The 6 Best Bike Saddles of 2025

The Best Road Bike Saddles

Best Overall

Fizik Tempo Argo R1

Appearing to us more like a sleek, dark enemy spacecraft out of your favorite sci-fi film than a bike saddle, the Fizik Tempo Argo R1 certainly is a looker. But have no fear, it comes in peace, to offer up to you some of the best performance and comfort that can be wrung out a short-nosed saddle design that we've had the privilege of trying. The center cutout helps keep your most sensitive areas from being subjected to too much pressure extends almost tip to tail, widening just in front of where your sit bones rest. A perfect amount of padding is in place for putting down the power when you attempt to leave your friends in the dust. “With the Fizik Tempo, I feel faster!”, one of our testers sheepishly attests.

Measured Weight	204 g
Dimensions	L 260 mm, W 150 mm
Rail Material	Carbon fiber
Shell Material	Carbon reinforced nylon shell
Seat Cover Material	Microtex

The racing purebred of the Fizik Tempo Argo R1 probably means it's far too much saddle for more conventional rides outside of the parcours. “While testing, it was a little silly-looking to roll up to the grocery store with such a caliber of saddle like the Fizik Tempo Argo R1”. If you're just starting out on a smaller budget, the Bontrager Verse Comp may be a better fit. Properly installed, this saddle should last you many, many years of riding, but be careful with the carbon rails. Like all saddles that sport them, read the manufacturer's directions to see if you need a special seatpost clamp and/or a torque wrench. If that's not how you want to roll, check out the Prologo Dimension, which has excellent performance, but is easier and more universal to install with its alloy rails.

Best Premium Bike Saddle

Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror

The exotic-looking Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror is one of those bike components that turn heads and raise questions from your riding buddies, mostly about the web-like matrix of spongy rubberized material that takes the place of more conventional foam padding and leather-like cover. This is the Mirror 3D printed top padding that's specially designed to give you just the right amount of padding and support for the various parts of your anatomy. The firmest areas are right under your sit bone, with softer padding precisely graded around. The shape of the saddle itself puts your butt right where it needs to be for maximum effectiveness. And did we mention this saddle is light? Ours weighed less than 200 grams!

Measured Weight	192 g
Dimensions	L 260 mm, W 143 mm
Rail Material	Carbon fiber
Shell Material	FACT carbon fiber shell
Seat Cover Material	Mirror, 3D Printed

Does the Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror deliver on its promises of performance and comfort? Resoundingly, yes! “I'm naturally skeptical, but there is honestly something to the 3D printed tech of the Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror”, our tester noted. But it'll cost you – and dearly. If you're not ready to pay upwards of two to three times as much for this saddle as you would for others of similar quality, pass this saddle by and leave it for riders with full sponsorships. “It's pricey, but holistically saddles are one of the cheapest components on a road bike to upgrade, and who can put a price on comfort?”, our tester adds. The Romin Evo really is in a category of its own, but other worthy saddles to consider for ultimate comfort and performance are the Selle SMP Pro and Ergon SR Pro.

Best Buy Bike Saddle

Bontrager Verse Comp

If you're seeking to maximize the value of your hard-earned cash while riding an entry-level performance saddle, look closely at the Bontrager Verse Comp. Shaped like many of its much more expensive brethren with a wide center cut-out channel, snub nose, and just a hint of a center dip, this saddle is an excellent choice to kick-start your own riding obsession. “I would never have guessed this saddle was so affordable!” one of our testers admitted, “it possesses the comfort I need and dreamily fits me.”

Measured Weight	314 g
Dimensions	250 mm, W 145 mm (Short version)
Rail Material	Chromoly
Shell Material	Nylon
Seat Cover Material	F-24

What you gain from a more expensive saddle of a similar design can be boiled down to a loss of overall weight. The Bontrager Verse Comp weighs 314 grams on our scale — around 100 grams more than top-shelf options. If weight is important to you above all else, maybe consider a different saddle. The Fizik Tempo Argo R1 and Specialized Power Expert fit the bill if your budget allows it. “But let's be honest, as a Cat 3 rider at my peak, that low of a weight penalty isn't going to bother me.”, writes one of our testers, "I'd rather spend my budget on cappuccinos mid-ride!"

