The Best RC Car to Start Your Hobby

The best RC car to start with is the Atrek Peak. It's a 1/10 scale 4WD electric truck that comes with the battery, a USB charger and even the AAs for the remote, and the remote has a half-speed switch for learning. Atrek is our own brand, so weigh that how you like. If you'd rather start with one of the long-established names, the Traxxas Stampede XL-5 is the alternative. Both are below, with four more for different ground and budgets, then a short beginner's guide to the terms you'll meet.

Our pick: Atrek Peak

The Peak is a monster truck about 34 cm long, with two brushed motors, 4WD, oil-filled shocks, metal gears and waterproof electronics. The listing answers the "what else do I need" question with one word: nothing. There are upgrade parts for it and a six-month local warranty. Later on it will take a 3S LiPo for more speed, but that means buying a 3S battery and a charger to suit, so it isn't a first-month job.

For: a first car for an adult or a kid, driven on lawn, dirt and gravel.

Not for: smooth concrete only (see the drift car guide) or the lounge room (see the crawlers below).

Best hobby-grade RC car for beginners: Traxxas Stampede XL-5

The Stampede XL-5 is a 1/10 scale 2WD monster truck with a NiMH battery and charger in the box, and its speed controller has a Training Mode for new drivers. The reason to choose it is parts. Hamish, a director of Hobbies Direct, called the Traxxas XL-5 trucks "by far the most tested and proven chassis" on his beginners' list back in 2018. Aaron, who writes most of this blog, put it more bluntly in 2022: "any halfway-decent Hobby Shop on the planet has Traxxas spare parts".

For: a first car you plan to keep running for years.

Not for: a tight budget: it's the dearest truck on this page. It's 2WD, so it has less grip than the Peak on wet grass. And the included charger is a DC unit that runs off a car's 12V socket. A mains charger fixes that.

For a teen or adult who wants speed: Atrek Ambush Pro

The Ambush Pro is a 1/10 scale brushless monster truck with the battery, charger, AAs and a tool kit in the box. Our answer to a customer on its product page is that it does over 50 km/h out of the box and suits teens and adults. The remote has a 50% limiter. Start there.

For: a beginner old enough to respect the throttle, who wants more than a brushed truck offers.

Not for: younger kids, small yards, or anyone who wants 4WD grip. Its siblings come in other shapes: the Tracer Pro buggy, the Stinger Pro short course truck and the Wildfire Pro stadium truck.

For small yards: ARRMA Gorgon Grom

The Gorgon Grom is a 1/16 scale 4WD monster truck, so it needs less room than a 1/10. The remote limits throttle to 50, 75 or 100%, and a 2S LiPo and USB-C charger are in the box. You add a USB power adaptor for the charger.

For: courtyards and small lawns, and a first step into a brand with a big range above it. See our ARRMA guide.

Not for: long grass, where a small truck struggles.

Indoors and the garden: Traxxas TRX-4M Defender

A fast truck is no fun in a lounge room. A small crawler is. The TRX-4M Defender is 1/18 scale, 4WD and slow by design, so the fun is picking a line over books, shoes and garden rocks.

For: rainy days, small yards, and people who like 4WDs.

Not for: jumps or speed.

Cheapest way in: MN Model MN82 LC79

If the budget is the whole question, the MN82 LC79 is the least you'll spend on this page. It's a 1/12 scale 4WD crawler with proportional steering and throttle, working lights and a top speed around 9 km/h. The battery and a USB charging lead are in the box.

For: finding out whether RC is for you.

Not for: anyone who wants to go fast. If it's a cheap truck you're after, the Peak is the least we'd spend on one.

Beginner RC car guide: five things to know

• Hobby-grade or toy-grade. A hobby-grade car has proportional controls (a little trigger gives a little speed) and spare parts you can buy, so a break is a repair. A toy is all-or-nothing and usually can't be fixed.

• Ready-to-run or kit. RTR means built, with the radio fitted. A kit is a box of parts, and usually needs a radio, servo, battery, charger and paint as well. Start with RTR unless building is the point.

• Brushed or brushless. Brushed motors cost less and are plenty to learn on: that's the Peak and the Stampede. Brushless is the fast one: that's the Ambush Pro.

• 2WD or 4WD. 2WD is usually cheaper and simpler. 4WD has more grip and is easier to control. Our 2018 off-road guide put it this way: if the car is fast and brushless, 4WD is the easier drive.

• Electric, not nitro. Every pick here is electric. Small engines need a lot of maintenance and mechanical know-how, which is why our 2018 guide left nitro off its list, and so does this one.

Which shape for which ground

• Monster trucks have the most ground clearance, so they cope with rough ground and longer grass. They also sit high, so they roll over more easily on grippy tarmac.

• Buggies sit low. Better on hard surfaces, quicker to get stuck in grass.

• Short course trucks have big bumpers and covered wheels that shrug off knocks. In smaller scales the big body catches the wind.

Check the parts before you check out

Hamish again, after ten years working in a hobby store: "it isn't a matter of 'if' but more a matter of 'when' something will break or wear out on an RC car". So look your model up in the Part Finder before you buy it.

Day one

• Count the AAs for the remote. The Atrek trucks and the Gorgon Grom include them. The MN82 needs two and the TRX-4M four.

• Charge before the first run, and for a present, the night before.

• Charge lithium batteries where you can see them. A LiPo safe bag is worth having.

• Keep the charger, spares and tools in one box near where you drive.

Buying for a child? The kids' guide sorts picks by age. Not sure what 1/10 means? Read the scale guide. For everything else, try our beginner questions, or browse all beginner RC cars.