Wondering what ESC to run in your 1/10 buggy, stadium truck or short course truck? They run the same ESCs, so we counted them together. The Hobbywing XR10 Pro is the most popular in both stock and modified, and it isn't close. We counted the setups saved in the RC Setup App since January 2024: 1187 racers named an ESC, and Hobbywing leads at 67% of them, followed by Reedy at 8% and Tekin at 6%.
The percentage under each ESC is the share of racers in that section who run it. Check your class rules first, since some classes limit which ESCs you can run. Counts updated November 2026.
Buy links to AMain may earn us a commission. That doesn't change the order: racers decide that.
Choosing the rest of the electronics? See the most popular motors, radios and servos for 1/10 off-road buggies and trucks. Running a 1/8 electric buggy or truggy? See the most popular 1/8 electric ESCs.
Most popular ESCs for stock racing
578 racers named an ESC on a setup with a stock motor. Hobbywing has 68% of them, and four of the top five are its XR10 models. This list covers ESCs with at least 10 racers.
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro27%
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Stock Spec16%
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Justock14%
- Tekin RS5%
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro G3X Stock Spec5%
- Reedy Blackbox 610R4%
- Reedy Blackbox 510R4%
- REDS ZX Pro2%
- R1 Wurks Digital2%
- Muchmore Fleta2%
1. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro
27% of stock racers
The most popular ESC in stock classes by a wide margin, run by 26% of 2WD stock racers and 27% of 4WD, even though it's Hobbywing's modified model. The current G3 is rated for 160A and motors down to 5.5T in a buggy, so it still works if you move up to modified. 35% of its racers pair it with a Hobbywing motor, 16% with a Trinity and 8% with an R1. Of those who named a generation, most run a G2, and the button goes to the G3.
Buy the Pro G3 at AMain (opens in new tab)
2. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Stock Spec
16% of stock racers
Hobbywing's ESC built just for stock classes, and second here, run by 16% of 2WD stock racers and 12% of 4WD. The G2 is rated for 100A and limited to 10.5T motors and up. It's lighter than the Pro G3, 63g to 93g, and its firmware covers both blinky and boost racing. Hobbywing motors lead, on 35% of its racers, then Fantom at 11% and Trinity at 10%. Racers who named a generation almost all named the G2, which is the version the button goes to.
Buy the Stock Spec G2 at AMain (opens in new tab)
3. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Justock
14% of stock racers
The simplest and least expensive of the four XR10s here, made for blinky racing, and a big favorite in short course. On the G3S, ESC timing is locked at 0 degrees, the rating is 60A, the motor limit is 10.5T and up, and it's ROAR approved. It's mostly a 2WD choice, with 92% of its racers there, and 54% pair it with a Hobbywing motor. The button goes to the G3S, the generation racers name most.
Buy the Justock G3S at AMain (opens in new tab)
4. Tekin RS
5% of stock racers
The top ESC outside Hobbywing in stock, with 64% of its racers in 2WD and 36% in 4WD, all of them in buggies. Trinity motors are its most common partner, on 36% of them. This count covers the RS, RS Pro and RS Spec. The button goes to the RS Pro Black Edition.
Buy the RS Pro Black at AMain (opens in new tab)
5. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro G3X Stock Spec
5% of stock racers
The stock version of the Pro G3. It keeps the 160A rating, three saved profiles and data logging, and Hobbywing built it to run cooler at high current in stock classes. Unlike the Pro G3, it has no reverse polarity protection, so double-check your battery leads. 89% of its racers run it in 2WD and 21% in 4WD, some in both. 64% pair it with a Hobbywing motor and 18% with an R1.
Buy the G3X at AMain (opens in new tab)
6. Reedy Blackbox 610R
4% of stock racers
Reedy's update to the 510R, for both stock and modified. It's rated for 160A and motors down to 4.5T, and has a ROAR approved blinky mode. Over the 510R it adds 32-bit hardware and Standard and Expert tuning modes, and full tuning takes the separate PROgrammer2. 83% of its racers run it in 2WD and 26% in 4WD, some in both, and 78% run a Reedy motor.
Buy the 610R at AMain (opens in new tab)
7. Reedy Blackbox 510R
4% of stock racers
The 610R's predecessor, in the same size case and rated for 150A to the 610R's 160A. It's still on plenty of cars, with 71% of its racers in 2WD and 33% in 4WD, and 76% run a Reedy motor. It's discontinued, so the button goes to the 610R.
