There are 40 different vehicles to choose from in Mario Kart World, with a range of new and returning karts and bikes to pick from. As has been the case in previous Mario Kart instalments, these vehicles have varying stats, as do the characters who’ll end up behind the wheel of them.
In this guide to the best kart combos in Mario Kart World, we walk you through everything you need to know before settling on a decision; we explain vehicle stats, character weight classes, and ultimately, the best kart combos for each class in Mario Kart World.
Best kart combos in Mario Kart World
While some karts are undoubtedly easier to drive than others in Mario Kart World, there is one thing you should consider before choosing your kart, and that’s your character. More specifically, the weight class of the character you are choosing.
On top of that, you’ll want to consider the stats of your karts: speed is how fast your kart can go, acceleration is how quickly the kart gets going after coming to a stop (or being hit by an item), weight is how light/heavy your kart is (with heavier karts being less impacted by items and obstacles), and handling is how easy a kart is to turn around corners and so forth.
With that out of the way, let’s talk about character weight classes and the best karts for each of them.
Weight class in Mario Kart World explained
Why is weight class important in Mario Kart World? Well, heavier characters are faster, but because they’re heavier, their acceleration and handling skills can suffer. On the other hand, lighter characters are slower, but have improved handling and acceleration. This is something you should take into consideration before deciding which kart or bike you want to use.
With this in mind, one of the most important stats in Mario Kart World is acceleration (if you’re primarily playing Grand Prix or Knockout Tours with other players). With everything that happens during a race, be it bananas in the middle of the track, trucks dropping bombs along the road, or Red Shells being flung at you like there’s no tomorrow, it’s the acceleration stat that determines how quickly you recover from these items and obstacles.
Now, considering that standard races are full of the aforementioned chaos – especially in Mario Kart World where there are 24 racers and more environmental obstacles than before – you ideally want to opt for a lighter character who can recover quickly. If you’re racing solo, a heavier but faster character may be a better option for you, seeing as you’ll have less items and obstacles to worry about.
Best kart combos in Mario Kart World explained
When it comes to racing in Mario Kart World, we’ve already mentioned that the best kart combos usually feature a lightweight character such as Toad, Toadette, Nabbit, all Baby characters, and Shy Guy just to name a few.
These fellas aren’t the fastest of characters, but their improved acceleration opposed to heavyweight characters is very helpful if you’re often being hit by items.
As for the best karts for lightweight characters, check out the following:
- Baby Blooper – incredibly high acceleration and handling stats.
- Reel Racer – very high speed stat with mid-tier handling and acceleration.
- Mach Rocket – incredibly high acceleration and handling stats, albeit with less speed and weight than the Baby Blooper.
The Baby Blooper stands out among the crowd as one of the best karts in Mario Kart World right now (with a lightweight character behind the wheel), but my personal favourite from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the Buggybud (which has decent handling and acceleration), is a solid pick too.
The B Dasher isn’t a go-to personally, but it is a kart with relatively even stats across speed, handling, acceleration, and weight, so if you’re looking for something with balanced stats to play around with, that might be the kart for you.
For more on Mario Kart World, take a look at all costumes you can unlock, where to find all P Switch missions, and where to find all Peach Medallions.