Maxxis has one of the largest selections of mountain bike tires out of all mountain bike tire brands. That’s great and all if you know exactly what tires you’re looking for and what MaxxTerra, EXO, 3C, and 120 TPI mean.
I’ve been riding Maxxis for over 10 years and somewhere along the way got a hang of all these acronyms.
So here, I’ll explain Maxxis MTB tires in plain English – with a list of all MTB tires below.
Quick Info
Compounds
- 3C MaxxGrip = Soft
- 3C MaxxTerra = Medium
- 3C MaxxSpeed = Hard
- 2C dual compound (cheaper option available for most)
- 1C single compound (cheapest only available for a few tires)
Casings
- EXO = thin 120 TPI with sidewall protection
- EXO+ = stiffer 60 TPI casing with EXO sidewall insert
- DoubleDown (DD) = thick Dual Ply 120 TPI casing
- Downhill (DH) = thick, stiff Dual Ply 60 TPI casing
Individual tires are only available for certain riding disciplines – and only in the variations that make sense. So Maxxis pre-selects what combination you can choose.
This is a simplified summary of which casings and compounds are available for XC, All Mountain, Enduro and Downhill.
| EXO | EXO+ | DD | DH | |
| 3C MaxxGrip | AM | AM, EDR | DH, EDR | DH |
| 3C MaxxTerra | AM | AM, EDR | DH, EDR | DH |
| 3C MaxxSpeed | XC | XC |
For eMTB you’ll want to go one or two levels of casing stiffer and harder on the compound than a regular bike – especially the rear wheel.
Popular tire combos
Apart from running the same tire front & rear for very predictable handling (like dual Assegai on my DH bike), you can play around with different combos to get the best performance on specific conditions.
| Front Tire | Rear Tire | |
|---|---|---|
| Downhill | Dissector | High Roller II |
| Downhill | Assegai | Dissector |
| Downhill | Minion DHF | Minion DHR |
| Enduro & Trail | Minion DHF | Aggressor |
| Enduro & Trail | Minion DHR | Minion SS |
| Cross Country | Ikon | Rekon (Race) |
| Cross Country | Forekaster | Ardent (Race) |
There are of course many more combos possible. Check the list below to find all tires for your riding style.
Keep in mind: Front tires need to turn and brake well (big knobs), rear tires need to roll fast (small center knobs). If you’d like to know more, read how MTB tire treads work.
If you’re unsure about what size to get, check out this article explaining MTB tire sizes (per mountain bike type).
List of all Maxxis MTB Tires
To provide an overview, here are all current Maxxis mountain bike tires sorted by riding discipline. Feel free to apply your own sorting and scroll side to side.
Maxxis MTB Tires
Tip: Navigate this list based on the type of riding you do. Besides tire names and MTB discipline, it also lists casings, and compounds.
If you are interested in checking out the full range of Maxxis MTB tires, you can find pretty much all variations in the Maxxis Amazon store or over at Jenson.
Compounds (2C, 3C, MaxxTerra etc.)
The rubber of a tire tread is called a tire compound. They can be hard and fast, or soft and grippy.
Maxxis mountain bike tires come in single compounds (1C), dual compounds (2C) and a variation of triple compounds (3C) for their tire treads.
The 3C compounds are MaxxSpeed, MaxxTerra, and MaxxGrip. Three rubbers with different firmness are layered to provide specific characteristics like rolling speed, traction, and durability.
Most Maxxis tires are only available in certain compounds – tailored to the riding they are designed for.
| Discipline | Compounds |
|---|---|
| Cross Country | MaxxSpeed, 2C, 1C |
| Trail & All Mountain | MaxxSpeed, MaxxTerra, 2C |
| Enduro | MaxxTerra, MaxxGrip, 2C |
| Downhill | MaxxTerra, MaxxGrip, 2C |
| Dirtjump | 2C, 1C |
Related article: Maxxis MTB Compounds Guide
Casings (EXO, EXO+, DD, DH)
Casing (also referred to as sidewalls) is basically the rest of the tire – giving it its round shape.
