If you’re shopping for your next set of Toyota Tacoma tires, you’ve come to the right place.
Long a favorite among the off-roading crowd, Toyota’s mid-size pickup truck is a perfect platform for building an out-and-out beast of a trail-riding, mud-slinging machine. Toyota itself has offered numerous raised and rugged TRD models over the years, capable of conquering the terrain with the best of them, but TRD or no, the right set of shoes can totally transform your Tacoma’s off-road handling.
When it comes to off-road tires, the two biggest camps are the all-terrain and mud-terrain varieties. Mud-terrain tires tend to have larger void areas between tread blocks to help keep mud from clumping inside the tread and impairing traction. But because of that, they also tend to be more unpleasant and squirmish on the road. All-terrain tires have smaller void areas, with more overall contact patch, making them better suited for a daily driver and more interdisciplinary in their terrain-handling capabilities.
That’s a lot to bear in mind, and it can make shopping for off-road-ready Toyota Tacoma tires a bit of a chore. Lucky for you, we’ve done all the hard work for you, rounding up all our top picks for the best tires for Toyota Tacoma available on the market today.
Table of contents
1. Editor's Choice: Kanati Trail Hog A/T
While not as popular or promoted like names like BFGoodrich, Yokohama, and General Tire, the Kanati Trail Hog is a solid performer when it comes to Toyota Tacoma all terrain tires. The Trail Hog was specifically designed for light truck use and features a large tread block pattern that offers great traction that self-cleans by ejecting rocks, mud, and any other road element that could clog up many other tires. It’s a great all season tire that has great off-road capabilities, but it also has great on-road performance while remaining quiet, which is a complaint with many off-road style tires.
2. Runner Up: Nitto Terra Grappler G2 A/T
The second generation of Nitto’s popular, versatile Terra Grappler, the Terra Grappler G2 is perfect for Tacoma owners shopping for a streetable tire with plenty of off-road and all-weather performance. We know there are plenty of all-terrain tires out there that claim to be quiet and competent on the highway, but here, Nitto actually means it, with a computer-analyzed variable-pitch tread design developed to reduce tire noise and tread block coupling joints to give the outer tread blocks some extra reinforcement, reducing “squirm.” Add to that a 600 treadwear rating and up to a 65k-mile treadwear warranty and you have one of the most practical off-road Toyota Tacoma tires on the market.
3. Most Trusted Brand: BFGoodrich T/A KO2
One of the most well-regarded all-terrain tires out there, the BFGoodrich T/A KO2 is so good that Ford picked it as the factory tire for the F-150 Raptor. Like the Nitto Terra Grappler, it’s an A/T tire that’s engineered to perform on the highway. It boasts locking 3D sipes that provide tread block stability and a 50k-mile treadwear warranty. Here, that on-road practicality is paired with an aggressive tread design with serrated shoulder lugs and a tough, split- and bruise-resistant sidewall. There aren’t too many Toyota Tacoma tires that can claim to have won the grueling Baja 1000 desert race, but the T/A KO2 can – a fitting claim to fame for the company that literally invented the all-terrain tire.
4. Dick Cepek Extreme Country
A legendary name in the world of off-road tires, Dick Cepek has no shortage of viable options, but at the top of our list for the Tacoma is the Extreme Country. Basically, it’s a mud-terrain tire that looks and acts like a livable, everyday all-terrain tire – quite an uncommon feat. To achieve the right mix of performance, Dick Cepek gave the tire an aggressive, extra-deep tread, with wide open void areas toward the outsides of the tread, and tighter gaps between the center tread blocks. The result is a versatile mud-terrain that you can actually use on the street – a true dual-purpose tire, and hands down one of the best tires for Toyota Tacoma.
5. Goodyear Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar
What happens when you take a strong, advanced synthetic fiber and blend it with Goodyear’s innovative Wrangler tire line? You end up with tires like the Goodyear Wrangler MT/R with Kevlar. Goodyear also makes an all-terrain tire with the same puncture-resistant Kevlar sidewall protection, but the MT/R is where the action is at. Like the Dick Cepek Extreme Country, it’s a mud-terrain tire that you can use on the highway, although it leans a bit more heavily in the direction of mud-terrain performance. Featuring an asymmetrical tread design with a mix of tightly-packed and well-spaced tread blocks, the Wrangler MT/R looks aggressive and handles everything from mud to dirt, to snow, to rocks with ease, rendering it among the best tires in the mud-terrain class.
6. Mickey Thompson Baja MTZ P3
If you’re looking for even more serious mud-terrain performance, the Mickey Thompson Baja MTZ P3 is calling your name. The manufacturer calls it a “premium” mud-terrain tire, and that descriptor is well-earned. The Baja MTZ P3 gets its cut- and chip-resistance from a proprietary silica-reinforced rubber compound, and its high tread-void ratio gives it extraordinary self-cleaning abilities, keeping the tread clear while you’re tearing through the mud. A unique four-pitch “Sidebiter” pattern on the sidewalls helps enhance traction in a variety of conditions, from deep mud to rocks, while also protecting the sidewalls against punctures. It’s little wonder why the Mickey Thompson Baja MTZ P3 is one of the most celebrated tires in the light-truck mud-terrain class, not to mention one of the best Toyota Tacoma tires out there for mud-craving off-road types.
7. General Tire Grabber AT2
An old standby that never seems to get any less relevant with age, the General Grabber AT2 deserves a spot on our list of the best tires for Toyota Tacoma simply by virtue of setting the standard for its class. Featuring a deep, complex tread design with plenty of void area for self-cleaning and plenty of biting edges to provide traction over just about any surface, the Grabber AT2 is an all-around hero when it comes to delivering solid, predictable off-road performance. And while it’s not the quietest, most comfortable tire for highway driving, it’s all-season compatible, so it’s a relatively safe choice if you’re looking for something to run year-round.
8. Maxxis Razr MT-772
If you want a quality tire for your Toyota Tacoma that’s good for both muddy trails and street driving, the Maxxis Razr MT light truck tire might be just what you’re looking for. Maxxis is no stranger to off-road since they have a strong presence in virtually every wheeled off-road vehicle in existence, and this tire shows. The Razr MT features a unique off-road compound rubber that resist tearing and chipping of the tread while increasing tread life. The tread pattern features a deep block for maximum traction in muddy conditions and excellent self cleaning ability. The tire also features an innovative sidewall design to minimize sidewall punctures and increase sidewall traction. Even as a mud specific tire, it still performs well on-road, but does have more road noise than popular all-terrain tires.
I don’t do much off-road driving, but love the look of the more aggressive tire. What is the downfall of running these for highway driving?
As far as handling goes, you won’t be sacrificing anything. What you will get is loud tire howl that is caused by the wide spacing in the tire tread. Additionally, mud tires usually have a softer rubber compound for increased traction so you’ll likely encounter faster wear rates than you would using more of an all-terrain tire with a less aggressive tread.
Can I run a larger tire size without having to install any kind of lift kit?
You likely can run a larger tire size, but we highly recommend taking your Tacoma to a tire shop to try fitting tires before you purchase. You want to see how much clearance you’ll have in the fender so there is no problem with the tire rubbing during suspension compression and turning.
Additonal Resources
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Updated 6/29/2021: Updated product descriptions, ranked products, added new products (Kanati Mongrel and Maxxis Razr MT tires), added FAQ and Additional Resources.