March 2025: Top Selling Hatchbacks in India

In India, hatchbacks hold much larger importance than their size. In fact, it is their compact size that forms the basis of their importance. With the most compact form, hatchbacks are the easiest to drive through the day-to-day city traffic, and what complements their potency is the easy handling and, even more important, affordable prices. All this comes together to make hatchbacks the most practical cars for urban lifestyles and keep them strong in the game despite the ever-rising popularity of SUVs. Nonetheless, it is no secret that the expanding SUV space is eating into other segments, and hatchbacks are no exception. The category as a whole is seeing a serious decline in popularity as well as demand, and so is reflected in their sales figures. Here are the top selling hatchbacks of March 2025.

Overview Table

Maruti Suzuki Swift

Even though hatchbacks are not at the peak of their popularity, the iconic Maruti Swift never missed getting featured among the top selling cars and top selling hatchbacks. In March 2025, with a 13 percent growth in year-on-year sales, the Indo-Japanese hatchback became the best-selling hatchback, with sales of 17,746 units. With one of the longest and most revered legacies in India, the Maruti is still an overwhelming favourite of buyers looking for a comfortable as well as sporty hatchback. Through the ages, the Maruti Swift has contemporarily evolved while aptly retaining the credentials which made it a ground-breaking success in the first place. Like its earlier generations, the latest generation of the Maruti Swift, which was launched a couple of months ago, offers a sprightly powertrain, segment-leading space, and an appealing mileage.

The latest iteration of the Maruti Swift comes with an all-new 1.2-litre three-cylinder Z12E petrol engine mated to the same 5-speed manual gearbox and 5-speed AMT as before. Moreover, it delivers a lucrative mileage of 24.8 km/l with MT and 25.75 km/l with AMT. Currently, Maruti is not offering Swift in the CNG variant, however, it is expected to join the line-up later.

Also read: Top 10 selling cars in India

Maruti Suzuki Wagon R

When it comes to cars, every buyer first prefers a tried and trusted product, and the Maruti Wagon R with a revered decades-long legacy becomes one of the go-to options. The longest-running Maruti car, the Wagon R has long been lauded as a practical car to drive through city traffic thanks to its boxy silhouette, easy handling, and fuel-efficient powertrains. With such calibre, the Maruti Wagon R is a popular choice among urban buyers as well as commercial fleet operators, and every month it emerges as one of the best-selling cars in India. Last month, with sales of 17,175 units, the Wagon R became the second-best-selling hatchback and saw a 5 percent growth from the 16,368 units it sold during the same month last year.

Maruti has equipped the Wagon R with two petrol engines: a 1-litre petrol engine and a 1.2-litre petrol engine. While both engines are coupled with either a five-speed manual or a five-speed AMT, an optional CNG kit is also available with the 1-litre engine, which comes with only manual Transmission. The Maruti Wagon R delivers a mileage of 25.19 km/l from petrol and 34.05 km/kg from CNG.

Also read: Top selling compact SUVs

Maruti Suzuki Baleno

Since its launch in 2015, the Maruti Baleno has been a craze among premium hatchback seekers and went on to write an incredible success story. Along with a comfortable cabin, a refined powertrain, and an elegant appearance, the Baleno promises the unmatchable reliability that comes with the Maruti Suzuki badge. What makes this deal even more attractive is Baleno’s mileage which makes it one of the most fuel-efficient cars in India. Grabbing a spot on this list has never been a problem for the Baleno and even more so, it has often emerged as the best-selling car in India. In March 2025, despite seeing a 21 percent decline in its year-on-year performance and selling 12,357 units, the Baleno successfully outshined all its rivals by a huge margin and emerged as the third-best-selling hatchback in India

The Maruti Baleno is powered by a 1.2-litre Dualjet petrol engine mated to either a 5-speed manual or 5-speed AMT and is also available in CNG-powered variants. As far as mileage is concerned, the Baleno delivers 22.94 km/l from petrol and 30.61 km/kg from CNG.

Maruti Suzuki Alto K10

Whenever someone looks for an entry-level car in India, the iconic Maruti Alto seems a tried and trusted proposition that comes with the reliability of the industry leader, Maruti Suzuki. This is why the Alto has been and still is the overwhelming favourite of first-time car owners. While, like every other car, the Alto has also faced tight competition in the past, today it has negligible challenges before it as far as rivals are concerned. Despite not being at the peak of its popularity, the Alto is comfortably pulling admirable sales month after month. In March 2025, the Maruti Alto K10 sold 9,867 units and gained a 6 percent growth over the 9,332 units it sold during the same month the year before.

The mechanicals of the Alto K10 include a 1-litre K10C petrol engine mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox and 5-speed automatic transmission. In terms of mileage, the Alto K10 delivers 24.39 – 24.90 km/l from petrol and 33.85 km/kg from CNG.

