Volvo EX90 vs Rivian R1S

The EX90 starts at $78,090 including Volvo's $1,395 destination charge and tops out at $90,740 for the Ultra Twin Motor Performance base configuration. The R1S starts $5,900 higher at $83,990 and its ladder climbs to $121,990 — a ceiling $31,250 above the EX90's.

Both seat seven, and both offer second-row flexibility: the EX90 as a 6-seat build with individual second-row seats or a 7-seat bench, the R1S with a standard bench and optional captain's chairs.

The R1S publishes 32.8 in of third-row legroom and 38.6 in of third-row headroom. The EX90 publishes neither — Volvo's US specifications page lists no third-row legroom or headroom, those cells are pending in our dataset, and this site does not fill gaps with estimates. On published data, the R1S is the only one of the pair whose third row can be evaluated from a spec sheet.

One documented hardware difference from the safety records we track: Volvo's EX90 support materials describe a curtain airbag protecting occupants seated by a window along the cabin's full length, while the R1S Owner's Guide (dated December 2023) lists roof-rail airbags for the first and second rows only. The R1S counters with two lower-anchor sets and two top tethers in its third row, where the EX90's documentation places child-seat anchorages in the second row only.

The R1S leads at every seat position: 17.6 vs 13.6 cu ft behind the third row, 48.6 vs 37.3 behind the second, and 90.7 vs 75.4 with everything folded — a 15.3 cu ft gap at the maximum. The EX90 figures are the 7-seat configuration's maximum column; the 6-seat build publishes 13.3, 36.9, and 73.5.

With all seven seats occupied, the 4.0 cu ft difference behind row 3 is roughly one more carry-on's worth of space in the Rivian.

This is the widest gap on the page. The R1S tows 7,700 lb. The EX90's braked-trailer rating is 4,850 lb — the lowest tow rating in this dataset, and 2,850 lb behind the Rivian.

A family that tows a camper, a boat, or a horse trailer has its answer in this section alone. The EX90 handles light towing; the R1S has the margin for larger trailers.

On paper they are close in footprint — 198.3 in of length for the EX90, 200.8 for the R1S — but far apart vertically: the EX90 stands 68.7 in tall, the R1S 77.3 in as published (Rivian's figure is its maximum height with antenna). That 8.6 in difference matters for low parking garages.

Width cannot be compared directly: the EX90 publishes 77.3 in excluding mirrors, but Rivian publishes only mirror-inclusive widths, so our dataset records no body-only width for the R1S.

Volvo EX90: The priority is a road-oriented electric family hauler at the lowest entry price of the pair ($78,090 vs $83,990), a lower stance for garages, and Volvo's documented full-length curtain-airbag coverage. Towing is off the list — 4,850 lb is the floor of this dataset — and the unpublished third-row dimensions mean an in-person sit is mandatory.

Rivian R1S: The spec sheet needs to carry weight: published third-row numbers (32.8 in of legroom, 38.6 in of headroom), the larger cargo hold at every configuration, and 7,700 lb of towing. The budget must absorb a $5,900 higher floor and a ladder that runs to $121,990.