Best Bike Saddle on a Tight Budget

WTB Speed

Riding a bike should be something that everyone can enjoy, but we admit that this pastime can get expensive quickly! Enter the WTB Speed: a high-quality saddle that's sold for a fraction of the price of some of the other saddles on our list. “This would be my go-to touring and bikepacking saddle”, one of our testers notes, “I'm usually riding slower and more upright and the Speed's additional padding really pays off once I'm done for the day and at the campsite.” A shallow center cut helps alleviate pressure at key spots of your anatomy, and the durability of the saddle as a whole gives you peace of mind that it'll last a few slow-speed errors in navigation while avoiding potholes or errant cows that wander in your way.

Measured Weight	383 g
Dimensions	L 270 mm, W 145 mm
Rail Material	Chromoly
Shell Material	Dual compound nylon
Seat Cover Material	Microfiber

What the WTB Speed isn't made for — ironically given its name — is going really fast on the road. “I'd put the WTB Speed on your commuter, gravel or mountain bike — anything where you're not in a tuck position or sprinting in the drops for too long”, suggested our tester. Overall, the weight of the Speed is heavier than more expensive saddles and that's a compromise you'll have to make to fit your budget. It may be worth it, as this saddle could just outlast more expensive options in the long run. If you want a more road and race-ready saddle at an extremely fair price, check out the Bontrager Verse Comp. For more moderate duties, there is the Velmia Smart Zone Concept and Planet Bike A.R.S. Classic.

Best for Endurance Rides

Ergon SR Pro

Eschewing the latest trends of short, stubby noses and exceptionally deep center cuts, the Ergon SR Pro practices a slightly different philosophy when it comes to its design. A longer nose and a flatter profile let the rider move fore and aft a little more easily, rather than being locked into a smaller area. This can help with relieving pressure on very long rides by allowing the sitter to adjust their position on the fly. “The Ergon SR Pro is one of my top choices for the long rides up the sensational mountain passes we have around here in Colorado. This saddle can eat up 100 miles no problem”, beamed our lead tester.

Measured Weight	336 g
Dimensions	272 mm, W 160 mm
Rail Material	TiNox titanium
Shell Material	Carbon fiber
Seat Cover Material	Microfiber

Like any saddle, your own bottom is what will determine if it's the perfect one for you, but there's a reason shorter saddles are so popular: they're more universally accepted by most riders for being good if not great for their needs. “If I were racing more often, I'd probably go with a shorter saddle, but since endurance is my jam, the Ergon SR Pro and I are still in love!”, admits our lead tester. If you feel similarly, the World is awash with shorter-nosed saddles, like the excellent Fizik Tempo Argo R1, Specialized Power Expert, and the Prologo Dimension.

Best for Anatomic Relief

Selle SMP Pro

Weight: 383 grams | Intended Use: MTB, Touring, Commuter

The Selle SMP Pro stands out with its exceptionally unique drooping nose and long, shaped profile. One wonders: what's it all about? Supreme comfort — and for some, the relief from the pain other saddles bestow upon a rider's hapless bottom sides. The secret recipe includes many albeit extreme design decisions: a massive center channel that extends to almost the tip of the long nose to alleviate pressure on sensitive soft tissue, a middle dip and whale-tale backside to encourage one to sit in exactly the right place, while also sporting a rounded profile as seen from the posterior to assist in spreading the pressure from a rider's bodyweight. This distinctive design is excellent for larger riders who may benefit from more seat under their pants than other wispy models. “I've struggled with saddle comfort, but I finally found a great match for me in the Selle SMP Pro.”, our lead tester attests. Long rails also allow for lengthy fore/aft position adjustments to get your own fit perfectly dialed.

Measured Weight	326 g
Dimensions	L 278 mm, W 148 mm
Rail Material	Stainless steel
Shell Material	Carbon reinforced nylon 12
Seat Cover Material	Microfiber

What makes the Selle SMP Pro so unique may be its greatest weakness: it's just a little more fiddly to set up than other saddles. And this fitment needs to be absolutely perfect, or riding comfort could suffer. “I'll admit, it took me a few rides and a lot of playing around to really get it in the right position. Once I did, I finally got the appeal to this funky saddle.”, our lead tester adds. The size and shape of the saddle also contribute to its overall weight, which is heavier than that of saddles of the same performance. And the exclusive, exotic design comes at a real-world cost that may turn off many, only attracting riders who have tried everything else before. If the design seems too extreme, check out the Ergon SR Pro for a longer saddle with a flatter profile, or the WTB Speed for a saddle made for more upright positions, which also brings along a little more padding than other saddles.

