltos’ manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Nissan Kicks, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Nissan Kicks outsold the Kia Seltos by 82% during 2025.