Compare the2026 Jeep CherokeeVS 2026 Nissan Kicks

Both the Cherokee and Kicks have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Cherokee has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Kicks’ child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Cherokee. But it costs extra on the Kicks.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Cherokee’s standard Hill-descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Kicks doesn’t offer Hill-descent Control.

The Jeep Cherokee’s optional 360-degree camera has integrated front and rear camera washers, ensuring clear, all-weather visibility without the need for manual cleaning. In contrast, the Nissan Kicks lacks camera washers, requiring you to manually clean the cameras for optimal performance.

Both the Cherokee and the Kicks have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The Jeep Cherokee weighs 1042 to 1293 pounds more than the Nissan Kicks. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

There are over 2 times as many Jeep dealers as there are Nissan dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Cherokee’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Cherokee has a standard 550-amp battery. The Kicks’ 510-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

The Cherokee’s 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 69 more horsepower (210 vs. 141) and 90 lbs.-ft. more torque (230 vs. 140) than the Kicks’ 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Jeep Cherokee is faster than the Nissan Kicks:

	Cherokee	Kicks
Zero to 60 MPH	9.4 sec	10.4 sec
Quarter Mile	17.1 sec	17.8 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	80.8 MPH	79.7 MPH

On the EPA test cycle the Cherokee gets better mileage than the Kicks:

			MPG
Cherokee
	AWD	1.6 turbo 4-cyl. Hybrid	39 city/35 hwy
Kicks
	FWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	28 city/35 hwy
	AWD	2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/34 hwy

Regenerative brakes improve the Cherokee’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Kicks doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Cherokee has 1.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Kicks’ standard fuel tank (13.7 vs. 11.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Cherokee has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Kicks AWD’s standard fuel tank (13.7 vs. 12.4 gallons).

The Cherokee has a standard locking fuel door with a power remote release convenient to the driver. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Kicks. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

For better stopping power the Cherokee’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Kicks:

	Cherokee	Kicks
Front Rotors	13 inches	11.6 inches
Rear Rotors	12.6 inches	11 inches

The Cherokee stops shorter than the Kicks:

	Cherokee	Kicks
60 to 0 MPH	122 feet	130 feet	Motor Trend

For better traction, the Cherokee has larger standard tires than the Kicks (225/65R17 vs. 215/65R16). The Cherokee Overland’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Kicks (235/50R20 vs. 225/45R19).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Cherokee has standard 17-inch wheels. Smaller 16-inch wheels are standard on the Kicks S. The Cherokee Overland’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels optional on the Kicks SR.

The Cherokee offers an optional space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the Kicks; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

For superior ride and handling, the Jeep Cherokee has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Kicks 4x2 has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Cherokee’s wheelbase is 8.4 inches longer than on the Kicks (113 inches vs. 104.6 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Cherokee is 2.8 inches wider in the front and 2.9 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Kicks.

The Cherokee’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (58.6% to 41.4%) than the Kicks’ (61% to 39%). This gives the Cherokee more stable handling and braking.

The front grille of the Cherokee uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Kicks doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Cherokee uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Kicks doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Cherokee has 11.7 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Kicks (107.4 vs. 95.7).

The Cherokee has .5 inches more front headroom, 2.7 inches more front hip room and 2.9 inches more front shoulder room than the Kicks.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Cherokee’s rear seats recline. The Kicks’ rear seats don’t recline.

The Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Kicks with its rear seat up (33.6 vs. 30 cubic feet). The Cherokee has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Kicks with its rear seat folded (68.3 vs. 60 cubic feet).

The Cherokee’s cargo area is larger than the Kicks’ in every dimension:

	Cherokee	Kicks
Length to seat (2nd/1st)	38.4”/74.8”	32.4”/63.9”
Max Width	50.8”	49.5”
Min Width	43.4”	40.3”
Height	33”	31.8”

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier, especially for short adults, the Cherokee Limited/Overland has a standard power cargo door, which opens and closes automatically by pressing a button, or on the Cherokee Overland, by just kicking your foot under the back bumper, completely leaving your hands free. The Kicks doesn’t offer a power liftgate.

The Cherokee has a 3500 lbs. towing capacity. The Kicks has no towing capacity.

The Cherokee uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Kicks uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

When different drivers share the Cherokee Overland, the memory system makes it convenient. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position, outside mirror angle, climate settings and radio stations. The Kicks doesn’t offer a memory system.

The Cherokee’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Kicks does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The Cherokee’s standard Keyless Enter-N-Go allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from pocket or purse. Push Button Start standard on the Kicks only offers hands-free access for the ignition, none to unlock the vehicle.

The Cherokee’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Kicks’ power window and power mirror switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The Cherokee’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Kicks’ intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

The Cherokee’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Nissan offers heated mirrors for extra charge, but only on the Kicks SV/SR.

The Cherokee Limited/Overland’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Kicks offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the Cherokee and the Kicks offer available heated front seats. The Cherokee Overland also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Kicks.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the Cherokee Overland keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Kicks doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Cherokee’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Kicks doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Both the Cherokee and the Kicks offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Cherokee has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Kicks SV/SR doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

With optional voice command, the Cherokee offers the driver hands free control of the radio and the navigation computer by simply speaking. The Kicks doesn’t offer a voice control system.

The Cherokee Overland has a 115-volt a/c outlet, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Kicks doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Cherokee Overland’s Automated Parking System can parallel park by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Kicks doesn’t offer an automated parking system.