The Chevy Blazer is a pretty good SUV as is, but Chevy offers quite a few trims and options for customers willing to spend a little more. Two of the higher-end trims available for the Blazer are the RS and the Premier. While both have their pros and cons, customers won’t regret choosing the Chevy Blazer RS over everything else.

What the Chevy Blazer RS offers

Starting at an MSRP of about $42,000, the RS is the second-most-expensive trim available for the Blazer. And unsurprisingly, according to Chevy, the RS comes with quite a few features. Off the bat, the RS only has one engine option, and it’s the 3.6-liter V6 that every RS comes with. This engine gets about 308-hp and 270 lb-ft of torque, and Chevy says that it gets 20 MPG in the city and 27 MPG on highways. 

Powertrain aside, however, the RS adds a lot of extra features to the regular Blazer, according to Edmunds. For example, not only does the RS get a sportier new design, but it also gets an improved infotainment system that comes with navigation as standard.

On top of that, the RS’ interior is far fancier than the regular Blazer’s is, and there’s leather upholstery as well as heated front seats, heated mirrors, and a heated steering wheel. 

The RS also has the same standard smart safety features that the lesser Blazer trims do. These smart safety features, such as blind-spot monitoring, lane keep assist, and automatic emergency braking just to name a few, aren’t standard on the regular Blazer.

What the Premier trim includes

The Premier is the most expensive Chevy Blazer trim, and it starts at about $43,700. Like Chevy said, as far as engines go, the Premier gets a standard 2.0-liter turbocharged I4 engine. This engine gets 227-hp and 258 lb-ft of torque, and Chevy also offers the V6 that the RS has.

While this standard I4 engine is weaker than the V6, it is marginally more fuel-efficient as Chevy says that it gets 22 MPG in the city and 29 MPG on highways.

Other than that choice of engines though, the Premier also has a few other upgrades, too. In addition to what the RS gets, the Premier also gets a unique chrome grille, ventilated front seats, and a better sound system. Furthermore, Edmunds wrote that the Premier also has a cargo management system, and it also has “heated outboard rear seats.”

That being said, most of the upgrades that the Premier gets are minor at best. It has many of the same things that the RS has but, at the same time, it also costs significantly more.

Why the Chevy Blazer RS wins out

While the Premier does change the styling somewhat, at the end of the day, it still costs almost $2,000 more than the RS does. For that price difference, it doesn’t offer much tangible improvements over the RS. 

If you’re a fan of the styling and the design of the Premier, then that nearly $2,000 premium may be worth it. However, compared to the RS, the Premier is practically the same car, but with a few extra features tacked on. Indeed, in some ways, the Premier actually seems worse than the RS, despite costing more. 

For example, the RS’ standard V6 engine is, by the numbers, more powerful than the Premier’s standard engine is. Obviously, Chevy allows customers to get the V6 on the premier, but it’s not standard. Furthermore, while some of the Premier’s upgrades might seem nice, the RS is already a nice car as is, so customers may just want to save their money and choose the RS instead.