Sport Durst Mazda • Goldsboro, NC
Mazda CX-90 Third Row: Seating, Space and Features
The short answer
Three seats back there on the gasoline CX-90, two on the plug-in hybrid. Genuinely usable for children and teenagers, and fine for adults on shorter trips.

Most third rows in this class are a technicality. This one is not, but it is still worth knowing exactly what you are getting before you buy a car around it.

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Who Actually Fits Back There?

The useful answer is not a number. It is who, and for how long.

Children

No issue at all, on any length of trip. This is what row three is for and the CX-90 does it well.

Teenagers

Fine, including on longer drives. Worth having yours sit in it, since a tall fifteen-year-old and a short one have very different opinions.

Adults, short trips

Comfortable enough. A run across Goldsboro or out to dinner in Kinston is a non-event.

Adults, long trips

They will notice. Two hours down US-70 to the coast is doable but it is not where you would put the tallest person in the car.

Third row of a Mazda CX-90 seen past the second-row seating, Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro NC
Row three of a gasoline CX-90, seen past the second row. Three seats across, with the headrests and shoulder belt visible at the right of the frame. What a photograph cannot show you is how it feels once the second row is slid back to where your family actually keeps it, which is the whole reason this page keeps asking you to come and sit in it.
Why we are not quoting you a legroom figure

Because the number would not answer your question. Third-row comfort depends on where the second row is set, and the second row slides. A published inch count assumes a position nobody actually uses. Sit in it with the second row where your family would really have it, and you will know more in thirty seconds than any specification could tell you.

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Getting In and Out

Access matters more than space for most families, because you do it several times a day and the space you only notice on a long drive.

With captain's chairs

There is a walk-through gap between the two second-row seats, so a child can get to the back without anybody folding anything. This is the easiest access of any configuration and it is the reason a lot of parents choose captain's chairs even when they would like the eighth seat. On a wet morning in a school car park it earns its keep.

With the second-row bench

The bench slides and tilts forward to open a path. It works perfectly well, it is just slower, and it is noticeably more annoying when the person doing it is holding a bag, a coffee and a toddler's hand. If you are choosing the bench for the eighth seat, this is the trade you are making.

Mazda CX-90 rear passenger door open showing second-row seating, Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro NC
The rear door opening you go through to reach row three. Row two is what is pictured, and the third row sits behind it, out of frame. How wide that gap feels with a child on one arm and a bag on the other is the part no photograph settles.
Car seats in row three

You can fit one back there, and it is more awkward than row two, both to install and to get a child in and out of afterwards. Most families run car seats in the second row and use the third for older children. Whether a specific seat fits depends on the seat. Bring yours and try it in the car rather than measuring at home.

If seat count rather than seat comfort is your question, our page on how many the CX-90 seats covers which trims give you seven and which give you eight.

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The One Difference Between the Gas CX-90 and the PHEV

Three seats back there, or two

The gasoline Inline-6 CX-90 has a three-person third row. The plug-in hybrid has a two-person third row.

Both are sold as seven-seaters, so it is easy to compare them on a spec sheet and never notice. The gas car gets to seven with second-row captain's chairs plus three in the back. The PHEV gets to seven with a second-row bench plus two in the back.

If your third row usually carries one or two children, this changes nothing for you. If it regularly carries three, it decides your powertrain. Worth establishing early, before you fall for a specific car.

Mazda CX-90 PHEV instrument display showing charging status, Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro NC
The charging display in the plug-in hybrid's instrument cluster, the quickest way to tell which CX-90 you are sitting in. This is the car with the two-person third row.
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Cargo Space Behind the Third Row

The number people should ask about and usually do not until the boot is full.

14.9Cu FtBehind the third row, all seats up
15.9Cu FtBehind the third row, Turbo S trims
74.2Cu FtRows two and three folded

What that means in practice

  • All three rows up: a full grocery run, or several soft bags. Not a family of seven's hard luggage for a week away.
  • Third row folded: a large, level load floor. This is how most owners drive most of the time.
  • Both rows folded: about 74.2 cu ft, which handles flat-pack furniture, bicycles and most trips to a garden centre.
  • Full house plus luggage: plan on a roof box or a trailer for a long trip with eight aboard. That is true of every SUV in this class, not a CX-90 shortcoming.
Mazda CX-90 cargo area with power liftgate open and third row folded, Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro NC
This is the third row folded, the second bullet above, and how most owners drive most of the time. It is not the 14.9 cu ft you get with all three rows up, which is a considerably shorter floor than this photograph suggests.
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If You Wrote Off the CX-9's Third Row, Look Again

A fair number of people arrive here having owned a CX-9 and concluded that a Mazda third row is an occasional-use thing. That was a reasonable conclusion about that car.

