Used 2021 Mazda CX-5 for Sale nearKnoxville, TN

Compare 2021 Mazda CX-5 Trims in Knoxville, TN

The 2021 Mazda CX-5 offers a range of trims from budget-friendly options to well-equipped models, all with impressive fuel efficiency.

• Starting at $24,897
• Best MPG/MPGe: 25 city / 31 hwy
• Most Popular: Grand Touring AWD

Trim Overview

Prices updated weekly from CarGurus listings.

Quick Compare Table

Listing prices sourced from CarGurus — updated weekly. OEM specs from manufacturer data.

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Trim Deep Dives

Sport FWD — "Who It's For"

The Sport FWD is the pick for shoppers who want a budget-friendly option without sacrificing essential features.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 25 city / 31 hwy
• Inventory: 25 listings
• View Sport FWD listings

Sport AWD — "Who It's For"

The Sport AWD is the pick for shoppers who want all-wheel drive without a hefty price tag.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 24 city / 30 hwy
• Inventory: 26 listings
• View Sport AWD listings

Touring FWD — "Who It's For"

The Touring FWD is the pick for shoppers who want a well-rounded vehicle with added comfort features.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 25 city / 31 hwy
• Inventory: 66 listings
• View Touring FWD listings

Touring AWD — "Who It's For"

The Touring AWD is the pick for shoppers who want sporty handling combined with all-wheel drive capability.

• Avg. market price: $24,900 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 24 city / 30 hwy
• Inventory: 61 listings
• View Touring AWD listings

Grand Touring FWD — "Who It's For"

The Grand Touring FWD is the pick for shoppers who want luxury features without going over budget.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 25 city / 31 hwy
• Inventory: 49 listings
• View Grand Touring FWD listings

Grand Touring AWD — "Who It's For"

The Grand Touring AWD is the pick for shoppers who want a blend of luxury and all-weather capability.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 24 city / 30 hwy
• Inventory: 88 listings
• View Grand Touring AWD listings

Grand Touring Reserve AWD — "Who It's For"

The Grand Touring Reserve AWD is the pick for shoppers who want premium features and performance.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 22 city / 27 hwy
• Inventory: 13 listings — lower availability; may limit negotiating room
• View Grand Touring Reserve AWD listings

Signature AWD — "Who It's For"

The Signature AWD is the pick for shoppers who want the ultimate in luxury and performance.

• Avg. market price: $24,897 (updated weekly)
• MPG/MPGe: 22 city / 27 hwy
• Inventory: 16 listings — lower availability; may limit negotiating room
• View Signature AWD listings

Trim Recommendations

Most Popular — Grand Touring AWD

With 88 active listings, the Grand Touring AWD is the clear volume leader in the lineup.

Browse Grand Touring AWD listings

Best Budget Option — Sport FWD

At $24,897 avg market price — below the lineup median of $24,897 — it's the most accessible entry point.

Browse Sport FWD listings

Best for Fuel Economy — Sport FWD

The Sport FWD offers the best fuel economy in the lineup with 25/31 MPG/MPGe.

Browse Sport FWD listings

These recommendations are based on CarGurus' proprietary market data from October 8, 2026, CarGurus experts' opinions, and generative AI.

How much does the 2021 Mazda CX-5 cost?

Prices have softened 2.12% compared to this time last year, making it a favorable time to shop this model year.

There are 2,272 listings available, which gives you a solid pool of options to compare.

Is the 2021 Mazda CX-5 a good car?

Yes — the 2021 Mazda CX-5 earns a 4.79/5 user rating and a 7.5/10 expert rating. The model scores 9/10 across Look and feel and Cost effectiveness.

Owners consistently praise its luxurious feel, sporty performance, and comfortable interior, along with the wealth of standard features. The CX-5 also stands out for being fun to drive and offering excellent value for money.

The trade-offs are worth weighing: experts call out poor ride quality and unintuitive technology, and owners mention road noise and an outdated infotainment experience. If you want a compact SUV that feels more upscale and engaging than most rivals, this year’s CX-5 fits that brief well.

