The Best Used Cars to Buy Under £15,000

Fancy that wind-in-your-hair experience for your £15,000 budget? The Mini Convertible seems bang on the money. It’s a package which has proven immensely popular, which is why there are plenty of examples currently available for well within our budget.

The Mini’s appeal is universal. Quirky retro-infused styling blends effortlessly with great materials and good built quality to create a car which feels premium without too ‘try hard’. The Convertible model only builds on this further, with the electric retractable fabric roof giving instant access to miles of blue sky.

It’s worth remembering that the Convertible isn’t what you’d call a practical model. The rear seats will be a real squeeze for adults, while the boot is pretty compact. If you’re not after loads of room, then the Mini will be just grand – but larger families will likely find it too tight.

If there’s one thing Peugeot knows how to do well, it’s to create small, exciting, and characterful hatchbacks. It’s got a long heritage for doing just that, with highlights including cars like the 205 and 206. The latest instalment in that lineage was the 208, which brought a more technology-heavy focus and a fresh new look.

You can get some low-mileage examples for our £15,000 budget, too, while the 208’s quirky styling means that it looks much fresher in the modern day than many of its rivals. It’s equipped with some efficient engine choices, too, so you shouldn’t have to spend too much time at the petrol pumps. Plus, all versions got plenty of standard equipment so you can still get a lot of toys for the money.

The Stonic felt like something of a watershed moment for Kia. It marked a whole new design approach for the brand and built on the success of the recently updated Sportage, bringing the same look and feel but in a smaller and easier package to live with.

Core to the Stonic’s appeal is Kia’s rock-solid approach to build quality. Despite being easy to get for our £15,000 budget, the interior quality is excellent, and all models come with plenty of standard equipment. Plus, a seven-year transferrable warranty gives the Stonic plenty of cover and means that even the earliest models could have a small amount of warranty left intact.

A user-friendly approach makes the Stonic very easy to live with while light steering and compact dimensions make it a breeze to park.

Now that the Fiesta has been removed from the Blue Oval’s current range of cars, the mantle of ‘most popular Ford’. That’s good news for used-car buyers, too, as it means that there are plenty of second-hand Pumas to browse through and many come well under our £15,000 budget. 

Though it’s based on the same platform as the Fiesta, the Puma brings a slight increase in ride height alongside a useful boost in boot space thanks to the inclusion of a handy 90-litre ‘MegaBox’ which is positioned under the boot floor. It’s got a drainage valve, too, you can rinse it out – if you’ve used it to store muddle wellies, for instance – and means you don’t have to get the carpeted section of the boot grubby.

Like the Peugeot 208, but find it hasn’t got quite enough space? Enter the family-focused 3008. It’s a far larger prospect than the 208 so isn’t as easy to park as a result, but the plus-points far outweigh the negatives with the 3008’s practical cabin and large boot, making this a fine choice for families.

The original 3008 was a tried-and-tested MPV, but the second generation, which we’re looking at here, evolved into a trendier SUV. The result is a car which rides a little higher up but still has loads of space and room to offer. Peugeot went pretty out there with the 3008’s styling, too, but the gamble appeared to pay off, as it remains a great-looking car even today.

The Sandero has routinely taken the title as the UK’s cheapest car, undercutting key rivals by thousands of pounds despite offering the same level of in-car equipment. Value has always been Dacia’s key ethos, after all, which is why the Sandero is a great option for this budget-friendly selection.

However, the Sandero doesn’t feel bargain-basement and is more than up to the job of daily driving. The bonus with the Sandero is that because of its low as-new price, it’s easy to snap up a very low-mileage example for within our £15,000. The Sandero represents an awesome buy if you want something no-frills that won’t let you down.

Ticking off the out-and-out practicality boxes is the name of the game for the Citroen Berlingo. This van-based MPV shuns the current trend of crossovers and SUVs, instead delivering a huge amount of space in a boxy, eye-catching design.

There are two wheelbase sizes available – regular and XL – with the latter freeing up space for seven people in total. The standard Berlingo, meanwhile, has seating room for five with everyone inside the car treated to loads of head and legroom. Unlike many SUVs, you still get plenty of boot space even though passengers can stretch out and get comfy. The Berlingo is also superbly easy to drive, with light controls and peppy engines that make everyday driving a doddle.

DS has a somewhat quirky role here in the UK. It was originally a part of Citroen before becoming a brand in its own right some years ago – though it still uses many of Citroen’s cars as a basis for its own. The DS 3 Crossback was introduced to enter Citroen into the popular crossover segment, with this raised-up version of the regular DS3 hatchback bringing the oddball styling that DS has become known for.

Its interior puts many others to shame for its innovation and stylishness. If you fancy a car cabin which feels like nothing else on sale today, then you’re in luck with the DS 3 Crossback. Fortunately, the off-the-wall styling is backed up by some great tech, while the engines available as strong and efficient.

Honda’s Civic is something of a multi-tool of a car. It’s got a lot more space than you might expect from a hatchback, but it’s also good to drive and has a famed reputation for reliability, too. The Civic has also delivered a superb driving experience – both on local roads and along motorways – while the quiet interior means everyone onboard can relax.

This tenth-generation Civic got all of Honda’s latest innovations, too, with much improved material quality than its predecessor. It was also made larger in pretty much all areas, upping the cabin space in the process while enabling the Civic to have a large boot. All versions get loads of technology and equipment as standard, too, so keen button-pressers can remain happy regardless of the specification.

MG has gone from strength to strength in recent years and today outsells many of the traditionally ‘larger’ brands thanks to its value-orientated cars which deliver a lot of equipment for the money. The ZS is a well-sized and spacious SUV which could be a great choice for families thanks to its roomy boot and reasonably solid materials. There’s an electric version available, too, for those who fancy making the switch. 

The good news with the ZS is that because of its low as-new starting price, you can now pick up second-hand examples for a very low amount. We found a 2021-plate example, for instance, with just 21,000 miles on the clock for well under our £15,000 budget – and you’re still getting creature comforts such as a 10.1-inch colour touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and a reversing camera.