10 Best Memorial Day Car Deals 2026: Real Discounts on EVs, Trucks, and SUVs

Memorial Day 2026 car deals favor leftover 2025 inventory, slow-moving SUVs, EVs, and pickups — here are the 10 best offers we’d actually take. Cox Automotive’s March 2026 report pegged average industry incentive spending at $3,541 per vehicle (7.2% of ATP), with manufacturers pulling back on cash on most gas vehicles — for example, $1,500 Memorial Day customer cash on some popular trims has already shrunk to $1,000 in May. EVs, pickups, and leftover 2025 model years are the exception. That’s where the Memorial Day money actually is.

Memorial Day 2026 Deals at a Glance

#	Vehicle	Best offer	Type	Expires
1	2025 Hyundai Ioniq 6 SE RWD	24-month lease — cheapest EV lease in America	Leftover EV sedan	Jun 1, 2026
2	2025 Kia EV6 (LLR)	0% APR 72 mo + $3,500 cash (~$14,761 savings)	Leftover EV	Jun 1, 2026
3	2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9 S/SE	$369/mo lease, $4,999 down, 36 mo	3-row EV	Jun 1, 2026
4	2026 Hyundai Ioniq 5	0% APR 72 mo + up to $3,000 cash	EV crossover	Jun 1, 2026
5	2026 Chevrolet Equinox EV	$8,750 cash back, 0% APR 60 mo	EV crossover	Jun 1, 2026
6	2025 Ford F-150 Lightning Super Crew XLT	High-MSRP / low effective lease (leftover)	EV pickup	Jun 1, 2026
7	2026 Toyota Tacoma SR5	Cheapest mid-size truck lease	Mid-size truck	Jun 1, 2026
8	2026 Ram 1500 Big Horn	Up to $11,250 cash back, or 0% APR 60 mo	Full-size truck	Jun 1, 2026
9	2026 Hyundai Tucson SE	$4,000 avg cash, 0% APR up to 72 mo	Compact SUV	Jun 1, 2026
10	2026 Mazda3 2.5S	Top affordable-sedan lease value	Sedan	Jun 1, 2026

1. 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 6 SE RWD — The Best EV Lease in America

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: 24-month lease on the discontinued 2025 Ioniq 6 SE RWD. Hyundai is clearing the 2025 inventory aggressively before the refreshed model lands, and the 24-month term is the cleanest way to put yourself behind the wheel of a new EV right now. Expires June 1, 2026.

This is the single best EV deal available this Memorial Day. The Ioniq 6 SE RWD has a low MSRP relative to its EV peers, the 24-month residual stays high, and Hyundai is layering captive lease cash on top. Two-year leases also de-risk first-year EV depreciation — if you don’t love EV ownership, you walk away after 24 months without absorbing the worst of Ioniq 6 depreciation.

Shop 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 6 inventory on CarEdge. Confirm offer details on Hyundai’s offers page.

2. 2025 Kia EV6 (LLR) — The Stacked-Incentive Play

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: 0% APR for 72 months plus $3,500 cash back on the 2025 EV6 Light Long Range trim. Total savings against a standard loan: roughly $14,761, per FindTheBestCarPrice’s May 2026 ranking. Expires June 1, 2026.

This is the math problem Memorial Day was made for. The 2025 EV6 LLR is being cleared to make room for the refreshed 2026, and Kia is stacking everything — 0% interest, manufacturer cash, plus a $10,000 cash back alternative for cash buyers. EV depreciation is brutal (the EV6 has dropped roughly 40% in three years per CarEdge’s EV6 depreciation data), but that’s already priced in here. You’re buying a $42,900 EV with $14,761 of value baked in before you sit down with F&I.

Shop 2025 Kia EV6 inventory on CarEdge.

3. 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9 S/SE — The 3-Row EV With Real Lease Math

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: $369/mo lease for 36 months with $4,999 due at signing on the S/SE trims. Lease value ratio of 0.86% — the best 3-row EV lease in the country this month. Expires June 1, 2026.

