The best Xbox controller to buy right now

Editor’s note: Amazon Prime Day 2024 volition instrumentality spot on July 16th and 17th; however, if you were hoping to snag immoderate steep savings up of the event, instrumentality a look astatine our usher to the best aboriginal Prime Day deals and cheque retired our Prime Day guide to get caught up connected everything you request to cognize astir the sale.

You whitethorn not recognize it, but we’re surviving successful a aureate property of gaming controllers. The gamepads connected the marketplace present are higher quality, much versatile, and much customizable than thing from conscionable a fewer console generations ago. If you’re gaming connected an Xbox Series X oregon Series S (or a Windows PC), you present person a plethora of large third-party options from the likes of PowerA, Scuf, Nacon, and Turtle Beach, arsenic good arsenic high-quality first-party controllers. The days of the inexpensive “little sibling” controller that looked chill but hardly worked are over.

I’ve spent a ton of clip playing each kinds of games (first-person shooters, fighters, third-person action-adventure, racing, indie roguelikes, etc.) to trial a wide swath of Xbox controllers, and it whitethorn beryllium unsurprising that the modular Xbox Wireless Controller is the champion Xbox controller for most. It makes a large PC controller, too.

But portion the de facto Xbox gamepad strikes the close equilibrium of quality, comfort, versatility, and price, determination are respective alternatives worthy cross-shopping if you person circumstantial needs — ranging from high-end options similar the Xbox Elite Series 2 and Scuf Instinct Pro to prime fund picks similar the PowerA Enhanced Wired Controller.

The champion Xbox controller for astir people

Connectivity: Xbox wireless, Bluetooth, wired / Connector type: USB-C / Mappable rear buttons: No / Software customization: No / Power: AA batteries oregon add-on rechargeable

Okay, I already cognize what you’re thinking. “The champion controller for Xbox is the 1 that comes with the Xbox?” That whitethorn look similar a no-brainer, but this “standard” controller genuinely does gain this rubric arsenic the champion enactment for astir Xbox gamers. It whitethorn deficiency immoderate of the other features that we’ll spell implicit connected premium options, but this controller is the distillation of 4 generations and galore first-party controllers earlier it — and it shows.

This is the lone affordable wireless Xbox controller retired there, acknowledgment to Microsoft’s proprietary protocol. While immoderate whitethorn hatred that it comes with AA batteries alternatively of a built-in rechargeable cell, that besides means it’s flexible, allowing for rechargeable AAs oregon a artillery pack. It besides works arsenic a wired accessory with a USB-C cable, and user-replaceable batteries mean you’re not stuck with a controller that doesn’t clasp its complaint aft years of use.

But the standard-issue Xbox pad isn’t conscionable large due to the fact that of its connectivity. The hardware itself is fantabulous for the controller’s $60 asking price. The sticks, buttons, triggers, and the sunken dish-shaped D-pad each consciousness impeccably tight, with the second having a satisfying clickiness to it. If you’re a hardcore warring crippled fan, you whitethorn beryllium amended served by an arcade instrumentality oregon a controller geared toward that genre — 1 with an impeccable D-pad similar Hori’s Horipad Pro — but the Xbox Wireless Controller is an exceptional jack-of-all-trades.

The lone things it truly lacks compared to pricier options are extra, customizable buttons and bundle tuning for things similar instrumentality sensitivity, though Microsoft does connection cosmetic customization done its Xbox Design Lab, which ranges from $69.99 to $99.94 depending connected the configuration. There’s a batch to emotion astir these controllers, whether you marque your ain oregon prime retired 1 from the assorted colors Microsoft continues to offer.

The champion inexpensive Xbox controller

Connectivity: Wired / Connector type: Micro USB / Mappable rear buttons: Two / Software customization: No / Power: Wired

If you’re looking for a large controller but you don’t person a batch of wealth to walk — and you don’t caput a cablegram — PowerA’s Enhanced Wired Controller offers an impeccable worth without sacrificing excessively much. Its afloat retail terms is $37.99, but immoderate colour schemes tin dip arsenic debased arsenic astir $25. Speaking of colors, the Enhanced Wired Controller comes successful a wide assortment of hues and designs, including licensed ones from crippled franchises similar Mass Effect and Fallout. Some of these designs whitethorn marque you fishy these are cheap, cringe-inducing knockoffs, but the prime of the controller whitethorn astonishment you erstwhile you usage it.

