The Best Road Bikes of 2024
Bikes come in all different shapes and sizes, from suspension equipped downhill monsters to electrically assisted gravel bikes. Even the seemingly well-defined road bike category has a vast array of options from bikes built for all out speed to those that will provide all day comfort. We’re lucky enough to have spent time on a range of machines that fall into the road bike category so we’ve rounded up the best we could find so you don’t have to.
Cube Attain Pro
£1099 | See more at Cube
For:
Carbon Fork
Reliable 9 speed shifting
Internal cable routing
Against
Cable disk brakes
On the heavy side
Adopting the same geometry as it’s carbon framed cousin, the Attain Pro is a great introduction to the world of road riding with a 6061 aluminium chassis that has been designed to blend both comfort and performance. Despite being a budget machine, there are plenty of features that wouldn’t look out of place on a bike three times the cost. Semi internal cable routing makes for a very clean looking frame and bolt thru axles front and rear help to keep the bike stiff when really pushing on.
A full carbon fork and dropped seatstays help to reduce road vibrations and couple that with room for 28mm tyres and you’ve got yourself a very capable bike, not to mention one that looks great. The Attain Pro is decked out with a 9 speed Shimano Sora groupset and cable operated TRP Spyre disk brakes take care of stopping.
The whole package weighs in at 10.1kg and would provide a great platform for some choice upgrades; a lighter wheel and tyre combo would really liven the Attain Pro up and bring out the best of the aluminium frame.
Allez Sprint Comp
£2900 | Buy from Specialized
For:
Tidy looks
Sharp handling
Clever welding
Against:
Average wheelset
Heavier than carbon
Expensive for an alloy frame
The Allez from Specialized will hold fond many memories for many cyclists; perhaps it was their first bike or the bike they finally got their first win at a local race. Either way, the Allez is an iconic bike and a stalwart of the Specialized range. This doesn’t mean the folks in California have been resting on their laurels however, far from it. The latest iteration of the Allez has been christened the ‘alloy superbike’ by Specialized and we’re inclined to agree.
Using a unique manufacturing process dubbed D’Alusio Smartweld, the welds between tubes have been moved away from the junctions to produce a stiffer end product and it shows when out on the road. The Allez feels alive when you really get the power down and it clips along at a fair lick; likely helped by some aero touches such as the seat post. It’s mighty tiff but also comfortable enough to ride all day which can often be the downfall of race orientated bikes.
The Sprint Comp is decked out with Shimano’s ever reliable 105 groupset which provides accurate and reliable shifting across the 11 speed block. A pair of 52-36 tooth chainrings up front provide enough range to hoist yourself up mountains but also zip along on the flat.
Some might baulk at spending £2900 on an aluminium bike but you can be sure this is one of the best out there and we reckon it’ll outride even some carbon framed bikes.
Giant Defy Advanced 2
£2649 | Buy from Giant
For
Blends performance with comfort
Excellent value for money
Plenty of frame mounts
Against
Non series crankset
Might not be sporty enough for some
Giant bikes have long offered great value for money, combining loaded spec lists with competive prices and the endurance focussed Defy Advanced 2 is no different. The full carbon frame has been optimised for comfort, using a specific carbon layup to provide an efficient yet performance focused ride. The finishing kit is comfort optimised too, a carbon D shaped seat post and ergonomic handlebars add more comfort at no expense to performance. The frame is festooned with mounts for racks, mudguards and bottle cages to this would make an excellent winter bike or road focissed bikepacking rig.
An oversized bottom bracket shell and Giant’s ‘Overdrive’ steerer technology combine to ensure every watt is transferred to the road and the handling remains laser sharp.
Equipped with the same Shimano 105 groupset as the Allez Sprint Comp but costing £300 less, some savings had to be made. The most noticeable is the slightly heavier non series crankset however the performance will be almost imperceptible to the majority of riders. Gearing is a mountain friendly 11-34 paired with a compact chainset so there should be very few inclines too steep to tackle with this setup. Stopping is taken care of by the excellent hydraulic 105 callipers which we’ve found to be highly dependable in both wet and dry conditions.
The wheel and tyre setup on the Defy deserves a mention; the rims shod with 32mm wide rubber glides over even the most pothole ridden surfaces and thanks to a slight tread, could even tackle light gravel trails too. There’s space to fit a 35mm tyre if you’re aiming for all out comfort.
Trek Emonda SL6 Di2
£4150 | Buy from Trek
For
12 speed 105 groupset is cracking
Aero optimised yet light frame
Snappy handling
Against
Might be too harsh for some
Heavier than you’d expect for a climbing bike
If you fancy yourself as a bit of a mountain goat, then the Trek EMonda SL5 could be the machine for you. The Emonda is the lightweight road bike in Trek’s lineup, with every part of the frame being scrutinised to save grams. In recent versions of the frame though, Trek have introduded a few aero nods taken form the Madone to turn the Emonda into the ultimate race bike. There’s a few headline fugures thrown around here; the most interesting is that the new Emonda is 60 seconds faster on the flat over 40km and 18 seconds per hour faster up an 8% gradient. Us mere mortals might baulk at such measly gains but for those that fid themselves at the fornt of the Tour De France, this represents a big gain.
The SL6 Di2 takes this frame and packages it into a more affordable bike that we might have a chance of riding as opposed to the £12950 SLR 9.
Decked out with 12 speed Shimano 105 Di2, the Emonda SL6 Di2 would make an excellent race bike or just a machine for those that like to ride up hills quickly. The trickle down of electronic shifting to 105 level is very appealing for those looking to dip their toe into electric shifting but not at the cost of Ultegra. Bontrager tubless ready wheels and tyres complete this race focussed package but a set of carbon hoops would shave some weight off the 8.5kg weight.
Canyon Ultimate CF SLX 8 Di2
£6199 | Buy from Canyon
For
Razor sharp ride
Excellent spec for the money
Easily adjustable cockpit
Against
It’s hard to find much wrong with this package
Ridden to countless victories in races across the world, the Ultimate CF SLX is the pinnacle of Canyon’s race bike offering. Sporting a fully integrated cockpit, aerodynamically optimised tube profiles and a carbon layup optimised for performance, the Ultimate CF SLX is ready to be ridden. Hard.
This latest generation of the Ultimate is more of an incremental upgrade package than other brand might adopt but if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. A revised headtube design, updated fork design and chunkier seat stays all add up to a more engaging ride that will excite those looking to ride flat out everywhere. Canyon claim the headtube stiffness is up 15% and 10w more efficient than the outgoing model.
Spec choices are top tier too, with a 12 speed Shimano Ultegra Di2 groupset taking care of shifting and braking; there’s even a 4iiii power metre built into the left crank for those looking geek out over data after eery ride. The whole package rolls on a pair of DT Swiss ARC 1400 Dicut wheels which not only look fast, they ride fast too. The 50mm deep aero optimised profile slice through the air with devastating efficiency yet are light enough to not be a hindrance when the road heads skywards, not that thall be an issue anyway with the bike weighing 7.14kg.