Chevy Equinox Buyer’s Guide: Choosing the Right Trim

The Chevy Equinox is one of the best-selling compact SUVs in the country, and it is one of the most popular vehicles we sell at McFarland Chevrolet in Maysville, KY. If you are shopping a 2026 Chevy Equinox and trying to figure out which trim is actually right for you, this buyer’s guide is built to help you make that call without overcomplicating it. The Equinox comes in four trim levels, each one serving a different kind of buyer. Getting the right one the first time saves you money and makes sure you are not paying for features you do not need or wishing you had stepped up.

This guide covers each trim level in plain language, explains the key feature differences, and helps you figure out which configuration makes the most sense for how you actually use your vehicle.

Why the Equinox Keeps Selling Year After Year

The Equinox hits a combination that is hard to argue with. It is a compact SUV with enough interior space to handle a family, enough cargo room for everyday life, good fuel economy, a comfortable ride, and a complete technology suite starting at a reasonable price point. It is not a sports car and it is not a truck. It is a practical, well-built vehicle that works for commuters, young families, and buyers who want something dependable without a lot of drama.

The 2026 model year brought the fourth-generation Equinox into its stride. The redesign introduced in 2024 gave the Equinox a more modern exterior, a significantly updated interior with a larger infotainment screen across most trims, and improved standard safety technology. What you get in a 2026 Equinox is a meaningfully different vehicle than what buyers were getting in the 2020 to 2023 generation.

The 2026 Equinox Trim Levels: LS, LT, RS, and Premier

The 2026 Equinox is available in four trims. Here is a plain-language breakdown of each one and who it is built for.

LS: The entry-level Equinox. It comes with a 11-inch diagonal touchscreen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a backup camera, forward collision alert, automatic emergency braking, and lane keep assist. The LS is the right choice for buyers who want the Equinox platform and solid everyday technology at the lowest entry price. The interior is functional but not refined. If you want more from the inside of the vehicle, the LT is worth the step up.

LT: The most popular trim in the Equinox lineup and the one we sell most often at McFarland. The LT adds heated front seats, a larger 11-inch touchscreen with improved connectivity, blind zone alert, rear cross traffic alert, and a more refined overall interior. It hits the best balance of features and price in the lineup. For most buyers who ask us which Equinox to buy, the LT is the answer unless they have a specific reason to go higher or lower.

RS: The sport appearance trim. The RS adds a blacked-out exterior package with a black grille, black roof rails, black mirror caps, and 19-inch black aluminum wheels. Inside, it adds sport-themed interior accents and RS badging. The RS is built for buyers who want the Equinox to look more aggressive and distinctive. It is the visual upgrade, not a performance upgrade. The engine and capability are the same as the LT. If the exterior look matters to you and you want the Equinox to stand out on the road, the RS delivers that.

Premier: The top trim. The Premier adds leather-appointed seating with heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, a power driver seat with memory, a larger 17.7-inch diagonal infotainment screen, a surround-view camera system, premium interior materials, and additional driver assistance technology. For buyers who spend significant time in the vehicle and want it to feel genuinely premium, the Premier is the right choice. It is a noticeable step up from the LT in terms of what the interior looks and feels like every day.

The LT Is the Sweet Spot for Most Equinox Buyers

If you are not sure which trim to buy, start with the LT and work from there. It adds the features that most buyers actually use every day over the LS, primarily heated seats, improved safety alerts, and a more finished interior, without the cost of jumping to the RS or Premier.

Heated seats matter more than most buyers expect until they do not have them. If you live in Kentucky and drive from October through March, you will use them. The blind zone alert on the LT is also a real addition. Parallel parking in town or changing lanes on the highway, having an alert when something is in your blind spot is a feature that earns its place quickly.

The price difference between the LS and LT is modest. For most buyers, the LT is the right answer. The exceptions are buyers who are strictly budget-conscious and do not need the additional features, and buyers who know they want the Premier’s leather and large screen.

Equinox RS vs LT: Appearance or Value?

The RS sits at a similar price to the LT but makes different trade-offs. It adds the blacked-out exterior appearance package and the sport interior accents but does not add the heated seats or the improved safety suite that the LT brings. Whether the RS or LT is the better buy depends entirely on what matters to you.

If you want the Equinox to look distinctive and you are less concerned about heated seats and the additional safety alerts, the RS is the better fit. If you want the practical everyday upgrades and the exterior appearance is secondary, the LT gives you more usable features for the money.

One thing to keep in mind: the RS gets the blacked-out look but not the heated seats, which is a trade-off some buyers regret when winter arrives. It is worth thinking about honestly before you decide.

When the Premier Is Worth the Step Up

The Premier is a genuinely different vehicle from the LT. It is not just more features on the same interior. The combination of leather seating, heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, the larger 17.7-inch screen, and the surround-view camera system changes the experience of sitting in and driving the Equinox every day.