See the 610R at AMain (opens in new tab)
8. REDS ZX Pro
2% of stock racers
The ESC here that does best in stadium trucks: across stock and modified, about half the racers who run it are in trucks and half in buggies. In stock, 77% of its racers run it in 2WD and 31% in 4WD, and 69% pair it with a Whitz Hyperspec motor. The button goes to the Gen3, rated for 160A and motors above 3.5T, with a 32-bit processor.
Buy the ZX Pro Gen3 at AMain (opens in new tab)
9. R1 Wurks Digital
2% of stock racers
75% of its racers run it in 2WD and a third in 4WD, and two-thirds pair it with an R1 motor. Racers mostly name the Digital 3. The button goes to R1's current Digital Pro on R1's own site.
Buy the Digital Pro at R1 Wurks
10. Muchmore Fleta
2% of stock racers
Rounds out the stock list, with three-quarters of its racers in 2WD and a quarter in 4WD. Racers pair it with a mix of motors, led by Muchmore, then Trinity. The button goes to the Fleta Pro V3.
Buy the Fleta Pro V3 at AMain (opens in new tab)Most popular ESCs for modified racing
368 racers named an ESC on a setup with a modified motor. Hobbywing has 62% of them, followed by Reedy at 9%. Modified racers are spread across many brands, so this list covers ESCs with at least 8 racers.
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro40%
- Hobbywing QuicRun 10BL1208%
- Reedy Blackbox 610R4%
- Pro Performance RC XSC150P3%
- Reedy Blackbox 510R2%
- Tekin RSX2%
- Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Justock2%
1. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Pro
40% of modified racers
Modified's clear favorite and the XR10 built for it, with about five times the racers of anything else: 43% of 2WD modified racers and 35% of 4WD run it. The G3 is rated for 160A and motors down to 5.5T in a buggy, with three saved profiles and data logging. 64% of its racers pair it with a Hobbywing motor. Of those who named a generation, about three in four run a G2 and the rest a G3, and the button goes to the G3.
Buy the Pro G3 at AMain (opens in new tab)
2. Hobbywing QuicRun 10BL120
8% of modified racers
More common in modified than stock here, with 60% of its racers in 2WD and 40% in 4WD. The button goes to the sensored G2.
Buy the sensored G2 at AMain (opens in new tab)3. Reedy Blackbox 610R
4% of modified racers
Reedy's ESC for both stock and modified, rated for 160A and motors down to 4.5T. It's almost entirely 2WD in modified, and 69% of its racers run a Reedy motor.
Buy the 610R at AMain (opens in new tab)
4. Pro Performance RC XSC150P
3% of modified racers
One of two ESCs here more common in 4WD, where about six in ten of its racers run it.
See the XSC150P at Speedy RC5. Reedy Blackbox 510R
2% of modified racers
The 610R's predecessor, rated for 150A. Nearly all of its racers run it in 2WD, and two-thirds run a Reedy motor. The button goes to the 610R that replaced it.
See the 610R at AMain (opens in new tab)
6. Tekin RSX
2% of modified racers
The other ESC here that leans 4WD, where three-quarters of its racers run it, and half pair it with a Tekin motor. The button goes to the RSX Pro.
Buy the RSX Pro at AMain (opens in new tab)7. Hobbywing XeRun XR10 Justock
2% of modified racers
A stock ESC that shows up in the mildest modified classes, nearly all of them in 2WD. The G3S it links to is limited to 10.5T motors and up, so check that before you put it on anything hotter.
Buy the Justock G3S at AMain (opens in new tab)4WD short course trucks
Most 4WD short course racers don't enter a motor wind, so very few of them are in the lists above, and many run a bigger ESC. Of the 105 who named a model, the most common are the Hobbywing Max10 at 23%, the Hobbywing XR8 Pro at 21%, the Hobbywing XR8 SCT at 15% and the Tekin RX8 at 12%.
How we counted
We count anonymous totals from setups saved in the app. A racer counts once per ESC no matter how many setups they've saved, and a value only counts if the racer entered it themselves, not if it came along with a copied setup. An ESC counts as stock or modified by the motor on the same setup: a wind of 13.5 or higher is stock and anything lower is modified. A racer who runs both counts in both lists. Plenty of racers leave out the model or the motor wind, so these rankings only cover the ones who entered both. Many racers don't say which generation they run, so generations are counted together. Setups with a ready-to-run motor, like the Traxxas Titan or Velineon, aren't in the stock or modified lists. Specs come from the store listing for the version each button goes to.
