Mario Kart Tour

Action

7.7~~/10~~

Our score

★ 4.3 Google Play·100M+ installs

Reviewed by Editorial Team, ScoredApps editorial · updated 2026-09-05

Screenshots

Title art with the plumber racing beneath balloons

Balloon battle with karts trailing coloured balloons

Two Mii characters racing side by side in karts

Neon city course under a lit Mario Kart archway

The same race shown in portrait and landscape views

Beach course with an item hit scoring bonus points

About Mario Kart Tour

Nintendo's kart racer on a phone: three-lap races and balloon battles across courses that rotate on a world tour, playable in portrait with one thumb or in landscape. Karts, drivers and gliders are collected rather than unlocked, and each carries course bonuses. There is no advertising and no loot box label, and ruby packs run from $1.99 to $26.99.

Game information

DeveloperNintendo Co., Ltd.

Version4.0.0

Size158.3 MB (Android) · 262 MB (iOS)

Price / In-appFree

Contains adsNo

In-app purchasesYes

Content rating9+

Requires (Android)Android 6.0+

Requires (iOS)iOS 15.0+

Offline modeNone — every race runs on Nintendo's servers

Interface languagesEN, FR, DE, IT, JA, KO + 4 more

Store rating (Google Play)4.3 from 2,179,027 ratings

Installs100M+

Updated by developer2026-07-08

Data checked2026-09-07

Specs come from the official store listings and were last checked on 2026-09-07. Developers change pricing and requirements — check the store page before installing.

Mario Kart Tour Review: Portrait Racing, No Adverts

One Thumb, Portrait or Landscape

The kart accelerates itself; steering is a drag left or right, and drifting happens by holding the turn. That reduction is what makes it playable one-handed in portrait, with the whole track visible above a score counter — and the game will switch to landscape for anyone who wants the traditional view. Items fire automatically or on a tap, and a combo counter rewards chaining hits and drifts rather than simply crossing the line first. Balloon battles add a mode where the object is popping other players rather than finishing a lap.

The World Tour Rotates the Courses

Content arrives in tours that move the racing to a different themed city or classic circuit, with a neon Mario Kart archway and Donkey Kong billboards in the store screens. Drivers, karts and gliders each carry bonuses on particular courses, so a collection is not cosmetic — the right combination scores multiples of the wrong one. Mii characters can be created and raced, which is the Nintendo touch that the licensed competitors cannot copy. Courses are short, three laps, and built around scoring rather than lap times.

No Advertising, and Rubies to $26.99

The Play listing carries no advertising badge, which for a free racing game is rare, and Apple rates it 9+ with only infrequent cartoon violence and contests listed — no loot box descriptor, unlike every other free racer in this catalogue. Purchases are ruby packs from $1.99 to $26.99, premium challenges at $4.99 and $9.99, and special offers to $39.99. The install is 262.3 MB, Play shows 4.3 stars from 2.18 million reviews against 4.7 from 1.04 million on Apple, and the last Play update landed on 1 April 2026.

Pros

Playable one-handed in portrait on a phone
No advertising badge on the Play listing
Apple lists no loot boxes among the contents
Mii characters can be created and raced
Rated 4.7 on the App Store across 1.04 million ratings

Cons

Drivers and karts give course-specific score bonuses
Ruby packs and offers reach $39.99
Rated 4.3 on Play, well below Apple's average
Racing is scored rather than won on position alone

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Verdict

The most respectable free racer on a phone: no adverts, no loot box label, real Nintendo craft, and a one-thumb portrait mode that fits how phones actually get used. The catch is the collection — drivers and karts carry course bonuses, so scores depend on what you own. Play it for the racing, ignore the tour ladder, and it stays a pleasure.

Gameplay8.0Genuine kart racing compressed into short, scored three-lap events.

Controls8.5One-thumb steering with automatic acceleration; drifting stays satisfying.

Replay value7.5Rotating tours and a collection, though the course pool repeats often.

Graphics & sound8.5Nintendo's art and music intact on a 262 MB phone download.

Monetisation6.5No adverts or loot box label, but offers climb to $39.99 and bonuses matter.

7.7out of 10 · weighted average of the five scores above

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Frequently asked questions

Can it be played offline?

No. Races, tours and even single-player cups connect to Nintendo's servers, so a signal is required. That was a common complaint at launch and has not changed since — there is no offline time trial to fall back on.

What does it sell?

Rubies from $1.99 to $26.99, premium challenges at $4.99 and $9.99, and special offers up to $39.99. Rubies unlock drivers, karts and gliders. Apple's listing notably does not include a loot box descriptor, which sets it apart from the other free racers here.

What does it need to run?

262.3 MB and iOS 15 or later. It is light for the visual quality, and the portrait mode is designed for exactly the situation a phone gets used in — one hand, standing up, on a screen that is not the family television.

Can you race friends?

Yes, through multiplayer rooms that friends can join with a code, alongside ranked races against strangers. Balloon battles work the same way. Nintendo has kept this simpler than most — there are no clans, guilds or persistent teams to manage.

How long is a race?

Three short laps, usually under two minutes, and a cup groups a handful of races. The tour structure refreshes on a two-week cycle, so the game asks for frequent short visits rather than long sittings, and nothing is lost by skipping a tour.