With 38.1% of listings marked as good or great deals, you have room to shop selectively.

Is the 2021 Mazda CX-5 reliable?

Owners rate it 4.79/5, a strong signal of long-term satisfaction.

The owner feedback points to a dependable, trouble-free ownership experience, with praise for the comfortable interior and the kind of long-term appeal that helps a used SUV age well. The turbo engine also gets singled out for its strong power, which suggests the powertrain is a highlight rather than a concern.

From the expert side, the CX-5 is described as a solid, premium-feeling SUV with a five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty backing it up. For used buyers, the main long-term risk is more about comfort and tech frustrations than major ownership drama.

What should I look for when buying a used 2021 Mazda CX-5?

Accident-free inventory is solid at 75.4% — always verify the vehicle history report.

You should still check the history report carefully, since accident-free listings are common but not guaranteed. Prioritize a thorough inspection of the suspension, cabin condition, and infotainment usability, especially if you care about ride comfort and day-to-day livability. It also makes sense to test the vehicle on rough pavement and during low-speed maneuvering so you can judge noise and ride quality for yourself.

Key things to evaluate:

• Trim level: The base CX-5 Sport comes with automatic on/off LED headlights, 17-inch gray metallic aluminum alloy wheels, a rear roof spoiler, and rain-sensing windshield wipers. Higher trims add leatherette seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, keyless entry, rear USB ports, a six-speaker audio system, and auto-leveling LED headlights, while the top Signature trim adds Caturra Brown Nappa leather seats, genuine wood trim, ambient lighting, and a frameless auto-dimming rearview mirror with Homelink.
• Powertrain: The standard 2.5-liter four-cylinder makes 187 horsepower and 186 pound-feet of torque, and a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder is available with 250 horsepower and 320 lb-ft of torque on regular fuel. Front-wheel drive is standard on lower trims, all-wheel drive is available, and AWD is standard on the Grand Touring Reserve and Signature.
• Safety package: Standard equipment includes adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, forward collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert, forward automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane departure warning, automatic high beams, lane keep assist, and a rearview camera. Available upgrades include a head-up display, reverse automatic emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, a surround-view camera system, front and rear parking sensors, and traffic sign recognition.
• Infotainment: Every CX-5 gets a 10.25-inch infotainment touch screen, plus standard Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The system is uncluttered but can be awkward to use through the center-console controller, and there are no quick-tuning knobs for the stereo.
• Fuel efficiency: The non-turbo FWD model returns 25 mpg city, 31 mpg highway, and 28 mpg combined. AWD with the base engine gets 24 mpg city, 30 mpg highway, and 26 mpg combined. The turbo FWD version is rated at 23 mpg city, 28 mpg highway, and 25 mpg combined, while the turbo AWD model gets 22 mpg city, 27 mpg highway, and 24 mpg combined.

Which 2021 Mazda CX-5 trim should I buy?

The 2021 Mazda CX-5 is offered in 7 trim levels: Sport, Touring, Touring Preferred SV Package, Carbon Edition, Carbon Edition Turbo, Grand Touring, Grand Touring Reserve, and Signature.

Here's the short version:

