The best Hot Wheels tracks and playsets for you and your kids

We’ll go ahead and pretend the purpose of this post is to find a good gift idea for your kids, nephews, or nieces. But let’s be honest, it doesn’t matter how old you are — playing with Hot Wheels never gets old. So go ahead and use your child as an excuse to buy a wicked Hot Wheels track set or playset, we won’t judge. What we love about Hot Wheels track sets is that they haven’t really changed all that much over the years, so they’ll be just like you remembered them as a kid.

Now, there are over 100 Hot Wheels track sets and playsets available, which makes it pretty difficult to shop for just one or even two. So what we’ve done is taken the time to go through all the Hot Wheels track sets and playsets that are currently available, and picked out what we feel are the best ones. What are you waiting for? Spend less time shopping and more time playing.

1. Top pick: Hot Wheels City Ultimate Garage playset

This Ultimate Garage playset nearly has it all, measuring over 3′ tall once it’s fully assembled. The multi-level garage can accommodate over 100 Hot Wheels cars, so this playset can double as storage for your child’s Hot Wheels collection. One of the main highlights of this playset is the chomping T-Rex at the center of it all, which will release the cars it devours from the back. There’s also the dual car crank elevator that takes Hot Wheels cars to the top so they can race down the track while trying to avoid the hungry T-Rex.

It’s a fun playset to build and it even includes a pair of 1:64-scale Hot Wheels toy cars. Of course like many Hot Wheels playsets, it can be connected to other track sets or playsets, making it a great centerpiece to a massive Hot Wheels creation.

2. Runner-up: Hot Wheels Super Ultimate Garage

Our runner-up option is similar to our top pick, as it’s another Ultimate Garage playset. This one however, is the Super Ultimate Garage and features a continuously motorized elevator that can transport up to 23 cars at a time to the top. Like our top pick, this playset measures over 3′ tall once assembled, but this one can store over 140 toy cars, as opposed to 100. There is a motorized gorilla that will try to swipe cars out of the elevator, but we don’t find that as exciting and interactive as the chomping T-Rex from our top pick.

Still, there’s plenty of opportunity for side-by-side racing action down the track, and there’s an interactive car maintenance station at the bottom level of the playset. The Super Ultimate Garage comes with four toy cars and a jet plane.

3. Best for Mario Kart lovers: Hot Wheels Rainbow Road Raceway

Who isn’t a fan of Mario Kart? If you grew up playing the original on Super Nintendo and have “fond” memories of Rainbow Road, you can relive that childhood with this Hot Wheels track set. Measuring over 8′ long and 24″ high, the rainbow-colored course draws inspiration from the iconic Rainbow Road in Mario Kart and even features a spinning block item box randomizer, just like the game.

The track set can actually be configured two different ways, the curved layout seen above or a straight course for high-speed racing. There is, of course, the signature Lakitu at the starting line with the familiar light and sounds to kick off the race. This set comes with an exclusive King Boo and Mario 1:64-scale karts, so you can go straight to racing.

4. Best for crashes: Hot Wheels Colossal Crash track set

Crashing is most certainly something we avoid doing in our actual cars, but it’s hard to argue that it isn’t fun with toy cars. Featuring a double figure-eight design, the Colossal Crash track set is over 5′ wide once it’s built and features interactive levers to control whether cars stay on the track or jump into the air. When this track set was first introduced in 2019, it was the biggest motorized track set Hot Wheels had ever made.

One thing we really like about this playset is how easy it folds up for storage when it comes time to cleaning up and putting everything away. The entire set conveniently collapses, which also makes it nice to take on the go. If you already own a nice playset that seems a bit boring, add a little excitement by connecting the Colossal Crash track set to it.

5. Best on a budget: Hot Wheels Rapid Raceway Champion track set

If you’re shopping on a budget and need something that’s affordable and simple, yet fun, check out the Rapid Raceway Champion track set. It’s your classic oval track with a few twists since this track set can be used as a drift circuit, a drag race, or even a hill climb. For those who want to use it as a drift circuit, you can actually launch your vehicle sideways out of the gate, aiming for the adjustable flags to score extra points.

