The Chevrolet Suburban and GMC Yukon XL are pure America. These full-size three-row SUV provide plenty of everything, including space, power, equipment, and options.
The 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe and 2025 GMC Yukon are cousins that share their underpinnings, powertrains, features and most options. The chrome-laden GMC Yukon Denali meets its match in the new Suburban High Country edition. Both push price tags of nearly $100,000.
The general difference between the two comes down to how much you want to spend and how strong you like your vehicle’s snout. Both earn strong TCC Ratings, but which one noses out the other? Let’s take a look.
Suburban vs. Yukon XL trims and prices
- Suburbans start around $63,000
- Base Yukons cost about $71,895
- Best picks: Suburban LT and Yukon Denali
How much does a Chevy Suburban cost?
The Suburban LS has a sticker price of just over $63,000, which includes cloth upholstery, 18-inch wheels, and a 17.7-inch touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. We like the Suburban LT for about $67,000 (plus $3,000 for four-wheel drive). March through the RST, Premier, and Z71 trims to get to the most expensive Suburban High Country, and you’ll pay about $90,000 with a few options.
How much does a GMC Yukon XL cost?
With a base price of almost $72,000, the Yukon XL comes with a 16.8-inch touchscreen, heated power front seats, leather upholstery, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. If you can stomach that—and don’t need the light off-road gear-up in the $78,695 Yukon XL AT4—opt into the Yukon XL Denali for about $81,995. It includes magnetic damping, a head-up display, finer interior trim, and cooled front seats. Believe it or not, you’ll save money over the fabulous but very pricey $104,795 GMC Yukon XL Denali Ultimate, which piles on equipment that’s optional elsewhere and adds black-out trim and 24-inch wheels.
Winner: The Chevy Suburban.
Suburban vs. Yukon XL performance
Are the GMC Yukon XL and Chevy Suburban 4WD?
Most versions can be had with four-wheel drive. It’s standard on high-end versions like the Denali Ultimate, and available electronic limited-slip differential helps with traction in snow, mud, and rain. Knobby off-road tires and skid plates can be fitted.
How fast are the GMC Yukon XL and Chevy Suburban?
Base versions of both vehicles sport a 355-hp 5.3-liter V-8 with plenty of pull, teamed to a sometimes fiddly 10-speed automatic. For more expensive but stronger towing power, the 3.0-liter turbodiesel inline-6 gets better fuel economy, but also costs more for fuel. The top-line 420-hp 6.2-liter V-8 has tremendous acceleration and a great soundtrack, too.
An excellent ride in either vehicle belies a big, bruising look. In both, an independent suspension can be improved with air springs and adaptive damping that can raise or lower the vehicle for better off-road performance or highway efficiency—a good thing—and can offset the ride impacts generated by big 22-inch wheels (less so, the 24-inchers available on the top Yukon XL). Neither SUV handles like a well-tuned crossover, but their mass dissolves at highway speeds thanks to precise steering.
Winner: A draw
Suburban vs. Yukon XL towing and hauling
- Tow ratings differ by 100 pounds
- Base engines work harder
- The diesel’s unbothered, but fuel costs and price work against it
In either the Yukon XL or Suburban, towing can be a cinch—though ratings are far lower than some full-size pickup trucks. The Yukon XL with a trailer-tow package can pull up to 8,400 lb. The Suburban checks in at 8,300 lb when it’s configured with rear-wheel drive and the 5.3-liter V-8. The overall tow ratings may be lower, but vehicles with the more powerful V-8 and turbodiesel may feel less strained than the still-strong base V-8.
Winner: GMC Yukon XL, by 100 pounds.
Suburban vs. Yukon XL cargo space and utility
- Up to nine passengers
- Huge cargo space
- Adult-size third-row seats
Both the Yukon XL and Suburban can be configured to seat up to nine passengers, while still carrying a massive amount of gear in their cargo spaces. Utility’s no question—the main question is whether it’s too much space for some who’d be better served by a crossover SUV instead.
Most of these SUVs come with a pair of front buckets seats, a set of captain’s chairs or a three-person bench in the middle row, and a fold-away bench seat in the third row. An option for a front bench seat brings the total capacity up to nine, but adults shouldn’t count on more than two riding in the wayback—and getting back there will require some gymnastics, despite fold-down middle-row seats.
By the numbers, the Yukon XL and Suburban can fit more than 41 cubic feet of stuff behind their third-row seats, or 145 cubic feet behind the front seats. Small items will find a home in the dozen or so pockets, bins, and consoles located throughout the cabin.
