Best hot hatches - driven, rated and ranked

Best for: Track day thrills

The previous version of the Honda Civic Type R was one of our favourite hot hatchbacks, so expectations were high for this one - and happily it didn't disappoint.

Under the bonnet, the familiar turbocharged 2.0-litre engine gets a lighter flywheel, revised intake and freer-flowing exhaust that help lift power from 316bhp to 325bhp, while the six-speed manual gearbox has a tweaked gate for even slicker shifting.

The dual-axis front suspension and multi-link rear axle are very similar, but the track is now 15mm wider, which works in partnership with a 15%-stiffer bodyshell to combine even sharper handling with greater compliance. This Civic feels like a more grown-up proposition than the old car, even if the BTCC-style rear wing still suggests it's a bit of a hooligan.

It's certainly quick, with 0-62mph done and dusted in 5.4sec and 170mph just about within reach. Yet it delivers this performance with real sophistication and civility.

It's still a car that gets your heart racing and synapses snapping, but it's also one that doesn't make the commute a chore or motorway trips a test of endurance.

So why doesn't it top this list? Well, for starters, Honda has hiked the Type R's prices, and significantly so. The previous version started at around £33,000, but you will need (are you sitting down?) £50,000 for this one.

Even if that figure doesn't put you off, you will struggle to find one, as UK imports will be in the hundreds rather than the thousands.

Best for: Character

Hyundai suddenly became very hard to overlook as a purveyor of affordable performance cars, and the i20 N rally-inspired supermini was the main reason why.

Note, however, that Hyundai in early 2024 stopped production of the i20 and i30 N models, though they still feel new enough to warrant inclusion on this list.

The junior N model is a simpler and more direct attempt at a classic hot hatchback than the bigger i30 N. Being smaller and lighter helps, of course.

But it also uses a conventional limited-slip differential in place of an active one, a punchy but not domineering 1.6-litre turbocharged engine, a six-speed manual gearbox in place of any clever dual-clutch automatic and good passive dampers, rather than adaptive ones.

The results are really very effective indeed. This car has the carefully honed, extra-purposeful character of a genuine rally-stage exile. Its body control, high-speed precision and composure and steering precision are all of an order you rarely find in a car this size, and its ground-covering pace is greater than you would expect of a car with only 201bhp to put to use.

The i20 is impressively roomy and well equipped, too, given the strides its maker has taken these past 10 years in drawing level with the best small cars that Europe can offer.

Some will find it a bit too grippy, precise and compose, while others will appreciate that it's a less hyperactive take on the junior hot hatch than the Ford Fiesta ST. Not that it matters very much, because the Fiesta has been axed.

Best for: Everyday road performance

The Blue Oval has had some memorably brilliant, chart-topping hot hatchbacks over the last couple of decades – and while the current Focus ST isn’t quite as sharp and involving as the Yaris and Civic above, it absolutely honours the fast Ford legacy. It’s a good deal more affordable than the Civic, too.

Although STs are typically slightly subordinate hot hatchbacks, Ford hasn't held back with the make-up of this one because there was never going to be a Focus RS for this generation.

It's the first Focus ST with adaptive dampers and the first with an electronically controlled limited-slip differential for its driven front axle, the latter being something that remains fairly rare on cars of this price point and which certainly adds to its handling appeal.

The Focus ST has direct, agile handling, purposeful-feeling firm body control and abundant vocal and motive performance-car character. It's the kind of hot hatch built to make even the more mundane road miles enjoyable, and it succeeds at that – although it lacks the outright grip and performance of some fast Fords of old.

Perhaps that's the right balance for an ST model: more the effusive everyday road performance car than the really purposeful, big-hitting track machine.

It's not quite enough to make this car our ultimate hot hatchback of the moment, but it's a very strong contender all the same.

If you're tempted, put your order in now. The smaller Ford Fiesta ST has already died, along with the standard Fiesta, and the Focus range is due to be axed in 2025.

Best for: Pure power

Let the following statement sink in: the Mercedes-AMG A45 S is a four-wheel-drive hot hatchback that costs more than £60,000 and has a 2.0-litre four-pot that makes 416bhp and 369lb ft.

Not only does that mean Affalterbach's most rabid hot hatch has the most powerful series production four-cylinder engine on the planet, it also has a engine with a higher specific output than that of the Ferrari 488 Pista. It is, in a sense, utterly ridiculous.

Be that as it may, there's still a phenomenal – not to mention usable – driver's car lying beneath all its wings, fins and flares. Straight-line performance is undoubtedly immense, but more of a surprise is how well-mannered its complex, steroidal driveline is when you're simply tooling about.

Body control is rock-solid at speed, but there's genuine compliance in the chassis too. Grip is outstanding, meanwhile, and the accuracy, weighting and textural feedback from its electrically assisted steering rack is easily up there with the best in class.

As a multi-talented hot hatchback, the A45 S is undoubtedly a triumph. But priced as it now is up beyond £50,000, it has wandered so far from the realms of relative affordability that these cars are supposed to champion that crowning it class champion would have been a touch problematic.

