Honda Pilot Vs. Kia Telluride: Which One Is Safer?

Comparing the Pilot with the Telluride on safety runs into an unusual wrinkle. Honda's Pilot is a current IIHS Top Safety Pick honoree, with good results in the institute's crash tests. Kia, meanwhile, skipped the 2026 model year for the Telluride and launched a fully redesigned version sold as a 2027, and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has not yet tested that new model. That leaves the Pilot with a proven current credential and the Telluride with a blank slate, which is the crux of this matchup.

Safety ratings at a glance

Here is how the two stack up on the ratings that drive the 2026 IIHS awards, alongside their federal scores.

Where each one stands with the IIHS

Honda's Pilot earns good ratings in the small overlap front, moderate overlap front, and side crash tests, the updated moderate overlap test, which includes rear-seat protection evaluation, and it carries acceptable or good headlights. That performance keeps it among the IIHS's current Top Safety Pick honorees, a meaningful credential for a three-row family hauler where rear-seat protection matters most.

The Telluride is in a different situation. The outgoing generation was a Top Safety Pick+, a strong result, but Kia replaced it with an all-new design that reached dealers in 2026 as a 2027 model. The IIHS has not published crash results for that redesign, so it holds no current award, not because it failed, but because it has not been tested. Until the institute evaluates it, its crashworthiness under the current regime is unknown.

Proven versus unproven

This is the heart of the comparison, and it mirrors a pattern showing up across the industry as redesigns outpace the testing schedule. Safety awards are meant to reflect measured performance, and right now, only the Pilot has current measured performance to point to. The Telluride's absence from the list is a data gap, not evidence of weakness, and its predecessor's Top Safety Pick+ suggests Kia takes the category seriously.

For a buyer deciding today, though, that distinction favors the Pilot. Choosing the Telluride on safety grounds means trusting that the redesign will test well when it eventually does, whereas the Pilot already holds a current award. Kia's track record makes the new Telluride a reasonable bet, but a bet is not the same as a proven result.

The rest of the safety picture

Both SUVs come with extensive standard driver-assistance technology, and both brands have solid safety reputations, so neither is a vehicle a family should worry about. The redesigned Telluride may well earn a strong IIHS result once tested, which would tighten this comparison considerably. As of now, though, only the Pilot can prove where it stands under current testing, and for a three-row SUV, that is exactly the reassurance many families want.

So which one is safer?

On current, verified credentials the Honda Pilot is safer. It holds a current IIHS Top Safety Pick award with good crash-test results, while the redesigned Kia Telluride, sold as a 2027 model, has not been crash-tested yet and therefore carries no current award. The important nuance is that the Telluride's lack of a rating reflects timing rather than a poor result, and its predecessor was a Top Safety Pick+, so the redesign may test well once evaluated. But safety is decided on evidence, and today the Pilot has it while the new Telluride does not, so the Pilot takes the win for now.

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This story was originally published July 18, 2026 at 1:20 PM.