Ford Maverick vs Hyundai Santa Cruz pricing

After Hyundai released its Santa Cruz pricing this week, there has been a lot of chatter about how expensive it is compared to the Ford Maverick. Ford is playing up the $20K base price, and Hyundai is playing up the features. So, we had to ask: All things being equal, what is the real Maverick vs Santa Cruz pricing?

We went back to the Ford.com configurator and tried to build out a Maverick that has similar features to the base Santa Cruz SE. Here’s what we found.

You can’t really do it.

For example, 18-inch wheels, which are standard on the Santa Cruz are only available on the top-tier Lariat trim of the Maverick ($26,985). Lane keep assist and blind-spot monitoring aren’t standard, so you have to add the CoPilot 360 package ($540), which takes the price up to $27,525. But presumably, the Maverick at this level will have things the base Santa Cruz doesn’t have. We haven’t seen the full spec build out yet for Santa Cruz, but it’s safe to assume the SE ($25,175) won’t have a power driver’s seat or dual automatic climate control.

However, there’s a whole list of features on the base Santa Cruz, that won’t be showing up on Maverick at all – such as the in-bed storage, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and a remote-open tailgate.

One thing the Hyundai Santa Cruz has that the Ford Maverick will not have: in-bed storage. (Image courtesy of Hyundai Motors America)

It’s also worth noting all-wheel drive is a $1,500 add on the Santa Cruz, and it’s available on both the base and up-level engines. However, if you want AWD on the Maverick, it’s only available with the 2.0-liter EcoBoost, thus it adds $3,305 to the front-wheel-drive price.

So, while a Maverick vs Santa Cruz pricing comparison is nice in theory, it’s really hard to execute. As we’ve stated on various livestreams, we really think these trucks are going to target two very different customers. Though this is technically an apples-to-apples comparison, it’s kind of like comparing Granny Smith to Red Delicious. Some people will like both, but the majority are either look for a sharp, bright flavor or something a little on the sweeter side.

And because we were curious, we figured you might be, too. So, we prepped the pricing information we have for both Maverick and Santa Cruz and dropped them into tables below for easier side-by-side comparison.

Ford Maverick pricing

Hyundai Santa Cruz pricing

Editor’s note: Above pricing includes the destination fees of $1,495 for Maverick and $1,185 for Santa Cruz. Also, the $645 “acquisition fee” has been deleted from the Lariat trim pricing on Maverick.

The bottom line on Maverick vs Santa Cruz pricing

There is no question that the Ford compact pickup wins the Maverick vs Santa Cruz pricing war. But. We’re pretty sure the Hyundai compact pickup will win the content war. Thus, it all goes back to what you’re looking for.

They’re both built on SUV unibody platforms, and they’ll both have a more “carlike” ride. However, Maverick will be more rugged and work capable, whereas Santa Cruz will have more luxury amenities (think heated-and-cooled seats) and cool tech.

So, are you Team Maverick or Team Santa Cruz?

Related posts:

• Hyundai Santa Cruz compact pickup to start at $25k
• New Ford Maverick pricing tops out around $36K
• 2022 Ford Maverick price: Is the XLT build the sweet spot?