Tesla Model Y vs BYD Sealion 7: UK family SUV compared

The Tesla Model Y is the better buy for most UK families: it starts £2,035 cheaper, goes further on a charge in Premium form and costs about 0.5p a mile less to charge at home. The BYD Sealion 7 makes sense if you value a six-year warranty and a more conventional cabin over running costs.

Both are large electric SUVs with sloping rooflines, big touchscreens and prices that start in the mid £40,000s. The Model Y is the UK’s best-known electric family car; the Sealion 7 is BYD’s most expensive model here and its most direct answer to it. EV Compared has not driven either car, so this comparison uses manufacturer data, EV Database figures and published UK tests.

How much do the Model Y and Sealion 7 cost in the UK?

The Model Y costs from £44,990 and the Sealion 7 from £47,025 in November 2026. Tesla prices are from the October 2026 UK list; Sealion 7 prices are as listed by Carwow. BYD’s UK media site gives on-the-road prices £35 lower for each trim.

	Model Y RWD	Model Y Premium LR RWD	Model Y Premium LR AWD	Sealion 7 Comfort	Sealion 7 Design AWD	Sealion 7 Excellence AWD
List price, Nov 2026	£44,990	£49,990	£52,990	£47,025	£52,025	£59,025
Usable battery	60 kWh	74 kWh	79 kWh	82.5 kWh	82.5 kWh	91.3 kWh
WLTP range	309 to 326 miles	375 miles	373 to 386 miles	300 miles	283 miles	312 miles
Real-world range (EV Database)	235 miles	285 miles	295 miles	260 miles	250 miles	270 miles
Peak DC charging	175 kW	250 kW	250 kW	150 kW	150 kW	230 kW
0 to 62 mph	7.2 sec	5.6 sec	4.6 sec	6.7 sec	4.5 sec	4.5 sec
Braked towing	1,600 kg	1,600 kg	1,600 kg	750 kg	1,500 kg	1,500 kg

Specifications are from EV Database for each trim.

The closest matches on price are the Sealion 7 Comfort against the Model Y RWD and Premium Long Range RWD, and the Sealion 7 Design AWD against the Model Y Premium Long Range AWD, which are £965 apart. Our Model Y Standard vs Premium guide explains what the extra £5,000 for the Premium buys.

Which is cheaper to run per mile?

The Model Y is cheaper to run at every price of electricity, because it uses about a fifth less energy per mile. These are EV Compared’s own figures.

Method: EV Database real-world Wh per mile ÷ 1,000 × price per kWh = pence per mile; × 10,000 for a year. Prices: 8p/kWh home off-peak (Intelligent Octopus Go), 26.32p/kWh price cap (October to December 2026), 79p/kWh public rapid (Zapmap, September 2026).

Trim	Wh/mile	Home, 8p	Price cap, 26.32p	Public rapid, 79p	10,000 miles at home	10,000 miles on rapids
Model Y RWD	255	2.0p	6.7p	20.1p	£204	£2,015
Model Y Premium LR RWD	260	2.1p	6.8p	20.5p	£208	£2,054
Model Y Premium LR AWD	268	2.1p	7.1p	21.2p	£214	£2,117
Sealion 7 Comfort	317	2.5p	8.3p	25.0p	£254	£2,504
Sealion 7 Design AWD	330	2.6p	8.7p	26.1p	£264	£2,607
Sealion 7 Excellence AWD	338	2.7p	8.9p	26.7p	£270	£2,670

On a cheap overnight tariff the gap between the Model Y RWD and Sealion 7 Comfort is only £50 a year over 10,000 miles. On the standard price cap rate it is £163, and if you rely on public rapid chargers it is about £490.

Published tests point the same way. Carwow’s head-to-head recorded 3.7 miles per kWh for the Model Y against 3.3 for the Sealion 7, and Which? found the Sealion 7 “much less efficient” in its lab tests.

What about a mix of home and public charging?

Most owners with a driveway charge at home and use rapid chargers on long trips, and here the Tesla gains a second advantage. Zapmap’s September 2026 index shows Tesla drivers paid an average of 48p/kWh on Superchargers, while other EVs paid 69p/kWh at the sites open to them.

