Overview

What's New for 2025

The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox is available in two trim levels: LT and RS. Front-wheel drive is standard, and all-wheel drive is available. The LT is the popular model, and the one we recommend. We'll explain why below.

LT

The entry-level LT starts at $34,995. It includes 19-inch alloy wheels, a 17.7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, an 11-inch driver information display, and a robust list of Chevy Safety Assist features.

Additional features, such as a heated steering wheel, heated front seats, and heated mirrors, plus reverse automatic braking and adaptive cruise control are available upgrades. The availability of hands-free driving via Super Cruise is another plus. Overall, we think the LT offers the best combination of features for the price.

RS

Priced at $44,795, the RS model's performance-oriented exterior design is its most obvious advantage.

Unlike most of its competitors, the 2025 Chevy Equinox EV has only one battery choice, and it’s a big one at 85 kilowatt-hours. This means that its performance and range are reliant on the number of motors and how many wheels are driven. Those aspects are actually related, though, as the Equinox EV comes standard with one motor powering the front wheels only, and is therefore front-wheel drive. The standard versions of many rivals are rear-wheel drive, meaning those in colder climates may feel more obligated to pay for pricey all-wheel drive than they would with the Equinox.

Motor output for the standard, front-wheel-drive Equinox EV is 213 horsepower and 236 pound-feet of torque. That’s not that much for an EV and it certainly won’t shock you with its power, but highway merging and passing are super-easy. Putting all that torque through the front wheels creates noticeable torque steer, though — accelerate mid-corner and the wheel almost seems to lock into your steering angle, requiring more effort than normal to make corrections or unwind to center. It’s not a safety issue, but it’s something you likely won’t deal with in the all-wheel-drive Equinox EV.

That version produces 288 hp and 333 lb-ft of torque. The greater amount is the result of a second motor added that powers the rear axle. This would be a quirk of electric vehicles that isn’t present in combustion vehicles, and also helps explain why all-wheel drive tends to cost more in EVs.

The Equinox EV’s ride is well-damped and generally comfortable, but the RS trim levels’ 21-inch wheels do send sharper impacts from bumps into the cabin. If comfort is important to you, stick with the LT. If handling is important to you, the Equinox EV may not be the best choice. It’s steering is numb and loosey-goosey on-center in its Normal mode, and although Sport mode adds a welcome amount of extra weight, the Equinox EV never feels as responsive as competitors — even the also-front-wheel-drive Kia Niro Electric. The suspension can also bounce around a bit around corners. We’ve found most competitors to be more enjoyable to drive.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the front-wheel-drive 2025 Chevy Equinox EV at 319 miles on a full charge. The efficiency we saw during 400-plus miles of mixed driving makes that figure feasible. The all-wheel-drive version offers 285 miles of range. These are well above-average figures for the segment.

Like all other EVs, the Equinox EV uses regenerative braking to recoup energy usually lost during braking and put it back into the battery. The Equinox EV is also one of the EVs that uses this capability to its fullest, effectively enabling you to brake simply by lifting off the accelerator. Dubbed “one-pedal” driving, this capability is not only standard, but there are two settings — Normal and Heavy. We found the Heavy setting to be overly aggressive to the point of possibly causing motion sickness in passengers, but Normal is one of the better-executed systems out there. Either way, more choice is good.

The Equinox can recharge using a DC fast charging station at a maximum rate of 150 kilowatts. That’s the maximum speed of many public chargers, but it won’t be able to take advantage of faster 350-kW chargers as the Hyundai Ioniq 5, Kia EV6, and Tesla Model Y can. On the other hand, the Equinox EV can use Tesla Superchargers as long as you get a GM-approved plug adapter. Charging at home on a Level 2 charger is 11.5 kW, which is what most EVs can manage.

The Chevrolet Equinox EV offers a distinctive, modern interior that’s consistent in appearance with the Chevy Blazer EV and newer combustion Chevy SUVs, including the non-EV Equinox. The dash features a well-integrated 17.7-inch touchscreen and 11-inch driver information center. The effect is one very broad screen filled with useful information. From behind the wheel, the twin displays are as good as any in the industry. Unfortunately, beyond them are some of the worst dash reflections you’ll find in the industry due to the extreme windshield rake and broad expanse of dash with strange horizontal strakes. Visibility when driving toward the sun is significantly reduced unless you wear polarized sunglasses.

Feature content is excellent throughout the range, as you’re bound to get far more equipment for the money than you would in similarly priced competitors (and if you do get as much equipment, chances are you’ll be looking at 100-plus fewer miles of range). Materials quality is also above-average, with soft-touch materials on the dash, doors and center console. There’s a fair share of buttons and switches, too. Even though the screen is huge, we’re happy Chevy didn’t choose to put everything under the screen’s purview.

Chevy lists the cargo volume with the rear seats down at 26.4 cubic feet, which is a very small amount for a compact SUV. The Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, for instance, have 10-plus cubic feet more. The figure is also barely better than the subcompact Chevy Trailblazer’s. In real-world testing, however, the Equinox EV was able to carry more stuff than its meager cargo volume would indicate. Thanks to a two-level cargo floor, large underfloor storage area and a useful cargo area shape, we fit two more pieces of luggage in the Equinox EV than the Trailblazer and one more than the Blazer EV (though that actually has a lower cubic-feet number, too). While the Equinox EV still can’t match the CR-Vs and RAV4s of the world, it’s a lot closer to them than the subcompact segment its cargo volume would indicate it’s similar to.

Every 2025 Chevrolet Equinox EV has a giant, 17.7-inch touchscreen with beautiful graphics, helpful permanently docked menu icons and a generally easy-to-use interface. It’s also an Android-based system with Google Built-in functionality, meaning the navigation system is an upgraded form of Google Maps, the voice commands are Google Assistant (great for finding an address, useless for finding a SiriusXM channel) and various streaming entertainment apps can be added with the Google Play store. This largely negates the need for Android Auto phone projection, so Android users may be OK with that common feature being missing.

Apple owners, however, probably will miss CarPlay. You can still read and send text messages through the car’s Bluetooth system and Google Assistant, and we even managed to select a music playlist with the touchscreen. Selecting a streaming podcast from Apple’s app was impossible, though.

The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox EV has not yet been rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) or the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

One of the Equinox EV's strong suits is its plentiful array of advanced driver-assist systems. Chevy Safety Assist, standard across the board, includes forward-collision warning, front and rear automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, blind-spot and rear cross-traffic warning systems, blind-spot emergency steering assist, a vibrating driver seat that alerts you to all of the above, and adaptive cruise control. The latter can be supplanted with the optional Super Cruise hands-free driver assistance system that steers for you on an increasing number of highways (including those without controlled access) and can change lanes automatically or with a touch of the turn signal.

The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox EV is a must-look choice for those looking for an entry-level electric crossover. Its combination of price, range, and feature content, in addition to its eligibility for the federal tax credit, cannot be beat at this time. Its cool styling, family-friendly interior, and state-of-the-art technology make it even more appealing. Rivals like the Kia EV6, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and [VW ID.4] (/overview/volkswagen/id-4/) go 100-plus fewer miles on the charge for the same amount of money when comparably equipped, or cost way more for range that still can’t quite match the Equinox. The Nissan Ariya comes closest to the Equinox EV’s price/range/features nexus, but it doesn’t qualify for the federal tax credit. The Tesla Model Y does, but its interior quality and feature content pales in comparison to the Equinox’s.

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