2026 Defender 110 vs. Toyota Land Cruiser Comparison with Price, Specs, & Photos

For a company that has had so much success with off-road-ready pickup trucks, Toyota’s SUV lineup is surprisingly on-road-focused. But there is one notable exception: the Land Cruiser. Like the iconic Defender 110, the Land Cruiser can trace its lineage back to the years just after WWII, and its inspiration back to the Willys off-roader that saw so much use at that time. But all of that was a long time ago; how do these two long-running off-road staples compare today? We’re going to have to take a closer look to see.

Defender 110 VS Toyota Land Cruiser

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Both of these vehicles are built for the same purpose: to be capable off-road without sacrificing everyday usability and comfort. And while both could be said to achieve this, there are still some important differences that you should know before deciding on which model is right for you. The first thing to know is that Toyota doesn’t give you a lot of configuration options for the Land Cruiser. There are only two trim levels, including the “1958” special edition, and just one engine offered. Even if we don’t count the Defender 90 and Defender 130 body options, the Defender still gives you a lot more choices. There are six trims of the 110, again including the special Trophy Edition and an even more special edition known as the OCTA. There are also four engines available: a four-cylinder, a six-cylinder, and two V8s. The Defender is also offered with more paint colors, more interior colors, multiple roof color options, and a much wider selection of wheel designs.

The Land Cruiser is built to be functional, but it doesn’t offer quite the same range of functionality as the Defender. For one thing, it has an inch less ground clearance, 7.9 inches versus 8.9 inches on the Defender. The Defender 110 is also available with air suspension that can be raised to 11.5 inches, something that’s not an option on the Land Cruiser. And wherever you’re going, you can take more with you with the Defender, thanks to the 7,715-pound towing capacity, a clear advantage over the 6,000 pounds that the Land Cruiser can tow.

You’ll notice some major advantages with the Defender 110 when it comes to the interiors of these vehicles. One of the big ones is an optional third row of seats for the Defender, an extremely useful feature that Toyota doesn’t offer. Both vehicles are offered with a name-brand premium stereo, but the Meridian system in the Defender is standard equipment, while the JBL system for the Land Cruiser is available only as part of an option package that costs just under $5,000.