Like all Kia vehicles, the 2011 Sorento is equipped with a plethora of standard safety equipment. All trims come outfitted with driver and passenger advanced front airbags, front seat-mounted side airbags, side curtain airbags and front active headrests, four-wheel Antilock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Stability Control (ESC) and Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD). Hill Start Assist Control (HAC) and Downhill Brake Control (DBC) also come standard on all models, the former assisting in preventing the vehicle from rolling backward when trying to pull away from an uphill gradient, while the latter helps keep the vehicle moving straight and steady down steep grades.

Pedestrians also benefit from the all-new Kia Sorento's standard safety systems. For the 2011 model year the hood of Kia Sorento is designed to crumple and flex strategically so as to absorb and disperse the shock of a collision with a pedestrian or bicyclist, aimed at decreasing the level of potential injury.