By the size and appearance, it is easy to see why many buyers would consider the 2021 Kia Soul a boxy-shaped sedan. In fact, if you walked past one, you might be tempted to call it a car, but in reality, it is actually a subcompact SUV. There might be more to the 2021 Kia Soul than meets the eye, and the fact that it is categorized as a subcompact SUV is only one thing you might be missing out on.

The 2021 Kia Soul is technically an SUV

You probably haven’t given much thought to how the 2021 Kia Soul is categorized among other vehicles, but if you do a quick search to compare it to other vehicles, you may notice that it appears in the category of subcompact SUVs rather than sedans or hatchbacks. It’s on the compact size of SUVs will still offering more interior space and cargo capacity than your standard sedan, making it a happy medium for many buyers.

What gives the 2021 Kia Soul an extra edge isn’t just that it is one of the most affordable subcompact SUVs on the market — making it a great option for commuters who need to balance space with fuel economy or big-city drivers who don’t want the hassle of driving a full-sized SUV — it is also offered as an EV, making it part of a unique market of EV subcompact SUVs.

It’s an affordable subcompact SUV option

If you’re interested in the 2021 Kia Soul, you’ll be happy to know that it is competitively priced among the subcompact SUV segment. The starting MSRP for a base model Soul shows a sticker price of $17,590 and ranging upwards of $29,235 for the highest performance trim level available, the Turbo. The 2021 Kia Soul also gets bonus points for its available drivetrain options, which include a turbocharged option and a seemingly more rare manual transmission option.

• LX (base model): $20,660
• S: $22,245
• GT-Line: $23,380
• X-Line: $23,520
• EX: $24,825
• Turbo: $29,235

Which trim level is the best?

According to Edmunds, the 2021 Kia Soul has plenty of good options among the extensive list of trim levels, but the best bang for your buck is the EX, which just happens to also be one of the highest, most expensive trim level options that there is. It offers the most amount of features and safety tech for the price, and while it isn’t as sporty of choice as the highest trim level option, the Turbo does well to balance what it has to offer with the price.

You might be surprised to see the 2021 Kia Soul categorized as a subcompact SUV — but, then again, you might not. For the size, it certainly doesn’t compare to the towing or cargo capacities of larger, more robust SUVs, but it still offers quite a bit more space and storage than your average car.