5 Of The Most Spacious SUVs Under $50,000, Ranked By Cargo Capacity

Choosing an SUV offers plenty of benefits — ones that have made the segment one of the most popular on American roads. With almost every major manufacturer now producing a variety of different large vehicles, the competition has never been tougher, nor has the choice of which one to buy. Among the benefits, the extra space you get for cargo, alongside the natural increase in versatility on and off-road capabilities, thanks to the size.

While the largest full-size models fetch rather high price tags, there's a handful of mid-size models that manage to stay under the $50,000 mark and encroach upon those in the full-size segment. Manufacturers generally try to offer as much cargo space as possible to offer the title of most spacious mid-size SUV, leading to the high numbers you can find in some of the latest models on the market. Here's a look at five SUVs with the most cargo space, all sitting below $50,000 MSRP.

The top Asian manufacturers offer some of the best SUV cargo in their respective segments. Marketed as the sportier, more modern brand when it comes to design philosophy, Kia has a presence in the SUV scene that's not far behind its parent company, Hyundai, and its Telluride is the largest nameplate in the segment from the brand.

The 2025 Kia Telluride is certainly one of the more attractive SUVs. Priced at $36,390, it's also one of the cheapest among spacious mid-size SUVs, but it didn't trail much when looking at the spec sheet. Behind the first row, the Telluride offers a solid 87 cubic feet of cargo volume, narrowly edging out its Hyundai counterpart in the Palisade by 0.3 cubic feet. As are most mid-size SUVs at this price point, the Telluride comes with three rows of seats as standard. Behind the second row, you get 46 cubic feet of space, and 21 cubic feet behind the third row.

The 2025 Telluride comes standard with a 12.3-inch touchscreen. This is connected to a 4.2-inch gauge display in the first three trims, but SX models get a larger 12.3-inch screen to match. Looking under the bodywork, the SUV is motivated by a 3.8L V6 engine, producing 291 hp and 262 pound-feet of torque.

On to the European brands, Volkswagen is your best bet if you're looking for a mid-size SUV with ample space in the back. However, the largest model isn't actually sold in Europe. Instead it's produced this side of the pond in Tennessee. The manufacturer doesn't have a full-size SUV in production, but that doesn't stop it from offering one of the most spacious SUVs for this price point in the Atlas. While a mid-size SUV by proportion, this is another nameplate in the segment with a third row of seats as standard. It boasts a solid 33.7 inches of legroom alongside its incredibly generous trunk space. This is something that we particularly appreciated in our review of the 2025 model.

Regarding its cargo space, the 2026 Volkswagen Atlas offers up to 96.6 cubic feet of volume behind the first row, falling ever-so-slightly short of the models that get closest to the top on the list. Behind the second row, the number drops to 55.5 cubic feet, and 20.6 cubic feet behind the third row. Across the board, you can expect the Atlas in its SE trim to tick all the boxes when it comes to storage for its price tag of $39,310, along with a destination charge. Under the hood, a turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder engine produces 269 hp and 273 pound-feet of torque.

Among Toyota's large fleet of SUVs, the Japanese giant offers two slightly different models under the Highlander umbrella: the standard Highlander, which is a great SUV in its own right, and the Grand Highlander. With cargo volume being a crucial aspect during your search for your next SUV, the Grand Highlander is essentially an extended version of the Highlander, providing more cargo space as well as room for more passengers in the third row.

While the standard Highlander tops out at 84.3 cubic feet , which still isn't small, the 2026 Grand Highlander stretches to a massive 97.5 cubic feet of space. With the third row folded down, you get 57.9 cubic feet of cargo volume, and 20.6 cubic feet with all rows upright. The latest Grand Highlander is one of the models on this list to break the $40,000 mark at $41,360 (with a $1,495 destination charge). Sharing its platform with the standard Highlander, the Grand Highlander is powered by a turbocharged 2.4L four-cylinder producing 265 hp and 310 pound-feet of torque, helping to justify the higher price tag compared to its rivals.

Coming off the back of its 2024 refresh, the Traverse remains one of the most attractive SUVs for a few key reasons, with its cargo space being one of them. Chevy's most expensive mid-size SUV didn't get off to a great start, plagued with reliability issues that make some model years a complete no-go. For the newer models, though, the outlook is much better, with the 2026 Traverse boasting a score of 84/100 from J.D. Power.

Regarding its cargo space, the 2026 Chevrolet Traverse comes with 97.6 cubic feet of volume behind the first row. Chevrolet says that this is best-in-class, which, if you don't go by the measurement guidelines that the next entry in this list uses, it would be correct. Almost 100 cubic feet inside a mid-size SUV is pretty impressive, with the quality being consistent throughout the cabin. Behind the second row, you get 56.6 cubic feet and 22.9 cubic feet behind the third row.

Alongside its cargo space, the 2026 Traverse comes standard with the 2.5L turbocharged four-cylinder that produces 328 horsepower and 326 pound-feet of torque, yet another way that the Traverse beats the competition. For pricing, the 2026 Traverse comes in at $40,800, with a $1,895 destination charge.

Last up is the Honda Pilot. Honda doesn't have a full-size SUV in production, leaving the mid-size Pilot in the top spot for overall space inside. Also being recently reworked in 2023 for its fourth generation, the Pilot looks and feels as fresh as you'd expect for its $40,200 price tag.

You get a solid selection of technology too, including the well-equipped Honda Sensing safety suite, but it's the cargo measurements that can cause a bit of confusion. Going by the standard SAE J1100 guidelines, the 2025 Pilot has 87 cubic feet of space behind the first row. While this still puts it among the most spacious in the segment, Honda also provides the volume using the SAE J1100 plus guidelines, which boosts the overall capacity to 111.8 cubic feet. The difference between the two is that the latter measures the floor space between the rows, which can't be said for measurements used by all manufacturers.

Still, no matter which measurement you use, there won't be a case where you run out of room inside the Honda Pilot. The mid-size SUV is powered by a 3.5L V6 producing 285 hp and 262 pound-feet of torque, also keeping it in contention when it comes to performance.