Best All-Terrain Tires
Motor1 Reviews Team Take:
- The best all-terrain tire in 2024 is the Continental Terrain Contact A/T. The Terrain Contact A/T from Continental has the best dirt handling of any all-terrain tire that we tested, fantastic wet handling, and it produces minimal road noise at highway speeds.
- On average, you can expect to spend around $160 and upward of $200 per tire for one of the best all-terrain tires on the market. All-terrain tire price is typically determined by brand reputation and tire size, as is the case with all tire types.
- When buying a new set of all-terrain tires, you want to consider how well they handle uneven terrain – including dirt and gravel – as well as handling on wet and dry roads for everyday use.
Original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and car makers rarely put all-terrain tires on new vehicles, as most drivers just want all-around performance. However, the best all-terrain tires can improve your pickup truck, crossover, or SUV’s performance both on- and off-road. Don’t rely on all-season tires when all-terrain tires are designed for switching from on-road to off-road driving.
To truly find the best of the best, we’ve extensively tested each all-terrain tire (AT) featured in this article. We highlight options for a variety of budgets and even include a few three-peak mountain snowflakes (3PMSF) rated tires for those worried about snow traction.
What Is The Best All-Terrain Tire?
The best all-terrain tire on the market is the Continental Terrain Contact A/T. However, the BFGoodrich Trail Terrain T/A, Firestone Destination A/T2, Goodyear Wrangler All-Terrain Adventure With Kevlar, Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus, Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015, Toyo Open Country A/T III, and the Nitto Grappler G2 round out our team’s picks for the best all-terrain tires in 2024.
Top-Rated All-Terrain Tires
Because our testing expertise is centered around aftermarket car products and accessories, we decided to leave tire testing in the hands of a true tire expert. That’s why we reached out to Jonathan Benson who has more than 15 years of experience. His insight and hands-on testing, combined with our extensive knowledge of aftermarket car products have been a perfect match.
Each all-terrain tire in this review was thoroughly tested and evaluated based on several categories, including wet handling, dry handling, dirt handling, gravel handling, and overall comfort. You can find more specifics regarding our rating system here.
The scores in each category are compiled into a single overall rating that ranges from 1.0 to 10.0 stars. Each all-terrain tire’s ratings, including their overall ratings and awards from our team, are highlighted below:
Brand/Model | Overall Rating | Award | Cost |
---|---|---|---|
Continental Terrain Contact A/T |
9.0 |
Best All-Terrain Tire |
$200 |
BFGoodrich Trail Terrain |
9.0 |
Best All-Terrain Tires for Snow |
$170 |
Firestone Destination AT2 |
9.0 |
Best Budget All-Terrain Tires |
$160 |
Goodyear Wrangler Kevlar |
8.9 |
Best All-Terrain Tire for Highway |
$180 |
Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus |
8.9 |
Best All-Terrain Truck Tires |
$200 |
Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 |
8.8 |
Most Comfortable All-Terrain Tire |
$150 |
Toyo Open Country AT3 |
8.8 |
Best All-Terrain Tire for Gravel |
$160 |
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 |
8.3 |
Best All-Terrain Tire for Daily Driving |
$190 |
*Because cost data fluctuates, the prices in the table above are approximate values that our team regularly updates.
For those interested in learning more, we’ve provided a detailed review of each of the best all-terrain tires in the sections below:
1. Continental Terrain Contact A/T: Best All-Terrain Tire
2. BFGoodrich Trail Terrain T/A: Best All-Terrain Tires For Snow
3. Firestone Destination A/T2: Best Budget All-Terrain Tires
4. Goodyear Wrangler Kevlar: Best All-Terrain Tire For Highway
5. Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus: Best All-Terrain Truck Tires
6. Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015: Most Comfortable All-Terrain Tire
7. Toyo Open Country AT3: Best All-Terrain Tire For Gravel
8. Nitto Terra Grappler G2: Best All-Terrain Tire For Daily Driving
All-Terrain Tire Buying Guide
There are a huge number of all-terrain tires available online, and it can be difficult to determine which is the right fit for you. With this in mind, we highlight helpful information that relates to any type of tire while digging into what makes an all-terrain tire one of the best in its class.
What Are All-Terrain Tires?
All-terrain tires are a mix of highway tires (H/T) and mud tires. This type of tire is designed to provide traction on all different kinds of surfaces, including on- and off-road. All-terrain tires allow drivers to commute to work and take their family down gravel backroads, without needing to swap and switch their tires.
All-terrain tires are used on cars, SUVs, trucks, and crossovers. When asked about utilizing all-terrain tires on one of these types of vehicles, our independent tire expert, Jonathan Benson of TyreReviews.com, had this to say:
“I’ve done some SUV testing. But SUV and truck [are] kind of a crossover segment anyway, because they’re both heavier vehicles. A lot of SUV owners like fitting an all-terrain tire. And when I say truck, I’m talking F-150, like [an everyday pick-up] truck.”
Are All-Terrain Tires Good In Snow?
