Renault Clio review - E-Tech hybrid takes on EV rivals
The best cheap cars in 2024
Everyone likes a bargain – here are the best cheap cars you can buy today
Finding a great cheap car might be easier than you think. Sure, new car prices are climbing, but the good news is that today’s budget-friendly options are better than ever. Gone are the days when affordable meant bare-bones and boring – modern cheap cars often come packed with the latest safety tech, efficient engines, and improved build quality.
Whether you're looking for an urban runaround, an SUV with personality, or a practical car for the family, there’s something out there for every budget. The trick is knowing what to prioritise; a cheap car usually won’t be able to do it all, so it’s worth considering whether fuel economy, practicality or interior quality is most important to you, for example.
Traditionally, small city cars have been the cheapest models on the market, and that largely holds true today. However, spend a bit more and you can find some affordable family hatchbacks and electric cars that are more spacious, packed with kit, and still relatively cheap.
This list isn’t a rundown of the very cheapest cars on sale; instead, we’ve rounded up our favourites that are affordable, good to drive and, importantly, offer stand-out value for money. If that sounds like a combination that appeals to you, look no further than the cars below.
The best cheap cars on sale today
Here's our rundown of the top 10 best cheap cars to buy in the UK. Once you're done, check out our guides to the best cars with cheap insurance, the best cheap-to-run cars, and the cheapest electric cars on sale. You can also read our deals page, where our experts gather the hottest car finance deals currently available.
- Priced from around £18,000
There’s a reason why the Renault Clio has long been one of Europe’s favourite cars. It’s always been cheap, but the latest model is far more talented than any of its predecessors. The cabin feels upmarket and packs plenty of kit, while safety, visibility and handling are all up there with the best in class. Combine that with a low starting price, and you have a well-rounded hatchback that any budget-conscious buyer should consider.
The 90bhp petrol model starts from around £18,000 and will satisfy the majority of supermini buyers, but the self-charging hybrid model arguably offers even better value for money. It’s more expensive – starting at over £21,000 – but you get F1-derived tech that enables pure-electric driving around town, as well as a diesel-rivalling fuel efficiency figure of 67.3mpg – hard to beat at this price point.
To further boost the Clio’s budget-friendly credentials, Renault is still offering a 0% APR deal when using its PCP financing facility, meaning you can drive away in the Carbuyer Small Car of the Year 2025 award-winner from around £160 per month.
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- Priced from around £22,000
The Citroen e-C3 might be one of the cheapest electric cars you can buy, but we’re happy to report that it’s one of the best. It offers astounding value for money, considering that the entry-level model costs just under £22,000. There aren’t many petrol-powered superminis available for that price, but the e-C3 offers a zero-emissions alternative with up to 199 miles of range. Citroen also sells the C3 with a petrol engine for even less money, but the e-C3 isn’t much more expensive and is better to drive.
The e-C3 isn’t the quickest, most spacious or fun-to-drive electric car on sale, but it gets the basics right. It’s smooth and comfortable, while the interior packs everything that you need, including a 10.25-inch touchscreen that supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There’s even plenty of space in the back seats, although the boot isn’t particularly big. Either way, the e-C3 is aimed at urban drivers needing a cheap-to-buy and cheap-to-run hatchback, and we think it nails the brief.
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- Priced from around £19,000
Who said cheap had to mean small? The Dacia Duster is a proper SUV available for hatchback money, starting from just shy of £19,000 – that’s pretty incredible value no matter how you slice it. The Duster isn’t just cheap, though, itt’s one of the most practical cars in its class, with heaps of interior space and a big boot. Owners regularly rave about their Dusters – the old model came first in this year’s Driver Power survey – while the new model left such a positive impression on us that we named it Carbuyer Car of the Year 2025.