Compare Products

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	Score	Product	Price
	88	Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror Best Premium Bike Saddle	$450
	85	Fizik Tempo Argo R1 Best Overall	$210
	82	Ergon SR Pro Best for Endurance Rides	$130
	77	Selle SMP Pro Best for Anatomic Relief	$269
	77	Prologo Dimension	$149
	73	Bontrager Verse Comp Best Buy Bike Saddle	$100
	72	WTB Speed Best Bike Saddle on a Tight Budget	$48
	71	Specialized Power Expert	$200
	53	Velmia Bike Saddle	$38
	52	Planet Bike A.R.S. Classic	$30

How We Test Bike Saddles

To find the very best bike saddles on the market, we first researched are the strongest products out, then we hand-selected the ten most promising saddles that we determined represented an excellent range of characteristics that thoughtful and careful buyers like you would be most interested in. We then compared this collection in our side-by-side testing. Each saddle was mounted up on our favorite bikes and taken on rides to work and to the grocery store, on our favorite country and gravel roads, and up the most picturesque hill climbs we could manage. We rode in all sorts of conditions found in Springtime in Colorado, from perfect bluebird days to errant snow storms — and everything in between. We took these saddles on bikepacking trips and to try to PR our favorite strip of tarmac. More than a few times, we made it simply to the coffee shop for a quick two-shot espresso, or rambled through town on cruiser bikes.

Our bike saddle testing is divided across five different metrics:

• Comfort (30% of overall score weighting)

• Performance (30% weighting)

• Versatility (20% weighting)

• Durability (10% weighting)

• Weight (10% weighting)

Why Trust GearLab

For the last 7 years, our private peloton of cycling enthusiasts has swung our legs over 30 different saddles to give you the most excellent insights on what the best saddle for your own riding could be. Justin Simoni has taken the captain's chair on the Bike Saddle review. He first cut his teeth riding and racing fixed-gear bicycles in the city and cyclocross races in the suburbs. Hooked on bikes, Simoni sold off his last car and has since ridden a vibrant career in long-distance cycling. From touring lazily around Europe for months on end, learning French, studying art history, and eating all the pastries in sight, to his two tours of duty on the 2700-mile cross-country Tour Divide mountain bike race. Justin lives in the American road bike training hub of Boulder, CO where he rubs shoulders with rainbow jerseys past, present, and future while spinning up his favorite area climbs: Chapman, Flagstaff, and Magnolia. Find him and his colorful bike enjoying a cappuccino mid-ride at the Italian-inspired coffee shop while he plans his next ultra-endurance adventure.

Analysis and Test Results

Once we tuned up our bicycles for the season and with our spread of saddles sorted out, we aimed to separate all the advertised marketing promises from real-world results by going out where the rubber meets the road and the bike saddles meet our bib shorts. We weighed each saddle, measured them on multiple planes, made notes of the padding softness, thickness, as well as the general shape of the saddle, and how all of these disparate points affect the overall performance. But most importantly of all, we pedaled our hearts out all over the place using every saddle, learning from first-hand experience how these saddles performed. On pavement and grinding through gravel, and on singletrack, to the store and across our favorite parcours. We pedaled upright, deep in the drops, and all positions in between. In the below chart, we evaluated each bike saddle across five rating metrics: comfort, performance, versatility, durability, and weight.

What's the Best Value?

The bike saddles in our lineup vary greatly in price, which can make the decision on which one to buy trickier than we sometimes would like it to be. Some of the best-scoring saddles in our reviews are also some of the most expensive, but are they worth the price? The German-made Ergon SR Pro delivers a high performance score, while also fairing excellently in versatility, durability, and weight. We especially adore it for all-day rides.

If you want to level up, but don't want to take a second mortgage out on your house, this is a saddle to look closely at. Likewise, the Prologo Dimension is an absolute standout in delivering excellent value for your money when performance in a racing saddle is critical. Not trailing too far away is the Bontrager Verse Comp, which makes an absolutely solid entry-level saddle that punches well above its MSRP, would have you guess. We'd be happy riding this saddle in races where we're pretty sure our bikes may see some abuse, like in cyclocross and even MTB.