Method: annual kWh × 90% × 8p + annual kWh × 10% × public price. With 90 per cent of energy from home and 10 per cent from rapid charging, 10,000 miles costs about £306 in a Model Y RWD on Superchargers (2,550 kWh) and about £447 in a Sealion 7 Comfort at open Superchargers (3,170 kWh), or £479 if the BYD uses chargers at the 79p average.

That is a gap of roughly £140 to £170 a year. Our guides to what it costs to charge a Tesla and Tesla Supercharger prices break these figures down further.

Which has more range?

The Model Y Premium Long Range has more range despite a smaller battery. It is rated at 375 miles WLTP in RWD form, against 300 miles for the Sealion 7 Comfort and 312 miles for the Excellence. EV Database’s real-world estimates are closer: 285 miles for the Premium Long Range RWD and 260 to 270 miles for the Sealion 7.

The entry Model Y RWD is the exception. Its 60 kWh battery gives an estimated 235 real-world miles, 25 fewer than the Sealion 7 Comfort, so if you want the cheapest car with the most range, the BYD Comfort beats the cheapest Tesla.

How fast do they charge?

The Model Y Premium trims peak at 250 kW, the Sealion 7 Excellence at 230 kW, and the Model Y RWD at 175 kW. The Sealion 7 Comfort and Design peak at 150 kW, which BYD says gives 10 to 80 per cent in 32 minutes. EV Database quotes 24 minutes for both the Excellence and the Model Y RWD.

The Sealion 7 uses the CCS standard, so it charges on every major UK network and at Superchargers open to other EVs; our guide to using a Supercharger with a non-Tesla explains how. Model Y owners get the whole Supercharger network, with the car warming its battery on the way.

Which is more practical for a family?

The Model Y has more luggage space on the manufacturers’ figures: 854 litres measured to the roof, plus a 117-litre front boot. BYD quotes 520 litres for the Sealion 7, or 1,789 litres with the seats folded, plus a 58-litre front boot. The two are not measured the same way; Which? puts the BYD ahead, at 520 litres against 420, and says the Sealion 7 has less cabin space.

For towing, the Model Y is rated at 1,600 kg braked across the range. The Sealion 7 AWD trims manage 1,500 kg, but the Comfort is listed at only 750 kg.

Inside, reviewers prefer the BYD. Carwow found its cabin higher quality and easier to use, and it has a digital driver’s display, which the Model Y lacks; in the Tesla, even mirror and steering wheel adjustments go through the touchscreen.

What about warranty, tax and insurance?

BYD offers the longer warranty: six years or 93,000 miles on the car, according to the RAC, and eight years on the battery. Tesla’s basic UK cover is four years or 60,000 miles, with an eight-year battery warranty of 100,000 or 120,000 miles depending on the pack (Motorpoint).

Both cars pay the £200 standard rate of vehicle tax. Above a £50,000 list price, electric cars also pay the £440 a year expensive car supplement for five years. That catches the Sealion 7 Design and Excellence and the Model Y Premium Long Range AWD, adding £2,200 over five years.

As a company car, both pay 4% benefit-in-kind in 2026/27. On our sums (list price or P11D × 4% × 40% ÷ 12), a 40% taxpayer pays about £60 a month for a Model Y RWD, £63 for a Sealion 7 Comfort (P11D £46,935), £67 for a Model Y Premium Long Range RWD and £69 for a Sealion 7 Design. Our Tesla company car tax guide covers every trim.

BYD puts the Sealion 7 in insurance groups 45 to 49, depending on trim.

Which should you buy?

Buy the Tesla Model Y if:

• You want the lowest running cost; it uses about 20 per cent less energy per mile
• You do long motorway trips and want full Supercharger access at Tesla driver prices
• You need the most boot space or want to tow up to 1,600 kg
• You want the most WLTP range for under £50,000 (the Premium Long Range RWD at £49,990)

Buy the BYD Sealion 7 if:

• You want a six-year warranty instead of four
• You prefer a cabin with a driver’s display and simpler controls
• You want more real-world range than the cheapest Model Y without spending £49,990

For most private buyers, the Model Y’s lower price and running costs make it the stronger choice, which is also the conclusion Carwow reached. If you are considering BYD’s saloon instead, our Tesla Model 3 vs BYD Seal comparison covers the smaller pair.