What iRacing is
iRacing is a motorsport simulation built around internet racing. An iRacing membership gives you access to the service, where you race from home against other people in organized events. The game covers a wide range of disciplines, including oval racing, road racing, dirt ovals, and rallycross, with cars ranging from the Formula Vee and GT3 and GTE classes to NASCAR Whelen Tour Modified and SK stock cars, the BMW M Hybrid V8, and the Dallara IR18. Tracks are built from laser scan data, and the simulation models changing track conditions through a Dynamic Track System that handles dust parameters, rain drainage, and how solar energy affects asphalt.
Racing together with your group
iRacing is built as a massively multiplayer service, so your group joins the same online sessions and races against each other and against the rest of the field. The Steam features list Online PvP and Online Co-op, so you can compete head to head or work together in shared sessions. Race Servers use an Anycast network routing protocol that connects you to an endpoint close to you, even when the server itself is far away, which keeps the connection direct rather than routing through public infrastructure halfway around the world. The Sim UI includes a Track Map widget with four variants, a Fuel Calculator, and an Incident Tracker, all of which help you keep track of what is happening during a race. Controls Profiles let you save and load different control configurations quickly from within the Sim, which is useful when several people share a rig.
Before you start
AI Racing is available for those who want to practice or race without a full grid of human drivers. As of the 2026 Season 3 Release, AI Racing covers twelve Dirt Oval track configs with the Dirt Street Stock and Dirt Legends Ford '34 Coupe, and Heat Racing support for AI opponents is in place. Rain racing is supported for four vehicles: the BMW M2 Racing (G87), the EURO NASCAR RC01, and both Formula Vee body types. The iRacing Launcher is where you find events, and its Series Discovery interface helps you browse and target the series you are interested in. Some events carry Series-Specific Sporting Regulations that add an extra layer of real-world rules, so check the regulations for any event you enter before you line up.