Simply put, it depends. Some all-terrain tires are better in snow than others, but no all-terrain tire is necessarily “good” in snow. Most all-terrain tires should be able to provide some level of grip in light snow, but they won’t compete with a tire that’s specifically designed for the winter months.
If you’re most concerned about your tire’s performance in snow, we recommend one of the best winter tires.
Are All-Terrain Tires Worth It?
Our tire expert has a multitude of thoughts when it comes to the necessity of owning all-terrain tires. Here’s what Benson had to say when comparing all-terrain to other types of tires:
“An F-150, out of factory, comes with an all-season tire. Then if you want to do some light off-roading, an all-season tire is probably fine, but if you want that kind of peace of mind, you want to move to an all-terrain tire. But then are you doing a lot of off-roading, do you want a mud all-terrain tire, or an aggressive all-terrain tire? Or, now there’s these RT tires – which are rugged terrain tires – which look more like a mud terrain tire, but act like an all-terrain tire.”
Good All-Terrain Tires: What You Need To Know
No matter which all-terrain tire you want to purchase, it’s important to understand a tire’s Uniform Tire Quality Grading (UTQG) ratings. All tires sold in the U.S. feature these ratings, and they’re a great way to understand the base characteristics of the tire you’re about to purchase. You should also know how to read a tire’s sidewall and how to take care of your new all-terrain tires once you’ve got them on your vehicle.
All-Terrain Vehicle Tires: UTQG Tire Ratings
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is the governing body that enforces federal safety standards for all tires sold in the United States. The NHTSA created the UTQG standards to allow customers to make more informed purchasing decisions. There are three different categories of UTQG ratings. These include:
- Treadwear: This compares a tire’s tread against that of a control tire’s tread. A score of 100 indicates that the tested tire’s treads last as long as the control tire’s, 200 indicates that the tire lasts twice as long, and so on.
- Traction: Graded on a scale of AA, A, B, and C, this rating is based on a tire’s braking g-force.
- Temperature: Graded on a scale of A, B, or C, this tests a tire’s ability to withstand running at high speeds.
How To Read An All-Terrain Tire’s Sidewall
The many markings, letters, and numbers on a tire’s sidewall can make it tough to find information just by looking at the tire. Simply understanding the markings on a tire’s sidewall is a task in itself. Here is an explanation of the information you can find on a tire’s sidewall:
- Tire size: The width of the tire, which is expressed in millimeters, is the first set of numbers on a tire’s sidewall.
- Type of tire: Identify which type of tire you have by the letters included before the size of the tire. A tire that doesn’t have any letters or a tire with a “P” before the tire size is a passenger tire with a standard load (a four-ply rating).
- Weight capacity: A tire that includes the letters “XL” after the size has a higher weight capacity than a standard load. However, an “XL” tire has less weight capacity than an “LT” tire (for light truck) or an “ST” tire (for special trailer).
- Aspect ratio: The aspect ratio is the second set of numbers you will see on a tire’s sidewall. It’s a percentage that is calculated by dividing the tire’s height measured from the rim to the tread by the tire’s width.
- Type of construction: Directly after the aspect ratio comes the tire’s type of construction. The most common type of tire will have an “R” for radial. “B” stands for bias, and “D” stands for diagonal. Plies are perpendicular to the tread in radial tires and overlap diagonally to the tread in bias and diagonal tires.
- Rim diameter: Finally comes the rim diameter, which is expressed in inches.
All Terrain Off Road Tires: Taking Care Of Your Tires
There’s no point in investing money in a new set of all-terrain tires if you don’t take care of them properly. Here are three steps to take to get the most out of all-terrain tires:
- Wheel alignment: Properly aligning your wheels can lead to longer tire lifespan. It can also help your tires wear more evenly.
- Tire rotation: Consider rotating your tires every 5,000 miles or as often as your automaker recommends to avoid uneven treadwear.
- Balance: It can be unsafe to operate a vehicle with wheels that aren’t properly balanced due to vibrations. You will get more out of your tires if you keep them balanced.
AT Tires: Compare And Contrast
Brand/Model | 3PMSF | Treadwear | Traction | Temperature |
---|---|---|---|---|
Continental Terrain Contact A/T |
No |
680.0 |
A |
B |
BFGoodrich Trail Terrain T/A |
Yes |
660.0 |
A |
B |
Firestone Destination A/T2 |
Yes |
540.0 |
A |
B |
Goodyear Wrangler |
Yes |
640.0 |
A |
B |
Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus |
Yes |
640.0 |
A |
B |
Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015 |
Yes |
600.0 |
A |
B |
Toyo Open Country A/T III |
Yes |
600.0 |
A |
B |
Nitto Terra Grappler G2 |
Yes |
600.0 |
A |
B |
Best AT Tires: Bottom Line
In this article, along with sharing helpful purchasing tips for those interested in purchasing an all-terrain tire, we reviewed the best all-terrain tires in 2024:
- Best All-Terrain Tire: Continental Terrain Contact A/T
- Best All-Terrain Tires for Snow: BFGoodrich Trail Terrain
- Best Budget All-Terrain Tires: Firestone Destination AT2
- Best All-Terrain Tire for Highway: Goodyear Wrangler Kevlar
- Best All-Terrain Truck Tires: Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain Plus
- Most Comfortable All-Terrain Tire: Yokohama Geolandar A/T G015
- Best All-Terrain Tire for Gravel: Toyo Open Country AT3
- Best All-Terrain Tire for Daily Driving: Nitto Terra Grappler G2
All Terrain Tires: FAQ
Below are some common frequently asked questions about all terrain tires:
What is the longest-lasting all-terrain tire?
