Audi RS vs Mazda CX-3

2 head-to-heads across the 2020 and 2021 model years, side by side. At default weights the CX-3 leads 1–0, with 1 toss-up. Each verdict below is the one its own page prints — price, fuel, safety, space, performance, tech and warranty from EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer data — and the weights are yours to change on any of them.

2 Head-to-heads scored at default weights

0 RS wins clear wins and edges

1 CX-3 wins clear wins and edges

1 Toss-ups under 2 points apart

2020–2021 Years on file

The 2021 pair, in full →Pick your own weights All RS head-to-heads All CX-3 head-to-heads

Audi RS7 — photograph via Wikimedia Commons — Audi RS7 (2013 generation) · Photo: Alexander Migl · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Year by year

2 head-to-heads · verdicts at default weights

2021 RS vs 2021 CX-3 The Mazda CX-3 wins clearly, 85.1 to 72.5, on safety, fuel & range. The Audi RS is ahead on performance. Raise the performance weight from 2 to 3.9 and it flips. CX-3 +12.6 2020 RS vs 2020 CX-3 Too close to call: Mazda CX-3 87.3 vs Audi RS 85.5 with these weights. The Audi RS is ahead on performance. Raise the performance weight from 2 to 2.4 and it flips. Toss-up

Clear win 6+ points · Edge 2–6 · Toss-up under 2

Across the years, category by category

2 scored head-to-heads

The RS leads on performance in 2 of 2; the CX-3 on fuel & range in 2 of 2, safety in 2 of 2. Category scores are 0–100 from the data on each pair page; a lead here means that model year scored higher in the category, whatever the weights.

Category	RS leads	CX-3 leads	Level
Fuel & range	0	2	0
Safety	0	2	0
Space & cargo	0	0	2
Performance	2	0	0

Common questions about the RS vs CX-3

Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kits

Which is better, the Audi RS or the Mazda CX-3?

In the newest scored pairing, the 2021 RS against the 2021 CX-3: The Mazda CX-3 wins clearly, 85.1 to 72.5, on safety, fuel & range. The Audi RS is ahead on performance. Raise the performance weight from 2 to 3.9 and it flips. Across the 2 head-to-heads scored, the CX-3 leads 1–0, with 1 toss-up. Open the 2021 pair to change the weights.

Does the answer change from one model year to the next?

No. In every model year scored (2020 and 2021) the CX-3 came out ahead at default weights, with 1 toss-up.

Where is the biggest difference between the Audi RS and the Mazda CX-3?

The RS leads on performance in 2 of 2; the CX-3 on fuel & range in 2 of 2, safety in 2 of 2. Every count comes from the category scores on the pair pages linked above, which use EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press-kit data.

How does WhichTrim decide which vehicle wins?

Each of seven categories — price, fuel and range, safety, space and cargo, performance, tech and comfort, warranty — is scored 0–100 from the data on the page. Relative measures give 100 to the better vehicle and a proportional share to the other; NHTSA stars and the Safety Signal use their own scales. The overall score is the weighted mean at the default weights (price 4, safety 4, fuel 3, tech 3, space 2, performance 2, warranty 2). A margin of 6 points or more is a clear win, 2 to 6 an edge, under 2 a toss-up. Every pair page has sliders to change the weights.