Lastly, the WTB Speed is one of the least expensive saddles we'd ride anywhere. It's probably best suited for riding where durability is a big concern, like on gravel roads and singletrack.

Comfort

Although one of the most subjective metrics in our review – nobody's bottom is exactly the same – comfort is also one of the most critical characteristics of a saddle to get absolutely right. A saddle is one of the three primary points where your body makes contact with your bike. If you can't sit on a saddle for hours on end, what's it even worth in the long run? For this metric, we first inspected each saddle and noted every design decision that contributes to its overall comfort: size, shape, padding, and any cutouts to alleviate pressure on sensitive bits. Then, we gave each saddle an extended test ride to see how they fared on those long rides. Some saddles only worked for a few hours and then became unbearable, turning an otherwise lovely ride sour.

At the top of the comfort is the Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror. This saddle is unique to our review as its 3D printed topside has a spongy, spiderweb network of interlocking, rubberized nodes to provide plushness, while also being tuned for each area of the saddle itself. Softer padding is found in the tip of the nose, while firmer, more supportive padding is found underneath where your sit bones rest.

Not to be completely outdone, the Fizik Tempo Argo R1 pulls off incredible comfort as well in a short-nosed design, featuring a wide center cutout area and a continuously sloping lateral profile, which helps distribute your weight. Think about picking this saddle up for fast riding and racing.

The Ergon SR Pro is one of our favorite saddles for long-distance riding, where continual comfort, even at the end of the ride, is what we're wishing out of our gear. Its relatively flat profile lets us move around and out of the saddle easily, letting us adjust how we sit over our pedals.

The Selle SMP Pro takes little patience to dial in, but once you do, its very shapely profile works like magic for some, giving your tush a perfectly snug seat for pedaling long distances. One of the secrets of its design is the extremely aggressive cutout that mirrors the human hip anatomy, working with your body instead of fighting against it.

Prologo Dimension Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror

Naively, one may equate “more padding” with “more comfort”, but this isn't entirely the case. Padding on most of the saddles in this review is minimal, as most are designed to be used on road bikes in somewhat aggressive positions, where much of the load is being shared by the saddle, handlebars, and pedals. Too much padding actually makes for an uncomfortable ride after a few miles. The exception is for saddles made to be ridden in a more upright position. The WTB Speed is a comfortable saddle with more padding to bear additional weight. The Planet Bike A.R.S. Classic takes padding to a whole new level. It's super plush to ride on short trips around town for errands and bar-hopping, but we wouldn't suggest it for long-haul rides; it wasn't designed to support.

Performance

A saddle plays a critical role in performance on a bike. It's your legs that are doing the pushing that moves you and your bike forward, and the fulcrum to the giant lever that is your legs rests on the saddle. Being able to apply pressure into the pedals to turn your cranks at 90+ revolutions per second is what makes for a fast and efficient ride. A good saddle is also important in maintaining control and good handling of your bike. Again, we took to the road and trails to test out how these saddles performed in the real world. We noted how each saddle handles while at a constant pace, while sprinting, climbing, on tops and in the drops. We noted which position felt the best for each saddle and if there were any styles of riding we'd avoid.

Many of the saddles we look at in this review ticked excellent performance marks. The Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror showed up on the top of our results. If you like saddles that keep you pasted into your seat to crank out mile after milke, this could be a great saddle for you. Likewise, the Selle SMP Pro performed well in keeping you in a neutral position to let your legs do the talking, even when pushing out serious watts. If you like a longer saddle and want the ability to move around a little bit more while not sacrificing performance, the Ergon SR Pro is made for you. We like it both for long miles of pancake flat gravel as well as for climbing steep pitches, as we can micro-adjust where our sitbones rest.

If your riding style is more aggressive, go for a short-nosed saddle, like the Fizik Tempo Argo R1, Specialized Power Expert, or Prologo Dimension. These are, first and foremost, racing and fast riding saddles that perform at a high level for everything from crits to stage races.

Versatility

If you're like us, your love of riding transcends what sort of bike you throw your leg over, and if you could find a saddle that works in more than one specialty, you'd buy multiples. That's one way we tested versatility: by putting each saddle on different bikes of ours and see how they ride. Can a saddle work for road, gravel, and MTB? Can we commute to work, then join up with some buddies for a fast training ride, before heading on home, “shortcutting” through some open space trails?

