Compare the2027 Kia TellurideVS 2026 Mercedes GLB

Both the Telluride and GLB have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Telluride has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The GLB’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Telluride are reminded to check the back seat when a sensor determines the back seat is occupied. The GLB doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Telluride has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The GLB doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Telluride SX/Prestige has standard Parking Collision Avoidance-Reverse that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The GLB doesn’t offer automatic braking for stationary objects directly to the rear.

The Telluride’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the GLB.

The Kia Telluride’s rear backup camera has a standard washer for maintaining a clear view under various conditions. In contrast, the Mercedes GLB does not offer a rear camera washer, meaning its effectiveness relies on manual cleaning by the user when necessary.

Both the Telluride and the GLB have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Kia Telluride weighs 490 to 1424 pounds more than the Mercedes GLB. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The Telluride comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The GLB’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Kia’s powertrain warranty covers the Telluride 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Mercedes covers the GLB. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the GLB ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are over 2 times as many Kia dealers as there are Mercedes dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Telluride’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Kia vehicles are better in initial quality than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in initial quality. With 29 more problems per 100 vehicles, Mercedes is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2025 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Kia vehicles are more reliable than Mercedes vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Kia above average in long-term dependability. With 6 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Mercedes is rated below average.

The Telluride’s standard 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 53 more horsepower (274 vs. 221) and 53 lbs.-ft. more torque (311 vs. 258) than the GLB’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid. The Telluride’s optional 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid produces 108 more horsepower (329 vs. 221) and 81 lbs.-ft. more torque (339 vs. 258) than the GLB’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder hybrid.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Kia Telluride uses regular unleaded gasoline. The GLB requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

The Telluride Hybrid’s standard fuel tank has 2.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLB (18.2 vs. 15.9 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Telluride’s standard fuel tank has 3.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the GLB (19 vs. 15.9 gallons).

For better stopping power the Telluride’s brake rotors are larger than those on the GLB:

The Telluride’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the GLB are solid, not vented.

For better traction, the Telluride X-Line’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the GLB (265/45R21 vs. 235/55R18).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Telluride X-Line has standard 21-inch wheels. The GLB’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

The Telluride has a standard space-saver spare tire so you can replace a flat tire and drive to have the flat repaired or replaced. A spare tire isn’t available on the GLB; it requires you to depend on its run-flat tires, which limits mileage and speed before they are repaired. If a run-flat is damaged beyond repair by a road hazard your vehicle will have to be towed. Some tire options on the GLB don’t have a run-flat feature, either.

The Telluride offers an optional automatic rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The GLB doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Telluride’s wheelbase is 5.5 inches longer than on the GLB (116.9 inches vs. 111.4 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Telluride is 5.1 inches wider in the front and 5.5 inches wider in the rear than the track on the GLB.

For greater off-road capability the Telluride X-Pro has a 1.2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the GLB (9.1 vs. 7.9 inches), allowing the Telluride to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The front grille of the Telluride uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The GLB doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Telluride offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the GLB can only carry up to 7.

The Telluride has .3 inches more front legroom, 5.7 inches more front shoulder room, 1.1 inches more rear headroom, 4.9 inches more rear legroom, 6.3 inches more rear shoulder room, 2.6 inches more third row headroom, 3 inches more third row legroom and 11.5 inches more third row shoulder room than the GLB.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Telluride’s middle and third row seats recline. The GLB’s third row seats don’t recline.

The Telluride’s cargo area provides more volume than the GLB.

Pressing a button automatically lowers the Telluride’s second row seats and a control in the cargo area automatically lowers the third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The GLB doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The Telluride has a 5000 lbs. towing capacity. The GLB has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Telluride uses the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The GLB doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Telluride’s standard Smart Key allows you to unlock the doors from either front door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Keyless-Start standard on the GLB only offers hands-free access for the ignition, none to unlock the vehicle.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Telluride has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the GLB only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Telluride has standard extendable sun visors. The GLB doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the Telluride to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The GLB doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

Both the Telluride and the GLB offer available heated front seats. The Telluride Prestige also has standard heated second row seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the GLB.

The Telluride EX/SX/Prestige has standard front air conditioned seats and the Telluride Prestige also has them in the second row. This keeps the passengers comfortable and takes the sting out of hot seats in summer. The GLB doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Telluride Prestige has standard massaging front seats in order to maximize comfort and eliminate fatigue on long trips. Massaging seats aren’t available in the GLB.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Kia Telluride has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console for two separate devices. Wireless charging costs extra on the GLB, and only charges one device.

The Telluride Prestige’s Remote Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The GLB’s automatic parking system does not offer parking by remote control.

Motor Trend selected the Telluride as their 2020 Sport Utility of the Year. The GLB has never been chosen.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Telluride as the 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The GLB has never been chosen.

The Kia Telluride outsold the Mercedes GLB by almost 11 to one during 2025.