In this article I’m going to give you a selection of the best 650b tubeless gravel tires of today.
Both gravel tires and tubeless tires are relatively new technologies. And as such, almost all gravel tires are tubeless or tubeless ready. So that makes creating a list both easier and harder. Easier because there’s a lot of options to choose from, and harder because of the exact same reason.
Although I favor gravel tires from WTB and Panaracer in general, other big brand names like Maxxis, Vittoria, and Schwalbe have come along and created a number of 650b tubeless gravel tires that at least rival those from said brands.
The options listed here fall into a number of different categories, ranging from slick, semi-slick, to classic (smooth center with side knobbies) and aggressive (knobbies). All tires perform well in dry conditions on tarmac, gravel, and hardpack. But you obviously move from slick to knobby tires depending on your personal preference with respect to road conditions.
So without further ado, here’s my list for the best 650b tubeless gravel tires.
Continental Terra Trail
If summer gravel riding is one of your favorite pastimes the Continental Terra Trail will prove to be a more than adequate companion.
It’s a typical allround gravel tire that scores well with respect to puncture protection, grip, and weight. But stay away from muddy trails, for the tread will clog up quickly and with it any grip you might be looking for.
That’s fine so long as muddy rides are not your forte, and even if it was, you’d rather stay dry. The tire excels on dry hardpack, gravel, and fire roads.
- Solid gravel allrounder
- None
Kenda Alluvium Pro
The Kenda Alluvium Pro is a great summer gravel bike tire for dry conditions with just enough bite to tackle rougher conditions, should you encounter them.
A traditional-looking gravel tire has a rather smooth center tread and raised side knobbies. Such a design ensures a low rolling-resistance when going straight, but increased cornering confidence when you find yourself on rougher and twistier roads. The Alluvium pro has such a design and as such is a great allround option, that performs well enough when you start to demand more from your bike.
With its single ply casing it shouldn’t be the most puncture resistant when compared to its heavier brother the Kenda Flintridge Pro, but really rough and or wet and muddy conditions is not where you should take this tire anyway.
- Affordable gravel allrounder
- None
Maxxis Recepter
The Maxxis Recepter is a great-looking option for people looking into 650b slick tires with gravel characteristics.
Just as with the Continental Speed King it has hardly any tread pattern to speak of, but has small side knobbies for added grip when cornering.
It’s a lightweight performance tire sitting at 485 grams for a 1.85 width version.
The Recepter also comes with Maxxis’ tried-and-true EXO protection, which is hardly a luxury when taking your bike on rougher roads.
It means that this tire is a perfect companion for fast-riding on dirt roads and hardpack.
- Semi-slick tire, very light
- None
Panaracer GravelKing SS Plus (Tubed)
The tubed version of the Panaracer GravelKing SS Plus is a gorgeous plus sized gravel tire.
Fairly lightweight with excellent longevity and puncture protection, the black or tan-wall version are supple tires that will last you a long time.
Just as the slimmer version they offer minimal grip with an almost slick tread pattern adn extremely small side knobbies. It means that they are both excellent and fast-rolling road tires as well as light gravel and hardpack. The round profile of the tire with the minimal tread pattern ensures a plus ride in these conditions.
Panaracer GravelKing SK (TLC)
The Panaracer Gravel King SK has become my favorite gravel tire on the market. In my mind there are two brands that stand out from the crowd, and those are american-made WTB and their Japanese counterpart Panaracer.
I’ve been a longtime fan of Panaracer. When the gravel-craze took hold of the bicycle industry, they created the tire that would serve as the de facto standard for gravel tires with the GravelKing SK. It has just the right weight, just the right tread pattern, just the right puncture protection, and all wrapped up in a beautiful package, both in black and tan-wall options.
Deservedly so, the Panaracer Gravel King SK is in my mind the true fit-and-forget, all-weather, all-season option for gravel aficionados. But will serve those bikepackers and hard-riding daily commuters just as well.
- Superb allround gravel tire, very lightweight, with excellent puncture protection, ride characteristics, and with japanese build quality.
- None
Schwalbe G-One Allround
The allround in the Schwalbe G-One Allround refers just as much to its application as to its tread pattern.
It’s a fantastic grippy tire meant for riding in dry conditions. It has a pattern rather than easily discernible knobbies, making this the fastest allround gravel tire of this list. That’s why it performs exceptionally well on tarmac as on gravel.
The Super Ground carcass is found on tires that need to perform well in various conditions, and offers great rolling-resistance, durability and weight characteristics. The ADDIX SpeedGrip compound obviously favors speed above traction.
The tread pattern, the compound and tire carcass, all of those components make this one helluva speedy gravel tire for dry conditions.
- The best allround gravel tire from Schwalbe
- None
Schwalbe G-One Speed
If you’re a person who likes fast, plush rides on pavement and slightly coarse roads the Schwalbe G-One Speed is probably the best tire money can buy.
It’s an exceptional big volume road tire that’s light, nimble, and lets you rip down the road with a big grin on your face. It’s a step up in width from your average road tire, which means you get an incredibly supple and plush ride and loads of grip. Sure you have to sacrifice a bit in the rolling-resistance department when compared to a 25 millimeter road tire, but this tire is simply more fun to ride and much, much more comfortable.
And this tire doesn’t shy away from light gravel riding as well, broadening the range of application beyond very fast commuting.
- Extremely fast-rolling tire, great option for both gravel and commuting
- None
WTB Byway
WTB has been at the forefront of providing high-quality gravel tires and the WTB Byway is another great example of why the brand reigns supreme in that department.