First off, let’s get its biggest downside retired of the way: it uses a Micro USB transportation (gross, I know). You astatine slightest get a lengthy, detachable cablegram with it, but not having a reversible connector is annoying. Thankfully, thing other astir this controller feels truthful outdated. Its physique prime is conscionable fine, and it adjacent has 2 mappable rear buttons built into the grips — which is large to person astatine specified a debased price.

The remainder of the PowerA Enhanced Wired Controller is simply a full batch of array stakes, but it executes everything rather good for a ridiculously affordable price. There’s nary impulse trigger rumble, but if there’s immoderate diagnostic to inexpensive retired on, I’d accidental that’s the close choice. On the flip side, the Enhanced Wired Controller comes with a two-year warranty, which is doubly arsenic agelong arsenic pricey options similar Microsoft’s Elite Series 2 offer.

PowerA offers a full batch of bang for your subordinate with the Enhanced Wired Controller if you’re connected a choky budget. It besides sells the Advantage Wired Controller, which is fundamentally a newer mentation of the Enhanced Wired Controller with USB-C and hair-trigger lockouts. The Advantage could beryllium a shoo-in to dethrone the Enhanced Wired arsenic the champion fund controller, but astatine $37.99, it can’t yet lucifer the Enhanced Wired’s near-perpetually discounted terms of astir $25.

If you person Elite controller tastes but a modular controller budget, the PowerA Fusion Pro 3 is simply a good alternate if you don’t caput that it’s wired. It looks a spot similar the Microsoft Elite Series 2, implicit with 4 rear buttons, trigger lockouts, and rubberized grips, but costs overmuch less. The Fusion Pro 3 is importantly lighter than its predecessor, positive it has a much compact lawsuit and is $10 cheaper — offering rather the worth for $79.99 (especially if it starts going connected sale). The older Fusion Pro 2 is inactive fine, particularly if you similar detachable rear paddles to built-in buttons, but astatine this point, it’s lone worthy it for that penchant oregon if it’s heavy discounted.

The champion premium Xbox controller

Connectivity: Xbox wireless, Bluetooth, wired / Connector type: USB-C / Mappable rear buttons: Up to 4 / Software customization: Yes / Power: Built-in rechargeable

The Xbox Elite Wireless Controller Series 2 is Microsoft’s fancied-up, premium mentation of the banal controller. It’s besides older, having been released a twelvemonth earlier the Xbox Series X / S consoles arrived. So portion it does athletics a USB-C larboard and wireless support, it lacks the convenient Share fastener recovered connected the latest Xbox Wireless Controller. However, it makes up for that successful droves with exceptional physique quality, other buttons, user-swappable sticks and D-pad, and tons of customization.

If you prime up an Xbox Elite controller, you instantly admit the prime of materials enactment into it. Where the modular controller uses an unassuming integrative build, the Elite mixes higher-quality integrative with rubberized grips and bits of metal. Combine this with its built-in rechargeable battery, and the Elite is noticeably heavier than its cheaper brethren. It besides comes with a charging dock and zip-up lawsuit with passthrough charging.

As fantabulous arsenic the acceptable and decorativeness are, the cardinal components that whitethorn springiness you a competitory borderline are the hair-trigger locks and rear paddle buttons. In theory, the hairsbreadth trigger gets shots disconnected faster erstwhile playing shooters, and the rear paddles let you to jump, crouch, reload, etc., without taking your thumb disconnected the close instrumentality for aiming. However, utilizing that galore buttons connected the backmost of the controller decidedly takes immoderate adjustment. You person to bid caller musculus memory, and since it requires dexterity with much fingers, they’re not for everyone.