Still, what a fantastic machine it is. And if such a pricey Merc is a step too far, we would direct you to the Volkswagen Golf R rather than the AMG A35, which isn't quite so impressive, despite its similar looks.

Best for: Luxury

Is the idea of an Audi A3 that’s capable of 180mph more or less absurd than one that might cost you as much as £65,000 after options? 

There is something extraordinary about even the very proposition of the latest generation of ultra-hot Audi hatchback. For a start, it has a cracking, characterful five-pot motor fit to grace to engine bays of dedicated sports coupes (as it does in the TT RS).

Then there is the new torque-vectoring back axle, which operates in a similar way to that of the AMG A45 S and can, in certain conditions, result in a longitudinally engined hatchback that can be genuinely steering on the throttle.

The RS 3 combines these elements with a chassis that is controlled but far from brittle, and perhaps that is the real magic of this recipe. It's fundamentally usable day-to-day, despite the wild performance on offer and a very punchy exterior aesthetic.

That said, the Merc edges it in our estimations owing to its warmer cabin and more feelsome driving experience.

Best for: Daily driving

Volkswagen's highly regarded super-Golf, the four-wheel-drive Golf R, has taken a big step forward in this latest form.

Unlike 20 years ago, when the V6-engined R32 vied with the Alfa Romeo 147 GTA to be the very hottest of hot hatchbacks that could be bought with a full factory warranty, the latest one isn't quite the fiercest car of its kind. Its 316bhp 2.0-litre turbocharged engine still gives it significant bragging rights, mind.

And it has other weapons. Most Golf Rs come on adaptive dampers, which can switch between B-road ironing and teeth-rattling modes at the touch of a screen.

Meanwhile, the fully torque-vectored four-wheel drive system can juggle drive not just front to rear but also asymmetrically across its rear axle.

Tick the right options boxes and the car will even offer a drift mode, as well as increase in the speed limiter's ceiling to 168mph (both are part of the R Performance Pack, although we wouldn't bother, since it's a bit of a gimmick).

The Mk8 R takes on quite a different character to the Mk7. It has lost some of the just-so compromise of suppleness, stability and pace that made the last version of the car so popular, while even greater body control and adhesion have come in to make up the balance - and greater driver involvement too, albeit only if you really probe at the car's limits.

For those who liked the 'one fast car for every journey' charm of the Mk7, the Mk8 may feel a little too serious and perhaps just a touch aloof at lower speeds. But there's no denying that the car's outright dynamic capabilities have expanded by quite a way. That rear diff gives it staggering agility, and in the softest damper mode, it rides remarkably well.

As in every Mk8 Golf, the touchscreen-heavy control interface takes a bit of getting used to, and it can be slow to respond, but the incoming Mk8.5 facelift promises to address that.

Best for: Fuel economy

Previous versions of Volkswagen's long-lived Golf GTI have featured prominently in this line-up of the greatest affordable performance cars, but this one is a slightly different kettle of fish.

Volkswagen went in search of greater handling response and driver appeal with the eighth generation of its hot Golf but had only questionable success in finding it.

Meanwhile, it adversely affected the sweet-riding, easy-to-use temperament that the GTI has traded on for so long, introducing an unwelcome firmness to its ride.

None of which need suggest that this GTI wouldn't make a good, enjoyable everyday driver. Its 242bhp 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine remains a little short on power compared with the rest of the cars here, and it could feel a little keener-revving at times, but it makes for strong and responsive thrust, which the chassis allows you to deploy pretty freely.

The car's new firmer springing makes it work better on smoother surfaces than typical UK country B-roads, but adaptive dampers do allow for some adjustment of the ride. Steering is newly pacey but still a little light and numb; undemanding in everyday use but not as absorbing as it might be.

In GTI Clubsport trim, the car's key vitals rise to 296bhp and 295lb ft, its final drive ratio is reduced and its suspension is firmed up. It becomes a more grippy, direct and incisive-handling car without losing much by way of everyday cruising habitability but still not the best-balanced or the most exciting or involving driver's car in this list.

Crucially, in all its forms, the GTI has lost its chameleon-like ability to match your mood whatever the road or occasion.

A facelifted Golf is due soon, which should fix some of the issues with the Golf's multimedia screen but which will also mean the end for manual gearboxes in the GTI.

Make no mistake - the Cupra Born VZ makes this top 10 on merit rather than as a makeweight that has any positives suffixed with the phrase 'for an EV'. Not only does the Born look the hot hatch part, it drives it too. There's real talent here.

Based on the same platform as the Volkswagen ID 3, the regular Born gets a rear-mounted motor that delivers up to 227bhp and instant torque. The VZ, meanwhile, boosts performance to 322bhp and 402lb ft. 

It feels genuinely quick up to 60mph, and while accelerative force diminishes beyond this point, few fast car fans will be disappointed. It also steers keenly, with quick turn-in and poised, low-roll handling that allows it to scoot through a series of corners quickly and accurately - although a little less intervention from the electronic safety net would help unleash some of its rear-drive balance.

Elsewhere, it does the other hot hatch things well, with a spacious and versatile interior plus decent everyday comfort and refinement. Better still, with the larger 77kWh battery, the Born promises a very respectable 341 miles on a charge.