Short answer: buy Tesla's own flaps if your priority is a guaranteed fit and a factory look, and buy aftermarket if your priority is keeping grit off the rocker panel behind the front wheel. Those are genuinely different goals, and the reason this comparison is not a quality ranking is that each option is better at one of them.
Mud flaps are also the one accessory on this site where the install can be irreversible, so the hardware question matters as much as the part. That is the part of the decision most listings are vague about, and it is where this page spends most of its words.
What actually differs
| Tesla factory part | Aftermarket (Tesloid, Tesery and similar) | |
|---|---|---|
| Fitment | Sold against your car and generation, so no research | Listed per generation; breadth varies by brand |
| Coverage | Conservative - close to the arch line | Usually larger, particularly behind the front wheel |
| Look | Reads as part of the car | Visible as an addition, to varying degrees |
| Hardware | Factory fixings and factory locations | Varies: some reuse existing points, some supply screws |
| Availability | Sold per model; stock follows current cars | Broad, including older generations |
| What you are buying | Certainty | Protection, and more of it |
The screw question, which is the real question
Some mud flap sets attach to existing fixing points in the wheel arch liner. Others ask you to make a hole. The difference is not about difficulty - both are straightforward with the car on the ground - it is that one is reversible and one is not. If you lease the car, or you expect to sell it, that is the whole decision and no amount of coverage changes it.
Read the listing for the words that tell you which you are buying: no-drill, existing mounting points, and self-tapping are the three that matter. If a listing does not say, assume it supplies screws and plan accordingly. The full install walk-through covers what to check before you start, including the one step that prevents a cracked liner.
How we chose
- Does the listing name your generation? The Juniper and the 2020-2024 Model Y have different arch shapes, and the Highland differs from the earlier Model 3.
- Does it state how the flap attaches, and whether drilling is required?
- How much of the area behind the wheel does it actually cover? This is what separates a mud flap from a trim piece.
- Is it in stock today, checked on the day of writing?
- Is there a stated downside? Every part here has one, and a listing with none is not telling you about its hardware.
Quick picks
| # | Product | Best for | Score | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Tesla mud flaps (factory) The safe flap. Buy it for certainty, not for maximum coverage. | Best if you want no decisions | 8.2 | |
| 2 |  Tesloid snow and mud flaps The coverage upgrade over the factory flap, for the people who need it. | Best coverage for a Model Y | 8.7 | |
| 3 | Tesery Model 3 / Model Y mud flaps The discreet flap. Choose it when you want protection nobody notices. | Best value, both cars | 8.2 |
Scores are our editorial assessment of fitment scope, published materials and coverage. They are not lab measurements and we have not tested these products.
1. Best if you want no decisions
Tesla mud flaps (factory)
Tesla's own part, sold per generation against your car, which removes the entire fitment question - the thing that goes wrong most often in this category. The trade is coverage: the factory flaps are conservative in size, which is the point if your objection to mud flaps is how they look, and a limitation if your objection is paint chips.
Best for: Owners who want a factory-fit flap and no drilling debate
Fits: Model Y (2020-2024) · Model Y Juniper (2025-2026) · Model 3 (2017-2023) · Model 3 Highland (2024-2026)
What works
- Fitment and finish match the car because it is the car maker's own part
- No question about whether a fastener will hold
What does not
- Smaller coverage area than the deeper aftermarket flaps
- Priced above several aftermarket sets that cover more
Manufacturer specifications
- Sold by Tesla for the specific Model Y generation
- Mounts to existing fixing points with no drilling
- Four-piece set
Specifications as published by the manufacturer. We have not independently tested this product.
Reference: Tesla Shop — Model Y mud flaps — we do not earn a commission there.
Specification sources: Tesla Shop Model Y mud flaps
2. Best coverage for a Model Y
Tesloid snow and mud flaps
Listed for the 2020-2024 Model Y and the Juniper separately, as snow and mud flaps rather than a styling part, which is the honest description of what a larger flap is for. If you drive on salted or gravel roads, more coverage behind the front wheel is the single thing that changes the outcome on the rocker panel.
Best for: Winter drivers who want more coverage than the factory flap
Fits: Model Y (2020-2024) · Model Y Juniper (2025-2026)
What works
- Deeper than the factory flap, which is the whole point of fitting one
- Stays flexible rather than going brittle when it is genuinely cold
What does not
- Deeper flaps are more exposed on steep driveway lips and curbs
- Finish is functional rather than invisible
Manufacturer specifications
- Flexible impact-resistant material chosen to stay pliable in cold weather
- No drilling required
- Separate 2026 Model Y and Model 3 part numbers
Specifications as published by the manufacturer. We have not independently tested this product.
