By Nick Nelson
March 5, 2021
Range Rover vs. Range Rover Sport: Which Is Better?
The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover and 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport are two desirable luxury sport utility vehicles. Iconic in stature and more than competent on any terrain, they share a badge of notable descent. They also share lux-yet-minimalist interior styling, robust engine choices, and hefty price tags. Yet, while they may be siblings, they are most definitely not twins.
Fully assessing both of these luxurious sport utilities requires looking into two different segments; luxury midsize SUVs and luxury full-size SUVs. Over the course of this slideshow, we will compare these two models across ten categories, allowing you to see which vehicle aligns most with your own tastes. At the end, we will crown our winner.
Keep in mind that the scores on our site are updated constantly as new expert reviews and data become available. Therefore, the scores mentioned in this slideshow may not match the scores in our reviews.
Price
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
Starting at a steep $69,500 price tag, the 2021 Range Rover Sport is one of the most expensive options in the luxury midsize SUV class. With that said, it’s significantly cheaper than the 2021 Range Rover, which has a starting price of $92,000. Keep in mind that these are only the base prices, and each of these models easily climb into six-figure pricing with their numerous trims and engine options.
The Range Rover does offer some advantages over the Sport for the additional cost. These include more interior room, higher ground clearance, a panoramic roof, and a number of additional luxury upgrade options. Still, it is worth noting that a majority of the same upgrades are available in the less expensive Range Rover Sport. Adding almost every available option boosts the Sport’s top price to a little over $160,000, while the standard Range Rover with all options equipped comes to just under $250,000.
Seat Comfort
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover
The 2021 Range Rover and 2021 Range Rover Sport both seat five people in their standard configurations. The Range Rover has an available four-seat option in its highest trim level, while the Range Rover Sport can be equipped with a third row, which ups its total capacity to seven. Both vehicles offer commanding seating positions for the driver while the passenger seats are supportive and comfortable.
The Range Rover offers more legroom than the Range Rover Sport and more luxurious seating arrangements in its higher trims. Both models come standard with leather upholstery, while massaging seats with heating and cooling are available. The long-wheelbase model of the Range Rover offers a maximum of nearly 47 inches of rear legroom, which is around 10 inches more than in the Sport.
Cargo Space
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover
The Range Rover offers 70.9 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats folded down, and 34.5 cubic feet with the rear seats in use. The long-wheelbase model has a maximum of 77.5 cubic feet of cargo space.
In contrast to its larger sibling, the Range Rover Sport has 63.7 cubic feet of cargo room with the second-row seats folded and 31.7 cubic feet when the rear seats are up. There’s just 10.8 cubic feet behind the optional third row.
Interior Quality
Winner: Tie
Considering the Range Rover and the Range Rover Sport share the same genetic code, they don’t differ too greatly with regards to interior quality. Both feature high-end materials like padded leather, real wood, and aluminum with minimal exterior noise.
It should be noted that both luxury SUVs have minimalist interior styling with crisp and uncluttered dashboards which some critics think is too restrained for such costly cars.
Interior Features
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover
The 2021 Range Rover and the 2021 Range Rover Sport offer the same complex dual 10-inch touch screens, which offer crisp graphics but have a steep learning curve to master and are slow to respond to input. Apple Carplay and Android Auto come standard, which should offer some relief should you manage to successfully access the programs.
As one might expect from the higher price tag, the Range Rover comes with several more standard amenities than the Range Rover Sport. While optional in the Sport, the Range Rover comes with more standard speakers, a panoramic sunroof, a hands-free power liftgate, and tri-zone automatic climate control taking the crown for this segment.
Additional options such as center console refrigerators, and dual displays for rear passengers are also available on both models. The Range Rover Sport supersedes its sibling with an optional 23-speaker sound system while only 19-speakers are available in the Range Rover.
