What's New
The 2020 Jeep Cherokee sees only minor updates. The biggest is the increased availability of advanced safety tech, which can now be added to any trim except the Trailhawk. Otherwise, the Cherokee gets an expanded repertoire of rim and color options, plus connectivity with Amazon Alexa is available.
Choosing Your Jeep Cherokee
The Jeep Cherokee comes in five trims: Latitude, Latitude Plus, Limited, Trailhawk, and Overland. Prices start at $27,235 including destination for the Latitude and extend up to $38,490 for an Overland.
Engine Choices
The Cherokee comes with a choice of three engines: a 2.4-liter four-cylinder, a 3.2-liter V6, or a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder.
Engine Type | Horsepower | Torque | Fuel Economy (Combined) |
2.4L 4-Cylinder | 180 hp | 171 lb-ft | 25 mpg |
3.2L V6 | 271 hp | 239 lb-ft | 23 mpg |
2.0L Turbo 4-Cylinder | 270 hp | 295 lb ft | 26 mpg |
The Latitude, Latitude Plus, and Limited come standard with the 2.4-liter unit, but offer the V6 for $1,745. The Latitude Plus and Limited are also available with the 2.0-liter turbo-four for a $2,245 premium. The Trailhawk and Overland come standard with the V6 and make the turbo engine available for $500.
All three engines use a nine-speed automatic transmission and can power either the front or all four wheels. Four-wheel drive is $1,500, except on the Trailhawk where it is standard.
The turbocharged engine is the winner in nearly every respect – it has more torque than the V6 and better fuel economy than the base engine. The only win for the V6 is towing capacity: it can tow 4,500 pounds to the turbo’s 4,000.
Passenger and Cargo Capacity
All Jeep Cherokee models can seat five passengers. Rear leg room is fairly good at 40.3 inches, although the Cherokee is narrower than some rivals.
Cargo capacity, however, isn’t inspiring. The Cherokee can fit only 24.6 cubic feet of baggage behind the rear seats, and only 54.7 with the seats folded. These numbers don’t compare well to the competition — the Ford Escape and Nissan Murano both swallow around 67 cubic feet of cargo.
Safety Features
The Cherokee has a mixed record in the safety department. There are no standard active safety features on the base trim, but additional features are now more widely available for 2020. We applaud the increased availability, but as more competitors make these features standard, keeping them locked in packages looks old fashioned.
The Latitude Plus trim and up get standard blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and rear parking sensors. These three features are available on the base Latitude through the $695 SafetyTec package.
On the Limited and Overland, the available Technology Group ($1,595) adds adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, lane departure warning, park assist, and automatic high beams. These features aren't available on the Trailhawk.
The Cherokee has a four-star overall safety rating from the NHTSA.
Connectivity
The Cherokee starts with a 7-inch infotainment touchscreen compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The Trailhawk and Limited upgrade to an 8.4-inch touchscreen, where navigation is an $895 upgrade. The Overland gets the navigation-equipped 8.4-inch touchscreen, which includes Amazon Alexa compatibility this model year.
The Cherokee Latitude keeps things basic with manually adjustable seats and cloth upholstery, but it does include 17-inch aluminum wheels, LED headlights and taillights, tinted sunscreen glass, and keyless entry.
Heated front seats are bundled with remote start and a heated and leather-wrapped steering wheel in the Cold Weather Group ($895).
For 2020, Jeep offers an Upland appearance package for the Latitude. A $4,680 upgrade, the Upland includes the V6 engine, all-wheel drive, aggressive fascia, and blacked out trim.
The Latitude Plus trim adds a few creature comforts for a relatively modest price increase. The seats are upholstered in cloth and vinyl, the driver’s seat is eight-way power adjustable, the steering wheel is wrapped in leather, and the blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and rear parking sensors come standard.
Dual-zone automatic climate control still isn’t standard. It requires the Comfort and Convenience Group ($995), which also includes a power liftgate and remote start. An Alpine audio system is available for $695, while a sunroof is $1,595.
The Latitude Plus gets its own blackout package, here dubbed the Altitude. It’s similar to the Upland, but it adds 18-inch rims and doesn’t include the engine or four-wheel drive upgrade. That means it’s cheaper, costing just $995 extra.
The Cherokee Limited adds some luxury features, like 18-inch rims, leather upholstery, a heated steering wheel, heated front seats, a power passenger seat, dual-zone automatic climate control, and the 8.4-inch infotainment screen.
This is where Jeep's full offering of active safety features becomes available in the Technology Group ($1,595). A hands-free liftgate is available as well, bundled with ventilated front seats and more in the Luxury Group ($1,345).
The premium sound system isn’t available on its own at this trim – getting it means selecting the Limited’s blacked-out trim, the High Altitude. Costing an extra $3,540, the High Altitude adds 19-inch wheels, the V6 engine, black leather upholstery, navigation, and unique exterior trim.
The V6-equipped, 4WD Trailhawk is Jeep’s off-road version of the Cherokee. It comes with the usual barrage of all-terrain upgrades: extra clearance, knobby tires, a lockable rear differential, a beefier suspension, and sophisticated traction software. Of course, the Trailhawk gets Jeep’s usual aggressive exterior cues, including the flashy two-tone hood.
It doesn’t entirely skimp on creature comforts, including automatic climate control and the larger infotainment screen, but it's back to cloth/vinyl upholstery and a manually adjustable passenger seat.
The Trailhawk shares the available Comfort and Convenience Group ($995) and the Cold Weather Group ($895) of the lower trims, but it can’t get the more advanced safety tech.
The Overland trim is the closest Jeep has to a luxury crossover SUV. It comes with Nappa leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, 19-inch wheels, a hands-free liftgate, the Alpine audio system, and the 8.4-inch infotainment system with navigation.
The best active safety tech still isn’t standard, although it’s cheaper here at $1,095. Otherwise, just about everything except the sunroof is included with the Overland.
Compare Cherokee Trims Side-By-Side
The Trailhawk is as capable a crossover as you’ll find away from pavement. For the best value in the 2020 Jeep Cherokee lineup, however, look to the Latitude Plus trim.