Our team of experienced reviewers has tested all the major racing wheels it could find on all the current big e-sports titles to find the best on the market.
If money is no object and you’re looking for a top end wheel that won’t look out of place at an e-sports tournament, the Fanatec CSL Elite is the best overall wheel you can get. If you’re on a budget, or just want a casual wheel for home use the Thrustmaster T150 is the best-value racing wheel around.
How we test racing wheels
Our expert reviewers test every wheel on all the big e-sports titles, including Project Cars 2, Forza 7 and GT Sport. During performance we gauge build quality, features, usability and performance. We check for the smoothness of the wheel turn, the strength of the force feedback, and the travel of the pedals. Where possible, we test three-pedal setups using compatible gearsticks.
Fanatec CSL Elite
Pros:
- Very powerful force feedback
- Extremely smooth
- Excellent pedal board
- customisation
Cons:
- Plastic base housing
- Non-luxury wheel construction
- Wheel upgrades are expensive
You might not believe it from the price, but the CSL Elite is the most accessible wheel and pedal combination the Fanatec has released since 2009.
At a rather steep £586 (at the time of our full review) for the cheapest wheel and pedals, most people will immediately be priced out of the Fanatec ecosystem. But those looking to step up their sim racing career (and who might possibly have another wheel they can sell when their Fanatec arrives), it’s a very tempting prospect.
It’s the best racing wheel we’ve ever tested, with a smooth, powerful force feedback action, great styling, super-customisable settings and a modular wheel hub that lets you upgrade the wheel without replacing the base. The force feedback is driven by a single belt connected to a brushless motor, which means there’s none of that notchy feel you’d get from a cheaper wheel. It’s also super quiet, although its internal fans will kick up after some use.
Even better, the pedals have customisable feel, with three different brake weight settings available for all strengths and tastes (up to 90kg).
Don’t worry if you don’t have a proper cockpit setup; there’s a desk mount in the box so you can get top-quality sim racing action without having to dedicate an entire room to your new kit.
It’s extremely expensive, but the CSL Elite is the best racing wheel you can buy for under £1,000 and a worthwhile upgrade for any hardcore hobbyist.
Thrustmaster T150
Pros:
- Good value
- Strong force feedback
- Feels well-made
Cons:
- Low-rent pedals
- Slightly notchy feel to wheel turn
The Thrustmaster T150 is the best affordable “serious” racing wheel. It’s a great wheel for those who want powerful, realistic force feedback but without having to pay a fortune for it. There are no new wheels on the market right now with force feedback that cost less money.
Before we get into how this is a lesser wheel than the T300, let’s tackle the good stuff. It’s sturdy, the force feedback has serious pull to it, and the rubbery wheel coating means it’s very grippy and will stand up to years of abuse. It’s also less notchy-feeling than the Logitech G29.
Now for those reasons why the T150 is cheaper than Thrustmaster’s top wheels. First, the pedals are basic – a two-pedal plastic setup that isn’t as impressive as the wheel. These can be upgraded, however, and there is a version, the Thrustmaster T150 Pro, that comes with a three-pedal board for people who want to use a gear stick.
Second, the wheel isn’t as smooth as the T300. This is because it uses a “gear and belt” transmission system rather than being purely belt driven. Given the price, though, these sacrifices are fairly easy to swallow.
Thrustmaster T-GT
Pros:
- Excellent force feedback, especially with GT Sport
- Great PS4 control mapping
- Quality feel and sturdy construction
- Great pedal set
Cons:
- Stick shift is an expensive extra
- Wheel isn’t full-size
Is Gran Turismo Sport your racer of choice? Then this is the wheel for you. The Thrustmaster T-GT has been designed in conjunction with GT Sport’s developer, Polyphony, to offer addition ‘depth’ feedback for a greater feel of the road. And it works. This is the best racing wheel you can get for Gran Turismo. And it’s pretty decent with other games, too.
The wheel has a beautiful feel, with smooth, grippy leather stitched around it, and the feedback from the dual-belt drive is super-strong. There’s an excellent three-pedal included, with metal arms and adjustable plates. Thrustmaster has thrown in an optional ‘conical brake mod’ that can be screwed in to give a more progressive feel to the brake, which is definitely worth fitting.
The T-GT isn’t cheap – especially if you add the optional gear stick – but it is the best set-up you can get for GT Sport.
Logitech G29/G920
Pros:
- Leather-topped wheel feels good
- Decent pedals
- Strong force feedback
Cons:
- Turning and feedback feels ‘notchy’
- Very similar to the old G27
For years Logitech’s G-series wheels were our go-to recommendation for driving-game fanatics. The G29 takes what Logitech made with the G25 and G27 and adds PS4 support.
