10 Most Fuel-Efficient 4x4 Trucks and SUVs

by Brady Holt

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August 2, 2021

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6 min. Reading Time

2021 Ford F-150 ・ Photo by Ford

When you want great gas mileage, rugged capability is often the first thing to go. Even if you want an SUV, the most fuel-efficient models are light-duty crossovers.

Fortunately, even when you want a truly capable 4x4 SUV or truck, some economical options do exist. These 10 pickups and SUVs are ready to go off-road without breaking your fuel budget. Even the best of them won’t match a Toyota RAV4 crossover, so if you don’t need true four-wheel drive, you can save more fuel by choosing a light-duty car-based vehicle. But if you’d like to go off-road while minimizing your fuel consumption, one of these four-by-fours might be for you. You’ll have to wait before a flurry of fully electric models hit the market in the coming months and years, but here’s what you can buy today, sorted by EPA fuel economy estimates.

1. 2021 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited

When you want great gas mileage, rugged capability is often the first thing to go. Even if you want an SUV, the most fuel-efficient models are light-duty crossovers.

Photo by Jeep

2. 2021 Land Rover Range Rover

The Land Rover Range Rover is an entirely different type of 4x4 SUV than the Jeep Wrangler, yet it’s no less iconic. It’s posh and comfortable on the road, yet ready to climb boulders and ford rivers. This is the stuff of British royalty, Russian oligarchs, and anyone in between who’s ready to pay up.

Like the Wrangler, the Range Rover is available with a plug-in hybrid powertrain. It makes 398 horsepower and provides 19 miles of all-electric range followed by an EPA-estimated 19 mpg in mixed driving, good for 42 MPGe overall. You can also get a torquey but less powerful diesel V6, which averages 22 mpg in the city, 28 mpg on the highway, and 24 mpg combined; a range of less-economical V6 and V8 engines is also on offer. Prices start at $97,000 for the plug-in hybrid (before a $6,295 federal tax credit) and $98,000 for the diesel.

Photo by Land Rover

3. 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

The Land Rover Range Rover Sport has a similar name to the Range Rover on the previous page, looks similar to the Range Rover on the previous page, and has the same engines (with the same fuel efficiency) as the Range Rover on the previous page. But there are some notable differences between the two models.

First, the Sport is slightly smaller and less expensive. The diesel engine starts at $79,500 while the plug-in hybrid starts at $83,000 but qualifies for a $6,295 federal tax credit. The primary tradeoff is less generous rear legroom and less cargo capacity, along with knowing looks at the country club that you didn’t buy the original Range Rover. The Sport is also available with a third-row seat that you can’t get on the larger Range Rover, but it’s pretty cramped.

Photo by Jaguar Land Rover

4. 2021 Ford F-150

The most fuel-efficient 4x4 pickup truck is the new 2021 Ford F-150 Hybrid. It’s not a plug-in hybrid; the gasoline engine charges the electric batteries while you drive, and then the electric motor works together with the gas engine to reduce gasoline usage and provide speedy acceleration.

This 430-horsepower “PowerBoost” setup works especially well at low speeds; the F-150 Hybrid’s 24 mpg city-driving estimate is great for low-speed commuting, but it scores the same 24 mpg EPA rating on the highway. We averaged 23 mpg in a week of mixed driving, excellent for a big truck with a powerful engine. The F-150 isn’t set up to be a mega-off-road vehicle, but it’s a hardy truck that can tow up to 12,700 pounds or haul a payload of up to 2,120 pounds. It also sports a clever new feature that lets you turn the center console into a worktable. The F-150 doesn’t have the extra-posh interior or extra-smooth ride of a Ram 1500, but it’s the best way to get stop-and-go fuel efficiency. If you want better highway mileage, though, act fast: Ford is discontinuing the V6 diesel that scores 20 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the highway.

Photo by Ford

5. 2021 Jeep Gladiator

If you like the feel of a Jeep Wrangler but prefer a pickup truck bed, the Gladiator is ready. It’s bulkier than its SUV sibling, but the Gladiator has the same throwback styling, the same removable roof and doors (making it the only convertible pickup truck on the market), and off-road-ready versions like the Rubicon and Mojave. It also rides a bit more smoothly than the Wrangler, thanks to its longer wheelbase, but the handling feels similarly disconnected.

You can’t get the Gladiator with the Wrangler’s four-cylinder or plug-in hybrid powertrains, but starting this year, you can get the EcoDiesel V6. It scores EPA ratings of 22 mpg in the city, 28 mpg on the highway, and 24 mpg combined. Prices start at $39,545 and can quickly soar. Our test vehicle topped $60,000, though at least it also beat its EPA estimate to average 26 mpg.

