We bought my son a Mazda 3 hatchback in 2008. Still running today. He is thinking about getting a new one. The Mazda 3 hatchback, small as it is, can carry a lot of stuff. He moved to and from college in that car; plus we had taken many trips up and down California in it.
I suggest the 3 because the ford version has that awful dual clutch transmission. Mazda went with a regular 5 speed automatic.
I’ve had several 3/5/6s all good cars.