Hyundai is leasing the Ioniq 9 cheap to build market share against the Kia EV9 and Rivian R1S. At ~$58,955 sticker, $369/mo beats most $40K crossover leases. There’s also a $10,000 cash back alternative (17% of MSRP) for cash buyers. One caveat: the lease is what’s working here — the lease cash is doing the heavy lifting, so don’t expect huge dealer discounts on top. This is captive subvention, not desk-manager negotiation room. Like all new EVs, check depreciation projections before committing.

Shop the 2026 Ioniq 9 on CarEdge.

4. 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 5 — The Reliable EV Anchor

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: 0% APR for 72 months plus up to $3,000 cash back. Total savings of roughly $10,963 versus a standard loan. Expires June 1, 2026.

The Ioniq 5 has been the consistent value play in the EV segment for two years, and Memorial Day pushes it further. The 2026 model adds a NACS port and improved range, so unlike most leftover-vs-current decisions, the new model is the better buy. Pair the financing offer with the federal EV credit (where eligible) and the effective price falls below comparable gas crossovers. Hyundai’s Memorial Day specials also include conquest and military bonuses worth $500–$1,000 stackable on top.

Check Ioniq 5 depreciation data and Ioniq 5 inventory on CarEdge.

5. 2026 Chevrolet Equinox EV — The Cheapest “Real Range” EV

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: $8,750 cash back, plus 0% APR for 60 months on qualifying trims. Lease available at $299/mo for 39 months with $4,319 due at signing. Expires June 1, 2026.

The Equinox EV is currently the cheapest “real range” EV in America after incentives — under $30,000 effective transaction price on the LT with the cash back applied. Electrek reported a 20% effective discount in April, and the Memorial Day program continues that pricing. Worth noting: the gas Equinox has higher transaction prices and weaker incentives — if you’ve been considering an EV, this is the cleanest math in the segment.

Shop the 2026 Equinox EV on CarEdge.

6. 2025 Ford F-150 Lightning Super Crew XLT — The Best EV Pickup Lease

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: Aggressive lease on leftover 2025 Lightning Super Crew XLT inventory. Effective monthly cost is one of the lowest in the EV pickup class once you factor in residual and incentive cash against the $63K+ MSRP. Expires June 1, 2026.

Ford is unwinding 2025 Lightning inventory while EV pickup demand softens industry-wide, and this is the rare case where a high-MSRP truck produces a low effective lease payment because Ford is subventing aggressively. If you’ve been waiting to test EV truck life without committing to ownership-year depreciation, this is the window. Pair with home charging and a 36-month term and the math works for a lot of households who’d never buy an EV truck outright. Verify offer specifics on Ford’s deals page.

Shop 2025 Ford F-150 Lightning inventory on CarEdge.

7. 2026 Toyota Tacoma SR5 — The Cheapest Mid-Size Truck Lease

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: The lowest effective monthly payment of any pickup we tracked this Memorial Day. The Tacoma SR5 lease comes in cheaper than the Ram 1500 Big Horn and Sierra 1500 Elevation when you compare total drive-off plus monthly cost. Expires June 1, 2026.

The Tacoma is finally moving slower than its full-size cousin the Tundra was last year — Tacoma supply has roughly doubled since the new generation launched, and Toyota is clearing 2024–2025 leftovers before model-year changeover. The SR5 trim is the sweet spot: standard tow package, the i-FORCE-MAX hybrid powertrain available, and Toyota’s class-leading resale (Tacoma depreciation data). Strong residual + lease cash subvention = the cheapest pickup payment on the list.

Shop 2026 Toyota Tacoma inventory on CarEdge. Confirm specifics on Toyota’s national deals page.

8. 2026 Ram 1500 Big Horn — The Deepest Cash-on-the-Hood Truck

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: Up to $11,250 in cash back on the Big Horn trim, or 0% APR for 60 months. Choose one. Expires June 1, 2026.

