Used test: Seat Ateca vs Skoda Karoq costs

Buying and owning

Costs, equipment, reliability, safety

New, the Seat Ateca cost around £500 more than the Skoda Karoq but, bought at four years old, both will set you back the same amount, around £18,000. 

Both should cost you similar money in insurance, with the Ateca falling in insurance group 18 and the Karoq 17. Neither of these models cost more than £40,000 new, so both our test cars attract the flat-rate fee of £155 for yearly road tax. You can find out more about the current road tax costs here.

The early Ateca we’re testing here has the older 1.4 engine while the Karoq has a later 1.5 engine, but fuel economy is almost identical. The Ateca averages 51.4mpg, while the Karoq averages 50.4mpg. 

Neither of these mid-level trims is stingy on standard equipment. The Ateca’s FR trim comes with niceties such as 18in alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control, LED headlights and privacy glass. The Karoq matches those and adds adaptive LED headlights, keyless entry and heated front seats.

In the 2021 What Car? Reliability Survey, the Ateca placed 18th out of 28 cars in the family SUV class, thanks to its 92.5% reliability rating. The Karoq ranked better still, coming ninth (in petrol form) with its rating of 96.5%. 

Both cars have a five-star Euro NCAP rating. We’d consider looking for a car with the Advanced Comfort and Driving Pack Plus added to the Ateca. This brings more safety aids, including blind-spot warning and lane assist, plus neat features such as adaptive cruise control and a heated windscreen. A similar package was available for the Karoq.

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