Shoppers who care about crash protection have a powerful shortcut: the latest Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ awards from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. For 2025, the IIHS has tightened its criteria again, yet dozens of cars, SUVs, and even a few pickups still clear the bar, giving buyers a clear view of the safest new vehicles on sale today. The list stretches from affordable small cars to high‑tech electric SUVs and a headline‑grabbing electric pickup.
The safest choices share a common thread, regardless of size or price. They combine strong crash structures, effective restraints for both front and rear passengers, and advanced driver assistance that can help avoid a collision in the first place. I will walk through the standouts in key segments, explain what the IIHS is testing for in 2025, and highlight how brands are reshaping their lineups to meet those tougher demands.
What the 2025 IIHS awards really measure
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has made its Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ labels harder to earn for 2025, especially when it comes to protecting people in the back seat. The group’s own overview of the new awards notes that stronger protection for rear passengers is now a must, with updated crash tests and seat belt evaluations shaping which vehicles qualify. That shift means some models that looked good on paper a year ago no longer make the cut, while others have been redesigned or reengineered specifically to pass the new hurdles.
Alongside the tougher crash tests, the IIHS is also scrutinizing headlights and crash‑avoidance technology more closely. To qualify for a Top Safety Pick, a vehicle needs acceptable or good headlights and effective front crash prevention, while Top Safety Pick+ demands the best performance across a wider range of trims and scenarios. Reporting on the 2025 awards underscores that these higher standards have reduced the number of winners, as described in coverage of how The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is tightening requirements, but the vehicles that remain on the list give buyers a clearer signal that they are getting top‑tier protection.
Small cars and compact SUVs: big safety in smaller footprints
For drivers who want a smaller footprint without sacrificing safety, the 2025 awards show that compact models can perform at the highest level. In the Small cars category, the IIHS lists the 2025‑26 Acura Integra 4‑door hatchback as a Top Safety Pick and the 2025‑26 Honda Civic 4‑door hatchback as a Top Safety Pick+, confirming that both models excel in crash tests and crash‑avoidance performance. A separate rundown of the safest new cars of 2025 highlights the Acura Integra again among Small Cars, reinforcing that this segment now includes vehicles that match or beat the crash performance of larger sedans.
The same story plays out among Small SUVs, where buyers increasingly expect family‑grade safety in a compact package. The official 2025 Top Safety Pick list shows the 2025 Acura ADX 4‑door SUV earning a Top Safety Pick designation, while the 2025 Genesis GV60 4‑door SUV reaches Top Safety Pick+ status, signaling especially strong performance. Additional reporting on the IIHS naming 48 new vehicles as Top Safety Picks notes that Small SUVs such as the Genesis GV60, Honda HR‑V, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Hyundai Kona, and Hyundai Tucson are among the recognized models, giving shoppers a wide range of safe choices that still fit easily into urban parking spaces and deliver competitive efficiency.
Family haulers and luxury models that rise to the top
Families who need more space are not left out of the 2025 safety story. A detailed list of IIHS 2025 Top Safety Pick Award Winners points out that Mazda secured eight Top Safety Pick+ awards, more than any other brand, which is a strong signal for buyers who prioritize safety in a family vehicle. That same rundown notes that among small cars, the 2025 Acura Integra stands out, while midsize car and midsize luxury car segments include multiple Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ models, including leaders built after August 2024, showing how quickly automakers are updating designs to meet the latest tests.
Luxury brands are also leaning into safety as a core selling point. A report on the final wave of 2025 awards notes that models such as the Audi A6 Sportback e‑tron, Audi Q5, Audi Q5 Sportback, Genesis G80, and the new‑generation Honda Passport have joined the Top Safety Pick ranks, along with other high‑end SUVs like the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport and the Volvo EX90. Another update on additional crash‑test accolades highlights Audi A5 and Q6 Sportback e‑Tron, along with the BMW X3 and Ford Explorer, as Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ recipients, showing that premium buyers can now expect advanced crash protection and driver assistance as part of the package rather than as optional extras.
Electric standouts, from crossovers to the Cybertruck
Electric vehicles are no longer niche experiments when it comes to safety, and the 2025 IIHS awards underline that shift. Hyundai Motor Group, for example, reports that Multiple E‑GMP‑based models, including the 2025 IONIQ 5, IONIQ 6, GV60, 2026 IONIQ 9, and 2025‑26 EV9, have achieved 2025 TOP Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ recognition, underscoring how the company’s GMP platform is being used to bake crash protection and advanced safety technologies into a wide range of EVs. The same theme appears in the list of Small SUVs recognized by the IIHS, where the Genesis GV60 and Hyundai Ioniq 5 are singled out as Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ winners, giving EV shoppers multiple safe options in the compact crossover space.
The most attention‑grabbing electric winner, however, is a pickup. A detailed report on Tesla’s Cybertruck notes that the Cybertruck has secured an IIHS Top Safety Pick for 2025, making it one of only two large pickups to earn that distinction. That recognition places the Cybertruck alongside a short list of full‑size trucks that meet the IIHS’s tougher 2025 criteria, which include updated crash tests and stricter headlight and crash‑avoidance requirements. For buyers who want an electric truck that can tow and haul while still offering top‑tier crash protection, the Cybertruck’s Top Safety Pick for 2025 status is a significant data point.
How to use IIHS data when you are shopping
Knowing which models carry Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ badges is only the first step. When I look at the IIHS data, I pay close attention to trim‑level details, because some awards apply only when a vehicle is equipped with specific headlights or crash‑avoidance systems. The IIHS itself emphasizes that Top Safety Pick+ requires good or acceptable headlights across all trim levels, while Top Safety Pick can be limited to certain versions, and a separate analysis of the latest award winners notes that some Hyundai, Kia, Toyota, and Nissan models only qualify when they have the right headlights across all trims. That nuance matters if you are comparing a base model to a fully loaded version on the showroom floor.
It also helps to understand how independent reviewers combine IIHS data with other crash and safety tests. One widely used buyer’s guide on the safest new vehicles explains its Methodology in detail, walking through How We Did It and the Vehicle Crash and Safety Test information it uses to rank cars, including IIHS scores and other crash‑test programs. Another overview of the safest new cars of 2025 cross‑references IIHS Top Safety Pick and Top Safety Pick+ Winners with real‑world usability factors, highlighting Small Cars such as the Acura Integra alongside SUVs and pickups. When I put those pieces together, I see a clear pattern: if a model appears repeatedly in IIHS lists and independent safety roundups, it is a strong candidate for anyone who wants the safest new car they can buy today.
For shoppers who want a quick short list, the IIHS itself notes that 50 vehicles have earned Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ status across categories such as Small SUVs, with entries like the Genesis GV60, Honda HR‑V, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Hyundai Kona, and Hyundai Tucson. Combined with the broader 2025 TOP SAFETY PICKs list that names Small cars like the Acura Integra and Honda Civic and Small SUVs like the Acura ADX SUV and Genesis GV60, plus high‑profile EVs such as the Cybertruck and E‑GMP‑based models from Hyundai Motor Group, the safest choices now span nearly every body style and price band. If safety is at the top of your shopping list, starting with those badges and then drilling into the specific trims and features is the most reliable way to find a new car that protects you and your passengers as well as current technology allows.