• Sport: This is the entry point, and it gives you the core CX-5 experience with the standard safety suite, the 10.25-inch screen, and the base 2.5-liter engine. It makes sense if you want the lowest-cost way into the model, but it leaves out the richer cabin materials and convenience upgrades found higher up.
• Touring: This is the best-value starting point if you want a more polished daily driver, since it adds leatherette seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, keyless entry, rear USB ports, a six-speaker audio system, and auto-leveling LED headlights. If you want the sweet spot between price and equipment, this is the trim to focus on.
• Touring Preferred SV Package: This package is the easiest way to make the Touring feel much more upscale, adding a 10-speaker Bose sound system, leather seats, a power liftgate, a power moonroof, and power-adjustable front seats. It suits you if you want a near-luxury feel without jumping to the higher trims.
• Carbon Edition: This trim layers on the Touring Preferred SV Package equipment plus Polymetal Gray paint, gloss black exterior accents, 19-inch black metallic alloy wheels, red leather seats, and black honeycomb interior trim. It is the style pick if you want the most distinctive look in the lineup.
• Carbon Edition Turbo: This version adds the stronger turbocharged engine, so it is the one to choose if you care most about acceleration and passing power. It gives you the same visual flair as the Carbon Edition, but with the more energetic powertrain.
• Grand Touring: This trim adds dual heated mirrors, leatherette-trimmed upholstery, 19-inch brilliant silver wheels, LED taillights, LED fog lights, LED daytime running lights, a power liftgate, paddle shifters, a 7-inch digital gauge display, and SiriusXM. It is a good fit if you want more premium features without going all the way to the top.
• Grand Touring Reserve: This is the first trim with the turbo engine and standard AWD, plus ventilated seats, heated rear seats, a heated steering wheel, automatic folding mirrors, and a windshield wiper de-icer. It is the right choice if you want a more upscale cold-weather setup and stronger performance.
• Signature: This is the most luxurious CX-5, with Caturra Brown Nappa leather, genuine wood trim, ambient lighting, a black headliner, and a frameless auto-dimming rearview mirror with Homelink. Choose it if you want the most premium cabin and do not mind paying for it.

The safety package is broad across the lineup, but buyers who want the best headlights available should plan to upgrade to the adaptive lighting system.

Is now a good time to buy a used 2021 Mazda CX-5?

This is a moderate market for selective buyers, so you can shop carefully and still find worthwhile listings.

• Deal availability: 38.1% of listings are priced as good or great deals.
• Inventory: There are 2,272 listings available.
• Price trend: Prices have softened 2.12% compared with last year.
• Clean inventory: 75.4% of listings are accident-free.

If you find a listing below $20,755, that's toward the low end of the year-round range and worth acting on quickly.

What is the 2021 Mazda CX-5's resale value?

The current average of $21,875 sits slightly below last year's $22,348.

That softer pricing can work in your favor if you buy now, because you may be entering at a more favorable point in the cycle. For a future seller, the recent decline suggests you should expect some depreciation pressure rather than a rising-price environment.

Even so, the CX-5’s strong reputation for value, safety, and driving enjoyment should help support demand when it is time to sell. Vehicles with strong owner satisfaction ratings, like this model year's 4.79/5, tend to retain buyer demand, which supports resale value over time.

Is the 2021 Mazda CX-5 safe?

The 2021 Mazda CX-5 earns a Top Safety Pick+ rating from IIHS and five-star ratings from NHTSA.

It earns an 8/10 safety score from our experts.

Standard safety equipment includes adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, forward collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert, forward automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane departure warning, automatic high beams, lane keep assist, and a rearview camera. Available upgrades include a head-up display, reverse automatic emergency braking, driver attention monitoring, a surround-view camera system, front and rear parking sensors, and traffic sign recognition.

The main caveat is that buyers who want the best headlights available on the model should plan to upgrade to the adaptive lighting system. Traffic sign recognition is also described as slow and occasionally incomplete.

Should I buy a 2021 Mazda CX-5 or consider a different year?

If you're weighing the 2021 against nearby model years, here's how to think about it:

Choose the 2021 if:

• 38.1% of listings are priced as good or great deals.
• Accident-free inventory is solid at 75.4% — always verify the vehicle history report.
• Price trend: Prices have softened 2.12% compared with last year.
• Owners rate it 4.79/5 — a strong satisfaction signal.
• Mazda added a new Carbon Edition and improved the tech for this model year.

Consider the 2020 if:

• At $20,010, the 2020 costs less than the current year's $21,875 average.
• It leans more toward premium styling and materials than tech upgrades.

Consider the 2022 if:

• At $23,681, the 2022 costs more than the current year's $21,875 average.
• It pushes further into premium territory with more upscale appeal.

The bottom line: If you want the best balance of price, safety, and features, the 2021 is the smart default. If your budget is tighter, the 2020 can save you money, while shoppers who want a more premium-feeling CX-5 may prefer the 2022.

These recommendations are based on CarGurus' proprietary market data from October 13, 2026, CarGurus experts' opinions, and generative AI.