Mario Kart Items Tier Rankings

It’s been awhile since I’ve ranked all the Mario Kart Items so I thought I’d do an updated tier list. The only rules that will apply are:
*CPU Items in Super Mario Kart will not be counted since we can’t use them.
*Items from the arcade games will not count
* Tiers will include
S- “God Tier Item”
A- Great
B- Good
C- Okay
D- Bad
F- Horrible

Banana: We’re gonna start off with a classic item that’s been there in every game. This item has two functions. You can use it as a way to trip up opponents although it’s not very effective since they’re pretty small. However they can also be used to defend yourself from shells. Because of the defensive ability I put this item in C Tier

Coin
: These were featured in Super Mario Kart and were reintroduced in Mario Kart 8/Deluxe. There’s nothing wrong with coins themselves as they make you go a tiny bit faster but the problem is having them as items is a bad idea. They do almost nothing for you whereas almost every other item you can get is used for offense or defense. F Tier

Feather: In super Mario Kart this item allowed you to create some otherwise impossible shortcuts. I’m not the biggest fan of this item but it can be useful. B Tier


Triple Banana/ Banana Bunch: It’s the same as a normal banana but gives you 3 times more. Nothing much to really add here other than you have more Bananas to work with which is nice. B Tier

Boo
: This one varies between games. Basically you turn invisible and you’re invulnerable meanwhile you also get a free item which goes both ways. You either get something good or not so good. B Tier


Fake Item Box: This Item is a really weird one to judge because in some games it’s hard to tell while in other games it’s easy. Since it can’t always be camouflaged it makes this item pointless. On top of that it doesn’t block shells at all. Only thing keeping it out of F Tier is that at least in some games it’s hard to tell. D Tier

Mushroom
: It’s a nice little speed boost and you can take some pretty nice shortcuts with it as well. It’s about as simple as you can get.
B Tier

Triple Mushroom:
These are so much better than a normal mushroom because you can get 3 times the speed and since you can save them you can utilize them more effectively and take more shortcuts. High
A Tier

Golden Mushroom
: With This Item you can go as fast as you want for a limited amount of time. It’s a great item to have but the only downside is you still have to navigate the course S Tier

Blue/ Spiny Shell:
This infamous item goes for the player in first place to help balance out the races. It varies from game to game but its one of the most successful items. You have a 99.9% chance of hitting the player in first place unless they have a Super Horn. The only thing keeping this from S Tier is the fact that it doesn’t help the person who uses it. It only helps the players in 2nd-4th place. A Tier

Green Shell: This is another item that’s been there since the beginning. This item works similar to the Banana but is overall a better item. You can use it to attack players although it isn’t the easiest to use since you have to time it correctly. But it’s so satisfying when you hit someone.You can also use it to defend yourself from incoming shells. I’m gonna put this item in low B Tier

Red Shell:
So these are better than the green shells because they lock on to the player in front of you. Yet the quality of these vary based on the game. They were pretty bad in the older games but they are significantly better in the new games. B Tier

Triple Green Shells: The name speaks for itself obviously it’s just 3 green shells. They’re nice because they form a barrier around your kart (Except Double Dash) these allow you to have some good defense as well as let you have more chances at a snipe. A Tier

Triple Red Shells
: This Item is a banger. You get three red shells you can use for defense or to jump up in the rankings as you can fire them at the players ahead. You can’t go wrong here. S Tier

Star
; This is pretty self explanatory. Any item that makes you invincible, makes you go faster, go off-road without slowing down, and let’s you plow through other racers gets an automatic spot in S Tier

Lightning
: With this item you shrink everyone else on the track and make them guaranteed to lose their items. You can squish players in some games and in the modern games the players at the front are shrunk for an extremely long period of time. S Tier

Blooper
: This Item was originally introduced in Mario Kart DS and has been in every game since. I couldn’t tell you why. What it does is squirt ink on all the players in front of the person who uses it. While it does slow down CPUs it only lasts about 10 seconds and it rarely makes any impact. Since you normally get this in the middle of the pack it doesn’t do you any favors whatsoever. F Tier

Bob Omb: With this item you can cause a huge explosion on your foes. It’s so satisfying hitting players behind or in front of you however you have to be careful or else you’ll get caught in the blast. A Tier

Boomerang
: So here’s the thing about this item. It’s nice that you get 3 throws and can hit multiple opponents with one throw. However they’re relatively slow so you kinda have to wait awhile to use it again. B Tier

