Nissan Rogue vs Kia Soul: which is more reliable?
The Kia Soul is ahead of the Nissan Rogue on the federal record, 70/100 against 65/100 — a real but narrow gap that a bad model year on either side closes.
The record, side by side
Nissan Rogue
- 15 model years scored
- 6,107 owner complaints on record
- about 79 complaints per year on the road
- 72 recall campaigns, 40 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (88/100) · worst 2023 (34/100)
Kia Soul
- 15 model years scored
- 5,388 owner complaints on record
- about 41 complaints per year on the road
- 31 recall campaigns, 13 safety-critical
- best year 2024 (91/100) · worst 2014 (38/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Rogue against Soul
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
| Year | Rogue | Soul | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 41 AVOID | 90 BUY | -49 |
| 2024 | 58 CAUTION | 91 BUY | -33 |
| 2023 | 34 AVOID | 84 BUY | -50 |
| 2022 | 66 CAUTION | 88 BUY | -22 |
| 2021 | 61 CAUTION | 68 CAUTION | -7 |
| 2020 | 88 BUY | 55 CAUTION | +33 |
| 2019 | 80 BUY | 89 BUY | -9 |
| 2018 | 66 CAUTION | 83 BUY | -17 |
| 2017 | 65 CAUTION | 81 BUY | -16 |
| 2016 | 67 CAUTION | 43 AVOID | +24 |
| 2015 | 65 CAUTION | 41 AVOID | +24 |
| 2014 | 70 BUY | 38 AVOID | +32 |
| 2013 | 83 BUY | 60 CAUTION | +23 |
| 2012 | 87 BUY | 73 BUY | +14 |
| 2011 | 85 BUY | 86 BUY | -1 |
What owners actually complain about
Nissan Rogue
- Power Train — 1,389 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 1,166 complaints
- Engine — 938 complaints
Kia Soul
- Engine — 3,094 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 626 complaints
- Electrical System — 496 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Rogue's complaints concentrate in Power Train, the Soul's in Engine. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Nissan Rogue — avoid: 2023, 2025.
Kia Soul — avoid: 2014, 2015, 2016.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Nissan Rogue prices at about $30,500 and a Kia Soul at about $30,500 — they price within $1 of each other, which at this level is the same money, and they return 31.0 against 30.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Nissan Rogue or the Kia Soul more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Kia Soul scores 70/100 against the Nissan Rogue's 65/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Nissan Rogue and Kia Soul years should I avoid?
Nissan Rogue: 2023, 2025. Kia Soul: 2014, 2015, 2016. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Nissan Rogue and the Kia Soul?
The largest complaint group on the Nissan Rogue is Power Train (1,389 complaints); on the Kia Soul it is Engine (3,094).
Is the Nissan Rogue or the Kia Soul cheaper to own?
A recent used Nissan Rogue prices at about $30,500 and a Kia Soul at about $30,500, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.