From tire manufacturers to online retailers, there are plenty of ways to buy tires. These options vary widely by the inventory of tire brands, sizes, pricing, delivery, and even customer support. To streamline your shopping process and empower you to make an informed decision, we’ve put together the 5 best places to buy tires online. You can get top-quality tires with the greatest savings!
Option 1 – Tire Rack
Starting as a normal tire retail shop, Tire Rack has specialized in the sales of tires, wheels, and vehicle accessories for more than 40 years. It has a huge selection of 26 major tires and 60 wheel brands and promises a super-fast delivery across the United States (1 -2 business days).
Shopping on Tire Rack is easy. You complete a few simple questions about your vehicle, how you drive, and how you prefer the tires to feel, and Tire Rack will recommend the best-matched tires. The product recommendations are based on a battery of comprehensive tests, where the Tire Rack experts test different tire models to gain first-hand experience of the tire performance and comfort across various situations. Alternatively, you could search for tires manually by vehicle or tire size.
The tires will be shipped directly to your home or over 10,000 installers free for any orders over $50. If you opt for mobile installation (starting from $30 per tire), the technician will bring the new tires and install them at any place of your choice. If you pick up the order at a nearby distribution center, you’ll receive an extra discount.
Pros:
- Free and quick shipping
- 30-day return policy
- Free 2-year tire road hazard protection
Cons:
- Shipping and installation are scheduled independently
Option 2 – Discount Tire
Founded in 1960, Discount Tire is now one of the largest tire retailers with over 1,000 locations in the U.S. As you can tell from its name, it claims to give you the lowest price on top-quality tires and wheels. It covers over 100 tire brands, ranging from household names such as Goodyear and Michelin to smaller shop franchises like Firestone. To help you choose the right tire, Discount Tire will ask some questions about your vehicle and driving style and offer recommendations.
The shipping is quite fast, usually for 2- 4 business days. You may get the tires at your doorstep or choose a convenient in-store pick-up so that the technicians will fit your vehicle. Apart from shopping online, you could visit and shop in a Discount Tire store near you.
Pros:
- Free shipping to 48 states
- Affordable price without compromising quality
- Flexible payment plan
Cons:
- Shipping and installation are scheduled separately
- Strict return policy
Option 3 – Amazon
Amazon sells a massive amount of products ranging from clothes, books, housewares, electronics, and gifts to even tires! It provides a wide selection of tires of almost any price tag and model. You could find well-known brands such as Cooper, Bridgestone, Michelin, Goodyear, Firestone, etc, and also access some best sellers that are quickly sold out at your local tire stores.
While the tremendous listing at Amazon is overwhelming to go through, the Tire Finder enables you to locate the perfect tires that fit your vehicle by setting up filters like brands, price, tire height, wheel rim size, tire section width, and so on. Upon purchase, you can get the tires installed at select installation locations or home installation via Amazon Home Services at a fee. If you’re an Amazon Prime member, you’ll be enjoying extra perks like free shipping and free returns.
Pros:
- Extensive selection
- Easy comparison
- Quick & budget-friendly delivery
Cons:
- No additional warranty (only manufacturer warranties)
Option 4 – SimpleTire
SimpleTire allows you to pick a perfect tire by car type and tire size online. It carries over 300 tire brands, which is broader than most retailers and should suit almost any budget and requirement. On the SimpleTire homepage, you can easily browse the huge catalog by vehicle, tire brand, size, or type.
SimpleTire has built a nationwide network of more than 20,000 local tire installers to guarantee fast delivery. Shipping to the partner installer or to a FedEx location for personal pick-ups is FREE, but shipment to a business or residence will require a nominal handling fee.
Moreover, SimpleTire has partnered with several financing institutions like Affirm, Katapult, and PayPal to pull out flexible payment plans. You don’t have to worry about your budget – just buy or replace the tires while keeping your monthly expenses in check.
Pros:
- Best price guarantee
- Military and healthcare worker discounts
- Various payment options
Cons:
- Shipping is not free to your own address
- No personalized buying recommendation
Option 5 – Walmart
Walmart is another e-commerce giant where you could find good prices on an impressive selection of tires like Firestone, Michelin, Cooper, Goodyear, BFGoodrich, and so on. The shipping is free to both your home and local stores, and the installation is fairly cheap ($11 per tire), much lower than many online retailers.
You could also choose to upgrade to other auto services inexpensively. For example, a road-hazard warranty is only $10 for each tire, with coverage of unforeseen road hazards and flat repairs. And if your tires are not fixable within the first 25% of tread life, there will be a free tire replacement.
For those who bought tires somewhere else, Walmart could be a good place for installation. The cost for each tire is $11, the same as that for tires purchased from Walmart. No extra application or complicated steps are required. All you need is to make an appointment with the nearest Auto Care Center and bring your tires in.
Pros:
- Free shipping for tire purchases
- Cheaper installation fees than most of the other websites
- Cheap road hazard warranty ($10 per tire)
Cons:
- You need to spend some time searching for suitable tires
- Longer installation time
Conclusion
Buying tires online is a hassle-free and time-saving experience. You’ll have greater choices of tire brands and types and find the best prices by comparing different providers easily. Instead of visiting a physical store, you could shop from anywhere and select products at your own pace. The delivery is fast (and usually free) and a local installer will take care of all the installation for you.
So these are the best places to buy tires online. Make sure you always go with a reputable company to avoid false advertising. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to leave a comment below.