Determination of the fastest rail vehicle in the world varies depending on the definition of "rail".

The world record for conventional wheeled passenger trains is held by France's specially tuned TGV (Train à Grande Vitesse). Reduced to three cars, it broke the world record in April 2007, reaching 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) on a 140 km section of track.

The maximum speed attained by a passenger train is held by Japan's experimental maglev train L0 Series, having achieved 603 km/h (375 mph) on a 42.8 km magnetic levitation track in April 2015.

The fastest manned rail vehicle was a manned rocket sled, which carried United States Air Force flight surgeon Colonel John Stapp at 1,017 km/h (632 mph).

Unmanned rocket sleds that ride on rails have reached over 10,400 km/h (6,460 mph), equivalent to Mach 8.5.