Ram has the deepest cash offer of any full-size truck this Memorial Day, and it’s not close. Stellantis is bleeding market share to Ford and GM, the 1500 is one of the slowest-selling full-size trucks on dealer lots, and the Big Horn is the volume trim where the cash applies most consistently. The 0% APR for 60 months is the alternative if you’d rather finance than take the discount — on a $55,000 truck, the cash usually wins for buyers with credit above 720.

Shop the 2026 Ram 1500 on CarEdge. Also check Ram dealer transparency ratings — Stellantis dealers run a wide range.

9. 2026 Hyundai Tucson SE — The Smartest RAV4 Cross-Shop

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: $4,000 average cash back on the SE trim, plus 0% APR available up to 72 months on select trims. Expires June 1, 2026.

The Tucson SE is the smartest cross-shop for anyone walking into a Toyota dealer for a RAV4. Per CarEdge’s selling-speed data, the Tucson sits with substantially more supply than the RAV4 — Hyundai dealers actually need to deal, Toyota dealers don’t. The Tucson Hybrid hits MPG numbers within 2 of the RAV4 Hybrid for several thousand less, with Memorial Day cash on top. The SE specifically is where the affordability story lands; higher trims lose the value advantage.

Shop the 2026 Hyundai Tucson on CarEdge.

10. 2026 Mazda3 2.5S — The Best Affordable Sedan Lease

Best Memorial Day 2026 deal: Top of the affordable-sedan lease class for May 2026, alongside the Kia K4 LXS and Hyundai Elantra SE. Expires June 1, 2026.

A note on what we left off this list: the Honda Civic. Honda has pulled back hard on lease support for gas Civics in 2026 — strong resale value still matters if you’re buying outright, but for a 36-month lease, Honda is no longer subventing aggressively enough to lead this segment. The Mazda3 2.5S, by contrast, combines a low MSRP, decent residual, and a Memorial Day lease cash boost that lands it cleanly at the top of affordable-sedan leases. The Kia K4 LXS and Hyundai Elantra SE are close runners-up — if your dealer doesn’t have Mazda inventory, those are the next two to ask about.

Shop the 2026 Mazda3 on CarEdge. Compare to Civic depreciation — buying still pencils for the Civic, leasing doesn’t.

How to Spot a Real Memorial Day Deal vs. a Fake One

Most Memorial Day “specials” are reposted monthly programs with red, white, and blue banners on top. Here’s the four-bullet test we use:

• Compare the APR offer to the cash alternative. A 0% APR for 60 months on a $40K car saves roughly $5,000 versus a 6.5% loan. If the cash alternative is $7,500, take the cash and finance outside. If it’s $2,000, take the 0%.
• Check Market Day Supply before negotiating. A car with 10-day supply (RAV4, CR-V, GX) won’t move on price no matter what banner the dealer hangs. A car with 100+ day supply (most EVs, Stellantis SUVs, leftover 2025s) will.
• The leftover model year math. A 2025 model with the same offer as a 2026 is almost always the better buy — you save the first year of depreciation but get identical features. The only exception is when the new model has a meaningful upgrade (Ioniq 5 NACS port, RAV4 redesign).
• “$0 down” is not the same as $0 due at signing. A $0-down lease still requires the first month’s payment, taxes, registration, doc fees, and acquisition fees up front — those are “drive-off costs.” When dealers roll those into the monthly payment instead, the headline number rises (a $299/mo lease can become $349/mo). The right comparison isn’t the teaser monthly — it’s total lease cost: monthly × term + drive-off.

We’re publishing a deeper breakdown of the worst 2026 Memorial Day “deals” later this week — the ones that look great on a banner but fail every one of these tests.

The CarEdge Advantage

If you don’t want to do this math yourself, our AI agent at my.caredge.com reads the offer sheet for you and checks it against current MDS, depreciation, and dealer transparency data in your market. For full handoff, CarEdge Concierge negotiates directly with dealers on your behalf — the average concierge customer saves $2,800 versus walking in alone. Both work for any of the 10 vehicles above.