These premium features travel astatine a steep cost, too. The Elite Series 2 is usually priced astatine $179.99, and adjacent though it occasionally drops arsenic debased arsenic $139.99, it’s inactive much than doubly arsenic costly arsenic a regular Xbox controller. You person to truly privation its other features and idiosyncratic customization, and if you’re not utilizing its rear paddles oregon the bundle adjustments for instrumentality sensitivity, you’re not getting your money’s worth. (And if you privation to customize the colors, you’re looking astatine $209.99 for the Design Lab “Elite Package.”)

Microsoft besides has a stripped-down Elite Series 2 “Core” version with an MSRP of $129.99, which is the aforesaid controller successful white-and-black, red-and-black, oregon blue-and-black finishes without the rear paddles, accessory charging case, oregon other instrumentality toppers and D-pad. You tin get each of those successful a $30 accessories pack, which turns the Elite Series 2 Core backmost into a modular Elite Series 2 and really makes it a somewhat amended woody if the afloat bundle isn’t connected sale.

You indispensable besides beryllium alert that the Elite has a spot of a estimation for lackluster prime control, with fearfulness stories from users astir going done aggregate replacements nether warranty. Microsoft extended the controller’s warranty from 90 days to a year successful precocious 2020 to assistance code concerns, but buying an Elite Series 2 whitethorn inactive consciousness similar a somewhat risky proposition. However, erstwhile you nail that cleanable series — switching to your pistol and landing a headshot with a speedy pop-pop of the hairsbreadth trigger portion your thumbs enactment firmly planted connected the sticks — it tin consciousness worthy it.

A formidable alternate to the Elite

Connectivity: Xbox wireless, Bluetooth, wired / Connector type: USB-C / Mappable rear buttons: Four / Software customization: No / Power: AA batteries oregon add-on rechargeable

The Scuf Instinct Pro finds itself successful a spot of a weird spot, arsenic it’s the lone wireless enactment from a 3rd party, but it’s by acold the astir costly Xbox controller astir (it starts astatine $199.99). The 1 I tested clocked successful astatine $263.91 with a peculiar faceplate and added colour accents. That’s much than the Xbox Series S occasionally sells for, which is an full console. Still, you’re successful for a dainty if you’re good with spending that benignant of money, arsenic the Instinct Pro is arguably amended than Microsoft’s Elite successful immoderate precise circumstantial ways — primarily, its comfortableness and implementation of rear buttons and hairsbreadth triggers.

The Instinct Pro has precise unsocial rear buttons, and I really similar them. Instead of paddles, determination are 4 rocker-like buttons built into the controller’s assemblage that you propulsion toward oregon distant from your manus with a mediate finger. It inactive requires grooming your encephalon a spot to get accustomed to it, but I recovered them much intuitive.

Rear buttons aside, the Scuf’s different large diagnostic is its hairsbreadth triggers, which person the quickest effect of each the controllers tested here. Just flick a power connected the back, and the near and close triggers consciousness similar you’re clicking a rodent — it’s incredibly satisfying. The hairsbreadth triggers, rear buttons, and the fantabulous textured grip worldly connected the controller’s underside marque this controller a joyousness to use.

The Instinct Pro feels similar Scuf fundamentally hot-rodded a banal Xbox controller, but similar immoderate boutique item, it comes with a monolithic cost. Meanwhile, it inactive uses AA batteries and lacks bundle customization, truthful arsenic overmuch arsenic I bask utilizing it, I’d lone counsel getting 1 if you’re ace passionate astir its precise circumstantial qualities oregon you perfectly emotion the colorful accents and magnetically swappable faceplates connected Scuf’s configurator.

The champion customizable controller

Connectivity: Wired / Connector type: USB-C / Mappable rear buttons: Four / Software customization: Yes / Power: Wired

RIG’s Nacon Revolution X whitethorn beryllium worthy of an grant for unspeakable naming, but its existent strengths are successful its heavy customization. If you’re the benignant that likes to endlessly tinker with tons of elaborate settings, this is the controller for you. Normally priced astatine $99.99, the wired Revolution X and its added features don’t travel cheap, but the terms is simply a small fairer erstwhile you see the contention it squares up against.

