Toyota Corolla vs Toyota Yaris iA

The Toyota Corolla needs no introduction. With 12 generations spanning over five decades of production, the Corolla is the bestselling nameplate in automotive history. And it continues to be a popular choice for new car buyers looking for a reliable and sensible compact car, competing against other established names like the Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, Kia Forte, Nissan Sentra, Subaru Impreza, and Volkswagen Jetta for sales.

The only significant change for 2022 is the addition of two new colors: Ruby Flare and Windchill Pearl. What hasn’t changed are the number of other choices buyers get. Toyota offers sedan and hatchback body styles, manual and automatic transmissions, and multiple powertrain options—including a hybrid. The Corolla Cross SUV also launched for 2022 but, while it shares a basic platform with the Corolla sedan and hatch, it’s effectively a different vehicle.

Finally, you get the expected array of trim levels. The Corolla sedan is available in L, LE, XLE, SE, and XSE grades, plus Apex Edition and Nightshade Edition versions of SE and XSE, with more limited options for the Corolla hatchback and hybrid (both of which will be covered separately). For this review, we tested the Apex Edition sedan in its lower SE grade. The Apex is the sportiest Corolla variant, at least until the GR Corolla hot hatchback arrives for the 2023 model year.

Cutting to the chase, I like the Toyota Yaris iA. However, it is important to make a critical distinction between the Yaris iA and a standard Toyota Yaris hatchback.

The iA sedan was originally a Scion. When Toyota cancelled that youth-oriented brand after the 2016 model year, it folded the iA sedan into the existing Yaris lineup of 3-door and 5-door hatchbacks, which have nothing in common with the iA sedan aside from a nameplate.

While the Yaris hatchbacks offer tempting levels of utility, the Yaris iA sedan is the one you want if you’re shopping for a small and affordable Toyota. That’s because aside from Toyota emblems and a questionably styled face, the iA sedan represents 100% Mazda goodness.