Photo by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

6. 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

Diesel engines are a staple of big heavy-duty trucks, but lately they’re also a torque-heavy fuel-saving option in most of the leading half-ton 4x4 pickups. The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 (and its twin, the GMC Sierra 1500) are a leading example. With four-wheel drive, they achieve EPA estimates of up to 22 mpg in the city, 26 mpg on the highway, and 24 mpg combined.

GM uses its familiar Duramax name on these trucks’ inline six-cylinder diesel engine, but it’s actually a European-designed engine with no other connection to the Duramax V8 in heavy-duty Silverados. Still, the diesel Silverado can tow up to 9,500 pounds despite its excellent efficiency. Prices start at $42,690. The Silverado and Sierra are also available with a range of four-, six-, and eight-cylinder gasoline engines, but only the diesel stands out for its efficiency.

Photo by General Motors

7. 2021 Ram 1500

The Ram 1500 is the luxury car of the half-ton pickup segment, with the smoothest ride and the most beautifully finished interior. It’s still a highly capable truck, though, and its available EocDiesel V6 averages up to 21 mpg in the city, 29 mpg on the highway, and 24 mpg overall with four-wheel drive.

The EcoDiesel is available on all trim levels for as little as $37,240, though like its competitors, the Ram can get luxury-car-expensive in a hurry. The Ram 1500 is also available with a decently efficient gasoline V6 engine (21 mpg overall with four-wheel drive), a less economical 5.7-liter V8, and a laughably uneconomical 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that makes 702 horsepower and returns just 12 mpg.

Photo by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

8. 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe

The newly redesigned Chevrolet Tahoe full-size SUV is a giant leap forward for interior space, thanks to a new rear suspension that helps it finally fit adults comfortably into its third row. And when you want this massive size and mighty towing capability, you no longer even need to sacrifice fuel efficiency.

The Tahoe (along with its GMC Yukon cousin, the extended-length Chevrolet Suburban, and the extended-length GMC Yukon XL) is newly available with the same turbodiesel engine as the Chevy Silverado pickup. Equipped with this engine and four-wheel drive, the Tahoe and its relatives achieve an EPA-estimated 20 mpg in the city, 26 mpg on the highway, and 22 mpg combined. That means you get class-leading interior space, a towering seating position, and an 8,000-pound towing capacity (7,800 pounds in the Suburban and Yukon XL), along with the efficiency of a much smaller vehicle. You still get a bumpier ride and less agile handling than a light-duty crossover, but that’s part of the price you pay for a highly capable 4x4 SUV. As to the other part of the price, a base model costs $50,595.

Photo by Chevrolet

9. 2021 Cadillac Escalade

Another Tahoe sibling also shares the same diesel engine and the same excellent EPA fuel economy estimates. That’s the 2021 Cadillac Escalade, the extra-posh member of the GM full-size SUV family. For 2021, the Escalade gets a fresh dose of styling, technology, and (thanks to the diesel) fuel efficiency.

Every Escalade now sports a beautifully flowing dashboard design that abandons the vehicle’s pickup truck roots. You can also get Super Cruise, one of the world’s most advanced semiautonomous driving systems. It’s an expensive option, but unlike most competing systems, Cadillac grants its users explicit freedom to take their hands off the steering wheel (as long as they remain attentive and ready to take over if needed) on more than 200,000 miles of designated highways. And you’ll sip fuel (by the standard of a big 4x4 SUV) while your Escalade ferries you across the country. Choosing the diesel V6 engine over a more powerful V8 is a no-cost option on the Escalade, but it still starts at $76,195.

Photo by General Motors

10. 2021 Ford Ranger

We’ll close our list with probably the most ordinary vehicle on it: the 2021 Ford Ranger. It doesn’t get its good gas mileage through a complicated hybrid powertrain or by burning costlier, harder-to-find diesel fuel. It’s just a relatively small pickup with a magnificently executed turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

The Ranger delivers 270 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque, excellent ratings for the mid-size pickup class. Even more impressively, that’s the standard engine on all trim levels. The Ranger doesn’t have stretch-out passenger space like half-ton trucks, but the crew cab model can fit adults even in the backseat without breaking the bank or spilling out of your driveway. EPA estimates for a 4x4 Ranger are 20 mpg in the city, 24 mpg on the highway, and 22 mpg combined on 87-octane regular-grade gasoline. Prices start at just $28,295.