Bullet Bill:
This Item doesn’t mess around at all. If you’re in last this bad boy gets you back in the race plowing through anything in it’s path. S Tier

Crazy 8
: Not much else to add here that I didn’t already say about the lucky 7. You just get one more item. Big deal A Tier

Fire Flower;
This Item replaces the fireballs in the newer games. With this you can fire off one at a time. Although they’re kinda small you can spam this item and aren’t stuck with it for very long A Tier

Mega Mushroom:
Another Item exclusive to Mario Kart Wii. With this item you become giant size, speed up, can flatten other racers, and your invulnerable to almost everything. The only downside is it doesn’t last very long at all. Only about 10 seconds. S Tier

Lucky 7:
This Item gives you 7 different items at your disposal but you really do have to be lucky to get it. You have a lot to work with but you can also just spam it. A Tier

Piranha Plant:
This Item was brought into Mario Kart 8/ Deluxe and it’s a really unique item. The piranha plant can eat pretty much anything in front of you and gives you a nice speed boost for every bite which is nice however you’re left completely vulnerable from behind. Because of that he winds up in C Tier

POW Block
: This Item is a pretty strategic one in Mario Kart Wii. With this item everyone in front of you spins out and loses their items unless you know to flick the controller at the right time. It’s pretty much a way more effective blooper. B Tier

Thundercloud
: This Item was only seen in Mario Kart Wii which is honestly a good thing. It’s the only item currently in the series that is an anti item. It activates automatically and gives you a speed boost which sounds nice but if you can’t bump into another racer and pass the cloud on to them you get shrunk and basically lose all that gained speed. Overall this item is at least somewhat unique but it’s not a good item. The only reason I’m not putting it in F Tier is because it’s supposed to be an anti Item. This item lands in D Tier

Super Horn
: So this item creates a sound wave that can stun pretty much anything nearby including the blue shell. However it’s a one time use and doesn’t slow down other racers that much. High B Tier

Super Leaf:
This Item was introduced in Mario Kart 7 but honestly it’s pretty useless. You can use it to hit other players or block incoming shells but you have to time it correctly for it to work. Also you can’t pick up another item while you have this. D Tier

Fireballs
: This Item spawns 5 fireballs that spread out for a short distance before disappearing. It’s great for hitting players that are close. Not so much for far away targets.
B Tier

Yoshi/Birdo Egg
: Pretty much same thing as the red shell but they are so much better. They’re faster, can travel farther and even spawn 3 random items. A Tier

Bowser Shell:
This Item is pretty fun to use. It’s basically a giant green shell that can destroy anything in its path. It can also bounce around for awhile. The only problem is it can hurt you if you’re not careful. A Tier

Heart
; This item is like a shield in a way. Basically you can obtain any item you run into and then you can use it. It’s simple yet it works great A Tier

Giant Banana: Another Item exclusive to Double Dash. These items are bigger and better than a normal banana. The spin out time is longer and if you put this on a narrow path then your opponents will have a tough time avoiding this bad boy. A Tier

Chain Chomp
: By far the most exhilarating item to use in the entire series. With this you get pulled at high speeds and he destroys anything in your path however he’s not entirely perfect as he may knock you off on a harder track and you have no control over it.also sometimes he will abandon you suddenly so he can catch you off guard if you’re not ready. S Tier

Here’s A Tier Chart of all the items
S: Golden Mushroom, Triple Red Shells, Star, Lightning, Bullet Bill, Mega Mushroom, Chain Chomp
————————————————————
A: Triple Mushroom, Blue Shell, Triple Green Shells, Bomb Omb, Crazy 8, Lucky 7, Fire Flower, Yoshi/Birdo Egg, Bowser Shell, Heart, Giant Banana
————————————————————
B: Feather, Triple Banana, Boo, Mushroom, Green Shell, Red Shell, Boomerang, POW Block, Super Horn, Fireballs
————————————————————
C: Banana, Piranha Plant
————————————————————
D: Fake Item Box, Thundercloud, Super Leaf
————————————————————
F: Coin, Blooper
————————————————————

So those are my opinions. At least until the next Mario Kart game comes out and this post becomes irrelevant. What do you guys think?

Comments

The thundercloud is just evil. I would have it in F-tier. The rest of the list is agreeable. - PackFan2005

If I were you I'd format the post so you start with all the f tier items and work your way upwards - Puga