Is there really a better car than the hot hatch? They can do it all – the school run at 9am, hold their own around a track day at 11am and then put a real smile on your face when you head the long way to the supermarket at 1pm.
Somewhat depressingly, though, the hot hatch is an endangered species. As the world continues to go SUV and the transition to electric cars rapidly accelerates, the days of the humble petrol-powered hot hatch are numbered.
We’re not quite at the end, though. These are the best hot hatches you can buy in 2025.
8. Ford Focus ST
Ford Focus ST Edition, front
Let’s start off on a sad note. You’ll need to be quick – like, really quick – if you want to get your hands on a new Ford Focus ST, with production set to end in November this year and orders no longer being taken in the UK. If you want one, you’ll have to hope your local dealer has one in stock.
We’re genuinely sad about that, as the ageing hatch is still one of the most engaging on the market. It handles sharply, the 2.3-litre turbo four-pot is punchy, and it’s one of the few cars on this list that can still be had with a manual gearbox.
It’s an expensive car now, approaching £40,000 before options and eclipsing £44,000 for a top-spec Edition. Had it been a little cheaper, it’d probably have been higher on this list.
7. VW Golf GTI Clubsport
Mk8.5 VW Golf GTI Clubsport, front 3/4
The Clubsport badge has returned as a mainstay in the GTI lineup for the Mk8.5 VW Golf, and it’s the one you want.
Its EA888 produces a peak of 296bhp and 295lb ft of torque, and without a Golf R grace-saving overboost mode like on the Mk7. It continues to send that through the front wheels, managed by an electronic locking differential, and the result is pretty entertaining.
Granted, the Clubsport still feels a bit muted compared with options further up this list and it does lack a manual option. Yet, for a bit of everything, it’s hard to beat. Oh, and there are no more silly touch-sensitive steering wheel buttons.
With the more powerful and track-focused Edition 50 set to go on sale soon, there’s a good chance the Golf GTI could catapult up this list once we’ve had a chance to drive it.
6. Cupra Leon VZ TSI
Cupra Leon
By means of having to put one car ahead of another, the Cupra Leon VZ TSI (once named the 300) finds itself a place above the Clubsport on this list, but the two are virtually identical to one another under the skin.
Without driving them back-to-back, it’s hard to tell a difference in feel, though there’s something a little more exotic about saying you drive a Cupra rather than a Volkswagen. Even if you then have to explain the transition from Seat afterwards.
It’s had a refresh for 2025, and we were left pretty impressed driving it earlier in the year.
5. VW Golf R
Mk8.5 VW Golf R, rear 3/4, driving
Many moons ago, we would’ve had a hard time putting a VW Golf R ahead of any GTI on the best hot hatches list simply because they always lacked a bit of involvement by comparison. No longer.
Although yes, the Mk8.5 GTIs are a bit dull to drive by the standards of their forefathers, the R has taken a noticeable step forward in its current form.
It now has more power than ever with 328bhp on tap as standard, and if you get the Performance Pack (get the Performance Pack), you can exploit all of that hilariously with its R-Performance Torque Vectoring system. That allows up to 100 per cent of torque to be sent to a single wheel, resulting in sublime grip levels.
Unlike the new GTIs though, it still has the silly touch-sensitive buttons because of its R mode selector. You can’t have your cake, etc.
4. Audi RS3
Audi RS3 Sportback
The Audi RS3 has always been entertaining because of its big bucket of power under the bonnet, but when the latest model was released in 2021, it became the Best One Ever. Audi widened the front track on both Saloon and Sportback models, and widened the back of the latter, too. The brakes are bigger and the tyre contact patch is improved, but the real game-changer was the introduction of Audi’s Torque Splitter. This is basically a recalibrated version of the R-Performance Torque Vectoring found in the Golf R, and it’s worked wonders in the RS3.
Letting you send all the power to the rear axle gets rid of the powerful-but-understeery character of RS3s gone by, and turns it into a proper pointy sports car that’s beautifully balanced through the bends, and adjustable too, thanks to various different modes that you can select and fiddle with. And obviously, it still has 395bhp to play with, which means 0-62mph in 3.8 seconds, which is faintly ridiculous.
The RS3 has been refreshed for 2025, although with no more power or tech trickery than before. We drove the updated car in February, and we’re delighted to say it’s still brilliant.
3. Mercedes A45 S
It’s easy to get blinded by the raw performance of the Mercedes-AMG A45 S. 416bhp from a 2.0-litre engine that allows for a 0-62mph time of 3.9 seconds, which was supercar pace not so long ago.
Indeed, it feels every bit as impressive when you put your foot down, but it’s more than just a straight-line missile. The A45 is extraordinarily capable in the corners, and unlike most other all-wheel drive hot hatches, it doesn’t just give you heaps of understeer when you do finally approach the limit.
The clever AWD system can and often does favour the rear wheels. There are times when it can feel a little unnatural and synthetic, but once you’re used to it, you’ll find the A45 S far more interesting to drive than the average AWD mega hatch.
It’s leagues better to drive than the old one, and even better to sit in since a minor 2023 update, which added new interior tech and a new dial to let you quickly switch between modes. The problem? The one you want, the A45 S Plus, is well over £60,000. Although we’re talking about hot hatches here, we feel compelled to point out that’s BMW M2 money. And as one of the smaller C-segment hatchbacks, it’s not like the A-Class is significantly more practical than BMW’s coupe.
2. Honda Civic Type R
FL5 Honda Civic Type R, rear 3/4
We’re big fans of the FL5 Honda Civic Type R. In fact, it spent 2024 at the top of this list, and it took something truly magnificent to knock it off its perch.
On paper, it’s an expensive thing at a touch over £50,000 and all of 1bhp more powerful than the previous FK8. So it’s a good job we don’t drive cars on paper. In just about every immeasurable way, the FL5 is a step ahead of the FK8. It’s just that bit sharper, racier, better built and overall more complete.
Unlike the FK8, it has customisable drive modes, which are a godsend on UK roads. It’s never too soft in its comfiest setting, yet still stiff enough to feel engaging. Grip is astonishing, and the best bit is you feel everything through the wheel and your backside.
There are only two problems. Sales will end in the UK and Europe in 2026, and that the next car on this list exists.
1. Toyota GR Yaris
Toyota GR Yaris, front, driving
Ah, this was predictable. The ‘Gen2’ Toyota GR Yaris took an utterly sublime package, and improved just about everything incrementally for an overall leap ahead. We won’t even just claim it to be the best hot hatch on sale – we awarded it our Car of the Year in 2024.
Despite stiff competition, it left us wanting to jump back in it every time we got out of it. That extra power elevates the 1.6-litre three-cylinder to a new level, its chassis tweaks bring more life out of the car and crucially, its interior changes iron out the old car’s biggest flaws.
It’s not cheap at around £45,000, provided you can get yourself an allocation, but we genuinely believe it’s worth every one of those pennies.
What about the rest?
We’d probably rather have the more practical Skoda Octavia vRS over the regular GTI, although neither are quite spicy enough to work its way onto our list. Speaking of which, the Audi S3 is a little uninspiring, even with its facelift bringing the Golf R’s torque vectoring system.
The Suzuki Swift Sport is no more, and nor are the petrol-powered Abarths. 2024 also saw Hyundai i20 N and i30 N bow out. We’re not quite ready to include any electric hatches on this list either, although the Alpine A290 and new Mini Cooper SE have perked our ears up to the idea.
Oh, and in case you’re an American wondering why we don’t have a Toyota GR Corolla on this list, we can’t get it in the UK. Boo and hiss. That may change soon, with a production line starting on our shores.
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