MG4 EV vs VW ID.5

The VW ID.5 costs £7,000 more than the MG MG4 EV. For that premium it adds 71 miles more WLTP range, 151 litres more boot space and 70 kW more power. On EVcarsguide's combined category scores, the VW ID.5 comes out ahead overall.

The MG MG4 EV is £7,000 cheaper to buy. The VW ID.5 is cheaper to charge, roughly £152 a year versus £192 for the MG MG4 EV, at 8,000 miles on an off-peak home tariff. Add 5 years of charging and the MG MG4 EV comes out roughly £6,800 cheaper overall. These figures cover list price and home charging only - insurance, servicing, tyres and depreciation will move the real total.

EVcarsguide estimates a real-world motorway range of about 181 miles for the MG MG4 EV and 293 miles for the VW ID.5 - both below their WLTP figures, because sustained high speed is the hardest case for an EV. The VW ID.5 goes roughly 112 miles further between charging stops. Both rapid-charge to 80% in a similar time, around 25-29 minutes.

The two are within 16 mm on width, so neither is meaningfully easier to thread into a tight space. In a standard 2,400 mm bay that leaves about 564 mm of total clearance for the MG MG4 EV and about 548 mm of total clearance for the VW ID.5. The VW ID.5 also turns in a 0.3 m tighter circle, which helps with U-turns and multi-storey ramps.

Over a 8-year ownership window EVcarsguide's degradation model projects roughly 90% battery health for the MG MG4 EV and 84% for the VW ID.5. That gives the MG MG4 EV a modest edge in retained real-world range. The MG MG4 EV's LFP-type pack tolerates daily 100% charging, while the VW ID.5's NMC-type pack lasts longest kept to about 80% for everyday use. Both batteries carry a 8-year manufacturer warranty.