The CX-90 is a larger vehicle on a newer platform, and row three benefited from it. It is roomier back there in a way you can feel rather than one you have to be told about. If your last three-row Mazda put you off, spend two minutes in this one before carrying the assumption forward.

The same goes the other way. If you are cross-shopping against other three-row SUVs, sit in all of their third rows on the same afternoon. They vary far more than the brochures suggest, and it is the only comparison that will tell you anything useful.

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CX-90 Third Row Questions

How many people fit in the Mazda CX-90 third row?
Three on the gasoline Inline-6 CX-90. Two on the plug-in hybrid. That is a real difference between the two powertrains and it is easy to miss, because both are advertised as seven-seaters when fitted with the second-row bench or captain's chairs respectively.
Is the CX-90 third row big enough for adults?
For short trips, comfortably. For a two-hour run down US-70 to the coast, an adult back there will notice it. Teenagers and children do fine on longer journeys. The honest advice is to climb in yourself before deciding, because how a third row feels depends a great deal on your own height and how the second row is set.
How do you get into the CX-90 third row?
The second row slides and tilts forward to open a path. With captain's chairs there is also a walk-through gap between the two seats, which is the easiest access of any configuration and the reason a lot of parents choose them. With the bench you are folding a seat forward every time, which is fine but slower when someone is holding a bag.
Can you fit a car seat in the CX-90 third row?
Generally yes, though it is more awkward to install back there than in the second row, and getting a child in and out is harder. Most families use row three for older children and keep car seats in row two. Whether a specific seat fits depends on the seat, so bring yours and try it here rather than measuring at home.
How much cargo space is behind the CX-90 third row?
About 14.9 cu ft, or roughly 15.9 cu ft on the Turbo S trims. That is a decent grocery run or several soft bags with all three rows in use. Fold the third row and it opens up considerably, and folding the second as well gives about 74.2 cu ft.
Does the CX-90 third row fold flat?
It folds down to give a long, largely level load floor, which is what matters when you are sliding something in from the tailgate. Most owners leave it folded most of the time and raise it when they need the seats, which is the normal way to live with any three-row SUV.
Is the CX-90 third row better than the CX-9 it replaced?
It is roomier back there. The CX-90 is a larger vehicle on a newer platform and the third row benefits from it. If you drove a CX-9 and wrote off its third row as occasional-only, the CX-90 is worth a fresh look before you assume the same.
Can I try the third row before I buy?
Please do, and bring whoever is going to sit in it. We are at 3405 McLain Street in Goldsboro. Call (919) 823-7198 first and we will confirm which seating layouts are on the lot, which is worth doing if you are driving in from Kinston, Wilson or Smithfield.
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Bring the People Who Will Sit in It

A third row is the one part of a car you genuinely cannot evaluate from a screen. Bring the children, bring the car seats, and let everyone climb in.

Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro
3405 McLain Street, Goldsboro, NC 27534
www.sportdurstmazdaofgoldsboro.com

Serving Goldsboro, Wayne County, Kinston, Wilson and Smithfield.
Sales: (919) 823-7198

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What Wayne County Families Say

Two Minutes in Row Three Settles It

Call ahead and we will have a CX-90 ready for everyone to climb into.

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Sources. Seating configurations from Mazda USA's CX-90 trim comparison, verified August 11, 2026. Cargo volumes from Mazda published specifications and Kelley Blue Book. Third-row comfort varies with second-row position and with the individual. Seating configuration is set per vehicle at build. Whether specific child seats fit depends on the seats themselves. Equipment and specifications are subject to change by the manufacturer. Contact Sport Durst Mazda of Goldsboro at (919) 823-7198 to confirm the configuration of any specific vehicle.