When you archetypal prime up the Revolution X, it seems precise unassuming — and borderline cheap. While it’s not a looker, it’s a form-follows-function benignant of controller. It’s comfy to use, and its 4 rear buttons built into the grips are ample and nicely contoured. The existent stars of this show, however, are the analog sticks and their bundle customizations, arsenic good arsenic the expansive customized options for different interior workings of the controller.

While different user-customizable controllers person 3 idiosyncratic profiles you tin swap betwixt connected the fly, the Revolution X has 4 — positive a “classic” mode with basal settings and a ringing of RGB airy astir the close instrumentality to punctual you what mode you’re in. The bundle app is not the astir user-friendly, but the controls spell precise in-depth. Thankfully, determination are adjuvant starting points with presets for arcade warring games, racing, FPS games, and adjacent sniping, which makes the options overmuch easier to understand. Add the quality to customize and remap each fastener connected the controller, arsenic good arsenic a Dolby Atmos for Headphones app license, and you’ve got a batch of customization options.

The customization doesn’t halt with software, audio, oregon lighting, however. The Revolution X comes with ringing spacers to set the scope of the analog sticks, too, arsenic good arsenic a bid of tiny weights ranging from 10g to 16g, which you tin insert into its grips to springiness them an further magnitude of heft.

Adding up each these features, you spot wherefore the Nacon is specified a large controller for tinkering. It took maine clip to lukewarm up to it, but upon mounting it up the mode I preferred, it made for a precise compelling controller successful a assortment of crippled types.

The champion controller for shooters

Connectivity: Wired / Connector type: USB-C / Mappable rear buttons: Two / Software customization: No / Power: Wired

Turtle Beach is known for its headsets, truthful it makes consciousness that its Recon wired controller features immoderate robust audio controls. Its strengths truly travel into absorption erstwhile playing first-person shooters, wherever its Superhuman Hearing mode tweaks the audio of immoderate wired headset to gully retired footsteps and distant gunfire successful the mix. At its regular terms of astir $60, and erstwhile selling arsenic debased arsenic $39.95, the Recon is simply a reasonably affordable mode to summation a flimsy competitory borderline successful multiplayer games without spending good implicit $100 connected a controller.

This pad isn’t going to triumph immoderate quality contests acknowledgment to each those awkward buttons located smack-dab successful the mediate of its forehead, but each 1 has a valid purpose. There are 4 levels of microphone monitoring, wide crippled measurement controls, crippled chat measurement mix, 4 EQ presets, 4 programmable modes for mapping the 2 rear buttons, and 4 levels of optional right-stick sensitivity adjustments. That past feature, dubbed Pro Aim by Turtle Beach, lowers the sensitivity of the close analog instrumentality portion you clasp the right-hand rear button, allowing for precise tiny movements similar sniping, though it’s a spot clumsy to use.

Learning to usage each these controls whitethorn dependable daunting, but the controller’s quick-start guide makes it easier. Superhuman Hearing is precise adjuvant for shooters and worthy utilizing extensively for games similar Halo Infinite — conscionable beryllium alert that it’s going to muddy up the soundtrack a little, truthful you whitethorn privation to permission it disconnected during story-driven, single-player games.

Audio controls aside, the Recon lacks fancy features similar hairsbreadth triggers and swappable thumbsticks, and the D-pad looks similar the modular Xbox Wireless Controller but pales successful comparison. The controller’s integrative physique feels cheap, but the rubbery grips redeem it with a bully and comfy feel. As for the sticks, triggers, and further rear buttons, they each consciousness choky and snappy. Combine that with Superhuman Hearing, and you’ve got a large look for shooters. The Recon has a spot of a learning curve, but if you play ranked matches and worth a reasonably priced wired controller with other buttons and adjuvant audio functions, you can’t spell incorrect here.

Other controllers worthy knowing about

Photography by Antonio G. Di Benedetto / The Verge

Update, July 15th: Adjusted pricing and details connected respective caller controllers, including the Turtle Beach Stealth Ultra. Quentyn Kennemer besides contributed to this post.