OMODA E5 review: a £33,065 electric SUV

The OMODA E5 is a family-sized electric SUV that starts at £33,065 and covers about 205 miles in the real world. You get a long kit list, a cabin that feels more premium than the price suggests. The boot is adequate, at 380-litres, but it’s nothing to write home about for a car of this size. 

A car this plush at this price invites one obvious question. What's the catch? This OMODA E5 review is based on Grace, our resident EV reviewer’s honest opinion. So read on to find out.

• The OMODA E5 comes in two trims, Knight and Noble, priced from £33,065 to £34,565. 
• Real-world range on both versions is about 205 miles from a 61kWh battery, which covers a normal week of family driving with charge to spare. With the Noble, you can expect 
• A 10 to 80% charge costs around £2.99 at home on Octopus Energy's Intelligent Octopus Go - EV Saver tariff.
• Using an ultra-rapid public charger, a 10 to 80% charge on the OMODA E5 will cost around £35.35, with the 10% discount Octopus EV personal leasing drivers get through Electroverse.
• The boot holds 380 litres, which is small for this class, and the back seats fold in an awkward split.
• The catch isn't one big flaw. It's a handful of small compromises, mostly around polish, boot space and rapid charging speed.

The OMODA E5 is a five-seat electric SUV and the battery version of the petrol OMODA 5. One battery, one motor, two trim levels. OMODA is owned by Chinese manufacturer Chery, which also owns Jaecoo, so the E5 shares a lot of its engineering with the Jaecoo E5.

The pitch is a cabin that feels expensive at a price that isn't, and it's working for OMODA, as the E5 has been one of our most popular electric cars over the past year.

The OMODA E5 comes in two trim levels, Knight and Noble. Both share the same 61kWh battery and motor, with an official range of 267 miles, so the trim you pick changes the kit, not how far you can go.

Knight is the entry-level trim, but it's far from bare. Standard equipment includes:

• 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights and roof rails
• Twin curved screens with connected sat nav, plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• A 50W wireless phone charger with built-in cooling
• Adaptive cruise control, a rear-view camera, and front and rear parking sensors
• Two-zone automatic climate control
• Vehicle-to-load (V2L) in the boot, so you can power a laptop or camping kit from the car's battery

Noble costs £1,500 more and adds most of the comfort kit. On top of everything in the Knight, you get:

• Heated front and rear seats, a heated steering wheel and a heated windscreen
• A heat pump, which helps the battery hold on to its range in cold weather
• A power sunroof, privacy glass and multi-coloured ambient lighting
• Synthetic leather seats, with six-way electric adjustment for the driver and front passenger
• A 360-degree surround-view camera
• An eight-speaker Sony sound system
• A powered tailgate

If you want the lowest price, the Knight covers the essentials and gives up no range. If you drive a lot in winter or do long motorway runs, we'd pick the Noble. The heat pump, heated seats, heated wheel and heated windscreen make cold mornings far easier, and they're a big part of what the extra £1,500 buys.

• LED headlights come as standard, on both trims.
• The Noble rides on 19-inch alloy wheels, also as standard.
• Privacy glass in the back, which gives the car a more premium feel.
• The sloped roofline, which gives a family SUV a bit of coupe about it.
• A panoramic roof that actually opens, rather than just letting light in.

Prices run from £33,065 for the Knight to £34,565 for the Noble. Both trims share a battery and a motor, so the extra money buys kit, not extra miles. That step up for around £1,500, brings a 360-degree camera, ambient lighting, a powered passenger seat and 19-inch wheels. After a week of tight city parking, we'd say the camera alone earns it.

One tax point is worth knowing. Cars registered on or after 1st April 2025 pay £10 in the first year, then the £200 standard rate. The E5 sits well below the price threshold for the expensive car supplement, so you don’t pay that.

The OMODA E5’s real world range is 205 miles from its 61kWh battery. The official WLTP (aka lab tested) range figure is 267 miles, and the gap between the two is normal for any electric car. That’s because your actual range can differ based on your driving habits, the terrain and the outside temperature. 

Is 205 miles enough? For most families, yes. It’s more than enough to cover the school run, the commute and the weekend trip. Grace, our reviewer, drives Derby to Weybridge, about 160 miles, and arrives with charge left over.

On a 7kW home charger the E5 adds about 24 miles of range an hour, and a 10 to 80% charge takes 5 hours 46 minutes. Plug in overnight and you don’t even have to think about it. On a rapid public charger (50kW) the same top-up takes about 55 minutes, and on an ultra-rapid charger (150 kW) it's about 35 minutes. Some rivals at this price top up faster, so it's worth weighing up if you drive long distances often.

A full charge takes the E5 about 205 miles, but most drivers keep the battery between 10 and 80%, so that's what we've based these prices on.

What that costs comes down to where you plug in. At home it can be a couple of pounds. On a motorway ultra-rapid charger, it's more like a round of drinks. Here's what it costs to charge the OMODA E5.

Charging prices from octopusev.com, accurate as of October 2026. Energy prices change, so check the current price before you plan around them.

The cheapest option needs a 7kW charger at home, and a cheap smart EV charging rate. Intelligent Octopus Go - EV Saver is Octopus Energy's home charging tariff, and the discounted rate is exclusive to Octopus EV drivers, which is what brings a 10 to 80% charge down to about £2.99.

Public charging costs more, and not only because the unit rates are higher. Home electricity is charged at 5% VAT, falling to 0% from 1st October 2026, while public charging carries the standard 20% rate. You're also paying for the convenience of charging while you're out. That isn't unique to electric cars. Filling up with petrol on the motorway costs you more than filling up locally, too.

