Audi Q6 e-tron vs Mercedes-Benz EQB

In 2026 the Mercedes-Benz EQB is the cheaper car, though the spec rail can mislead. It shows the EQB at $97,344 and the Q6 e-tron near $97,935, but those are different measures: the EQB figure is a NSW drive-away price, while the Audi's is a before-on-roads list price. Matched like for like, the EQB 250+ lists at around $90,000 before on-road costs against the Q6 e-tron's $97,935, so the Mercedes undercuts the Audi by roughly $8,000. The EQB's list price also sits just under the fuel-efficient Luxury Car Tax threshold, which can bring the electric-car tax break into play for novated-lease buyers. On price and tax treatment, the EQB is the clear winner.

The Mercedes-Benz EQB is the only seven-seater in this pair. Its single 250+ grade now fits a standard third row, making it a genuine 5+2 and one of very few sub-$100,000 seven-seat EVs on sale, alongside the larger Kia EV9 and the far dearer EQS SUV. Reviewers rate the third row as usable but best kept for children or short trips, with headroom tight for adults, so treat it as a 5+2 rather than a full seven-seater. The Audi Q6 e-tron seats five only, with no third-row option at any grade. If row three ever has to carry passengers, the EQB is the only answer here; if it never does, the Q6 is the roomier five-seater.

This one turns on which Audi you mean. The Mercedes-Benz EQB 250+ is rated at 535km, and it beats the entry Q6 e-tron, which claims 466km in 185kW rear-drive form. Step up the Audi range and the picture flips: the quattro and SQ6 grades stretch to 566km and move ahead. The EQB is also the more efficient car on paper, using 152Wh/km against the base Q6's 182. For a like-for-like entry comparison the Mercedes travels further; pay up the Audi range and the Q6 pulls back in front.

Only the Audi carries a current rating. The Q6 e-tron holds a five-star ANCAP rating from 2024 that applies across the range and runs to 2030. The Mercedes-Benz EQB once wore five stars too, but that rating was a carry-over from 2019 testing of its petrol GLB twin, and it lapsed at the end of 2025, so current EQB builds are unrated. That is not a failed test, it is an expired rating, and the EQB still fits a full active-safety suite with autonomous emergency braking, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise and blind-spot monitoring, plus airbag coverage for all three rows. So only the Q6 has a current five-star tick; the EQB rests on its equipment, not a live rating.

The Audi Q6 e-tron holds the performance high ground. Its entry grade makes 185kW to the single-motor EQB's 140kW, and it is the quicker car, at a base 7.6 seconds to 100km/h against the Mercedes' 8.9. The gap only widens up the range: the Q6 e-tron offers all-wheel-drive quattro and the 360kW SQ6 flagship, while the EQB is a single front-drive grade with no performance step above it since the dual-motor 350 was dropped. If straight-line pace or a performance halo matters, only the Audi range offers it.

The Q6 e-tron is the more modern car underneath and inside. It rides on Audi's dedicated 800V PPE electric platform, which brings faster DC charging and a purpose-built EV layout, and its cabin runs a triple-screen digital layout with a head-up display. The EQB is adapted from the petrol GLB on a 400V architecture and uses the older twin 10.25-inch screen setup, handsome and well finished but a generation behind the Audi on hardware. Both get wireless smartphone mirroring and the expected driver aids. Buyers who want the latest EV hardware will find it in the Audi.

For a family that needs the extra row, the decision makes itself. The Mercedes-Benz EQB is the only seven-seater in this pair, its standard 5+2 layout covering the school run and occasional extra passengers, and it lists for thousands less than the Audi. The third row suits children better than adults, so it is a genuine 5+2 rather than a full seven-seater, but the Q6 e-tron offers nothing of the kind. We'd pick the EQB here without hesitation for the buyer whose brief includes row three, and note that its lower list price sweetens the case. The Audi is the better car in most other respects, but it cannot solve this buyer's core problem.

For the buyer chasing pace and modernity, the Q6 e-tron is the clear call. It out-powers the EQB from the base grade up, offers all-wheel drive and the 360kW SQ6 flagship the Mercedes cannot answer, rides on a newer 800V platform with faster charging, and holds a current five-star ANCAP rating. Its triple-screen cabin is the more advanced of the two. We'd pick the Q6 e-tron here for the buyer who values capability, technology and a live safety tick over seat count, and who can absorb the higher price. The EQB is the smarter family and value buy, but performance and the latest hardware are not what it sets out to deliver.

For a novated-lease buyer, the EQB has a specific advantage. Its list price of around $90,000 sits just under the fuel-efficient Luxury Car Tax threshold, which is the test that gates the electric-car FBT exemption, so the Mercedes can bring the saving into play where a dearer car cannot. The Audi Q6 e-tron's $97,935 list price sits above the same threshold in base form, putting the exemption out of reach. We'd point novated-lease shoppers to the Mercedes first, then check whether the Audi still stacks up once the numbers are run.