The Subaru Forester has been a staple in the United States, touted for its reliability and off-road capabilities. It’s sort of like the adventurer’s RAV4. Subaru sold 175,070 units in 2025, making the Forester its second-best seller after the Crosstrek. However, the new Mazda CX-5 may cause some wandering eyes and lower sales numbers in 2026.
The 2026 Mazda CX-5 has arrived at essentially the same price as the Forester — about $29,000 — to start but plenty more to offer.
Subaru Forester vs. Mazda CX-5: Road trip ready
The Subaru Forester often stands out from other SUVs in the (seemingly endless) lineup due to its more outdoorsy aesthetic. That unsightly black plastic cladding is meant to indicate that the Forester is ready for adventure, especially if you pay about $10,000 more for the Wilderness trim. But even the standard comes with all-wheel drive, higher ground clearance than a standard SUV, and X-MODE for traction management. However, it’s a bit like the bz Woodland, where it’s touted as an off-road machine but probably won’t be your go-to for tackling rocky, uneven terrain and muddy hills.
Most people who get a Forester are probably using it more for weekend road trips up to Northern California than for hoping to get stuck on the Rubicon Trail once you arrive. And sadly, the Forester doesn’t fully excel here either. MotorTrend recently took the Forester on a long drive that sounded absolutely beautiful — but the Forester unfortunately took away from that peace by being pretty loud while driving on the highway. The constant noise inside the cabin led MotorTrend to say they’re “hesitant to call it a great road-trip vehicle.”
Meanwhile, the Mazda CX-5 has become the ultimate road trip vehicle in 2026. Edmunds wrote: ” The new CX-5 isn’t upset by rougher roads in construction zones, and the sometimes pockmarked highways north of San Diego, California, have ragged pavement that the CX-5 effortlessly dispatches. It’s also pretty quiet, and the seats remain comfortable over several hours behind the wheel.”
While the CX-5 had to give up some of its sportiness to achieve this, it may be worth it since most people are getting an SUV to have a comfortable, reliable weekend road trip rather than a spirited canyon drive. Even still, Mazda improved engine response, and the dampers have reduced friction. This has given the CX-5 pretty noteworthy handling for an SUV of its weight (it’s even bigger than the 2025 model), although the Forester isn’t too shabby. It’s just not a Mazda.
Subaru Forester vs. Mazda CX-5: An improved interior
Speaking of road trips, you can’t enjoy an SUV road trip without an interior you want to live inside. At $30,000, neither the Forester nor the CX-5 will truly replace your living room, but the new CX-5 has plenty to keep you comfortable and relaxed.
Consumer Reports said that the 2026 Subaru Forester takes a “no-frills approach,” mentioning its hard steering wheel and plastic panels throughout the cabin. Sounds like they are trying to say it’s “cheap” in a much nicer way. However, the Forester has up to 30 cubic feet of storage space behind the rear seats when the rear seats are upright. When the second-row seats are folded down, the cargo space jumps to 75 cubic feet.
Meanwhile, the CX-5 interior punches above its price tag. It has noticeably more cargo space than the 2025 version, offering 33.7 cubic feet behind the rear seats, which expands to 66.5 cubic feet with the rear seats folded, now keeping up with the Forester. On top of the similar cargo space, it has a very quality steering wheel with some padding for a softer feel and buttons that offer haptic feedback. It also introduces a new infotainment system to complete the premium feel. The interface is easy to use and feels responsive. Again, we’re not looking at a groundbreaking interior but I think the CX-5 has the Forester beat at its price level.
You’re not going to explore a trail with the CX-5. But let’s be real — most Forester owners are not doing that multiple times a week. When you compare both of these SUVs when it comes to daily driving and road trips, the CX-5 is more enjoyable due to its upgraded interior and impressive performance. There’s a reason the CX-5 surpassed 5 million sales worldwide. Now Americans just have to realize it’s more than a contender.