As a drag race track, there’s a lever to trigger the race at the starting line, and a winner’s flag that indicates the champion. There’s also the hill climb, allowing kids to slam down on the launcher to see if they can get enough momentum to get their toy car up the steep incline.

Although this track set is basic and affordable, it’s also a great starter set that can be used in combination with other Hot Wheels sets in the future. It’s an ideal gift for someone who doesn’t own any Hot Wheels track sets and you’re looking to get them started.

6. Hot Wheels City Ultimate Octo Car Wash playset

For something a bit different, there’s the Octo Car Wash playset that measures over 4′ once it’s assembled. This playset takes advantage of Hot Wheels Color Reveal toy cars, which change color when they come in contact with water. There are two separate water tanks in this playset to activate the color change on the cars, while the octopus can also spray the cars with its tentacles once its head is filled with water.

Although it’s not the main focus of the playset, it wouldn’t be a Hot Wheels set without some action. There is a ramp, loop, and spiral as the toy cars make their way through the playset. And if you’re a parent worried about a watery mess, you’ll be happy to hear there are removable drain cups to catch any excess water. And when the playing is all done for the day, the playset collapses to about half its size for easy storage. Of course it also includes one Color Reveal car.

7. Hot Wheels Race Crate

If you want a versatile set that lets your child explore their creativity, take a look at the Race Crate. This kit includes three races in one tidy package, but has the components your child needs to build their own custom track set. In the crate, you’ll find a pop-out raceway, over 8′ of track, a fair start gate, two-lane loop, finish gate, and a pair of double slam launchers.

The crate also includes a Builder’s Guide that shows how to build the Gravity Drop, Drag Race, or Hill Climb configurations. They’re all great starting points to learn what’s involved with putting together a Hot Wheels track, and gives children ideas on how to create their own custom setup. Best of all, everything neatly folds up and stores inside the crate, which also has a built-in handle for portability.

8. Hot Wheels Sky Crash Tower track set

For complete chaos and entertaining fun with a high potential of crashes, there’s the motorized Sky Crash Tower track set. Measuring 32″ high once built, the tower itself can store over 20 cars and your kids can unleash them on the track for some spectacular airborne crashes. The racing fun starts at the bottom with the booster, and once the toy car reaches the top, it comes down the spiral drop, into the crash zone and jump ramp.

Although the set does include one Hot Wheels toy car, batteries for the motorized booster are not included. Like many of our recommendations, this track set can fold up for easy storage or travel and can be connected to other Hot Wheels track sets or playsets.

9. Hot Wheels Total Turbo Takeover track set

Another set designed for kids to explore their creativity, the Total Turbo Takeover track set comes with all the necessary pieces for your child to setup their own custom Hot Wheels raceway. The set can be configured in numerous ways and includes a two-way booster, two quick kick loops, pull-back launcher, strips of orange track, curved track pieces, two car-activated stunts, and a single Hot Wheels toy car.

It’s another ideal starter set recommendation, allowing your kids to use the components from this track set in combination with another Hot Wheels playset or track set in the future. It’s designed to be built however they like, providing endless hours of custom fun.

10. Hot Wheels Criss Cross Crash track set

Our final recommendation is yet another track set designed for mayhem. The Criss Cross Crash track set features a motorized booster to launch the cars into hairpin turns and a giant crash zone. It includes over 16′ of track and safeguards over the crash zones, along with parking spaces to store the toy cars when it’s not being used. This set includes a single Hot Wheels vehicle.

We particularly like the four-way loops with elevated figure-eight tracks that is at the center of all the chaos. Unfortunately, this set isn’t really designed to be combined with other Hot Wheels track sets or playsets, and it doesn’t conveniently collapse like some of our other recommendations. But if you’re looking for fun-filled crashes, this is the track set to get.

Recent updates:

Updated (3:04 p.m. EST, 02/17/2023): Added Walmart and eBay shopping links to our recommendations. Our top picks remain unchanged.