2025 Kia EV5 electric car pricing confirmed... in New Zealand! Our closest hint of what we'll pay for this Tesla Model Y and Polestar 4 rival

Australians are on the brink of finding out how much Kia will charge them for its upcoming EV5 electric car, with the brand announcing that the new mid-sized SUV will start at NZ$67,990 in New Zealand.

Do the currency conversion into Australian dollars at today’s rate and that’s AU$62,368. Whether that’s close to the price Kia Australia will set for our version of the EV5 is yet to be seen, but with the new electric SUV expected to arrive here in June it won’t be long before we find out.

New Zealand will also see its version of the EV5 arrive around the middle of this year, with the NZ$67,990 entry point into the Kiwi EV5 range the lowest of four grades - choices of two-wheel drive and all-wheel drive variants will offer ranges of up to 500km.

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“The Kia EV5 is a midsize electric SUV that redefines sustainable mobility and will join the EV6 and multi-international award-winning EV9 as part of our zero-emissions model portfolio,” said Kia New Zealand  Managing Director Todd McDonald.  

Specifications and standard features have yet to be announced for the Australian EV5, but we do know that the SUV will be offered in three grades: Air, Earth and GT-Line.

As in NZ, a choice of front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive will also be available, as will a standard and long range battery with up to 500km.

As for our EV5’s price, at a special walkaround of a pre-production version of the EV5, CarsGuide asked Kia Australia General Manager of Product Planning Roland Rivero if the upcoming electric SUV could wear a price tag starting close to $57,000 for the entry grade and then head upwards to about $70,000 for the top-of-the-range version. This would price it below the Kia EV6 while also undercutting its closest rival, the Tesla Model Y, which starts at $63,900.

“What you’re speculating is a fair speculation,” Rivero said. 

“We’re serious about EV5 and it’s important that we are competitive in that medium space for the pragmatic buyers."

Specifications and standard features have yet to be announced for the Australian EV5.

New Zealand’s EV5 and the Australian version will be made by Kia at its Chinese plant, while the Korean plant will supply the EV5 to Europe, the United States, Canada, South America and the Middle East.

Kia Chief Operating Officer Dennis Piccoli said sourcing cars out of the Chinese factory means Australia won’t have to compete with Europe for supply as it has in the past.

“Being made in China will give us surety of supply,” Piccoli said. 

“It’s an enormous opportunity for us. It’s probably one of the most important cars for us in all reality. We’re at the point of inflection we really have to start dialling up our EV volume to the wider market.”

“We think we can sell up to 10,000 units a year,” Piccoli said. 

At CarsGuide, we’ve predicted that the EV5 could become be a landmark car for Kia, possibly going on to be one of the most popular SUVs in Australia in the future - it all depends on if the price is right.