Now, we do have to point out that your £19,000 only gets you into a Duster in the base Essential trim. It’s still good value, but we think it’s worth spending a bit extra to upgrade to the Expression model. You get a proper infotainment touchscreen and a few other niceties, as well as the option to upgrade to the self-charging hybrid engine. At just over £24,000, the Duster is one of the cheapest hybrid SUVs you can buy, and it offers some respectable fuel economy gains for not much extra cost.
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- Priced from around £19,000
We’d bet that everyone reading this has at least heard of the Vauxhall Corsa, and that’s no surprise. The plucky supermini is a favourite among UK buyers, thanks to its low running costs, well-equipped interior and low starting price. The latest model is perhaps the sharpest looking, too, thanks to a smart facelift in 2023.
The petrol-powered Corsa in ‘Yes Edition’ trim will set you back less than £19,000, or just over £200 per month through a PCP finance deal with Vauxhall. We think that’s great value, especially when you consider that the Corsa is one of the best driving cars in its class. You get a 10-inch infotainment screen and a digital gauge cluster as standard in the entry-level car, along with a peppy 1.2-litre 99bhp petrol engine and six-speed manual gearbox.
If that sounds a bit old fashioned to you, the Vauxhall Corsa Electric could be the affordable EV supermini you’re looking for. Priced from just £26,895, the Corsa Electric Yes Edition uses a 134bhp electric motor in place of the petrol engine, delivering smooth and silent EV performance and a range of 222 miles. For under £27,000, that’s hard to beat.
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- Priced from around £26,000
An electric car featuring on the list of ‘best cheap cars’ would have been unthinkable a few years ago, but the BYD Dolphin delivers such great value for money that it deserves a spot, beating some similarly-priced petrol rivals. We even went as far as to crown it the Carbuyer Car of the Year 2024, proving that impressive EV tech doesn’t have to cost the earth.
BYD sells the Dolphin in several trim levels, with different electric motor and battery configurations, but it’s the Active model that offers the best value at just over £26,000. You get a 94bhp electric motor and a 44.9kWh battery, delivering a range of up to 211 miles – not groundbreaking, but plenty for those who mainly stick to around-town driving. Interior kit is impressive for the price, with the rotating 12.8-inch infotainment touchscreen stealing the show.
BYD offers some attractive finance deals with 0% APR for the Dolphin, too, so you could be driving away in one of our favourite cars for just £189 per month – value that you’ll struggle to find anywhere else.
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- Priced from around £16,000
One of the more spacious city cars available, the Kia Picanto is among our favourite models in the class and the entry-level model offers lots of car for the money at just under £16,000.
A mid-life update in 2024 brought some big changes to the Picanto, including sharper styling and more interior tech. The base model has crept up in price, but you now get features like air-conditioning and a reversing camera as standard, so we can forgive the incremental price increase. Even the most expensive Picanto comes in at under £20,000, so forking out for all the bells and whistles won’t break the bank.
The Picanto is cheap to run, whichever version you go for, and the seven-year, 100,000-mile warranty will provide real peace of mind for the cost-conscious car buyer. The five-door-only Picanto has space for four adults – just – and a decent-sized boot, making it the ideal city car.
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- Priced from around £18,000
Our second entry from Dacia is the brand’s biggest and most family-focused offering yet, but you’ll find the same commitment to affordability that’s present across the range. The Dacia Jogger is a versatile seven-seater MPV for budget-conscious buyers who aren’t bothered about luxuriously finished interiors or premium badges on the bonnet. It offers everything a family could need, from its massive boot to its choice of frugal engines. There’s even the same self-charging hybrid from the Duster that will happily top 50mpg in everyday driving.
Entry models start just over £18,000 and even with the highest trim, you can expect change from £21,000. In a market where a basic specification Volkswagen Polo starts at £21,000, that is truly incredible value. For families on a budget, the Jogger is a real winner.
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- Priced from around £16,000
The Hyundai i10 is a seriously impressive machine. It’s handily sized for urban areas, but (unlike many other city cars) comes with five doors and five seats as standard and has plenty of interior space. While versions are available with extremely generous equipment lists, prices do rise steadily as you creep up the range, so ask yourself whether you really need niceties like heated seats and privacy glass.