Casings can be light, thin, soft and compliant (for XC) or heavy, thick, stiff and stable (for DH).
How it behaves has a big impact on your riding.
From thing to stiff, Maxxis casings are:
- EXO: 120 TPI for Cross Country and light-duty trail
- EXO+: 60 TPI for Trail
- Double Down (DD): dual-ply 120 TPI for Enduro, DH, and e-bikes
- DH: dual-ply 60 TPI for Downhill and aggressive e-bikes
As far as puncture protection goes, Maxxis recently streamlined EXO.
The only difference between EXO and EXO+ (and all other casings) is now the casing thickness. EXO+ is just a thicker version of EXO.
The added sidewall puncture armor is the same. It’s only a question of 60 TPI versus 120 TPI (explained here).
Related article: Maxxis MTB Tire Casing Guide
Picking the right tire for you
A quick disclaimer: There is no single perfect tire for any condition and riding.
It’s always a compromise between traction or durability, weight or protection, and compliance or stiffness.
So knowing what you need from a tire is half the battle.
Here are the basics:
As a general rule,
Cross Country tires require lighter casings and harder compounds that roll efficiently.
While Downhill tires need to have stiff casings with soft rubber on top for traction.
All-Mountain and Enduro are in the middle with room to play around depending on the types of surfaces you ride.
For eMTB you’ll want a stiffer casing and a harder compound than a comparable regular bike – especially the rear wheel.
1. Select for type of riding
In any case, it’s best to start with the MTB riding discipline to narrow the selection down. This means filtering for the tread patterns (the actual tire names) that fit your discipline – XC, AM, DH etc.
2. Combine front and rear tires optimally
Know how you want each to perform. Generally, front tires need to corner and brake better, while rear tires need to withstand more abuse and put the power to the ground.
In other words: softer casings and compounds up front, harder ones in the back. Many riders also pick different tread patterns front and back, but that’s our last step. We’re not quite there yet.
3. Pick the casing
With knowing what each wheel needs to handle, pick the casing accordingly. This is the basis for the tire and may also dictate the compounds and treads available.
The casing includes two pieces: the nylon fabric layers and the protection woven into it, depicted here:
Front tires require more compliance and have to endure fewer impact forces.
Rear tires bear most of the weight and take huge impacts.
From thing to stiff, Maxxis casings are:
- EXO: Cross Country and light-duty trail
- EXO+: Trail
- Double Down (DD): dual-ply 120 TPI for Enduro, DH, and e-bikes
- DH: dual-ply 60 TPI for Downhill and aggressive e-bikes
4. Rubber compound
Select for the most important characteristics of the rubber actually making contact with the ground. It’s a compromise between traction or rolling resistance and durability – or soft and hard compounds.
- 1C Single Compound: Cheap, durable but a compromise in performance.
- 2C Dual Compound: Different side knobs and center tread rubber. Good price-to-performance.
- 3C Triple Compounds: Specialized, expensive performance compounds. Available in three levels of firmness.
- MaxxSpeed: Harder, faster rolling and more durable overall, great for XC and rear tires.
- MaxxTerra: Medium firmness and durability. For XC front tires and DH rear tires.
- MaxxGrip: Softer, grippy and less durable overall. Best traction possible, excellent for front tires.
5. Tread pattern selection from the few options remaining
By this point, only a couple of tire treads should be up for debate now. This is a choice largely depending on the trail surfaces you find yourself on mostly.
Rock slabs, loamy dirt, root carpets or hard pack dirt. The choice is yours, and Maxxis has treads designed to perform on each.
6. Get the correct tire size for the wheel at hand
Of course, correct tire size is important too. But unless you’re looking for a very specific tire width above all else, this isn’t a main priority.
Most Maxxis tires are available in the common diameters 27.5″ and 29″ and tire width is largely dictated by riding discipline. So they come in the appropriate width ranges anyway.
