Compare the2026 Chevrolet ColoradoVS 2025 Honda Ridgeline

The Colorado’s standard pretensioning seatbelts also sense rear collisions and remove slack from the front seatbelts to help protect the occupants from whiplash and other injuries. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Chevrolet Colorado achieved a “Acceptable” rating - the second highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The Honda Ridgeline has not been tested.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Colorado Trail Boss/Z71/ZR2’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

The Colorado LT/Trail Boss/Z71/ZR2 offers an optional Surround Vision to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Ridgeline only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the Colorado and Ridgeline have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Colorado has Rear Cross Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Ridgeline’s Cross Traffic Monitor doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Colorado and the Ridgeline have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available all wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Chevrolet Colorado is safer than the Honda Ridgeline:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Colorado’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Ridgeline’s (6 vs. 5 years).

There are almost 3 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Honda dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Colorado’s warranty.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Colorado’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Ridgeline’s camshafts. If the Ridgeline’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Colorado has a standard 170-amp alternator (220-amp - Colorado optional). The Ridgeline’s 150-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Colorado has a standard 800-amp battery. The Ridgeline’s 650-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet above average in initial quality. With 1 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is rated lower.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet above average in long-term dependability. With 33 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Honda is rated lower.

The Colorado’s 2.7 turbo 4-cylinder produces 30 more horsepower (310 vs. 280) and 168 lbs.-ft. more torque (430 vs. 262) than the Ridgeline’s 3.5 SOHC V6.

The Colorado has 1.9 gallons more fuel capacity than the Ridgeline (21.4 vs. 19.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

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

For better stopping power the Colorado’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Ridgeline:

The Colorado stops shorter than the Ridgeline:

For better traction, the Colorado has larger standard tires than the Ridgeline (255/65R17 vs. 245/60R18). The Colorado ZR2 Bison’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Ridgeline (315/70R17 vs. 245/60R18).

The Colorado Trail Boss’ optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Ridgeline’s 60 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Colorado Trail Boss offers optional 22-inch wheels. The Ridgeline’s largest wheels are only 18-inches.

The Chevrolet Colorado’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Honda Ridgeline only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Colorado offers an optional full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your work or a trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Ridgeline; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

The Colorado has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Ridgeline’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Colorado’s wheelbase is 6.2 inches longer than on the Ridgeline (131.4 inches vs. 125.2 inches).

The Colorado’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (56% to 44%) than the Ridgeline’s (57.1% to 42.9%). This gives the Colorado more stable handling and braking.

The Colorado LT 4x4 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Ridgeline (27 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Colorado LT 4x4’s turning circle is 1.9 feet tighter than the Ridgeline’s (41.5 feet vs. 43.4 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Colorado has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Ridgeline (7.9 vs. 7.64 inches), allowing the Colorado to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Colorado ZR2 Bison’s minimum ground clearance is 4.56 inches higher than on the Ridgeline (12.2 vs. 7.64 inches).

The front grille of the Colorado uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Colorado has .2 inches more front headroom and 4.3 inches more front legroom than the Ridgeline.

The Colorado has a much larger cargo box than the Ridgeline shortbed (41.9 vs. 33.9 cubic feet).

The Chevrolet Colorado offers an optional EZ-Lift and Lower, which prevents the heavy tailgate from falling with a crash and causing injury. It allows adults and children to easily open and close the tailgate with one hand to better facilitate loading and unloading. The Honda Ridgeline doesn’t offer a tailgate assist.

The Chevrolet Colorado has a standard CornerStep, which allows for much easier access to the cargo area. The Honda Ridgeline doesn’t offer a rear cargo step.

The Colorado has bed indentations that accommodate 2x4’s for two-tiered loading to help accommodate diverse loads; the Ridgeline doesn’t offer two-tiered loading. The Colorado also has indentations to separate the cargo box into three different sections length-wise.

The Colorado has stake post holes, to allow the containment of tall, light loads. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer stake post holes.

The Colorado’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Ridgeline’s (7700 vs. 5000 pounds).

The Colorado Trail Boss/Z71/ZR2 can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Colorado can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Ridgeline can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The Colorado 4x4 has a higher standard payload capacity than the Ridgeline (1700 vs. 1543 lbs.).

The Colorado has a higher maximum payload capacity than the Ridgeline (1710 vs. 1543 lbs.).

The engine in the Colorado is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Ridgeline. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

The Colorado’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Ridgeline does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The Colorado’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Ridgeline’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Colorado and the Ridgeline have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Colorado is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Ridgeline prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Colorado’s standard front and rear power windows all lower with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside of the car. The Ridgeline’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open them fully.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Colorado’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Colorado’s available headlights were rated “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Ridgeline’s headlights are rated “Marginal.”

The Colorado’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Honda only offers heated mirrors on the Ridgeline RTL/TrailSport/Black Edition.

The Colorado’s power mirror controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The Ridgeline’s power mirror controls are on the dash where they are possibly hidden by the steering wheel and are awkward to manipulate.

Compared to traditional radio, the Chevrolet Colorado’s standard SiriusXM satellite radio provides an unmatched listening experience. Its extensive coverage guarantees consistent, crystal-clear reception across the continental U.S., and access to over 100 channels dedicated to a multitude of genres, including music, news, sports, talk shows, and comedy, many with only limited commercial breaks. Satellite radio is only offered on the Ridgeline RTL/TrailSport/Black Edition.

The Colorado is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

According to iSeeCars.com the 2025 Chevrolet Colorado retains 57.74% of its original value after 5 years, more than the 57.65% resale value of the 2025 Honda Ridgeline after five years, which can save the Chevrolet’s owner up to $3521.09337 in depreciation.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Colorado second among midsize pickups in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Ridgeline isn’t in the top three.

Motor Trend selected the Colorado as their 2024 Truck of the Year. The Ridgeline was Truck of the Year in 2006.

The Chevrolet Colorado outsold the Honda Ridgeline by over two to one during 2024.