When looking for the perfect midsize SUV, it’s easy to ignore the exact size. It’s a midsize, after all, so you should have plenty of room for your stuff, right? But that’s not always the case.

While the Honda Pilot and Honda Passport are considered midsize SUVs, the Pilot is bigger. So does this actually matter? It could, especially when you’ve got a lot of passengers in the back, or you need the extra room when going on a road trip.

Exterior dimensions of the Honda Passport and Pilot

The exterior of a vehicle can determine where you park. With midsize SUVs, it’s not that big of a deal, but it’s always good to know the dimensions just in case. This is especially true if you’re going off-roading. While neither the Honda Passport nor Pilot can handle trails like the Wrangler or Bronco, you can still do some light trails.

Honda reports that the Passport has a length of 189.1 inches, a height of 71.6 inches, and a width of 78.6 inches. The ground clearance is 7.5 inches for FWD, while it’s 8.1 inches unladen. The approach and departure angles are 20.1° / 23.4°.

Meanwhile, according to Honda, the 2022 Pilot has a length of 196.5 inches, a height of 70.6 inches, and a width of 78.6 inches. The ground clearance is 7.3 inches. The approach and departure angles are 19.7° / 20.8°.

The Pilot is slightly bigger when it comes to length. It’s 7.4 inches longer than the Passport. On the other hand, the Passport is 1.0 inches taller, while both vehicles have the same width. As far as the ground clearance, the Passport gets .02 more inches. The approach and departure are also slightly higher, with an increase of 0.4°/2.6°.

Passport and Pilot Cabin and passenger space

Whether you have lots of small children or like to go places with adult friends, interior space is very important. It will determine how comfortable everyone is on a trip.

The 2022 Honda Passport’s front row has 39.5 inches and 40.0 inches in the back row. The legroom is 40.9 inches front and 39.6 inches back. The shoulder room for the front is 62.0 inches, while the back is 69.1 inches. Finally, the hip room is 59.1 inches for the front and 57.3 inches for the back.

The 2022 Honda Pilot headroom is 39.5 inches up the front, 39.9 inches for the middle row, and 38.9 inches for the back. The legroom has 40.9 inches up front, 38.4 inches in the middle, and 31.9 inches in the back. The hip room, which is often overlooked, includes 59.1 inches front, 57.3 inches middle, and 44.6 inches back. Finally, the shoulder room has 62.0 inches front, 62.0 inches in the middle, and 57.6 inches in the back.

There is the same amount of headroom in the front for both vehicles, while the Passport has 1.1 inches more in the back. The Passport wins again in the legroom department, with 7.7 more inches. The Pilot trails the Passport in terms of hip room by 12.7 inches near the back while they both tie in the front. The Pilot is also smaller in shoulder room, as it has 4.3 inches less than the Passport.

However, it’s important to note that while each seat of the Pilot often offers less space compared to the Passport, that is because the Pilot can seat up to seven or eight passengers with its three rows, while the Passport can only fit up to five passengers in its two-row build. Therefore, the overall passenger volume for the Pilot is 151.7 cu ft. This is much roomier than the Passport’s overall passenger volume of 114.9 cu ft.

Cargo capacity of the Honda Passport and Pilot

How much cargo space you have is vital, as it determines how many groceries, luggage, and other big-ticket items like TVs you can fit in the vehicle, and the Honda Pilot easily wins this round. That’s largely thanks to its third row and its ability to lay the seats flat.

The Honda Pilot has 83.8 cu ft / 109.2 cu ft behind the front row, 46.8 cu ft / 55.9 cu ft behind the second. The third row gets 16.5 cu ft / 18.5 cu ft. 

The cargo volume behind the Honda Passport’s first row is 41.2 cu ft / 50.5 cu ft. The second row has 77.7 cu ft / 100.8 cu ft cargo volume.

Given the ground clearance and approach/departure, the Passport might be better for someone looking to go off-roading on the weekend. On the other hand, the Pilot’s superior exterior length, passenger space, and cargo volume make it perfect for carrying more passengers. Both tend to get good ratings, so whichever model you decide to go with is a safe bet.