Acceleration
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
These luxury sport utilities offer the same engine choices which range from decent to high-performance. With its higher power-to-weight ratio, the Range Rover Sport wins this battle. The full-size Range Rover’s base engine offers 355-horsepower and a zero-to-60-mph time of 6.6 seconds, while the Range Rover Sport with the same base engine is able to accelerate to 60 mph in 6.2 seconds. Similar differences follow these Rovers up the trim line.
At the top of the pack, the Range Rover Supercharged V8 rockets from zero to 60 mph in just 5.1 seconds, while the Supercharged SVR Sport clocks in at under 5 seconds. All in all, there isn’t a significant acceleration difference between these two, but in the end, the Range Rover Sport is slightly faster.
Fuel Economy
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
Aside from its quicker acceleration, the 2021 Range Rover Sport also wins at the gas pump. While equipped with the same engine lineup, the lower curb weight of the Sport makes it slightly cheaper to fill up when at a gas station. While the base Range Rover Sport delivers 19 mpg in the city and 24 mpg on the highway, it’s larger sibling offers one less mile per gallon in both categories. This trend is continued along the different trims with the exception of the hybrid variant for both vehicles, in which both models manage 19 mpg combined and up to 19 miles of range on battery power alone.
While the Range Rover Sport comes in slightly ahead here, it is unlikely that you will make your decision based upon this category alone. Both vehicles require premium fuel to run at peak performance which does add considerable cost when compounded over time.
Ride and Handling
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover Sport
The 2021 Range Rover Sport performs better than its sibling when it comes to handling as it feels more stable around turns with responsive steering. Being a larger vehicle, the 2021 Range Rover exhibits somewhat unnerving body-roll when faced with high-speed turns.
Both Range Rovers come standard with adaptive air suspension which automatically dampens any imperfections on the road, allowing the ride in each to be quiet and comfortable.
Off-Roading
Winner: Tie
Being that both of these models hail from Land Rover lineage, the Range Rover and the Range Rover Sport are nearly unmatched in off-road capability. No matter what terrain or weather conditions may arise, these sport utilities take it all in stride.
Both come standard with sophisticated terrain response systems, adjustable suspension, and even wade sensing. Additional off-road enhancements such as low-speed crawl control, a limited slip differential, and a two-speed transfer case can also be added to these SUVs.
Towing
Winner: 2021 Land Rover Range Rover
The Land Rover Range Rover can tow up to 7,716 pounds when properly equipped, while the Land Rover Range Rover Sport is only rated to tow up to 6,613 pounds.
Reliability
Winner: Tie
The 2021 Range Rover and the 2021 Range Rover Sport share some of the lowest predicted reliability ratings in the industry. Though these vehicles sit at the height of prestige and luxury, you are really rolling the dice on just how many times you will visit the shop for repairs or maintenance.
Both of these SUVs come with four-year/50,000-mile warranties.
Safety
Winner: TBD
Neither of these luxury sport utilities have been rated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration nor the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which is to be expected, as these organizations often don’t rank such expensive vehicles.
However, both the 2021 Range Rover and the 2021 Range Rover Sport come with several standard safety features which may help prevent a collision. These features include front and rear parking sensors, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning, and lane keep assist. A number of additional safety features like adaptive cruise control and driver drowsiness monitoring can also be added to both models.
The Winner Is …
2021 Land Rover Range Rover
The 2021 Land Rover Range Rover is an expensive and iconic vehicle. Starting at a price just shy of $100,000 and almost $30,000 more than the Range Rover Sport, it’s one of the most expensive luxury sport utilities on the road today. It delivers an ultra-luxurious ride quality, a refined interior, and superior capabilities to handle any sort of terrain. It also comes with a long-wheelbase option, which gives it quite a bit more passenger and cargo space than the Range Rover Sport.
The 2021 Range Rover Sport isn’t too far off the mark, though. It offers the same engine options, nearly all the same interior features, and can tow just as much. It’s also slightly better at acceleration and handling due to its smaller size. When all options are added to the final product, these siblings can look and feel a lot alike, but the Range Rover is ultimately the better vehicle.
