2025 Tesla Model 3 Safety Rating

Midsize luxury cars Β· Historical model-year record Β· IIHS data updated 2026-09-04

Provisional record

This is the 2025 record, kept for reference. The current listing is the 2026 Tesla Model 3 at 91.7/100. The 2025 results below are the exact ratings IIHS published for this model year.

β€”
Safety score / 100
Awaiting 4 results
TSP+
IIHS award
IIHS Top Safety Pick+
$36,990
Starting MSRP
Approximate base trim
23
Class driver death rate
per million vehicle-years; all vehicles 38

IIHS crash-test results

Front Crash Prevention: PedestrianGood
Front Crash Prevention: Vehicle-to-VehicleAcceptable
Small Overlap Front Good
Moderate Overlap Front: Updated Test Acceptable
Side: Updated Test Good
Headlights Acceptable
Seat Belt Reminders Marginal
Latch Ease Of Use Acceptable
Detailed results by test (54 entries)

IIHS publishes these under the test they belong to, so the same label can appear more than once. Rear restraints and kinematics, rear head protection, structure and safety cage, and front restraints are the four that count toward the score (25%).

Small overlap front

Overall driver-side evaluation Good
Structure and safety cage Good
Driver injury measures
Head/neck Good
Chest Good
Hip/thigh Good
Lower leg/foot Good
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics Good
Overall passenger-side evaluation Good
Structure and safety cage Good
Passenger injury measures
Head/neck Good
Chest Good
Hip/thigh Good
Lower leg/foot Good
Passenger restraints and dummy kinematics Good
Driver injury measures
Head/neck Good
Chest Good
Hip/thigh Good
Lower leg/foot Good
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics Good

Moderate overlap front: updated test

Overall evaluation Acceptable
Structure and safety cage Good
Driver injury measures
Head/neck Good
Chest Good
Thigh/hip Good
Leg/foot Good
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics Good
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck Good
Chest Marginal
Thigh Good
Rear passenger restraints and dummy kinematics Good

Side: updated test

Overall evaluation Good
Structure and safety cage Good
Driver injury measures
Head/neck Good
Torso Acceptable
Pelvis Acceptable
Driver head protection Good
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck Good
Torso Good
Pelvis Good
Rear passenger head protection Good

Headlights

Overall rating Acceptable
Distance at which headlights provide at least 5 lux illumination:
Overall ratingApplies to 2025-26 models Acceptable

Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle 2.0

Overall evaluation Good

Front crash prevention: pedestrian

Overall evaluation Good

Seat belt reminders

Overall evaluation Marginal

Child seat anchors

Overall evaluation Acceptable
View the IIHS report

Opens on iihs.org in a new tab

How the score is built

Primary IIHS tests (55%)
90.0
4/4 reported Β· small overlap, updated moderate overlap, updated side, headlights
Occupant-protection details (25%)
0.0
0/4 reported Β· rear restraints, rear head, safety cage, front restraints
Pedestrian front crash prevention (10%)
100.0
IIHS pedestrian AEB result: Good Β· vehicle-to-vehicle: Acceptable (shown, not scored)
Class context (10%)
71.9
Damped class-level driver death-rate term; award status is shown above but carries no weight
Injury-measure average (tiebreak only)
96.25
Mean of 40 published injury measures across the three crash tests. Orders vehicles with equal scores; carries no weight in the score.

Full formula, weights, and missing-data rules β†’

Real-world context

MeasureResultWhat it covers
Class driver death rate23 per million registered vehicle-yearsMidsize luxury cars as a class, adjusted for driver age and sex (Farmer, 2023); all vehicles average 38. Class context only.
Tesla Model 3 2WD (2019-20) driver death rate15 (95% CI 0–33)Earlier model years of this nameplate; class average for that study 24.8. Reflects who bought and drove those cars as well as the car.
Tesla Model 3 4WD (2019-20) driver death rate52 (95% CI 9–96)Earlier model years of this nameplate; class average for that study 24.8. Reflects who bought and drove those cars as well as the car.
Theft claim frequency (Tesla Model 3 electric 4dr 4WD)1 (100 = average)HLDI whole-vehicle theft, 2022–24 model years: 1% of average. See the theft ranking.
Theft claim frequency (Tesla Model 3 electric 4dr)2 (100 = average)HLDI whole-vehicle theft, 2022–24 model years: 2% of average. See the theft ranking.

Other model years of the Tesla Model 3

Model yearStatusIIHS awardPrimary tests reportedScore
2026 Tesla Model 3 Current listing β€” 4/4 91.7

Each model year keeps its own record. Ratings from one year are never copied to another unless IIHS states the test applies.

Our analysis

The 2025 Tesla Model 3 belongs to the Midsize luxury cars class. This class has a below-average driver death rate compared with the national average of 38 deaths per million registered vehicle-years. The class figure is adjusted for driver age and sex, which removes a large part of the selection effect in raw death rates. It is still a class average, not a measurement of this model.

The Tesla Model 3 earned Top Safety Pick+ for 2025. That award requires Good results in the updated tests plus qualifying headlights and pedestrian front crash prevention on the relevant trims; the linked IIHS report shows the exact trims.

Across the 6 IIHS rating categories reported, the Tesla Model 3 earned 2 Good ratings. Results below Good deserve attention, especially the updated frontal and side tests that IIHS toughened in 2022 and 2023. Our updated crash test analysis explains what changed.

This analysis is produced independently; we have no affiliation with Tesla or any manufacturer. Read the full methodology or learn more about us.

Tesla death rates vs. crash tests. Tesla scores well in crash tests but has above-average brand-level driver death rates. We separate the evidence and the four possible explanations.

International crash-test results

Euro NCAP (2025)
β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…
Adult: 96% Β· Child: 91% Β· Pedestrian: 72% Β· Safety assist: 98%
Best in Class Large Family Car 2025.
ANCAP (2019)
β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…β˜…

International results are supporting context only; market versions differ in structure and equipment, so they are not converted into the U.S. score.

Safety recalls for the 2025 Tesla Model 3

NHTSA does not yet list this model year in its recall database. That usually means the vehicle is too new to appear, not that it has been cleared.

Questions about the 2025 Tesla Model 3