What Are the Top 3 Minivans for Families?

The best minivans for families need to meet all the challenges and expectations that a growing family will experience over several years of driving.

Minivans have been built since the 1980s to replace station wagons and offer families larger and more capable vehicles to drive. These vehicles are versatile, affordable, safe, secure, and reliable, making them right for most families that have to face a relatively tight budget. If you’re looking for the right vehicle to load up the kids and head out for a weekend of fun, bring home the project materials, or drop the kids off at school, you’ll want to drive one of these three minivans.

The 2023 Kia Carnival offers a new build with excellent quality

The Kia Carnival has a new look that resembles a mashup between an SUV and minivan but make no mistake, this is a minivan. You’ll enjoy the roomy, upscale cabin with supportive seats and lots of great features. The price of this Kia minivan is about average for the class, giving you good value when you’re ready to enjoy a wonderful drive together. It’s easy to see how this minivan can meet your family’s needs.

What tech features does the Carnival include?

Modern minivans should have the latest tech for your connectivity pleasure during your drive. The Kia Carnival comes standard with an 8-inch touchscreen, a six-speaker audio system, Bluetooth connectivity, seven USB ports, Android Auto, and Apple CarPlay.

Choose a higher trim level, and you’ll find a 12.3-inch screen, a navigation system, an 8-speaker or 12-speaker Bose audio system, satellite radio, additional USB ports, wireless device charging, and a rear-seat entertainment system.

The Kia Carnival is one of the best minivans for families, giving you standard push-button starting and a remote start function to ensure you have a comfortable cabin when you step inside. Higher trim levels add a 12.3-inch inch digital gauge cluster, dual sunroofs, tri-zone automatic climate controls, an in-vehicle intercom, and a passenger-view camera.

How much room will you find in the Kia Carnival?

You’ll find 40.2 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third-row seat in the Carnival. This is much more than you find in most SUVs. Fold the rearmost seats down, and you’ll have 86.9 cubic feet, which expands to 145.1 when you fold the second row down. The third-row seats can fold flat in the floor and the second row can be folded or removed to make room for the cargo you need to bring home for a weekend project.

Can the 2023 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid be the right minivan?

The hybrid version of the Chrysler Pacifica has been around for a few years and is no longer a novelty. This version of the Pacifica delivers some all-electric driving and a long list of standard features. As the most fuel-efficient minivan in the market, this Chrysler can easily be one of the best minivans for families to drive and enjoy. Compared to other models in the class, the Pacifica Hybrid has a relatively high base price, and it’s available only with FWD.

What’s new for the 2023 version?

The latest model of the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid brings the new Road Tripper package to the Touring L trim. This feature adds special exterior badging and design elements, but more importantly, it includes a roof rack and all-weather floor mats to make it more useful for families heading out for a drive together.

What tech and connectivity features come in the Pacifica Hybrid?

The standard package for this Chrysler minivan gives you a 10.1-inch touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, voice recognition, HD Radio, satellite radio, Bluetooth, a USB port, and a six-speaker audio system.

If you want more, head up to higher trim levels and enjoy two rear-seat 10.1-inch touchscreens with Amazon Fire TV integration, multiple rear USB ports, an in-cabin camera, a navigation system, a 13-speaker Alpine premium audio system or a 20-speaker Harman Kardon audio system.

How much cargo room does the Pacifica Hybrid offer?

The Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid is rated as one of the best minivans for families, but it has a smaller cargo hold than the Kia Carnival. The Pacifica brings 32.3 cubic feet of room behind the rear seats, 87,5 cubic feet when the third row is folded, and a maximum cargo room of 140.5 cubic feet behind the front seats.

The 2023 Honda Odyssey continues to be the top-rated minivan

When you want a new minivan that does everything well, the Honda Odyssey has what you’re after. This minivan is spacious and comfortable, performs well, and offers a smooth ride. You’ll find a plethora of standard features and the versatility desired to meet your family’s needs. With an affordable price and good fuel mileage numbers, it’s hard to beat this Honda minivan.

Is there anything new about the Odyssey?

Honda discontinued the entry-level LX trim for this minivan, which makes the EX trim the base model. They did add a Sport trim to the Odyssey lineup, which brings you a set of 19-inch wheels along with trim-specific interior and exterior styling elements.

What tech and connectivity features will you see?

The standard package for the Honda Odyssey features an 8-inch touchscreen, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite radio, HD Radio, two USB ports, Bluetooth, and a seven-speaker audio system. The Odyssey might be the best minivan for families to drive, but the screen is a little on the small side.

You might expect the screen to get larger at higher trims, but it doesn’t. Higher trims do give you a Wi-Fi hotspot, wireless device charging, a navigation system, a rear-seat entertainment system, an 11-speaker premium audio system, and an additional USB port.

How much cargo room is found in the Honda Odyssey?

The cargo room offered in this minivan is dependent upon the rim and seat configuration. You’ll find between 32.8 and 38.6 cubic feet behind the third row, between 86,6 and 92.3 cubic feet behind the second row, and from 140.7 to 158 cubic feet of cargo room behind the front seats. This top-rated minivan also offers an optional hands-free power liftgate.

These are the top three minivans for families to have the driving experience desired on the road. Will one of these three be right for your family?