Compare the2025 Audi new Q5VS 2025 BMW X5

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi new Q5 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The BMW X5 doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the new Q5 and X5 have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The new Q5 has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The X5’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The new Q5 has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The X5 doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the new Q5. But it costs extra on the X5.

Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The new Q5 has Car-to-X Services, a system that seamlessly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The X5 doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from infrastructure.

The Audi new Q5 offers an optional Top View Camera System and it also offers an optional rear camera washer to make backing always safe, regardless of road dirt or grime, while the BMW X5 doesn’t offer a camera washer, requiring manual cleaning.

Both the new Q5 and the X5 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

The Audi new Q5’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the X5’s engines use an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ March 2025 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than BMW vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 1 place higher in reliability than BMW.

On the EPA test cycle the new Q5 gets better mileage than the X5 running its gasoline engine:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Audi new Q5 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The X5 M60i xDrive requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Audi new Q5 higher (6 out of 10) than the BMW X5 (4 to 6). This means the new Q5 produces up to 12.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the X5 every 15,000 miles.

The EPA certifies the Audi new Q5 as a “Super Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (SULEV). The BMW X5 is only certified to “Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle” (ULEV) standards.

The new Q5 offers an available sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The X5 doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

Changing a flat tire near traffic can be dangerous and inconvenient. The run-flat tires standard on the new Q5 can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. Run-flat tires aren’t available on some tire packages on the X5.

For better maneuverability, the new Q5’s turning circle is .7 feet tighter than the X5 M60i xDrive’s (38.7 feet vs. 39.4 feet). The new Q5’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the X5’s (38.7 feet vs. 41.3 feet).

The Audi new Q5 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 to 1350 pounds less than the BMW X5.

The new Q5 is 8.5 inches shorter than the X5, making the new Q5 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The new Q5 has 1.1 inches more front legroom and .6 inches more rear legroom than the X5.

The new Q5’s liftgate lifts up in one piece, completely out of the way of loading and unloading, while sheltering the cargo loading area. The X5’s tailgate’s top part raises up, but the bottom part lowers, getting in the way of loading and making an uneven surface for sliding cargo.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The new Q5 Premium Plus/Prestige has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The X5 doesn’t offer headlight washers.