Honda has long been one of the best manufacturers for reliable economy cars. Today’s Accord and Civic continue to provide accessible and dependable transportation for the masses, and remain two of the few sedan nameplates that still sell strongly. However, they’ve also moved far beyond their economy roots to offer the latest safety, powertrain, and infotainment technology. With the Civic occupying space in the compact segment and the Accord being a mid-size model, it can be challenging to decide which of these sedans is best for your needs. Our on-paper Honda Civic vs. Honda Accord comparison aims to help you make that decision.

All data is supplied by the manufacturer for this on-paper comparison, which is based on the 2025 Civic and 2025 Accord.

A Basic Overview Of The Contenders

The Civic (pictured left) and Accord (pictured right) are both reasonably practical vehicles for daily driving, commuting, transporting passengers, and picking up the groceries, but they differ in some ways. At a glance, the basic differences are shown in the chart below. To start, the Accord is more expensive than the Civic by a solid $4,000, but that extra price difference comes with some benefits. Here’s a look at some of the basic Honda Civic vs. Honda Accord specs.

Civic Vs. Accord Design And Dimensions

The Accord is a bigger car—that’s the main difference—but it comes with larger cargo capacity and more room for passengers in the back seats. The Civic is still a perfectly reasonable choice for all of those purposes, but if you have taller passengers, bigger grocery hauls, or even need to use your cargo area for moving or a beach day with all your toys, then the Accord is the way to go.

2025 Honda Civic

Even though it’s the smaller of the two sedans, the 2025 Civic is not small. It features a modern exterior with somewhat angry-looking LED headlights on either side of the wide grille that connects to long lines running down either side of the car to a small trunk. The car’s dimensions are small enough to get around a city, being only 70.9 inches wide and 184.8 inches long, but the interior has enough room to still be practical (more on that later).

Civic Sedan Standard Exterior Features

• 16-inch steel wheels with covers
• LED headlights and daytime running lights
• Available power moonroof

The Civic lineup includes the sporty Si model; there is no sport-oriented Accord. The Civic Si gets a power moonroof, gloss-black side mirrors, dual chrome exhaust finishers, and a gloss black decklid spoiler.

2025 Honda Accord

Honda gives us a bit more room and size with the Accord. This midsize sedan measures at 195.7 inches long, nearly 11 inches longer than the Civic, and 73.3 inches wide, which is only a couple inches wider than the Civic. While that might not seem like much on paper, the Accord feels bigger when driving around a city or parking in tighter lots and parking structures. However, the exterior styling is just as sharp with a somewhat aggressive front fascia connecting the wide grill and angry LED headlights to smooth side panels that run to the flat, large trunk.

Accord Sedan Standard Exterior Features

• 17-inch alloy wheels
• LED headlights, daytime running lights, and taillights
• Available power moonroof

The base Accord isn’t as bare-bones as the entry-level Civic; for example, it has alloy wheels and LED taillights. All Accords also get an active shutter grille and most models get a power moonroof. Overall, it’s a less sporty but more premium-looking sedan than the Civic.

Performance: Both Sedans Favor Efficiency Over Hot Performance

There is not much difference between the Accord and Civic in terms of powertrains, but both give decent performance and get you to where you need to go in an efficient way. The two sedans come with internal combustion engines and hybrid options, though the hybrids are more expensive and also tend to include more luxury and comfort features.

2025 Honda Civic Sedan

While the bottom two trim levels, the LX and EX, come with standard internal combustion engines, the top two trims provide decent hybrid powertrains with usable power and especially good fuel efficiency. None of the Civics here are particularly fast (you’ll have to move up a level to the Civic Si), but the hybrids do have respectable zero to sixty times for getting up to speed on the highway, but not much more than that. Besides power numbers, one difference between trims is that the Sport trim has paddle shifters and various other cosmetic differences compared to the LX despite having the same powertrain.

The Civic Si’s six-speed manual gearbox and uniquely tuned suspension make it the most fun to drive of the bunch, and certainly more enjoyable than any version of the Accord, which does not have an Si version.

2025 Honda Accord

The base model LX trim for the 2025 Honda Accord has a smaller 1.5 liter turbocharged inline-four-cylinder engine that makes more horsepower and torque than the 2.0L in the Civic. Even though the Accord is larger and heavier, the extra power produced even at the base level makes it about a second faster to 60. The hybrids, however, are about the same in the 0-60 sprint (if not a tad slower), but Honda has not released its own numbers for the 0-60 mph time, so independent test results have been used.

Base Accord models are much punchier performers than the base Civic, while the hybrids of each deliver similar power and performance.

Interior And Tech: More Space And Luxury For Accord

Both Honda sedans have smart, high-quality interiors with excellent ergonomics. The digital displays do not overwhelm, as there are still several knobs and buttons to control key functions. While each sedan can comfortably seat adults at the back, the Accord offers more legroom. Being a mid-size sedan, there are also more features and slightly better materials in the Accord. However, the Civic is built to such a high standard that you are unlikely to feel shortchanged, especially by opting for one of the upper trims. Below, we’ve compared the spec sheet for the Touring Hybrid trims – the range-topping trims – of each model.

Civic Vs. Accord Pricing

Given the better performance, larger cargo space, passenger space, and dimensions in general, among other luxury and comfort features, the Accord starts and ends more expensive than the Civic.

Civic Lineup Pricing

* Excludes tax, license, registration, options, destination, and any rebates

Accord Lineup Pricing

* Excludes tax, license, registration, options, destination, and any rebates

Summary: You Can’t Go Wrong With Either Sedan

When all is considered, you really can’t go wrong with either car. For the price, the 2025 Honda Civic packs a decent punch with enough comfort features and somewhat reasonable power to commute or make local trips. In the Si, the Civic also offers the only truly sporty model between these two sedans’ ranges. The Accord is the one you want for rear seat passengers, or if you frequently have more to haul—and it comes standard with more luxury features. One aspect where both cars are great is their hybrid trims’ fuel efficiency. They are both more than reasonable choices, even if they cost more than the lower trims.

Sources: Honda