9 of best saddles you can buy for mtb and gravel bikes - tried and tested
Our pick of the top saddles you can buy
Updated March 25, 2021
The saddle is the number one contact point that affects your comfort over a large part of your everyday ride. We've gone through the bulky to the outright uncomfortable saddles to bring you our pick of the best bike seats you can buy.
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The best saddles for gravel riding and mountain biking
Saddles come in all shapes and sizes to fit all shapes and sizes of humans. You might be able to find more or less comfort from different gels and foams that sit under the surface of the saddle. The width and length of the saddle will also effect how comfy the seat is for you.
Weight savings can be found in the material that the rails are made from. Materials range from blingy titanium and carbon, to weightier chromoly that won't break the bank. The rails also offer a smidge of flex, which your choice of material will effect.
While we can give you a list of saddles that have scored more than four stars in our tests, they are very personal so it's also up to you to find what fits you best.
- Specialized Women's Power Expert with MIMIC – £115
- Fabric Scoop Elite Shallow – £39.99
- SDG Duster MTN Ti-Alloy – £70
- Fabric Line Race Titanium – £52.49 - £59.99
- SDG Fly MTN – £52
- Fizik Luna X5 – £56.20
- Tioga Undercover Stratum Carbon – £169.99
- Bontrager Verse Elite – £79.99
- SDG Bel-Air V3 Lux-Alloy – £68.99
Specialized Women's Power Expert with MIMIC – £115
The new Women’s Power Saddle with MIMIC technology from Specialized is a pressure relieving seat that has eliminated soreness, created a saddle epiphany and simultaneously thrown a spanner in the works (in a good way) of the type of saddle I thought worked for me.
Fabric Scoop Elite Shallow – £39.99
The Fabric Scoop Elite Shallow is a Cro-Mo railed saddle with 3 shapes to suit riding style, the shallow style one tested is a very comfortable, well constructed saddle which benchmarks what a decent saddle should be.
SDG Duster MTN Ti-Alloy – £70
The SDG Duster MTN is a tough, robust saddle for long days riding. It’s perfect for trail and enduro riding with Kevlar sides to increase its toughness, balanced with titanium rails for lower weight and extra comfort. A broad nose makes it easy to shift weight fore and aft, plus there's a deep canal down the middle to reduce pressure.
Fabric Line Race Titanium – £52.49 - £59.99
Fabric is a now established name to the components market, and they've made quite an impression - especially with their line of saddles, I've spent the last couple of months putting as many miles into the Titanium railed Line model to see if it lives up to its claim of being "supremely comfortable for longer days in the saddle".
SDG Fly MTN – £52
The SDG Fly MTN is a tough, comfy saddle with enough substance to it for tough use, but not sacrificing on comfort or durability. The long nose design gives plenty of space for movement whilst riding and is padded at a medium level for all-day comfort without too much bulk. It's burly enough to take scuffs and knocks, but light enough not to be sofa like.
Fizik Luna X5 – £56.20
No strangers to the saddle market, Fizik now have an offering for the female mountain bikers too, in the form of the Luna X5. The slim design and low profile make for a comfortable ride if you like a relatively aggressive riding position.
Tioga Undercover Stratum Carbon – £169.99
Tioga's Undercover Stratum Carbon saddle is super-light, offers a unique build structure and gives potentially superb long-ride comfort – if the flat shape works for you.
Bontrager Verse Elite – £79.99
The Bontrager Verse Elite is designed for all kinds of riding and all genders and proves supportive, good looking, and comfortable. But if you don’t like cutout saddles, this one isn't going to change your mind either.
SDG Bel-Air V3 Lux-Alloy – £68.99
SDG has updated the classic Bel-Air with new shaping and dimensions. This V3 version on its Lux-Alloy rails is padded very well and impressively comfortable, but it’s just a little on the short side, and the pressure relief channel tends to pack up with mud.
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1 comments
I'm really surprised by just how comfortable the stock saddle is on my Calibre Two Cubed. I can ride 20 miles plus in unlined baggies in absolute comfort. I've had £100+ road saddles that were less comfortable