Tata Tiago

Tata’s contender in the hatchback race, Tiago, has the segment-best safety as its calling card. With a 4-star G-NCAP rating, the Tata Tiago demonstrates its toughness, while its stylish looks make for an eye-catching road presence. Moreover, being the only hatchback in India to be available in petrol-powered, CNG-powered, and electric-powered variants, the Tata Tiago caters to a wide variety of buyers. All the same, sales-wise, the Tata Tiago has been seeing a downward trend but not enough that drops it out of this list. But the last month turned out to be a good one for the Tata Tiago as it saw a 25 percent growth in its year-on-year sales, selling 7,946 units.

The powertrain options of the Tata Tiago consist of a 1.2-litre petrol engine mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT. The CNG variants also come with a manual transmission and an AMT and can run 26.49 km/kg, while the Tiago EV comes with two battery options: a 19.2 kWh battery pack and a 24 kWh battery pack that have claimed ranges of 250 km and 315 km, respectively.

Also read: Top selling car brands in India

Hyundai Grand i10 Nios

After Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai has been the second-most-dominant player in the hatchback segment for a long time. Earlier, it was cars like the Santro and the i10 that were the champions of the Korean carmaker, and now it is the Grand i10 Nios and the i20. The Grand i10 Nios, being affordable of the two, is closer to buyers looking for a capable Hyundai hatchback. With ample space, premium interiors and features, and refined powertrains, the Grand i10 Nios has long remained one of the best-selling hatchbacks and the strongest challenger to the Swift’s reign at the top. Clocking sales of 4,990 units in March 2025, the Hyundai Grand i10 Nios is yet again among the top 10 selling hatchbacks, despite seeing a 1 percent decline in its year-on-year sales.

Under the hood, the Grand i10 Nios brings a 1.2-litre petrol engine mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT. Moreover, like the Maruti Swift, the Grand i10 Nios is available in CNG-powered variants. With CNG, the Grand i10 Nios deliver a mileage of 28 km/kg while its petrol mileage is up to 20.7 km/l.

Hyundai i20

High on style, comfort, and premium quotient, the Hyundai i20 has proven itself as the second best-selling premium hatchback and toughest rival to the Maruti Baleno’s reign at the top. However, due to the ever-growing popularity of compact SUVs, premium hatchbacks are not as popular as they used to be, and the Hyundai i20 is no exception. Last month, the Korean hatchback saw a 14 percent decline in its year-on-year performance, selling 4,452 units. Nonetheless, the i20 is still shining bright as one of the best-selling hatchbacks. In addition to the standard i20, Hyundai sells the sportier Hyundai i20 N Line, offering a more exciting car in the segment.

In the i20 lineup, the standard i20 is offered with a 1.2-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a CVT automatic, while the i20 N Line comes with a 1-litre turbo petrol engine paired with either a 6-speed manual gearbox or a 7-speed DCT automatic.

Toyota Glanza

The Toyota Glanza is Toyota’s version of the Maruti Baleno, and to those who prefer Toyota over Maruti, it gives a great option to own the same car with a Toyota badge. In the last year or so, Glanza’s popularity has been on an impressive rise and the Japanese premium hatchback started featuring on the list of best-selling hatchbacks. This time around, it reached this list with sales of 3,501 units in March 2025, despite seeing a 19 percent decline from its sales during the same month of the year before.

Maruti Suzuki Celerio

The Maruti Suzuki Celerio has a special air of pocket-friendliness about it, which is unmatched by almost every other car in the market. Equipped with the most fuel-efficient naturally aspirated petrol engine in the market, the Maruti Celerio delivers a mileage of up to 26.68 km/l. Offering such mileage without any hybrid assistance is a big deal. Moreover, the hatchback offers affordable and easy maintenance along with unmatchable reliability and a vast service network of Maruti Suzuki. All these characteristics make the Maruti Celerio a suitable deal for those who want a budget-friendly hatchback with low running costs. As far as sales are concerned, the Maruti Celerio usually does decent business; however, in March 2025, it saw a 35 percent year-on-year decline in sales, by selling 2,268 units.

For engine options, the Maruti Celerio comes with a 1-litre petrol engine mated with either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT.

Maruti Suzuki Ignis

Rounding off the list is the Maruti Ignis, which sold 1,900 units in March 2025. These sales figures helped it see a 32 percent drop in its year-on-year sales. Sold from Maruti’s premium division, NEXA, the Maruti Ignis is an underrated car. Considering its size and segment, the Ignis is quite accommodating for five passengers, thanks to its SUV-inspired design. On the feature front, it is decently loaded and offers a dependable ownership experience as expected of Maruti cars. All the same, unlike most Maruti cars, the Ignis is not available in CNG variants.

The Maruti Ignis is powered by a 1.2-litre petrol engine, which comes mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 5-speed AMT.