Compare the2026 Audi SQ5 SportbackVS 2026 BMW XM

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Audi SQ5 Sportback 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 XM doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the SQ5 Sportback and XM have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The SQ5 Sportback 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 XM’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 SQ5 Sportback 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 XM doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

In a Vehicle-to-Vehicle Frontal Crash Prevention 2.0 test conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the Audi SQ5 Sportback achieved a “Good” rating - the highest possible - for its performance in forward collision warning and automatic braking systems, demonstrating its excellent capabilities in preventing collisions. The BMW XM has not been tested.

Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The SQ5 Sportback has Car-to-X Services, a system that seamlessly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The XM doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from infrastructure.

The Audi SQ5 Sportback 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 XM doesn’t offer a camera washer, requiring manual cleaning.

Both the SQ5 Sportback and the XM have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, 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 SQ5 Sportback has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2025 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The XM has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2025.

On the EPA test cycle the SQ5 Sportback gets better fuel mileage than the XM Label running its gasoline engine (21 city/28 hwy vs. 12 city/17 hwy).

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Audi SQ5 Sportback uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended for maximum performance). The XM requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The SQ5 Sportback offers a standard 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 XM 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 available on the SQ5 Sportback can be driven up to 50 miles without any air pressure, allowing you to drive to a service station for a repair. The XM doesn’t offer run-flat tires.

The front and rear suspension of the SQ5 Sportback uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the XM, which uses coil springs in front. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The SQ5 Sportback has a standard automatic front and rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The SQ5 Sportback’s height leveling suspension allows the driver to raise ride height for better off-road clearance and then lower it again for easier entering and exiting and better on-road handling. The XM doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For better maneuverability, the SQ5 Sportback’s turning circle is 2.3 feet tighter than the XM’s (38.7 feet vs. 41 feet).

For greater off-road capability the SQ5 Sportback has a greater minimum ground clearance than the XM (9.5 vs. 8.7 inches), allowing the SQ5 Sportback to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Audi SQ5 Sportback may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1500 pounds less than the BMW XM.

The SQ5 Sportback is 1 foot, 3.5 inches shorter than the XM, making the SQ5 Sportback easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the SQ5 Sportback’s rear seats recline. The XM’s rear seats don’t recline.

The SQ5 Sportback has a much larger cargo volume than the XM with its rear seat up (25.4 vs. 18.6 cubic feet).

The SQ5 Sportback’s standard folding rear seats are split to accommodate bulky cargo. The XM’s standard single piece folding rear seat is not as flexible; long cargo and a passenger can’t share the rear seat.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the SQ5 Sportback’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The XM doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

The SQ5 Sportback’s standard Audi Advanced Key allows you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Comfort Access standard on the XM doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The SQ5 Sportback has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The XM doesn’t offer headlight washers.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the SQ5 Sportback to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The XM doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

The Audi Q5/SQ5 outsold the BMW XM by almost 25 to one during 2025.