By the LetsLease team
These two turn up on the same shortlist constantly, and they are both among the best selling cars in Britain. They are also, strictly speaking, not rivals at all. The Puma is a small SUV built on supermini underpinnings. The Qashqai is a proper family SUV a full size above it.
That sounds like a technicality until you try to put three children and a week's luggage in one of them. So rather than pretend this is a close contest on every measure, this comparison is about working out which size of car you actually need, and then which of these two does that job better.
Quick Verdict
Lease the Nissan Qashqai if you need family SUV space. It has the bigger boot, more rear legroom and its e-Power system is the more interesting piece of engineering, giving an electric driving feel without any charging at all.
Lease the Ford Puma if you want the better driving car and do not need the extra space. It is the more entertaining of the two by a clear margin, easier to park, and the Puma Gen-E gives you a fully electric option the Qashqai does not currently offer.
Ford Puma vs Nissan Qashqai: Key Specifications
| Specification | Ford Puma | Nissan Qashqai |
|---|---|---|
| Class | Small SUV, supermini based | Family SUV, a size larger |
| Petrol engine | 1.0 EcoBoost three cylinder with mild hybrid assistance | 1.3 petrol with mild hybrid assistance |
| Electrified option | Puma Gen-E, fully electric | e-Power, a petrol engine acting purely as a generator |
| Boot space | 456 litres, or 523 on the Gen-E with its underfloor box | 504 litres |
| Electric range | Gen-E: Ford quotes up to 233 miles | None, e-Power never needs charging |
| Nissan's e-Power figures | Not applicable | 62mpg, 102g/km CO2, up to 745 miles WLTP on a tank |
| Best for | Driving enjoyment, easier parking, a fully electric option | Space, long distance comfort, electric feel without charging |
Size: The Difference That Decides It
The Qashqai's boot is 504 litres against the Puma's 456. On paper that is a moderate gap, but boot volume understates it, because the Qashqai is a bigger car throughout: more rear legroom, more shoulder room across the back seat, and an easier shape for fitting child seats.
The Puma answers back with one genuinely clever feature. Underneath its boot floor sits a deep, drainable storage well that Ford calls the MegaBox, and it swallows tall items that would otherwise have to lie on their side. On the electric Gen-E the underfloor space is larger still, taking total seats-up capacity to 523 litres, which is more than the Qashqai. That is a real advantage, but it is a clever use of a smaller car rather than a bigger car.
Two Completely Different Ideas About Electrification
This is where the comparison gets genuinely interesting, and where most write-ups skate over the detail. The two cars take opposite approaches, and neither is a plug-in hybrid.
The Puma's petrol engines use mild hybrid assistance. A small motor helps the engine, recovers a little energy under braking and smooths the stop-start system. It cannot drive the car on electricity at all. The efficiency gain is modest and it brings no company car tax advantage, because a mild hybrid is taxed as the petrol car it is based on. Ford's electrified answer proper is the Gen-E, which is fully electric.
Nissan's e-Power is a different idea entirely. The wheels are driven only by an electric motor, and the petrol engine never drives them: it runs purely as a generator to charge the battery that feeds the motor. You get the instant, smooth, quiet delivery of an electric car with no charging cable and no range anxiety, since you simply put petrol in it. Nissan quotes 62mpg, 102g/km of CO2 and up to 745 miles of WLTP range on a tank. It is the most electric-feeling car you can lease without ever plugging anything in.
If you cannot charge at home
The Qashqai e-Power is one of the strongest answers on the market to the question "I want an electric driving experience but I have nowhere to plug in". It gives you the electric motor and the refinement without any of the charging requirement. If you can charge at home, the fully electric Puma Gen-E will be cheaper to run and much better for company car tax. Our guide to choosing between hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric works through that decision properly.
How They Drive
The Puma wins this, and it is the main reason to choose one. It is built on Fiesta underpinnings, and it inherited a lot of what made that car special: sharp steering, tidy body control and a genuine willingness to be enjoyed on a good road. Very few small SUVs are actually fun, and this is one of them.
The Qashqai is not trying to do that. It is tuned for comfort, quietness and easy long distance progress, and it is very good at all three, particularly in e-Power form where the absence of engine noise under acceleration makes it feel a class above. If your driving is commuting and motorways, the Qashqai is the more restful car. If it is B roads, the Puma is the one you will look forward to.
Which Should You Lease?
Choose the Nissan Qashqai if you need the space, and be honest about that rather than optimistic. Growing children, regular rear seat passengers, a dog, or long motorway trips all point here. The e-Power version is the pick of the range and is genuinely distinctive.