The range kicks off with the i10 Advance, which comes with an eight-inch infotainment touchscreen, air conditioning, a rear view camera and more – all for around £16,000. Whichever model you pick, you still get a very well-built car, and one that comes with one of the best warranties in the business, running for five years with no mileage limit.
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- Priced from around £20,000
Slotting into ninth place on our list of the best cheapest cars is the Skoda Fabia: the Volkswagen Polo’s more affordable Czech twin. With a starting price over £1,000 less than its German counterpart, you’d think that the Fabia would feel like a cut-price knock-off, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, the Fabia’s cabin is more spacious and comes with just as much standard equipment. Its other sibling, the SEAT Ibiza, costs about the same to buy and insure, but the Fabia’s large boot is on par with that of the Volkswagen Golf from the class above.
That sub-£20k starting price gets you the ultra-frugal 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine which, while cheap to insure, is pretty sluggish and best avoided. It only costs a few hundred pounds extra to upgrade to the 1.0-litre TSI engine, which is far more usable thanks to its turbocharger. Either way, the Fabia is one of the most refined superminis on the market, with a soft ride and precise handling. We think it should be on any budget-focused buyer’s shortlist.
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- Priced from around £15,000
If you’re willing to discount the Citroen Ami – which is technically a quadricycle – the Dacia Spring is the cheapest electric car you can buy today. Your £15,000 gets you behind the wheel of a five-door supermini powered by a 44bhp electric motor and a 27kWh battery. No, it won’t be setting any records for speed or range – it tops out at just 78mph and will travel up to 140 miles – but the Spring could be the ideal cheap city runaround.
Of course, there are a few compromises to achieve that low price tag, but we don’t think they’re worth worrying about if you stick to urban driving. The range is a bit restrictive, charging speeds are quite slow and the interior is pretty basic, but it still feels far more substantial than that of the Citroen Ami. Paying an extra £1,000 swaps the 44bhp motor for a 64bhp unit, bringing nippier acceleration. We think that’s a worthwhile upgrade, especially if you plan to occasionally venture onto faster roads.
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Cheap car buying advice
Finding a cheap new car might seem impossible these days, but you can still secure a great set of wheels at a low price if you know where to look. Of course, any of the 10 cars on this list will be an excellent starting point, but before taking your pick, it’s worth considering your priorities.
You’re unlikely to find a new car with a powerful engine, lots of equipment and masses of space at a low price, but it may be possible to find one or two of these things within your budget. Our in-depth reviews go into detail about the strengths and weaknesses of each car and will help you determine whether a particular car ticks the boxes you need.
That being said, nearly all modern cars – even the cheap ones – come with far more safety kit and interior equipment than an equivalent car from a decade ago. For example, the most affordable model on this list – the Dacia Sandero – still comes with lane-keeping assistance, automatic headlights, rear parking sensors and air conditioning, so consider whether you really need more than this if you’re on a tight budget.
While cheap electric cars have historically not been a reality for buyers, the tide appears to slowly be changing, and our list includes a few such affordable EVs, some of which are better to drive than their petrol counterparts. Otherwise, there are plenty of cheap conventional petrol cars you can still buy, and improvements in technology mean many of these are also cheap to run as well as insure. Another way to get a good deal is to buy a car that is about to be replaced by a new model.
Car finance can allow you to get behind the wheel of a new car if you’re on a tight budget and don’t have the cash upfront to buy a car outright. There are different types of finance available, including PCP, PCH (leasing) and HP – all of which are covered in our in-depth guide to car finance. Our experts trawl the web every week looking for the best leasing deals on the market, which you can check on our Car deals page. Of course, it’s worth remembering that finance isn’t reducing the purchase price of the car, it just allows you to spread multiple payments over a period of time.
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