The IIHS moderate front overlap crash test of a green 2026 Subaru OutbackThe Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, or IIHS, is an independent agency that puts new cars through a barrage of tests to evaluate their safety. The IIHS has done this sort of testing for decades, and each year it releases a list of the top performing vehicles, called its Top Safety Picks. Over the years, new and different tests have been added that continuously make earning Top Safety Pick tougher. The institute even added a new above-the-top rating back called Top Safety Pick+ to push things forward, and 2026 is no different — the requirements are tougher than ever. Despite tougher requirements, 15 more cars have already qualified for the awards than this time last year, with a total of 63 winners. This year, the IIHS required a good rating in its updated moderate overlap crash test for cars to earn either a Top Safety Pick award or a tougher Top Safety Pick+ award, and a good-or-acceptable rating in the new more thorough vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention evaluation was required to earn a Top Safety Pick+.If safety is toward the top of your new car priority list, there are several vehicles from most categories on this list that offer a good place to start, some with base prices starting as low as $23,535. 2026 IIHS Top Safety Pick+ award winnersThis year, what sets Top Safety Pick+ award winners apart from Top Safety Pick award winners is their superior back seat occupant safety, as well as their superior automated crash avoidance systems. The IIHS introduced its new vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention test to the award criteria this year, and Top Safety Pick+ award winners must achieve a score of either acceptable or good in order to qualify. The test involves sending each car toward three different stationary vehicle types at 31 mph, 37 mph, and 43 mph. The three different vehicles that each system must avoid are a stopped semi-truck trailer, as well as a stationary passenger car and a stationary motorcycle, both of which are tested with the respective vehicle stopped in the center of the lane and offset to the right or left. A technician drives the test vehicle toward the stationary targets without touching the brake pedal, and the vehicle must issue timely warnings in all scenarios and substantially slow or entirely avoid a collision in order to earn a good rating. These are all the models that earn a Top Safety Pick+ award so far in 2026.Small CarsKia K4Mazda 3 hatchbackMazda 3 sedanNissan SentraMidsize CarsHyundai SonataToyota CamryAudi A5Large Cars2027 Audi A6 Sportback e-tronGenesis G80 (built after June 2025)Small SUVsGenesis GV60Honda HR-VHyundai Ioniq 5Hyundai KonaHyundai TucsonKia Sportage (built after May 2025)Mazda CX-30Mazda CX-50Subaru ForesterMidsize SUVsHonda PassportHyundai Ioniq 9Hyundai Santa FeKia EV9Kia Sorento (built after September 2025)Mazda CX-70Mazda CX-70 PHEVMazda CX-90Mazda CX-90 PHEVNissan MuranoNissan PathfinderSubaru AscentSubaru OutbackMidsize luxury SUVsAudi Q5Audi Q5 Sportback2027 Audi Q6 e-tron2027 Audi Q6 Sportback e-tronBMW X3BMW X5Genesis Electrified GV70Genesis GV70Genesis GV80Infiniti QX60Lexus NXLarge SUVsRivian R1SVolvo EX90Large PickupTesla Cybertruck 2026 IIHS Top Safety Pick award winnersSmall carsHonda Civic hatchbackHyundai ElantraToyota PriusMidsize carHonda AccordMercedes-Benz C-ClassMidsize SUVsBuick EnclaveFord ExplorerFord Mustang Mach-EVolkswagen AtlasVolkswagen Atlas Cross SportMidsize luxury SUVsLincoln NautilusMercedes-Benz GLCVolvo XC90Volvo XC90 Plug-in HybridLarge SUVsAudi Q7Infiniti QX80Nissan ArmadaLarge pickupToyota Tundra crew cab Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox, and add us as a preferred search source on Google.