There is no one longest-lasting all-terrain tire, as driving habits play a huge role in the overall durability of your tires. While responsible driving will elongate your tire’s tread life, a simple puncture could mean prematurely replacing your tires.
What is the most comfortable all-terrain tire?
According to our independent tire tester, the most comfortable all-terrain tire is the Yokohama Geolander AT G015. The Geolander AT G015 was the best in class for our overall comfort and road noise tests.
Which brand makes good all-terrain tires?
There isn’t one specific tire brand that makes better all-terrain tires than the rest. However, we found the Continental Terrain Contact A/T to be the Best All-Terrain Tire on the market in 2024.
All-Terrain Tire Reviews: How We Tested
The tire testing involved several timed laps averaged out. To ensure accurate results, Benson utilizes control tires to benchmark the track’s surface evolution and calculate each all-terrain tire’s rating in individual testing categories. The factors he measured for the tires included wet handling, dry handling, dirt handling, gravel handling, and overall comfort.
Benson predominantly tested each all-terrain tire on a 2014 Ford Raptor, and a Ford F-150 was used for braking and aquaplaning tests. Testing took place at Continental’s Uvalde Proving Grounds in Texas.
Each tire was given a rating out of 10.0 based on these criteria.
Wet Handling
Wet handling is one of the most important measurements in all-terrain tire tests because the wet grip of a tire can greatly affect how your vehicle responds in an emergency event. This wet handling test included three timed laps around one of Uvalde Proving Grounds’ tracks in very wet conditions.
Dry Handling
While all-terrain tires are meant to perform on- and off-road, they are primarily going to be used on the road by most drivers. This test included three timed laps around one of Uvalde Proving Grounds’ tracks in extremely dry conditions to simulate average road conditions.
Dirt Handling
Dirt handling is one of the most important factors to consider if you’re looking to take your pickup truck off the road on a regular basis. Benson went about testing each all-terrain tire’s dirt handling by averaging out the times of three laps around one of Uvalde Proving Grounds’ off-road tracks.
Gravel Handling
By nature, gravel handling is an important test to run, but especially difficult to do right. For each three-lap run, it takes 20 minutes of combing dirt and rocks to “fix” the track between each all-terrain tire test. As previously explained, this test consisted of three timed laps around one of Uvalde Proving Grounds’ off-road tracks.
Comfort
Benson considered each tire’s comfort on- and off-road in addition to their general road noise levels. He kept this category in mind and kept notes on comfort while performing testing for each of the other categories.
How We Score Products
Star ratings help us to differentiate between the top-performing products on the market. For the all-terrain tires in this review, we wanted to test on a scale of 1.0 to 10.0 stars because our testing involved an experienced tire expert. Based on our calculations, the all-terrain tires in this review scored an average of 8.82 out of 10.0 stars.
- 10.0 Stars: A 10.0-star rating is the highest rating these tires can receive in our review. If the tires exceeded our expectations when it came to each testing criterion, you’d see a high score for the tires and likely a higher overall placement on the list of our top picks.
- 9.0 to 6.0 Stars: A range between 9.0 and 6.0 stars means that the tires still exceeded our expectations but could have room for improvement. On the higher end of 9.0 stars, there may be slight changes we would like to see in the tire. For a 6.0-star rating, we may have some concerns about traction over time in wetter conditions.
- 5.0 Stars: A 5.0-star rating is an average score. If the tires met our expectations but could use improvements across all the testing criteria we considered, you’ll likely see a 5.0-star rating with an indication of why our testing expert scored the tire lower than others.
- 4.0 to 2.0 Stars: This range of scoring is below average. If the tires could not handle wet traction well and posed concern when we considered different climates potential buyers may be living in wetter conditions.
- 1.0 Star: A 1.0-star rating is the lowest rating we would give in any review. If the tires in this review were defective in some way that affected installation, traction, or handling, we would give the tire a lower rating of 1.0 stars.
Why Trust Motor1.com
Each year, we test over 350 auto products on vehicles and in our testing lab. Our team of product testers thoroughly researches top products, unboxes and puts our hands on each component, and tests the items on real vehicles before making recommendations to readers.
We publish hundreds of product and service reviews to bring car enthusiasts detailed guides on automotive tools, detailing kits, car seats, pet products, and much more. For more information on our testing methodology and how we evaluate every product, check out our methodology page here.
Because our testing expertise is centered around aftermarket car products and accessories, we decided to leave tire testing in the hands of a true tire expert. That’s why we reached out to Jonathan Benson who has more than 15 years of experience. His insight and hands-on testing, combined with our extensive knowledge of aftermarket car products have been a perfect match.
*Data accurate at time of publication. Products subject to availability.