The Ergon SR Pro topped our list of most versatile saddles. For off-pavé duties, it especially shines as it's one of the few saddles we have that has a center cutout area that is partially filled in to avoid the problem of water and debris hitting our derrière when we ride through slop. The venerable WTB Speed has a similar design decision for its center cut and would make an excellent seat for your next cross-country MTB bike, no matter if you're planning to spend a few hours on the local trail or literally pedal across the country on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route.

The Bontrager Verse Comp has a little bit more padding to help you venture off of perfect pavé and into the rough stuff, be it some country B roads or a little cyclocross racing action. Its snub-nosed design will still allow you to hit the turbo button to sprint out the last few meters to nab and KOM's nearby.

If you don't need such versatility, but are just looking for a saddle on serious budget to throw own a townie, commuter, or a bike you lend out, it would actually make sense to steer away from fancier saddles, as they could contribute to your bike becoming a magnet for thieves. The Velmia Bike Saddle is a reasonable saddle to replace a broken saddle on that bike that may be hanging in your garage unused, so that you can pedal around town and meet up with friends.

Durability

Saddles – like many aspects of a modern bicycle can be an investment. We always want what we spend our hard-earned money on to last a reasonable amount of time while also being able to take on a little bit of abuse in the sometimes-chaotic sport of cycling. While testing out each saddle, we noted any untimely problems with wear and tear, as well as suspect design decisions you may want to consider. We also noted any additional features of a saddle that actually enhance the longevity of a saddle.

The WTB Speed garners the top honor for durability, which makes sense, as it's primarily designed for mountain biking. Along with its bombproof construction, the backside of the padding actually has reinforced panels to handle bumps, scuffs, and unforeseen crashes better than without.

For more aggressive road saddles, the Bontrager Verse Comp is a darling. It's steel rails and other design decisions that don't compromise durability for lighter weight that offer a lot of assurance when elbows start brushing up against each other. The Ergon SR Pro is renowned for its durability, and we can certainly confirm that with all our rides. We've ridden this model saddle for years, but even we were surprised to realize for just how long they've been stalwarts on our whips.

The Selle SMP Pro continues the legacy of Italian cycling craftsmanship. While not the lightest saddle by a country mile, quality and non-compromises on materials mean that this saddle's initial upfront investment is worth it in the long run.

The Planet Bike A.R.S. Classic is one of the least delicate saddles in our entire lineup. This saddle is best for the mean streets of city riding, where your bike may be locked up outside for long periods of time and subjected to use and abuse that's unlike its more hobby-centered brethren.

Weight

Absolute weight on road racing bikes is certainly an important factor in designing your own dream rig. Upgrading your saddle to something lighter can actually be dollar for dollar a less expensive way to achieve a more gossamer rig when compared to other more expensive components, like fancier wheels or a svelter drivetrain. Saddles are near-universal, so you can move from one bike to another! Of all the metrics we test for, the weight of the saddle is the least impactful, but we make sure to factor it into the overall score.

Several saddles have vied for top honors, but in our roundup, the Specialized S-Works Romin Evo with Mirror is the overall lightest saddle of the group, coming in at only approx. 192 grams for the 143 wide model, thanks to its mid-length, its stubby carbon fiber rails, and its top padding that's mostly made up of air rather than material!

At 204 grams, the Fizik Tempo Argo R1 is not far behind. Its shorter length, its own abbreviated carbon rails, and its massive center cut help with keeping the weight down.

The Specialized Power Expert and Prologo Dimension also come in at around 215 grams, rounding out the top flyweights. These two saddles have metal alloy rails, which contribute to being just ever so slightly heavier.

Conclusion

We appreciate you for taking a ride with us and seeing the bike saddle landscape around us. Picking the right bike saddle for you and your bicycles can feel overwhelming, especially if the wrong saddle leaves you a little more uncomfortable than you were hoping! The spectrum of saddle styles, profiles, and what they're best used for seems vast, and making sense of everything you're being told, bewildering. We've tried our best to get to the “bottom” of it all, and deliver you straightforward information on ten of the most popular models of saddles which we've tested side-by-side to find for you what could be your favorite bike seat ever!

Here at GearLab, we love writing bike reviews, and our testing team is made up of passionate cyclists. Whether you're seeking road biking gear or on the hunt for the best gravel bike, we have you covered with comprehensive reviews of the best bike gear on the market.