Choose the Ford Puma if the Qashqai is more car than you need. It is better to drive, easier to place and park, and the MegaBox makes it more practical than its dimensions suggest. If you can charge at home, the Gen-E turns it into the cheapest of the two to run and by far the better company car.
One more consideration for a lease specifically. Both are fixed multi year commitments with a mileage allowance, so pick the size you will need in three years rather than the one that fits today. Growing out of a car is a much more common regret than having slightly too much of it.
Compare the Latest Puma and Qashqai Lease Deals
Browse the latest Ford Puma lease deals, Nissan Qashqai lease deals and wider car lease deals, on personal or business leasing.
Torn between the two? Tell us how you use a car and we will tell you honestly which size you need.
Ford Puma vs Nissan Qashqai FAQs
The Qashqai is the better family car and the Puma is the better car to drive. They are also different sizes: the Puma is a small SUV on supermini underpinnings, while the Qashqai is a family SUV a full class larger.
Choose on space first. If you regularly carry rear seat passengers or luggage, the Qashqai. If you do not need that room, the Puma is more enjoyable, easier to park and offers a fully electric version.
The Qashqai, at 504 litres against the Puma's 456. The Qashqai is also roomier throughout, with more rear legroom and a more accommodating shape for child seats.
There is one exception. The electric Puma Gen-E has a large underfloor storage box that takes its seats-up capacity to 523 litres, which is more than the Qashqai, though the cabin remains smaller.
It is a deep, drainable storage well underneath the boot floor, and it is one of the genuinely clever features in this class. It lets you stand tall items upright rather than laying them down, and because it drains, you can put muddy boots or wet kit straight in and rinse it out.
It is the main reason the Puma is more practical than its dimensions suggest, and on the electric Gen-E the underfloor space is larger still.
e-Power drives the wheels with an electric motor only. The petrol engine never drives the wheels at all: it runs purely as a generator, charging the battery that feeds the motor.
The result is an electric driving experience, instant and quiet, with no charging cable and no range anxiety, because you refuel it with petrol like any other car. Nissan quotes 62mpg, 102g/km of CO2 and up to 745 miles of WLTP range from a tank.
No, never. It has no plug and no charging requirement. The battery is charged by the petrol engine as you drive, so you simply put fuel in it.
That is what makes it a strong answer for drivers who want an electric feel but have nowhere to charge at home. It is not a plug-in hybrid and should not be compared with one.
The petrol versions are mild hybrids, which means a small motor assists the engine but cannot drive the car on electricity at all. There is no plug and nothing to charge.
The fully electric version is the Puma Gen-E, which is a proper battery electric car. If you want an electrified Puma with real electric running, that is the one, since a mild hybrid brings only a modest efficiency gain and no company car tax advantage.
Ford quotes up to 233 miles of range, with some sources quoting higher official WLTP figures depending on specification.
As with any electric car, official figures come from standard test conditions, so treat them as a comparison tool rather than a promise. Cold weather and sustained motorway speeds both reduce real world range.
The fully electric Ford Puma Gen-E, by a wide margin. Battery electric cars attract the lowest company car tax of any powertrain, which is why company car drivers have moved to them so quickly.
The Qashqai e-Power and the mild hybrid Puma are both taxed as petrol cars, since neither can be plugged in. Tax rates change each tax year, so confirm the position for the specific vehicle with your accountant.
The Puma Gen-E if you can charge at home, since electricity on a domestic tariff costs considerably less per mile than petrol and an electric car needs less servicing.
If you cannot charge at home, the Qashqai e-Power is the more efficient of the petrol options, with Nissan quoting 62mpg. The mild hybrid Puma is efficient for a petrol car but is not in the same conversation.
The Qashqai, comfortably. It has more rear legroom, more width across the back seat, an easier shape for fitting child seats and a bigger boot, and it is quieter on long journeys.
The Puma works for a small family or for two adults who occasionally carry passengers. If you are choosing a car you will still be using in three or four years, size up rather than down, because outgrowing a leased car is not easily fixed part way through an agreement.
The Puma, and it is not close. It is built on Fiesta underpinnings and inherited much of what made that car good, with sharp steering and tidy body control that make it genuinely enjoyable rather than merely competent.
The Qashqai is tuned for comfort and quietness instead, and is very good at both, particularly in e-Power form. Different aims rather than one being worse.
Not directly, no. They sit in different classes: the Puma is a small SUV based on supermini underpinnings, while the Qashqai is a family SUV a size above.
They get cross-shopped anyway because both are among Britain's best selling cars and their price ranges overlap. The most useful thing to settle first is which size you need, because that decides the comparison faster than any specification does.