Kia is discontinuing the plug-in hybrid version of its Niro SUV in the United States. The automaker confirmed as much this week, issuing a statement explaining that “Due to changing market conditions, the 2026 Niro PHEV will no longer be available in the U.S. market.” Kia will continue to offer the hybrid and all-electric versions of the Niro in the U.S. for 2026.
In Canada, the Niro PHEV remains in the lineup for 2026, and there’s no indication that the Korean automaker’s Canadian division has plans to remove any of the three variants – hybrid, plug-in hybrid and all-electric – from its roster any time soon.
The decision stateside is not that difficult to understand. The Niro has not been anywhere near as popular there as it has proven in Canada. In 2025, counting all three variants, Kia sold just under 32,000 units of the model, making the Niro one of the slowest-selling vehicles in its U.S. lineup.
The move also comes not long after the U.S. division of sister-company Hyundai announced it was declining to offer a 2026 all-electric edition of its own small SUV, the Kona. Hyundai has stressed that that is a temporary measure, taken in response to remaining inventories of 2025 models, and that the Kona EV will definitely return for 2027.
A new Niro
Kia just recently unveiled a revised version of the Niro, but showed only the design changes being brought to bear. There was no word on what powertrains will be offered for the model that’s set to debut for the 2027 model-year.
It is possible that Kia’s decision to the U.S. to kill the slowest-selling variant of one of its slowest-selling models is an independent one, and nothing’s to stop Kia in other markets from deciding differently. In fact Kia Canada has shown more than once its willingness to offer models its American counterpart has passed on. Case in point, the new EV5 SUV, which in North America will be available only in Canada.