Best 7-seater electric cars & SUVs

With its space-age design cues, 210kW fast charging ability and varied seat layouts, the Kia EV9 is a popular choice among larger families with a bit more to spend and executive transport companies. Things kick off with the entry-level Air, which gets you seven seats, 202PS, and a 349-mile range. 

Of course, if you dig a bit deeper, you can have a more powerful 383PS powertrain, but the battery remains the same size at 99.8kWh, and the range-topping GT-Line S also comes with captain's chairs and a six-seat configuration. 

Second row passengers have stacks of leg and headroom although things get a touch tighter in the third row. Still, there’s enough room for passengers just over six feet. There are also cup holders and USB-C ports, meaning your children shouldn’t complain too much. 

If you plan on using the third row regularly, remember that your boot space drops to almost zero.

The Peugeot e-Rifter wasn’t designed with the NC500 in mind as it only has a 199-mile official range. Still, it offers heaps of room and costs less than £34,000 in its base trim. Spec the range-topping GT, and you’ll get slightly more tech, and it will still be way under £40k. 

The e-Rifter might not be the most thrilling of vehicles as it only has 137PS and 0-60mph in an uninspiring 11.2 seconds, but the 50kWh battery will charge at 100kW and go from empty to 80% in 30 minutes. 

Paddles behind the steering wheel control the regenerative braking levels and legroom is never an issue. Likewise, there's a handy opening tailgate window, which means you can pop your shopping through without opening the full tailgate. 

It’s worth remembering that although this isn’t the poshest seven-seater EV on our list or the one with the largest range. It does offer bang for buck in the seven-seater EV segment, however. 

Volkswagen’s ID Buzz was a breath of fresh air in the ever-growing electric car market. It looked utterly unique and it’s clear that its design cues were taken from the 1960s Microbus. 

If a bit of quirk is what you seek, then the ID Buzz might be the answer. Like the Kia EV9, there’s a six-seat option which starts at £59,185 while the seven-seater is priced from £59,545. Of course, if you need a bit more zest over the base van’s 285PS, then you can opt for the GTX which has 339PS. 

The five and six-seater guises get a 79kWh battery, but all the seven-seaters get a new 86kWh unit with the larger battery claiming to give around 277 miles on a single charge.

As with most six-seater EVs, there’s a sense of additional luxury because of the individual seating and extra overall room, but the seven-seater will still carry adults in comfort and there are also Isofix points on the rear seats. 

With the third row in place, there are 306 litres of boot to play with. Flatten the third row, and this hops to 1,340 litres. 

Peugeot has done a grand job with its e-5008; there’s lots to like such as its interior and exterior zest, range, and space. The 5008 has been around since 2009, but Peugeot has since electrified its family-friendly wagon. 

The e-5008 uses the same underpinnings as the e-3008 and is available with either a 97kWh or a 73kWh battery. Buyers can also choose from a 212 or 233PS powertrain, both with two-wheel drive, although a 324PS four-wheel drive is on the way. 

It measures 4.8 meters long and has more interior space than the old car. Likewise, the middle row’s space has increased, and the third-row seats can be folded flat to make the most of its 916-litre boot. With the third row in place, this shrinks to a sensible 348 litres. 

While adults can fit in the third-row seating, this is best kept for shorter journeys as these are best suited to children. Prices start at £37,735 (OTR) for the entry-level Allure model while the GT costs £40,965. 

Tesla offered the Model S with seven seats at one point, which was ludicrous. Occupants were faced backwards, strapped in with fairground ride-like racing harnesses. The Model X was a bit more sensible because it was an SUV and the same goes for the Model Y, luckily.

Tesla offers seven seats in only the Model Y’s Long Range All-Wheel Drive trim; it costs an extra £2,500 and could be tempting for those interested in a Mercedes-Benz EQB. 

There are no new aesthetics or major changes with the seven seat option apart from the obvious, but it does eat into the boot space slightly. You’ll still have 753 litres with the third row folded flat and with all seven seats in place, this shrinks to a respectable 363 litres. 

Usually, when extra weight is added to an EV, there’s both a range and performance compromise, but this isn’t the case with the Model Y and the range remains at 373 miles. 

