Mario Kart World Characters: All 50 and How to Unlock Them

Mario Kart World has 50 drivers. 32 are open the first time you start the game, and the other 18 you earn: seven by clearing Grand Prix cups, eleven by getting turned into them with the Kamek item or by catching them with the UFO in Free Roam. Outfits are separate, and they come from Dash Food.

That is the whole answer. Below is the full list, what each locked driver needs, how outfits work, and what updates have changed.

Checked on 15 October 2026 against Nintendo's official update history for Mario Kart World (latest version 1.8.0, 9 September 2026 in the US), Nintendo's own tips article from 24 December 2025 and the items page on nintendo.com. The conditions for each driver are confirmed by Nintendo where Nintendo says it, and otherwise by two guides that agree: Super Mario Wiki (read on 15 October 2026) and Game8's roster page (last updated 17 June 2025). Where Nintendo Life (updated 1 July 2026) disagrees, I say so. I have not raced Mario Kart World myself, so nothing here is from my own laps.

Every Mario Kart World character

Mario Kart World came out on 5 June 2025 as a Nintendo Switch 2 launch game. Every driver below was in it on day one. The "since" column shows the one change: nine drivers that were locked in the first build became starting drivers with the day one patch, version 1.1.0, released on 4 June 2025.

Outfit counts are from Super Mario Wiki. Only the 24 main characters have outfits. The other 26 drivers wear one look.

Nintendo's 1.1.0 note only says it "increased number of characters you can select from the start". It does not name them. The nine names come from Super Mario Wiki and match Game8's list of starting drivers after the patch.

One disagreement to know about. Nintendo Life's guide lists Cheep Cheep as a Kamek driver and leaves Rocky Wrench out. Super Mario Wiki and Game8 both have Cheep Cheep as a starting driver and Rocky Wrench as a Kamek driver, and that is what I use.

How to get the seven cup characters

This is the easy part. Nintendo's own tips article says some characters open up "just by playing Grand Prix".

Clear a cup and its driver is yours. Super Mario Wiki and Game8 match on every pairing:

• Mushroom Cup: Donkey Kong
• Flower Cup: Daisy
• Star Cup: Rosalina
• Shell Cup: Lakitu
• Banana Cup: Birdo
• Leaf Cup: King Boo
• Lightning Cup: Bowser Jr.

Game8 says engine class and finishing position do not matter. You only have to finish the cup. So run them at 50cc if you only want the drivers. The eighth cup, the Special Cup, does not give a driver.

How Kamek and the UFO get you the other eleven

The other eleven are the odd ones. Spike, Cataquack, Pianta, Rocky Wrench, Conkdor, Peepa, Swoop, Fish Bone, Coin Coffer, Dolphin and Chargin' Chuck. These are what the developers called "NPC drivers": characters that also live in the world as background characters or hazards.

The Kamek item

Kamek is not a driver. Kamek is an item. Nintendo describes it as an offensive item that turns your rivals into other characters. Nintendo's tips article says certain characters become yours when a Kamek item transforms you.

So the rule is simple: when a rival's Kamek turns you into one of these eleven for the first time, that driver stays on your select screen. Super Mario Wiki and Game8 agree on this, and both say the character you turn into depends on the course you are on. So you need Kamek hits on a spread of courses, not the same one over and over.

Game8 adds a tip: Kamek usually turns up when you are running roughly 4th to 10th. That one is from Game8 alone, so take it as a guide, not a rule.

The UFO in Free Roam

This route came with version 1.3.0 on 23 September 2025. Nintendo's note says that in Free Roam "you can now transform into the character pulled into the UFO", and that UFOs became easier to find in the same update.

Nintendo Life and Super Mario Wiki both say this counts as earning the driver. Drive under a UFO to board it, find the character you want, and beam it up. You turn into it, and it is yours.

For players who struggle to get hit by Kamek on the right course, this is the cleaner route. You pick the target instead of waiting for luck.

One setting can block it. In Settings/Controller, if Dash Food is set to "Doesn't transform", Nintendo says the UFO will not transform you either. Leave it on while you are collecting.

Costumes and outfits

Outfits are separate from drivers. They come back from Mario Kart Tour, and in Mario Kart World each one has its own slot on the select screen.

