Where is the best place to buy sim racing products? In this guide, I'll highlight the best brands and websites to buy new and used sim racing products, as well as which products to buy first.
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With so many sim racing products available, deciding which one to buy and where to buy it from can be a headache. This is especially true if you are looking to start sim racing for the first time.
The world of sim racing can feel daunting, not to mention expensive! In this guide, I’m going to show you the best places to buy sim racing products, including the best websites to buy racing wheels, pedals and cockpits from.
Before looking at where to buy sim racing products, I want to have a quick look at what you need to start sim racing. If you are new to the hobby, first of all, Welcome! Second, I’d recommend hiding your wallet, as sim racing can be expensive!
You can start sim racing with a games console and a controller, although, most sim racers recommend a racing wheel and pedal set to really get started. You can buy a racing wheel and pedal bundle relatively cheaply from brands such as Logitech and Thrustmaster.
To start with, you can mount these to a desk or table to save space and money. However, as you progress, you may want a more permanent sim racing setup. If this is the case, you can buy a sim racing cockpit, either a foldable one to store away, or a more permanent cockpit.
Below is a breakdown of the items you’ll need to start sim racing.
| Product | Why its needed | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|
| Racing wheel | A racing wheel gives you more control over your car, & feels more immersive. | Logitech, Thrustmaster, MOZA Racing, Fanatec |
| Pedal set | A pedal set is often included with a racing wheel, & lets you control the throttle & brake. | Logitech, Thrustmaster, MOZA Racing, Fanatec |
| Cockpit | A cockpit or wheel stand is used to mount your racing wheel and pedal to. | Next Level Racing, GT Omega, Sim-Lab |
Starting with the first item you should look to buy when transitioning from a controller, and that is a racing wheel. A wheel will allow you to feel much more connected to the car you are driving.
All racing wheels, other than the most budget options will produce force feedback. This lets you feel how the car is behaving on the track, providing information on the track surface and grip levels.
Sim racing wheels come in various shapes, sizes and prices. Premium wheels use direct drive technology which provides the strongest and most detailed force feedback available. Budget racing wheels use belts and/or gears to transfer force feedback from the motor to your steering wheel.
If you are starting sim racing for the first time, I’d recommend buying a budget-friendly racing wheel. The benefit of this is it will be the cheapest option, and it often comes with pedals included.
Budget racing wheels are produced by a range of different companies. Gaming giant Logitech produces one of the best entry-level sim racing bundles, the Logitech G923. This includes a set of pedals and is also Xbox and Playstation compatible letting you race Gran Turismo 7 or Forza Motorsport on your console of choice.
If you are looking to upgrade from an entry-level racing wheel like the Logitech G923 or MOZA R3, you may be looking at more premium direct drive wheels. This category or racing wheel is full of excellent racing wheels that offer high performance at a higher price tag.
Premium racing wheels and direct drive wheel bases often don’t include a set of pedals like budget-friendly racing wheels do. Quite often, the wheel base won’t even include a steering wheel, giving you the choice of a range of steering wheels you wish to use.
Sim racing pedals, much like racing wheels, come in a wide range of styles and performance levels. The most basic pedal sets are included in budget-friendly racing wheels. These often feature potentiometer pedals that measure the pedal distance and translate that into in-game force.
More premium sim racing pedals use contactless hall sensors and load cells to measure the force you apply to the brake pedal. This is much closer to how real-world pedals work, and these options offer much more accurate inputs and realistic feedback.
Load cell pedals, particularly brake pedals, offer a huge step up in realism and immersion compared to potentiometer pedals. The load cell measures the force you apply, allowing you to brake much more consistently while sim racing. A load cell pedal is one of the biggest upgrades you can make to your sim racing setup, and it’s one of the first upgrades I would recommend ahead of a direct drive racing wheel.
The most premium pedals use hydraulic cylinders, like those in a real car. The game-changing Simucube ActivePedal is the world’s first force feedback pedal, using an in-built motor to provide vibrations and forces to the pedal.
You can mount your racing wheel to your desk or a table, and for many, this will work perfectly. However, using your desk to mount a racing wheel can be a hassle to set up and store away once you’ve finished sim racing. Depending on your table or desk, it may not be the sturdiest option, especially if you’re racing with a direct-drive racing wheel.
Choosing a sim racing cockpit, or a wheel stand is a big improvement over using a desk. Most cockpits will be much sturdier than mounting to a desk, and most will allow you to mount a range of accessories as well as your wheel and pedals.
Cockpits come in a variety of styles. Below is a summary of the most popular sim racing cockpit styles.
The Sim-Lab P1X Pro cockpit that I have in our studio has a monitor mounted to it, along with a handbrake, shifter and keyboard and mouse tray. Adding seat sliders allow an all-in-one or aluminum profiles sim rig to be easily adjustable, and a complete cockpit should be capable of handling the power from a high-end direct drive racing wheel.
With sim racing being rather expensive, it may have crossed your mind as to whether you can buy used sim racing equipment. There is a big market for used and preowned sim racing hardware.
Sim racers who have upgraded will often look to sell their old racing wheels, pedals and accessories to help fund the new upgrade. Or those who don’t have the time to sim race anymore may be selling off unused hardware.
Spending time looking at reseller platforms such as Facebook marketplace can yield some bargains, and lead to a lot of money saved compared to buying new.
Buying used can save a lot of money; however, used products that are over a year old will often be out of the warranty period. It isn’t unheard of for sim racing products to break, and if this happens with a second-hand product, you may have to pay for a replacement or repair.
Many of the brands I’ve recommended in this sim racing buyer’s guide sell directly on their own websites. This is often the best place to purchase products, as you will have a first-party manufacturer’s warranty and be able to deal directly with the brand’s customer support.
However, many sim racing brands use reseller networks and partnerships to help sell their products in different locations and countries.
You can use the links below to shop for your favourite sim racing products, or for any products that we may have recommended. These links are affiliate links, and will earn us a small commission, with no additional cost for you.
Rich is the founder, F1 car setup creator and content writer for SimRacingSetups. With over a decade of experience as a graphic designer, marketing director, competitive sim racer and avid motorsport fan, Rich founded SimRacingSetup.com to share his passion and knowledge of sim racing and Formula 1 with other sim racers. Regularly writes for sim racing website SimRaceReviews.com
View all articles written by Rich
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