If you see scathing reviews of the Logitech G29 online, they’re more than likely from former fans angry that their old (G25/G27) wheel doesn’t work with current-gen consoles. The wheel itself is as good as ever, however, with strong force feedback, an ultra-reliable motor mechanism and a top-quality, leather-topped wheel.
Of the sub-£200 wheels, the G29 also offers the best bundled pedals; they’re much better than the generic Thrustmaster ones, and you get a clutch pedal.
What holds back the Logitech G29 slightly is the feel of its force feedback, which is “notchy” compared with the more expensive Thrustmaster T300 RS. This is because it uses gears to deliver its force feedback rather than rubber belts.
Still, for the money, it’s one of the best-value complete wheel and pedal sets around.
Thrustmaster T300RS
Pros:
- Strong force feedback
- Clear PS4 mappings
- Full 1080 degree rotation
Cons:
- Slightly flimsy pedals
If you have a decent chunk of money to spend and want the most advanced-feeling wheel around that comes in under £500, our top recommendation is the Thrustmaster T300RS.
Its highlight feature is very smooth and powerful force feedback, giving it a more realistic sensibility than the Logitech G29 or the cheaper Thrustmaster T150. This is all down to the way the motors inside deliver that unmistakable pull against your turns. It uses a brushless, full belt-driven system, which has a much less clunky feel and is relatively quiet.
In the T300RS’s early days there were some concerns about its reliability, stemming from the new belt system. However, it appears that Thrustmaster has largely fixed those issues in later batches.
There are just a couple of reasons why some of you might want to consider the Logitech G29, apart from the most obvious of it being significantly cheaper. First, the rubbery wheel doesn’t feel as luxurious as the leather one that Logitech uses, and the included pedals aren’t great. Although they have metal foot-plates, the rest of the set is plastic.
There’s plenty of scope to upgrade, however. Fall in love with racing wheels and you can add the excellent T3PA metal pedals, a separate gearbox, and even switch the wheel itself for a leather or Alcantara one.
Thrustmaster TX Racing Wheel Ferrari 458 Italia Edition
Pros:
- Great force feedback
- Solid build
Cons:
- Basic pedals
- Plastic/rubber wheel outer lacks luxury feel
If you own an Xbox One rather than a PS4, the wheel to look for is the Thrustmaster TX. Ultimately, it’s very similar to the T300RS, but is designed to look like a slightly shrunken Ferrari car wheel. It even has the engine starter button.
The Thrustmaster TX wheel also has all the buttons of an Xbox One pad, but since there’s no D-pad, you’ll want to keep a controller handy while you play. It works with PC too, of course.
With the same excellent force feedback as the Thrustmaster T300RS, the Ferrrari 458 Italia Edition feels quite smooth, and has the power to make controlling your car a satisfying struggle. The one drawback over the T300 series is that the TX has only 900 degrees of rotation, rather than the full 1,080.
As can be the case with the other higher-end Thrustmaster wheels, some of you may end up wanting to upgrade the rubbery wheel and the just-okay two-pedal board. However, it all depends on how serious you want to get; for most, the Thrustmaster TX will be more than sufficient to satisfy.
Those are our top picks of the best racing wheels. If you want to know more about what to look out for when buying a racing wheel then read on.
What is a sim racing wheel?
What separates a “proper” wheel from toys is “force feedback” technology. Powerful motors inside the wheels simulate what you’d feel if driving a real car.
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You’ll have to fight the wheel as you take a corner, and feel the split-second that your tires lose grip. The increase in immersion is immense. Not only that, every time you take a kerb, touch another car or nail a corner better than you’ve ever done before: you’ll know all about it.
It’s important to think about which games are actually suited to a racing wheel, however. True arcade racers often feel better with a gamepad with their drifty, larger-than-life handling at odds with a racing wheel. Whereas games with exacting handling models that respond to minute movements benefit from a wheel. On PS4 this means titles such as Project Cars, Dirt Rally and DriveClub. On Xbox One, Forza Motorsport 6, Assetto Corsa and F1 2016 are worth checking out.
PC gamers have some of the above titles to try, plus some even nerdier racing sims from which they can choose – including iRacing and rFactor 2.
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Thrustmaster and Logitech wheels make up the majority of this roundup, although hardcore race fans may want to check out Fanatec, which produces some terrific wheels, but can easily cost over £1,000. We’ve not ventured that far; our most expensive recommendation comes in at £586.
You have further options, too, if your budget will stretch. SimXperience makes wheels that use a “Direct Drive” force feedback system, where the wheel is connected to the motor without any belts or gears in-between. However, this costs $1,748 without any pedals – out of reach for most of us, then. If you win the lottery, look it up.
Things to consider
First, be sure to check compatibility. While all featured wheels work on PC, you have to choose between Xbox One and PS4 support.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