The slick center line ensures this minimal gravel tire is fast when going in a straight line. But the pronounced side knobbies allow for enough confidence in dry summer conditions when riding hardpack and dirt roads.
Even a great tire such as this one has its limits, and the minimal tread pattern won’t fare well in wet and muddy conditions. Also grip on steep inclines with loose gravel might be less optimal because of its semi-slick nature. But to be fair that’s not the intended purpose of this tire.
So if your average ride includes pavement and gravel and speed is at the top of your list, this is a gorgeous option to choose.
- Fantastic semi-slick gravel option
- None
WTB Horizon
The WTB Horizon is a gorgeous and supple 650b slick tire, available in both black and true tan-wall options.
The 47 millimeter width tire comes in both a single ply 60 TPI and a more supple 120 TPI version. The center tread has no pattern whatsoever and is flanked by dual herringbone patterns to provide a modicum of traction when riding anything else but smooth tarmac and pavement.
It’s fully tubeless compatible and the round tire ranging between 515 and 571 grams for the various versions will make a plush ride indeed for any type of light gravel riding or urban commuting.
- One of the best slicks for gravel riding, plush ride quality
- None
WTB Resolute
The WTB Resolute is an allround all-weather all-season gravel bike tire, or so WTB claims.
And this claim does make sense, with WTB basically applying a baseline of solid gravel tire characteristics into this product offering.
It’s both a lightweight tire which enhances acceleration. And it sits in between slick tires and the aggressive tread pattern of the WTB Sendero, ensuring good grip and traction in all kinds of conditions, while going in a straight line or in corners, going uphill or downhill.
So does that make the WTB Resolute one of the best all-rounders in the gravel department. The answer is a resolute yes, pun intended.
- Fantastic allround 4 season option, one of the best gravel tires on the market
- None
650B Tires Weight Rating
Tires are one of the easiest and cost-effective places on your bike to save weight. Rubber is simply much less expensive than, say, carbon or titanium.
The weight ratings in the following table are not absolute numbers. You can find those numbers in the specifications table at the end of the article. The number you see here is a weighted ratio of weight related to tire width.
The number provides an indicator to quickly compare different tires against each other and have to be taken with a grain of salt. Mountain bike tires, which are also featured here, come in a huge number of different sizes, widths, and compounds. To obtain the best ratings I compare the lightest version of tires against each other.
650B Tires Puncture Protection Rating
How well a tire is protected against punctures is not the same as the amount of rubber compound is slapped onto the tire casing.
The puncture protection rating you see in the following table is the additional level of protection a tire has in the form of sidewall protection, and puncture resistant breakers or belts sitting underneath the center tread.
It means a heavy mountain bike tire can have a lower puncture protection rating than a gravel tire with an added puncture resistant layer.
Specifications 650b tubeless gravel tires
Name | Size | ETRTO | Weight (gr) | Tread color | Sidewall color | Compound | Puncture protection | Tire bead | TPI | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
WTB Horizon | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 532 | Black | Black | Dual DNA | tlr | 60 | ||
WTB Horizon | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 515 | Black | Tan | Dual DNA | tlr | 60 | ||
WTB Horizon | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 571 | Black | Black | Dual DNA | tlr | 120 | ||
Maxxis Recepter | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 484 | Black | Black | Dual | tlr | 120 | ||
WTB Byway | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 564 | Black | Black | Dual DNA | tlr | |||
WTB Byway | 27.5×1.85 | 47-584 | 535 | Black | Tan | Dual DNA | tlr | |||
WTB Resolute | 27.5×1.65 | 42-584 | 440 | Black | Tan | Dual DNA | tlr | 60 | ||
Continental Terra Trail | 27.5×1.60 | 40-584 | 430 | Black | Cream | BlackChili | ProTection casing | tlr | 3/180 | |
Continental Terra Trail | 27.5×1.90 | 47-584 | 460 | Black | Black | BlackChili | ProTection casing | tlr | 3/180 | |
Continental Terra Speed | 27.5×1.50 | 40-584 | 450 | Black | Cream | BlackChili | ProTection casing | tlr | 3/180 | |
Schwalbe G-One Allround | 27.5×1.50 | 40-584 | 450 | Black | Black | ADDIX SpeedGrip | Super Ground | tubeless | ||
Schwalbe G-One Allround | 27.5×2.25 | 57-584 | 650 | Black | Black | ADDIX SpeedGrip | Super Ground | tubeless | ||
Schwalbe G-One Bite | 27.5×2.00 | 50-584 | 535 | Black | Black | ADDIX SpeedGrip | Super Ground | tubeless | ||
Kenda Alluvium Pro | 27.5×1.80 | 45-584 | 514 | Black | Black | Single | tlr | 120 | ||
Kenda Flintridge Pro | 27.5×1.80 | 45-584 | 543 | Black | Black | Dual | tlr | 120 | ||
Kenda Flintridge Pro | 27.5×1.80 | 45-584 | 533 | Black | Black | Dual | tlr | 120 |
Johan van Seijen
FoundeR Restoration.bike
Johan van Seijen is the founder of restoration.bike. His passion for cycling in general, and restoring older bikes turned into a website to share his knowledge with a broader audience. Starting out on his father’s road bike and riding classics as the Amstel Gold Race and Liege Bastogne Liege he has shifted his attention to trail, XC, and gravel riding since. No matter how much he loves writing about everything related to cycling, nothing beats actually using his ever-expanding bicycle collection.
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