# OBDLink MX+

- Source: https://stierproducts.com/products/obdlink-mx
- Category board: https://stierproducts.com/categories/obd2-scanners
- Placement: #5 of 16 in OBD2 Scanners, B tier
- Brand: OBDLink
- LP on this board: 568
- Last researched: 2026-09-10T13:39:18.554Z
- Method: https://stierproducts.com/methodology
- Dataset: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22062813 - every board at once, one dated snapshot per release, same licence, prices and photographs left out
- Reuse: Text, rankings, tier assignments, LP values and verdicts are free to quote and reuse with attribution to stierproducts and a link to the source URL (CC BY 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.

## Verdict

A small, sealed hardware dongle with essentially nothing to break, a decade-long track record of firmware updates, and no subscription treadmill - the strongest long-term ownership story in the category.

## For

- Sealed dongle design with essentially nothing to break
- Decade-long track record of firmware updates
- No subscription required
- Expert-level credibility per Road and Track's tested roundup
- A genuinely well-made, fast and reliable dongle

## Against

- No screen and no bundled diagnostic app; relies on third-party software
- Does not function as a true bidirectional scan tool, only reading and clearing codes
- Premium price whose justification reviewers repeatedly question

## Flagged as one to avoid

This product entered 1 of 3 runs as one buyers cross-shop but should not buy, rather than as a pick. It is published here rather than dropped.

## Evidence

Consolidated from 3 independent outlets

| Outlet | Said by | Stance | Link | Link status |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| I Am Car Hacker | - | - | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_UvpLkYewI | fetched and confirmed |
| Road and Track | - | B | https://www.roadandtrack.com/gear/g65024080/best-obd2-scanners-tested/ | fetched and confirmed |
| JustAnswer | - | D | https://www.justanswer.com/chevy/t8e65-obdlink-mx-wondering-use.html | outlet blocks automated checks |

## Nearest alternatives on this board

| Rank | Product | Tier | Page |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | TopDon Phoenix Nano | S | https://stierproducts.com/products/topdon-phoenix-nano |
| 2 | BlueDriver Pro Scan | S | https://stierproducts.com/products/bluedriver-pro-scan |
| 3 | Ancel BD310 | A | https://stierproducts.com/products/ancel-bd310 |
| 4 | Bosch OBD 1200 | B | https://stierproducts.com/products/bosch-obd-1200 |
| 6 | Innova 5610 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/innova-5610 |
| 7 | TopDon ArtiDiag 900BT | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/topdon-artidiag-900bt |
| 8 | Launch CR529 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/launch-cr529 |
| 9 | Innova CarScan Advisor 5210 | C | https://stierproducts.com/products/innova-carscan-advisor-5210 |
| 10 | Foxwell NT510 Elite | D | https://stierproducts.com/products/foxwell-nt510-elite |
| 16 | GOOLOO DEEPSCAN DS200 | F | https://stierproducts.com/products/gooloo-deepscan-ds200 |

The full board is at https://stierproducts.com/categories/obd2-scanners.

## What this tier means

- B: Good. A solid choice with real caveats worth knowing.

## How to read this

- Each category is researched in four independent runs, one per lens (expert consensus, value, reliability, community pulse). Every run ranks a board of candidates that deliberately includes products buyers cross-shop but should avoid. Placements score on a ranked ladder (LP), and tiers are derived from LP, so no tier is ever assigned by hand.
- LP is this product's points on its own category ladder. It is comparable within a category and not across categories.
- Link status reports what our pre-publication link check found when it fetched the cited URL. It says nothing about the quality of the review.
- A citation with no usable link is listed rather than dropped, and is excluded from the counted total above.

## Image

https://stspimgdevmfyk46r5vwkay.blob.core.windows.net/images/products/obdlink-mx.webp

Product photographs are not covered: they belong to their respective owners and are reproduced to illustrate the product being reviewed. Do not redistribute them under this licence.