Range Rover Vs Land Rover: What's The Difference?

Land Rover and Range Rover are two names are sure to cross your mind when you try to picture the ideal SUV — one that looks just as comfortable cruising the muddy roads of Vermont as it does when parked outside a five-star hotel in New York. And if you've ever wondered if they mean one and the same thing, you are not alone. Someone might say, "I'm driving my Range," even when they're technically behind the wheel of Land Rover Discovery.

The distinction between them seems to have blurred somewhere along the road, leaving many people confused, with some — especially in pop culture — even using them interchangeably. The problem is, as you may have gathered, they're not the same. Land Rover is the parent brand, with seven lines of rugged, high-end 4X4s under its badge, some of which belong to the Range Rover family. In simpler terms, Land Rover is the "make," whereas Range Rover is simply the "model," arguably their most luxurious one. That means if you see a Range Rover, you're looking at a Land Rover, but the reverse doesn't quite apply as a Land Rover could just as easily be a Defender or a Discovery, too.

During the late 1960s, Charles Spencer King, also known as Spen King, served as Rover's chief engineer and designer. Up to that point, Land Rover had always been a rugged, farm-ready workhorse – a legacy that began with their Series I back in 1948. England's economy seemed to be recovering quite well after World War II, and a new demand for big, off-road vehicles that are also wrapped in luxury and style was on the rise. That was when Spencer presented the concept of a high-end SUV to Land Rover executives in 1966, officially launching in 1970. Instead of coming up with a whole new brand, an option Rover (the parent company at the time) explored, it simply created a new segment under Land Rover, and called it the Land Rover Range Rover.

Now, decades later, Range Rover still holds its reputation as the ultimate SUV that is just as capable in the mud as it is on city streets and is one of those rare vehicles that even non-gearheads can pick out in an instant. And as mentioned earlier, the Range Rover is a family, with several models under it. From the full-sized luxury of the flagship Range Rover to the sporty Range Rover Sport, the elegant Range Rover Velar, and the compact Range Rover Evoque, each model caters to a distinct lifestyle — yet all have the same heritage of performance, prestige, and off-road prowess.

As we've established, Range Rovers are great off roaders in their own right, but their focus is more on luxury, making them best suited to a more affluent clientele. However, the other three Land Rover SUVs (siblings to the Range Rover line) are designed to be more practical and rugged, with even more focus on pure off-road ability. They include the Land Rover Discovery, which is more like the Swiss Army knife of the entire Land Rover lineup — comfortable enough for long family road trips, while also being able to wade through rivers and crawl over rocks without flinching.

This same spirit of utility is carried over into a more compact form with the smaller Land Rover Discovery Sport, first introduced in 2014. For those who want a proper Land Rover without going full-size, it's a great option. 

Then there's the Defender, which — unlike the other Land Rover models – traces its origins back to the Series 1, launched in 1948 and technically the very first Land Rover ever built. However, what was one the raggedy farm rig (exactly what you needed to glide through muddy or rocky trails back then) has evolved over time into what is now the Land Rover Defender. In 2020, Land Rover found it best to give it a completely new look to make it more comfortable and add modern tech for drivers, without losing its rugged look, which most may argue they did perfectly.