Kayla Rushing, our sales manager, describes the reaction buyers have to the larger screen: “The new dash-spanning screen — that’s the biggest reason people are coming in to trade up. They sit in it and they can’t unsit in it.” The Premier’s 17.7-inch screen is the version of that experience in the Equinox lineup.

The Premier makes sense for buyers who use the Equinox as their primary daily driver and spend a lot of time in it, buyers coming out of a luxury compact SUV who do not want to feel like they downgraded, and buyers who specifically want leather and ventilated seats. Ventilated seats in a Kentucky summer are not a luxury. They are a comfort feature that gets used every day from June through September.

AWD on the Equinox: Do You Actually Need It?

All-wheel drive is available on the Equinox across all four trim levels. Whether it is worth the additional cost depends on where you drive and what kind of conditions you encounter.

For buyers in Mason County and the surrounding area, AWD is worth serious consideration. Kentucky winters can be unpredictable. Roads that are clear in the morning can be icy by afternoon. If you live on a hill, a gravel road, or anywhere that gets slick in wet weather, AWD gives you meaningfully better traction than front-wheel drive. It is not a substitute for winter tires, but it is a real advantage in the conditions this area sees from November through March.

For buyers who drive primarily on flat, paved roads in good weather and want to keep the price down, front-wheel drive is a reasonable choice. The Equinox’s front-wheel drive setup handles well in normal conditions and the fuel economy is slightly better than AWD.

Our honest recommendation: if you drive on any unpaved roads, live on a hill, or have experienced slipping on a wet road in this area, get the AWD. The peace of mind is worth it.

Equinox Engine Options: 1.5L vs 2.0L Turbo

The 2026 Equinox is available with two turbocharged engine options.

1.5L Turbocharged 4-Cylinder: The standard engine across the lineup. It produces 175 horsepower and 203 lb-ft of torque paired to a continuously variable transmission. Fuel economy reaches up to 28 mpg city and 32 mpg highway on front-wheel drive configurations. For most everyday driving, commuting, family errands, and highway travel, this engine does the job well. It is not a sporty engine but it is smooth, efficient, and right-sized for the Equinox’s purpose.

2.0L Turbocharged 4-Cylinder: Available on the Premier trim. It produces 252 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque paired to a 9-speed automatic transmission. If you want noticeably more power for highway merging, passing, or towing, the 2.0L is a real upgrade over the 1.5L. It also gives the Equinox its maximum towing capacity of 3,500 lbs when properly equipped. For most buyers, the 1.5L is sufficient. If power or towing matter, the 2.0L is worth the consideration.

Equinox Towing Capacity: What You Can Pull

The Equinox is a compact SUV, not a truck. Its towing capacity reflects that. With the 1.5L engine, the Equinox is rated to tow up to 1,500 lbs. With the 2.0L engine on the Premier properly equipped, that number reaches up to 3,500 lbs.

For most Equinox buyers, towing is not the primary use case. But 3,500 lbs handles a small utility trailer, a jet ski, a lightweight boat, or a small camper. If towing is a secondary priority and you also want the Premier’s interior features, the 2.0L Premier covers both. If towing is your primary concern and you need more than 3,500 lbs, the Equinox is not the right vehicle and we would rather tell you that upfront than sell you the wrong truck.

Quick Reference: Which Equinox Trim Is Right for You

Buy the LS if: Budget is the primary driver and you want the Equinox platform with solid everyday technology at the lowest price.

Buy the LT if: You want the best value in the lineup. Heated seats, improved safety alerts, and a more finished interior at a modest step up from the LS. This is the right trim for most buyers.

Buy the RS if: The blacked-out exterior appearance matters to you and you are comfortable trading the LT’s heated seats for the sport look.

Buy the Premier if: You spend a lot of time in the vehicle, want leather and ventilated seats, and want the large 17.7-inch screen. The Premier is the right choice for buyers who want the Equinox to feel genuinely premium every day.

Add AWD if: You drive on unpaved roads, live on a hill, or want better traction in Kentucky winters. Available across all trim levels.

Buying an Equinox at McFarland Chevrolet

McFarland Chevrolet has been family-owned in Maysville, KY since 1983. The Equinox is one of our top sellers because it fits what a lot of buyers in this area are actually looking for: a practical, reliable SUV that works every day without costing more than it should.

Mark Porter, one of our salespeople, describes what we see regularly: “Seeing that single mom or dad who came in thinking they’d get an 80,000-mile, 10-year-old vehicle and instead they leave with something newer, something they can depend on — that’s the most rewarding part.” The Equinox is one of the vehicles that makes that happen. It is approachable on price and genuinely good at what it does.

If you are also trading in a vehicle, our trade-in process is straightforward. Appraisals take 15 to 20 minutes and the offer is real. If you want to know what your current vehicle is worth before you make a decision, check out our trade-in guide for what affects your appraisal value.

Ready for Your Next Step?

Schedule a Test Drive

Sit in a 2026 Equinox and see which trim feels right. Call us at (606) 564-6181.

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