It’s official, the budget sedan is dead. Nissan is canceling its Versa sedan after the 2025 year. Mitsubishi cancelled its main competitor—the Mirage—last year. So what vehicle will be the cheapest in 2026? Currently, the Hyundai Venue, Kia Soul, and Chevrolet Trax are all neck-and-neck. The intriguing thing is that all three hail from South Korea.

There’s a new cheapest vehicle on the market

The current frontrunner is the Hyundai Venue. The compact crossover’s 2025 MSRP is $20,200 (Plus a $1,395 destination charge). Hyundai debuted the Venue in 2019, for the 2020 model year. U.S. market Venues are assembled in Hyundai’s largest manufacturing facility, the Ulsan plant in South Korea.

Despite Kia being the more budget-friendly brand in the Hyundai/Kia lineup, the Soul is a bit more expensive than the Venue. It’s MSRP is currently $20,400 (Plus a $1,395 destination charge). Kia assembled the earlier generations of the Soul in multiple countries. The latest Soul is built almost exclusively in the Autoland Gwangju plant in South Korea, including for the U.S. market.

The Trax is the smallest crossover in the Chevrolet lineup. Its 2025 MSRP is $20,500 (plus a $1,395 destination freight charge). It was actually developed by GM Korea and most Chevy Trax crossovers sold in the U.S. are assembled in South Korea. But some Chevy Trax for the U.S. market are reportedly assembled in Mexico.

South Korea will make the cheapest car of 2026

With the $17,190 Nissan Versa officially leaving the U.S. market, the cheapest vehicle available in 2026 will probably be over $20k. The U.S. market Mitsubishi Mirage hailed from Thailand while the Nissan Versa is assembled in Mexico, but the crown for cheapest vehicle is about to go to a South Korean model.

Which one of these crossovers will be the cheapest vehicle available in the U.S. market in 2026? With MSRPs this close, it’s hard to say. Automakers usually increase prices year-over-year. But these three vehicles may undercut one-another to win the title of cheapest vehicle available. But whatever happens, we know the cheapest 2026 car available in the U.S. will actually be shipped from South Korea.