The best cars for Australian families in 2024

No matter what your family looks like – two kids, no kids, fur babies, old, young or young at heart – size, space, seating and flexibility are all likely to be on the shortlist.

RELATED: All the Drive Car of the Year winners for 2024

Australian families come in all shapes and sizes, and so too do their family cars – with large SUVs to medium SUVs, diesel, petrol, hybrid and fully-electric offerings and two and three-row options.

A successful family car should deliver space, savings, safety and comfort.

When it comes to Drive’s best family cars for 2024, judges felt our category winners delivered all of the above – and more.

Anyone familiar with Drive’s Car of the Year awards won’t be surprised to see the Carnival nameplate – the versatile family vehicle is a regular winner and continues to offer best-in-class flexibility and space.

The Carnival provides families with eight seats and a whopping five child seat tether points in total, plus a cavernous 627-litre boot with all three rows in play.

Not only that, but Kia has ensured every seating position is well served in terms of accessibility, storage and legroom.

Under the bonnet, there's a four-cylinder turbo-diesel powertrain which delivers diesel grunt just right for delivering torque where you need it when driving with a full-house of passengers. Better still, it offers real-world economy of just 6.5L/100km.

The Carnival's safety equipment is exhaustive even from the base grade – it scored five stars from ANCAP in 2021 – and Kia offers capped-price servicing for the first seven years.

Three rows of seating, a starting price below $55,000 and an entire range slotting in under $80,000 – plus comfort and economy in spades? The Kia Carnival is a no-brainer for growing families.

An exciting new player in the family space, the Kia EV9 arrived in late 2023 as one of the few fully electric seven-seater cars available in Australia. Eco-conscious families, look no further!

The EV9 nails the brief as a flexible family vehicle and an efficient, straightforward electric car.

With more than 500km of range in some grades and seriously fast 240kW charging capabilities that can take the battery from 10 to 80 per cent capacity in as little as 20 minutes, the EV9 serves as a very approachable way to dip your toe in the pond of electrification.

Families who delight in weekend camping trips might also enjoy the vehicle-to-load capabilities, which allow the EV9 to power everything from a hair dryer to fairy lights.

Courtesy of its sizeable dimensions, the EV9 is no performance powerhouse, but acceleration is still punchy and the ride is comfortable. Drive judges were also pleasantly surprised by its energy consumption, which was recorded at a surprisingly low 15kWh/100km in real-world testing.

Large families will be well served for seating in the EV9 thanks to its four ISOFIX-equipped seats, plus five top-tether points and a middle seat that lunges forward to provide easy access to the third row.

You’ll even be able to tow when needed, with a braked towing capacity of up to 900kg on the Air, and up to 2500kg on the AWD Earth and GT-Line variants. 

For plenty of families, a medium SUV is all you’ll need. The problem is that there are so many, it can be hard to know where to start – it takes a real winner to stand out from the crowd.

For Drive judges, that standout was the new Honda CR-V, which represents something of a return to form for the Japanese car maker.

Prices might have risen with the introduction of the new Honda CR-V, but for that extra spend you get a medium SUV that's bigger, with more technology, a bigger suite of safety and improved comfort in the cabin.

The CR-V range will suit families of all sizes, with five seats as standard but seven-seater options under $50,000, plus the choice of petrol or hybrid powertrains.

The 589-litre boot expands to 1072L with the rear seats folded, while three top-tether anchor points permit parents to fit three child seats at once, and 11 airbags provide peace of mind.

Ownership costs are also low, with Honda charging just $199 every 12 months or 10,000km, totalling just $995 in servicing costs over five years.

The more affordable full-petrol CR-V models have claimed fuel consumption of 7.1L/100km, while hybrid variants are priced above the $50,000 mark, but offer potential fuel savings with real-world economy under 6.0L/100km.

Just because you might have to contend with spilt yoghurt, dirty nappies and sticky little fingers on a daily basis, it doesn’t mean you don’t deserve to enjoy the finer things in life too.

Parents – if you’re looking for a family SUV that doesn’t make you feel like you’ve lost all semblance of luxury, the Lexus NX is our winner for the Best Medium SUV under $80,000.

Under this price point, the Lexus NX range offers plenty of choice, with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive, and full-petrol or hybrid options.

In particular, Lexus’s hybrid tech and famed refinement are a match made in heaven.

Not only is the NX’s hybrid system a surefire fuel and emissions saver (think 5–6L/100km on a combined cycle), it has the added benefit of smooth, electric power at city speeds that only serves to enhance the sleek behind-the-wheel experience. The cabin is also exceedingly quiet and perfectly suited for long drives with sleeping kids in the back. 

No matter which trim of NX you buy, you’ll also be well served for standard kit like heated seats, dual-zone climate control, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, active cruise control and safe-exit assist – a feature that's particularly handy for families. 

Lexus also offers surprisingly affordable capped-price servicing for a luxury car, costing $495 a year for the first three years.

Australians love Toyotas and the Kluger is something of an old faithful for Aussie buyers – economical, comfortable and reliable.

This is the Kluger's third Drive Car of the Year win, and it remains competitive in an increasingly cutthroat landscape.

A 2023 facelift saw Toyota sharpen the Kluger's infotainment system, offering wireless Apple CarPlay and a complimentary 12-month subscription to Toyota Connected Services, allowing you to access your car’s location, fuel levels, lock status and driving data.

The big exterior translates to a capacious interior, with a handy third row for surprise guests on the school run and practical storage options throughout.

Despite its dimensions, the Kluger is manageable around town thanks to its light steering, a steady eight-speed automatic transmission (petrol) or seamless CVT auto (hybrid), fantastic visibility and an elevated ride height.

Toyota's Safety Sense suite is also standard across the range, and encompasses essential safety features like a rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, front and rear parking sensors, and autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian and daytime cyclist detection and junction assist.

Toyota’s remarkably affordable capped-price servicing will only cost you $265 per annual visit for the first five years, and switching to a hybrid Kluger will cut real-world fuel use to below 7.0L/100km on a combined cycle.