Documentation & help

Getting started

Achtbaan is a free directory of 103 of the world's major roller coasters. Open the home page and you land straight in the explorer: a grid of coaster cards, each showing the ride's park, country, type, key stats and a single transparent thrill score. There is nothing to install and nothing to sign up for.

Each card lists the real height, top speed, length, number of inversions, opening year and manufacturer, plus a short description and, for many rides, a real photo. Click Compare on any card to add it to a side-by-side comparison (see Comparing coasters).

Filtering & search

The toolbar above the grid narrows the list instantly as you change it:

• Search: type any part of a name, park, country or manufacturer into the search box; the grid filters as you type.
• Type: limit to Steel, Wood or Hybrid coasters.
• Country: pick a country to see only its rides. The list of countries is built from the data, so it always matches what is available.

The result count under the toolbar updates live so you always know how many coasters match. Filters and search combine; for example, wooden coasters in the United States sorted by height.

Sorting the rankings

Use the Sort by control to re-order the whole grid. You can rank by:

• Thrill score: the default; highest first.
• Top speed, Height and Length: biggest first.
• Newest: most recently opened first.

Sorting respects your current filters, so you can, say, find the fastest steel coaster in a single country. Jump straight to the ranked list any time with the Rankings link in the header.

Comparing coasters

Tick the Compare checkbox on any two or more cards. A comparison bar appears at the bottom of the screen showing your selection; press Compare there and Achtbaan builds a side-by-side table of every stat: park, country, type, thrill score, speed, height, length, inversions and opening year. The best value in each row is highlighted with a ★ so the winner of each metric is obvious. Use Clear to start a new comparison.

The thrill score

The thrill score is a single 0 to 100 number derived only from published statistics, never opinion, so rides can be ranked head-to-head. Each stat is normalised against a reference maximum, weighted, and summed:

score = clamp(speed  / 240  × 100) × 0.40
      + clamp(height / 140  × 100) × 0.28
      + clamp(inversions / 14 × 100) × 0.18
      + clamp(length / 2500 × 100) × 0.14

Speed carries the most weight, then height, then inversions, then length: the factors most riders feel most strongly. The full methodology, including the reference maxima, is on the About & methodology page. Because it is computed the same way for every ride, the score is comparable across the whole directory.

Photos & credits

Many coasters and the site's gallery use real, freely-licensed photographs. Every photo is self-hosted and attributed to its author and licence; the full list is on the Image Credits page. If you spot an attribution problem, tell us via the contact page.

FAQ & troubleshooting