Road or gravel: which bike is for you?

Both have drop bars. Both are fast. The difference is where the road ends, and how much you want to keep going when it does.

Tyres decide most of it

A modern road bike runs 28–32 mm tyres; a gravel bike 38–50 mm. Wider tyres at lower pressure grip loose ground, float over gravel and smooth out broken tarmac. On a smooth road the narrower tyre feels livelier and holds speed a little better.

Check tyre clearance too: the widest tyre a frame accepts tells you what the bike can become. Many endurance road bikes take 32–35 mm; most gravel frames take 45 mm or more.

Gearing

• Road: two chainrings and close steps between gears, for holding a steady speed in a group. Groupsets such as Shimano Ultegra Di2 or Shimano 105 Di2 are built around this.
• Gravel: often one chainring (1x) and a very wide cassette, for steep, loose climbs and simpler shifting with muddy hands. Look at gravel bikes with Shimano GRX or with SRAM Rival AXS.

Geometry and handling

Road racing frames put you low and stretched, with quick steering. Gravel frames are usually a little taller at the front, longer in the wheelbase and slower to steer, which feels calm on rough ground and on long days. Endurance road bikes sit between the two.

Comfort and kit

• Gravel bikes often have mounts for bottles, bags and mudguards: useful for commuting and bikepacking.
• Road bikes are lighter and stiffer for the same money, and simply faster on tarmac.
• A gravel bike with a second set of road wheels and tyres covers a lot of ground; the reverse is rarely true.

Our rule of thumb

If more than a fifth of your riding is off tarmac, take the gravel bike.

If you ride mostly on roads, in groups or against the clock, a road bike will make you happier. If your best rides are the ones where you turned onto a track to see where it goes, go gravel.

Models to start with

• Road: the Specialized Tarmac SL8, the Giant TCR Advanced, the Specialized Aethos; for long days, the Cannondale Synapse or the BMC Roadmachine.
• Gravel: the Cannondale Topstone, the Cervélo Aspero, the Scott Addict Gravel or the Giant Revolt Advanced.

Or browse all our gravel bikes and road bikes, new and used.