How many outfits are there?

Super Mario Wiki counts 103 extra outfits across 24 characters. Nintendo Life counts 127 costumes including each character's default look. 103 plus 24 defaults is 127, so the two match. Game8's list of everything to earn in the game says 123, which I could not reconcile, so I go with the two that agree.

Mario has the most at nine. Luigi, Peach and Yoshi have eight. Donkey Kong and Pauline have one each. The 26 NPC drivers have none, and for them Dash Food is only a speed boost.

How to get them

You eat Dash Food. Nintendo explains it on the items page: the drive-thru restaurants are all over the map, the food is themed on the region you are in, eating it gives a short burst of speed, and "your driver's outfit might change as well".

Super Mario Wiki adds the detail that makes this work as a collection: the type of food decides the outfit, and once an outfit appears it is yours to pick any time.

Nintendo's own advice, from the tips article:

• Do it in Free Roam. You can move between regions quickly and try different foods.
• Open the Map from the main menu and hover over a character. It shows how many of that character's outfits you have and how many you are missing.
• Use Change Character from the menu to switch driver without leaving Free Roam.

So the method is: pick one of the 24 main characters, check the map count, drive to a region you have not eaten in yet, and hit the drive-thru. Repeat until the count is full, then switch character.

Peach Medallions do not give characters

Free Roam also has P Switches, ? Panels and Peach Medallions to collect. Super Mario Wiki lists all three as rewarding stickers for your vehicle. None of them gives a driver or an outfit.

Characters added by updates

None. I went through Nintendo's update history from 1.1.0 to 1.8.0, and no version adds a driver.

What the updates did change for characters:

• 1.1.0 (4 June 2025): nine locked drivers became starting drivers.
• 1.3.0 (23 September 2025): the Free Roam UFO can turn you into the character it pulls in.
• 1.6.0 (30 March 2026): invincibility time after a spin or crash now varies by character and vehicle.
• 1.7.0 (30 June 2026): characters and vehicles with low acceleration got more acceleration, and some characters glide faster.

The latest update, 1.8.0 on 9 September 2026, added ten SNES courses and room changes, but no driver. The full patch notes are on my Mario Kart World update page.

Is there DLC with new characters?

Not today. Nintendo has not announced a paid expansion for Mario Kart World, and no official page lists a new driver. There are rumours about guest characters, and I am not repeating them here. If Nintendo announces one, it goes in the table above.

If you are coming from Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, that is a different picture: its extra content came through the Booster Course Pass, which I cover in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass tracks.

Which character to race

The stats question is its own page. I put the character and kart pairings in Mario Kart World best combos, and the old Mario Kart 8 thinking is in my Mario Kart 8 Deluxe combinations guide if you want to compare.

My only advice here: pick a driver and stay in it for a while. It is how testing works in karting too: one package, a lot of laps, then judge it.

FAQ

How many characters are in Mario Kart World?

50 drivers on version 1.8.0. 32 are available from the start and 18 you earn in the game.

How do you unlock characters in Mario Kart World?

Seven come from clearing Grand Prix cups. The other eleven come from being turned into them by the Kamek item, or from catching them with the UFO in Free Roam.

How do you unlock Donkey Kong in Mario Kart World?

Clear the Mushroom Cup in Grand Prix. Any engine class works.

How do you unlock Rosalina and Daisy?

Rosalina comes from the Star Cup, Daisy from the Flower Cup.

Is Kamek a playable character?

No. Kamek is an item. It turns drivers into other characters, and the first time it turns you into one of the eleven NPC drivers, that driver is yours.

How do you get costumes in Mario Kart World?

Eat Dash Food from the drive-thrus. The food type decides the outfit. Free Roam is the quickest place to collect them, and the map shows how many each character is missing.

How many outfits are in Mario Kart World?

103 extra outfits across 24 characters, or 127 if you count each default look.

Have updates added new characters?

No. Version 1.1.0 moved nine drivers to the starting roster, but every driver was in the game at launch.

Does Mario Kart World have DLC characters?

No paid DLC with characters has been announced by Nintendo as of 15 October 2026.