2018 Honda Civic Hatchback: 25.7 Cubic Feet
2018 Honda HR-V: 24.3 Cubic Feet
The Honda HR-V may be one the most spacious subcompact SUVs, but the Civic Hatchback still trumps it. The handsome hatch has 25.7 cubic feet of rear cargo room compared to the HR-V’s 24.3 cubic feet. With the rear seats folded flat, the HR-V is superior with 58.8 cubic feet – but the Civic is still pretty spacious with 46.2 cubic feet of room.
2018 Ford Focus: 23.8 Cubic Feet
2018 Ford EcoSport: 20.9 Cubic Feet
The Ford EcoSport is the second most spacious subcompact SUV on this list with the rear seats folded flat; total rear cargo room stretches to 50 cubic feet. But with the second row up, it’s three cubic feet down on the outgoing Focus hatchback, which has a hearty 23.8 cubic feet of rear cargo room. The new 2019 Focus is even larger, but we won't get that one in the U.S.
2018 Kia Forte5: 23.2 Cubic Feet
2018 Kia Soul: 18.8 Cubic Feet
Though the Kia Forte5 isn’t the best-selling vehicle on this list (and it probably won't stick around with the arrival of the new sedan), it’s one of the most spacious. It bests the Soul – which the NHTSA classifies as a small SUV – in both rear cargo room and total volume. The Forte5 has 23.2 cubic feet of room behind the third row, and 56.4 cubic feet with the rear seats folded flat.
2018 Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback: 22.7 Cubic Feet
2018 Chevrolet Trax: 18.7 Cubic Feet
The Chevrolet Trax, with only 18.7 cubic feet, is a whole four cubic feet less spacious than the Cruze Hatchback (22.7 cubic feet). Only when you fold the second row flat does the Trax show some improvement, jumping to 48.4 cubic feet – but it’s still only a small victory over the Cruze’s 47.2 cubic feet.
2018 Subaru Impreza: 20.8 Cubic Feet
2018 Subaru Crosstrek: 20.8 Cubic Feet
The Subaru Crosstrek has a competitive 20.8 cubic feet behind its second row, and 55.3 cubes with the rear seat folded flat. That’s near-best in the segment. But remember, the Crosstrek is essentially just a five-door Impreza on stilts; the Impreza hatch has the exact same amount of cargo room as the Crosstrek: 20.8 cubic feet behind the second row and 55.3 cubic feet with the second row folded flat.
2018 Toyota Corolla iM: 20.8 Cubic Feet
2018 Toyota C-HR: 19.0 Cubic Feet
The Toyota Corolla iM soldiers on through the 2018 model year, but it soon will be replaced by the all-around better Corolla Hatchback. In terms of cargo volume, though, the Corolla iM has a bit more space behind its second row than both the new Corolla Hatch and the high-riding C-HR. The Corolla iM boasts 20.8 cubic feet, the C-HR has 19.0 cubic feet, and the new Corolla Hatch has just 18.0 cubic feet.
2018 Mazda3: 20.2 Cubic Feet
2018 Mazda CX-3: 12.4 Cubic Feet
Neither the Mazda3 nor the CX-3 are the most spacious options in their class. But you’d be surprised at how much room the hatchback has over the small SUV. The Mazda3 hatch has 20.2 cubic feet of rear cargo room behind the second row, while the CX-3 has a measly 12.4. With the rear seats folded flat, that number jumps up to 47.1 cubic feet for the 3, and 44.5 cubic feet for the CX-3.
2019 Hyundai Veloster: 19.9 Cubic Feet
2019 Hyundai Kona: 19.2 Cubic Feet
After driving the new Veloster, we realized the fun and well-styled hatchback more cargo room than the Kona. The Veloster has 19.9 cubic feet of storage room behind the rear row compared to the Kona’s 19.2 cubic feet. Of course, if you put all the seats down on the Kona that space extends to 45.8 cubic feet; the Veloster has just 44.5 cubic feet of room with the rear seats folded flat.
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