Our guide to charging costs has the full breakdown of home against public charging.

The boot holds 380 litres. That's a couple of suitcases, or a pram, but it's one of the E5’s weaker points for a car this size. The rear seats fold in a split that only works one way. You can drop one seat, or the middle and one outer seat together. So two people in the back plus skis down the middle isn't an option, and long loads go on a roof bar instead.

The cabin is where the money seems to have gone. Twin 12.25-inch curved screens, synthetic leather, proper physical buttons and a column gear selector that keeps the centre console clear. There's a wireless charging pad with built-in cooling, which is a little spa for your phone while you drive. The panoramic roof actually opens, which is getting rare.

Storage is genuinely good. There are bins down the sides of the seats, two cup holders, a tray for keys and jewellery, and a deep space under the armrest that Grace’s dog has claimed for his favourite toy.

Which brings us to the dog test. The E5 is a quietly dog-friendly car. Pet mode keeps the air conditioning running while you nip into a shop, so the dog stays cool and you're not rushing the queue. Grace drives with a dog in the back and rates the compact size for exactly that reason. It's easy to park, and there's still room behind for a passenger.

Rear space split opinion. Our passengers reported plenty of legroom and space for three across the back. Some of the motoring press disagrees, and Top Gear rates the E5 four out of 10 partly on cabin quality. Sit in the back before you sign anything.

Calm is the word. Road noise is low, the ride is comfortable, and the car doesn't fidget on a motorway. The cockpit is sporty enough to look interesting, and never so high-tech that it's in your face.

It feels nippy, too, and the numbers back that up, with 0 to 62mph in 7.6 seconds and a 107mph top speed.

Around town it's easy. The 360-degree camera pops up when you indicate, so you can see what's beside you before you move. It's compact enough to park without a three-point negotiation.

Grace does a lot of motorway miles and says she won't now drive anything without adaptive cruise control. The E5 has it, and it turns a long slog into something much less of one.

As Grace puts it, never underestimate a heated steering wheel in a British winter, either. You get in, put your hands on it, and it's warm almost straight away. 

One last detail. The warning chimes are soft rather than shrill. And if you happen to drift over a speed limit, which of course you don't, even that one is oddly soothing.

It isn't one glaring flaw. It's a handful of small compromises.

The E5 looks and feels premium without being quite as polished as the established players, and it runs out of composure on a twisty road before they do. The range and the boot are good without leading the class. Rapid charging is respectable rather than quick.

None of that is a dealbreaker at this price. If you want a family car that feels more expensive than it is, and you'd take comfort and space over badge prestige, the E5 makes a strong case. It's a comfortable, well-equipped family SUV that just happens to be electric.

The OMODA E5 lands in the busiest part of the market, up against petrol favourites like the Nissan Qashqai and the Kia Sportage as well as electric rivals. Here's how it sits against three of them.

Prices, official WLTP range and boot volume from Carwow, September 2026, for the Skoda Elroq, the Kia EV3 and the BYD Atto 3. Entry prices are for the cheapest version of each car, and specification varies.

The E5's case is clear enough. It matches the class on range and price, and gives up boot space to get there. What it adds is kit, some of which is an option or a higher trim on these rivals.

If this OMODA E5 review has you tempted, leasing is one way to get into it without buying it outright.We offer the OMODA E5 on personal lease, so if you’re interested it’s worth checking out our latest deals. It’s also available on salary sacrifice, if your employer runs a scheme with us. That's a separate route with its own tax benefits, and your employer sets the rules on who can join.

A kickstart with charging is part of the package. Many cars come with a free or discounted home charger, depending on the model. Once it's fitted, Octopus Energy's Intelligent Octopus Go - EV Saver tariff gives you a discounted rate that's exclusive to Octopus EV drivers. For charging away from home, Electroverse lets you use one large public charging network, on one card and with one bill.

It's a comfortable, very well-equipped family electric SUV for the money. Real-world range is about 205 miles, the cabin feels more expensive than the price, and the kit list is long. The boot is small for the class and the press is split on it, with Top Gear scoring it four out of 10.

On a 7kW home charger the E5 gains about 24 miles of range an hour, and a 10 to 80% charge takes 5 hours 46 minutes, so an overnight plug-in covers it easily. On a public rapid charger the same top-up takes about 55 minutes, and about 35 minutes on an ultra-rapid one. Cold weather may slow all of these.

About £2.99 for a 10 to 80% charge at home on Intelligent Octopus Go - EV Saver, Octopus Energy's tariff. The same top-up on an ultra-rapid public charger is about £35.35, with the 10% Electroverse discount baked in if you lease through Octopus EV.

You can expect to do around 205 miles from a 61kWh battery. The official WLTP figure is 267 miles, which is measured in lab conditions. Your own range depends on speed, temperature, load and how much motorway driving you do, as it does in any electric car.

OMODA is new to the UK, so there's little long-term data yet. What you do get is a long warranty, reported by Carwow as seven years or 100,000 miles, with eight years of cover on the battery. Check the current terms with an OMODA retailer before you order, since warranty offers change.

Both come from Chery and share much of their engineering. The Jaecoo E5 is cheaper and has the bigger boot. The OMODA E5 is the more style-led of the two, with a coupe-ish roofline and a plusher cabin. If luggage space decides it for you, the Jaecoo wins. If the cabin does, the OMODA takes it.