Specification sources: Tesloid Model Y snow and mud flaps (2026), Independent Juniper mud-flap comparison
3. Best value, both cars
Tesery Model 3 / Model Y mud flaps
The broadest fitment list here - both Model 3 generations and both five-seat Model Y generations - at the value end of the category. The listing publishes less than the others do about hardware and material, so you are buying on fitment breadth. Check the included screws against your car before fitting day rather than after.
Best for: Owners of either car who want one brand to cover both
Fits: Model 3 (2017-2023) · Model 3 Highland (2024-2026) · Model Y (2020-2024) · Model Y Juniper (2025-2026)
What works
- Convenient if you run one of each car in the household
- Low profile, so it is the least visually intrusive flap in this group
What does not
- A line that spans two cars means you must read the variant picker carefully
- Lower profile means less protection than the deeper winter flaps
Manufacturer specifications
- Single product line listed for both Model 3 and Model Y
- No-drill fitment using existing arch fixings
- Four-piece set
Specifications as published by the manufacturer. We have not independently tested this product.
Specification sources: Tesery Model 3 / Model Y mud flaps
Who should buy which
If you drive mostly on paved, unsalted roads and your reason for being here is that you noticed a grit stripe behind the front wheel, the factory part is enough and it is the easy answer. You order it against your car, it looks like it belongs, and you will not think about it again.
If you drive on salted winter roads, gravel, or unmade surfaces, buy the aftermarket flap with the most coverage behind the front wheel that you are willing to look at. The rocker panel immediately behind the front arch is where stone chips concentrate, and coverage there is the only variable that changes the result. Are mud flaps worth it sets out how to tell whether your car is already showing the problem.
If you lease, prioritise the no-drill option over everything else, including coverage. And if you have a Model 3, note that the fitment lists are different from the Model Y ones even where the brand is the same - the Model Y mud flap roundup has the full set of Model Y options.
What mud flaps do not do
They do not keep the car clean. A flap intercepts what the tyre throws at the body immediately behind it, which is a narrow and specific job, and the rest of the spray that dirties a car arrives from the road surface and from other vehicles. Owners who buy flaps expecting a cleaner car are usually disappointed; owners who buy them expecting fewer chips on the rocker panel generally are not.
They also do nothing for the inside of the car, which is worth saying because the two purchases get made at the same moment. Noticing grit behind your front wheel usually means you have been driving on surfaces that are also depositing grit in the footwells, and the footwell is the surface where the damage is faster and the fix is cheaper. If you are buying flaps this week, check the carpet under your heels before you order.
Our call
Most owners are better served by an aftermarket set with real coverage, because the factory flaps are sized to be unobtrusive and that is a styling priority rather than a protective one. Tesloid's snow and mud flaps are the version of that we would buy for a Model Y, listed per generation and described as what they are.
Buy the factory part when certainty is worth more to you than coverage - a leased car, a car you are selling soon, or an owner who simply does not want to think about hardware. It is a real answer, not a compromise, and it is the one option here where a wrong-fitment outcome is close to impossible.
Questions people actually ask
Are Tesla's own mud flaps better than aftermarket ones?
They are better at fitting and at looking factory-correct, because they are sold against your specific car. They are not better at coverage - the factory flaps are deliberately conservative in size, and the aftermarket sets generally protect more of the area behind the front wheel.
Do Tesla mud flaps require drilling?
It depends on the set, which is why the listing wording matters. Look for no-drill, existing mounting points, or self-tapping screws. If a listing does not say, assume screws are involved and decide before ordering whether you are willing to make a hole in the arch liner.
Will Model 3 mud flaps fit a Model Y?
No. The wheel arch shapes differ between the two cars and between generations of each, which is why brands publish separate part numbers. Buy for the car and for the generation.
Do mud flaps affect range?
Nothing we can measure or cite, so we will not claim a figure. Any aerodynamic effect from a small flap at the arch is not something we have data for, and a number invented for this page would be worth less than the honest answer.
Sources
- Tesla Shop - Model Y mud flaps (factory part)
- Tesloid Model Y snow and mud flaps listing
- Tesery Model 3 and Model Y mud flaps listing
Specifications and fitment claims on this page come from the manufacturer and retailer pages listed above. We have not tested these products and do not claim to have.
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