Winner: A draw.
Suburban vs. Yukon XL fuel economy
- V-8s are thirsty for fuel
- Diesel costs more and fuel prices are higher, too
No one’s going to call these large SUVs fuel efficient, even with cylinder deactivation. Base models match up with EPA fuel economy ratings of 17 mpg combined. The most efficient versions get the turbodiesel and its EPA combined ratings of 22-23 mpg—but those versions cost extra not just for the powertrain, but also for the diesel fuel per gallon. At worst, the big V-8 models tip the EPA scales at about 16 mpg combined.
Winner: Neither.
Yukon XL vs. Suburban technology and features
- Big touchscreens rule
- Apple CarPlay/Android Auto are wireless
- Denali Ultimate is the ultimate GM SUV
Which GMC Yukon should I buy?
With prices that start at $68,895, the GMC Yukon XL Elevation has Champagne tastes, even in base versions with cloth seats and 18-inch wheels. The Suburban costs less, and gets a bigger screen than the 16.8-inch touchscreen in the Yukon. Both screens deliver wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, though. We like the Yukon XL Denali, which costs about $82,000 and has 22-inch wheels, wireless smartphone charging, and Bose audio. It’s possible to spend almost $100,000 for a Yukon XL Denali Ultimate and its Super Cruise adaptive cruise control, 12-speaker Bose sound, and fine leather interior.
Which Chevrolet Suburban should I buy?
The $63,495 Suburban LS’s cloth upholstery is fine, and so is its touchscreen interface and power front seats. Its new, bigger 17.7-inch touchscreen sports GM’s new Google-based operating system, with Google Maps and Assistant. If you want something a little nicer, the $66,695 Suburban LT gets a power tailgate, heated front seats, Bose audio, and leather. Four-wheel drive costs $3,000 more. Skip ahead past the RST, Premier, and Z71 trims to land on the Suburban High Country, which bundles a luxurious interior with a few features like a rear camera mirror and 22-inch wheels, and asks $81,695.
All versions of both carry a 3-year/36,000-mile warranty that comes with one free service appointment.
Winner: GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate
Suburban vs. Yukon XL exterior and interior
- High base prices for both, but cloth interior is standard
- Both have angular, handsome style
- Polished interiors—especially Denali and High Country
Is the GMC Yukon a good-looking SUV?
It’s handsome and dressy, in a low-key way. The Yukon XL has a 15-inch stretch in its rear doors, which doesn’t affect the way it carries itself. It’s a simple look but done well—and the extra length of the XL offsets the massive front end and its C-shaped accents. AT4 models wear some off-road cues that might appeal to those who use it as a tow appliance, first and foremost. Inside the Yukon has a soothing and sedate look, with luxurious touches of metallic trim and leather.
Is the Chevrolet Suburban a good-looking car?
It’s also handsome, if a little more conservative inside. The sharp details on the Suburban’s front end don’t upset the balanced and streamlined shape it delivers from the sides and the rear, even in the blacked-out RST and high-riding ZL1 specs. The interior has a push button shifter, which we don’t care for, but has a well-organized functionality that cleans up nicely in High Country trim.
Winner: GMC Yukon XL
Suburban vs. Yukon XL safety
- Super Cruise is super
- NHTSA scores aren’t so good
- IIHS remains silent
The Suburban and Yukon both carry standard automatic emergency braking, but both share a four-star overall rating from the NHTSA that’s below par, especially for such new designs. Options range from blind-spot monitors to active lane control and a surround-view camera system; there’s also a rear camera mirror and Super Cruise, GM’s marvelous driver-assist setup that permits hands-free driving on about 300,000 miles of mapped North American roads. It’s not “self-driving”—it’s better than that misleading misnomer.
Winner: A draw.
Which is better: Chevy Suburban or GMC Yukon XL?
Either SUV remains a strong choice for any driver that needs lots of space and lots of tow capacity. We give the GMC Yukon a TCC Rating of 6.5 out of 10, with a standout score for styling that only gets more convincing in its most expensive Denali models. (Read more about how we rate cars.) The Suburban equals it at a TCC Rating of 6.5 out of 10. That tells the whole story: what’s premium about the Yukon, when nearly all of its equipment can be had with a lower price? If it’s value at the top of your list, the Suburban can be less expensive—and could be the better choice.
Winner: The Suburban.