Disclosure: CarEdge offers paid services (CarEdge Concierge and CarEdge Pro) referenced in this article. The 10 deals above are not affiliated with any CarEdge product and are evaluated on their merits.

Memorial Day 2026 Car Deals FAQ

When does Memorial Day 2026 end? When do these offers expire?

Memorial Day 2026 falls on Monday, May 25. Most manufacturer offers above expire June 1, 2026 (Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Ford, Ram, Chevrolet, Mazda). Some lease deals end on the last business day of May. Always confirm the expiration date with the dealer before you sign — programs occasionally get extended into early June, but assuming they will is risky.

Are Memorial Day 2026 deals worse than 2025?

Yes, on average. Industry incentive spend in early 2026 has run roughly 15–20% lower than 2024 peaks per Cox Automotive data, and tariff cost pressure has pushed manufacturers to pull cash from gas vehicles in particular. Customer cash that was $1,500 on some popular trims earlier this spring has already shrunk to $1,000 in May. The exception is EVs and pickups, where Memorial Day 2026 lease subvention and cash back ($10,000 on the Kia EV9, EV6, Niro EV, and Hyundai Ioniq 9) is actually stronger than 2025 levels — federal credits, inventory pressure on EV trucks, and competitive lease-build math are all pushing dollars into incentive programs.

What’s the best day to buy during Memorial Day weekend?

Monday, May 25 — the actual holiday. Dealers are working with daily quotas and Monday is when they’re most aggressive on the back half of the long weekend. Saturday is the busiest traffic day but the worst negotiating environment because every salesperson has multiple buyers. If you can wait, the last business day of the month (Friday May 29 or Saturday May 30) is even better — month-end stacks on top of holiday-end pressure.

Should I wait for July 4th or Labor Day instead?

Probably not — for two reasons. First, most of these specific offers (especially the EV cash-back stacks and the leftover-2025 leases) expire June 1, and Q3 incentive programs typically reset to lower levels. Second, the new 2027 model years start arriving in late summer, which usually means leftover 2026 inventory but less product variety to choose from. Memorial Day and the last week of December are historically the two strongest deal windows of the year.

Is 0% APR always the best deal?

No. 0% APR is most valuable on cars with weak cash incentives (most Toyotas and Hondas, where lease subvention has thinned in 2026). When manufacturers offer a choice between 0% APR or cash back, do the math: divide the cash by the financed amount, divide by your loan term in months, and compare to the difference between the standard rate and 0%. On the Ram 1500 Big Horn, $11,250 cash plus an outside loan beats the 0% APR for any buyer with credit above 720. On the Equinox EV and Kia EV6, the captive 0% APR financing path saves more than the straight cash back for most buyers.

Are leftover 2025 models a good buy in May 2026?

Yes — this is the single most underrated Memorial Day strategy. Per iSeeCars data on leftover inventory, late-model-year clearance discounts can save $2,000–$8,000 over an equivalent current-year model. The catch: selection is limited to whatever’s still on lots, and you’re absorbing a year of depreciation on day one. The math works when the discount exceeds Year 1 depreciation, which it usually does for slow-selling segments (full-size trucks, EVs, large SUVs). The 2025 Ioniq 6 SE RWD lease, the 2025 Kia EV6 LLR, and the 2025 Ford F-150 Lightning XLT on this list are all leftover plays.

What about used Memorial Day deals?

Used cars don’t run holiday incentives, but the secondary market gets pulled down with new-car discounting. Manheim’s wholesale index typically dips 1–2% in late May as new-car promos drive trade-in volume. If you’re comparing certified-pre-owned versus a new car with $5,000+ in Memorial Day cash, the new car often wins on three-year cost of ownership — particularly for EVs, where new-car incentives more than offset first-year depreciation.

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Always verify final pricing against your local dealer’s offer sheet — incentives vary by ZIP code, credit tier, and trim level. The offers in this article are sourced from manufacturer programs and aggregator data as of May 8, 2026, and most expire June 1, 2026.