5 Midsize Pickups With Better Ratings Than The Jeep Gladiator

The Jeep Gladiator occupies an interesting spot in the North American pickup truck market. While the Gladiator is technically classified as a midsize truck, it isn’t a model that often gets brought up in direct comparison to more traditional midsize pickups — and there’s good reason for this. Since its introduction for the 2020 model year, the modern iteration of the Gladiator has been seen by many as simply a Jeep Wrangler with a bed, rather than a direct rival to something like a Ford Ranger or Toyota Tacoma.

When compared against other midsize trucks, though, how exactly does the Jeep Gladiator actually stack up in the rankings? For the most part, not very well. Whether it’s from Car and Driver, Consumer Reports, Edmunds, or others, the Gladiator typically ranks near the bottom of the midsize pickup segment.

Does this mean the Gladiator is a bad vehicle? No, not necessarily. As we found in our review of the 2025 Gladiator Rubicon, the Gladiator is indeed a pickup version of the Wrangler, both for better and for worse. That means incredible off-road capability, a traditionally rugged Jeep look and feel — but also some major trade-offs in refinement, interior space, and everyday on-road usability. If you’re one of those shoppers looking more for a good all-around midsize pickup rather than a Wrangler with some extra utility, below are five models with better ratings than the Jeep Gladiator.

The Gladiator is heavily based on the Jeep Wrangler, and if you were looking for Ford’s most direct competitor to the Wrangler, it would naturally be the Ford Bronco. However, when you switch to the pickup variant of these 4x4s, the Gladiator’s most direct rival becomes the Ford Ranger.

Though the Bronco and Ranger are both built on the same Ford T6 platform, the Ranger was engineered to be a pickup truck from the start, and this pays dividends in the rankings. In Car and Driver’s midsize truck rankings, the Ranger and Ranger Raptor occupy the top two spots, while the Gladiator comes in way behind at number nine. Edmunds ranks the Ranger number one in the segment, compared to sixth for the Gladiator — and Consumer Reports also ranks the Ranger a couple of spots ahead of the Jeep.

There’s no denying the Gladiator’s appeal from a 4×4 enthusiast standpoint, with the highly capable Rubicon trim and a 392 V8 variant said to be on the way. The Ranger, though, also gets some serious enthusiast street cred with the extremely capable, 405-horsepower Ranger Raptor — which is widely considered one of the fastest and funnest midsize pickup trucks on the market. Better yet, the Ranger does all that while outperforming the Jeep in everyday pickup-truck categories as well.

When it comes to sales numbers, the Toyota Tacoma is the undisputed king of the midsize pickup segment. In the segment ratings, the Tacoma might not be the top entry in the class, but it still finishes way ahead of the Jeep Gladiator. Car and Driver ranks the Tacoma number three among all midsize pickups, behind only the Ford Ranger and Ranger Raptor, while Edmunds ranks it number two. U.S. Newsmeanwhile, ranks the Tacoma second, with the Gladiator fifth. It’s the same story at Consumer Reports, where the Toyota comes in a few spots ahead of the Jeep.

What gives the Tacoma the edge over the Gladiator? It’s a newer, more modern design, for starters, having been introduced for the 2024 model year. The Tacoma also offers buyers the choice between a 2.4-liter turbocharged base engine or a hybrid version of the same powerplant with increased power and fuel efficiency. The Gladiator, for the moment at least, only offers a 3.6-liter naturally aspirated V6.

Compared to the Gladiator, the Toyota is the clear winner in both overall truck rankings and sales popularity — and it still offers a lot for 4×4 enthusiasts. From an off-road fun perspective, the Tacoma brings the fight to the Jeep with specialty models like the overland-focused Trailhunter and the highly capable flagship Tacoma TRD Pro, which has a standard hybrid powertrain and features like trick seats with built-in shock absorbers.

When looking at rankings for midsize pickups, the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon typically get their own spots on lists — but this isn’t really necessary, as these two General Motors models are essentially the same truck with some exterior and trim differences. Not surprisingly, the Colorado and Canyon earn nearly identical scores and are placed right next to each other in most rankings — but whether you are looking at the Chevy or GMC version, either truck is typically ranked well ahead of the Gladiator.

The Car and Driver midsize truck rankings have the Colorado and Canyon ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, with both trucks earning a 9 out of 10 score — with the Gladiator’s 7.5 score putting it a few spots back. Edmunds also ranks both GM trucks ahead of the Gladiator, while Consumer Reports rates the Canyon slightly higher than the Colorado, with both well ahead of the Gladiator in overall score.

Those looking for Jeep-level 4×4 capability likely won’t be disappointed by the GM offerings in this segment, which include hardcore off-road models like the Colorado ZR2 Bison. No matter which trim you pick, though, all versions of the Colorado and Canyon come with GM’s potent 2.7-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which vastly outmuscles the Gladiator’s naturally aspirated V6 in torque delivery.

While both are technically classified as midsize pickup trucks, the Jeep Gladiator and the Honda Ridgeline really couldn’t be more different. The Gladiator is an extra-rugged, body-on-frame pickup truck based on the iconic Jeep Wrangler. The Ridgeline, meanwhile, is a unibody pickup truck that shares its platform with the Honda Pilot crossover and Honda Odyssey minivan.

Notably, some people say the Ridgeline isn’t a “real truck” because it doesn’t have body-on-frame construction — nor does it offer a true 4×4 system with a two-speed transfer case. Our review of the Ridgeline, though, has shown that what the Honda lacks in maximum towing capacity or hardcore off-road performance, it makes up for with excellent on-road manners and a whole lot of practicality in day-to-day use. This is enough to place the Ridgeline well ahead of the Gladiator in most segment rankings.

Car and Driver has the Ridgeline ranked sixth overall among midsize pickups, while Edmunds has it placed third — ahead of even the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon, to say nothing of the Gladiator. U.S. News, meanwhile, has the Honda ranked number one in the midsize category, compared to the Jeep at number five. Consumer Reports also has the Ridgeline ranked ahead of many of its body-on-frame competitors, with the Jeep placed well behind the pack.

The Nissan Frontier is a model that, by many accounts, ranks behind its primary midsize pickup competitors. Our review of the 2025 Frontier, for example, showed that while the Nissan offers a decent value proposition and strong styling, its competitors leave it behind in areas like straight-line performance and overall driving experience.

How does the Frontier rank against the Gladiator, though? That depends on who is doing the ranking. Edmunds and U.S. News both have the Jeep actually finishing one spot ahead of Nissan in their midsize rankings, while Car and Driver has that result flipped, with the Frontier edging out the Gladiator by one spot. J.D. Power, meanwhile, has the Nissan ranked two places ahead of the Jeep in its segment rankings.

What especially stands out are Consumer Reports’ midsize truck rankings, which have the Nissan Frontier as a CR recommended pick, placed ahead of even the Tacoma and Ranger — and even farther ahead of the Gladiator. This, combined with that aforementioned focus on value, makes the Frontier a bit of a dark horse player among its more popular midsize competitors.

This list was compiled using the midsize truck segment rankings from Car and Driver, Consumer Reports, Edmunds, J.D. Power, and U.S. News and World Report.

For context, we should point out that while the Gladiator indeed has lower ratings than most of its competitors, the Jeep occupies a fairly niche position in the segment. Despite some of its faults as a practical midsize truck, the Gladiator offers some buyers the same unique appeal as the Jeep Wrangler, thanks to its removable doors and top and distinct Jeep personality, compared to more conventional (and more practical) pickup models.