It measures 5037mm long, 1964mm wide and 1744mm high—the Volvo EX90 is some size. Middle row passengers will also have plenty of leg and headroom but like a lot of seven-seater EVs, these are best reserved for children on longer journeys. 

With all seats up, it’ll carry 310 litres of stuff in the boot while folding the third-row flat increases this to 655 litres. Flatten all the rear seats and this brings it to a mighty 1,915 litres, there’s also a 34-litre frunk for stowing charging cables. 

There are two electric motor configurations available, and both feature a 108kWh usable (111kWh) battery. In its standard Twin Motor trim, 408PS is driven through all four wheels, meaning it’ll smash the 0-60mph run in just 5.7 seconds. 

If more is needed, there’s also a Twin Motor Performance guise which brings power up to 517PS and knocks a second off the 0-60mph dash. 

It’s based on the GLB, although it’s a bit cheaper to run. The Mercedes EQB has generous leg and headroom, the seats are very comfortable, and it has 495 litres of boot space behind the second row, which roughly equates to four suitcases or so. 

The middle row slides forward to give taller adults in the third row more space on shorter trips. Popping the boot reveals two charging cable bags which take up most of the space with the third row in place and can cause a dilemma: do you carry seven people with little luggage or five with some luggage?

The third-row folds electrically via buttons in the rear and the boot. You won’t need to test your agility here either as pressing the buttons again will fold them back up. 

There are four trim levels available: Sport Executive, AMG Line Executive, AMG Line Premium, and AMG Line Premium Plus. The entry-level executive starts at £52,800 and is claimed to give 320 miles on a single charge. All models get 192PS, but the more you spend, the less your range will be with the range-topper returning around 290 miles.

The V-Class, which morphed from the Vito van, has transported millions of celebrities, holidaymakers, and families to their destinations since its 1996 release—and it’s now gone electric. 

Having plenty of seats and luggage space has always been the jewel in the V-Class's crown, and the EQV still offers a large boot and plenty of passenger room with all its seats in place. 

It comes with a 90kWh battery, which gives a range of around 213 miles, which isn't incredible when compared to some of the other cars on our list, but this is mostly because of the EQV’s weight. 

The car comes with six seats arranged across three rows as standard, although you can equip the second and third rows with benches, which allows the EQV to transport up to eight passengers. The second and third rows sit on rails, meaning you can slide them forward to increase the boot space or leg room. 

It’s handsome and packed with technology, and all UK-market EQS SUVs come with a third row. The EQS’s middle seats can be repositioned which can give up to 880 litres of boot space and give second and third-row passengers a bit more room. 

The third row will take adults, but the floor sits quite high, and children will be more comfortable over longer runs. Likewise, there’s enough headroom in the rear seats for adults under 6ft. The second row is electric while the third row is purely manual, and all passengers get a selection of air vents, cupholders, and USB ports. 

Of course, this is a posh SUV which means it comes with a high price tag. The entry-level EQS 450 4MATIC starts at £129,470. This gets you a 364PS powertrain, 10-80% charging via a rapid charger (max DC 200kW) in 31 minutes, and Mercedes claims it’ll do 364 miles on a single charge. 

Maxus is often associated with pickup trucks and vans, but it’s now entered the MPV market alongside the Lexus LM; the latter is not making our list because it’s only available as a hybrid. 

The Mifa 9 has an official 267-mile range and is packed with tech to boot. Standard equipment includes rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera, a six-speaker sound system, lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control and LED headlights.  

Likewise, it has a 466-litre boot with the second and third-row seats in place, which increases to 1,702 litres with the third-row seats folded. Pop all the rear seats down, and this increases to 2,017 litres. 

Although it has seven seats, you can increase this to eight if needed. This swaps the third-row seats for a bench. 

All models have a 90kWh battery, a heat pump, a 244PS motor, and two middle–row captain chairs with nifty screens to control seat adjustment. Spend a bit more on the Luxury trim and passengers get heated, cooled, and massaged seats. 

The driver shouldn’t hear any complaints from adults in the third row, as long as they’re 5ft 9in or under.