In this article I’m going to give you my list for the most comfortable road bike tires.
As a complete tire nut, this list was much harder to make than many other lists I’ve compiled on the subject of tires. The term comfortable is not exactly easy to measure, but takes out most of what could be deemed subjective. I’ve looked at a combination of experience, tire volume, and TPI or threads per inch as a good starting point.
Most comfortable does not necessarily equate to fast. Riding a time trial bike doesn’t look more comfortable than riding a city commuter, and it isn’t. But it doesn’t mean you have to trade one for the other. Tire manufacturers are always looking for ways to incorporate all aspects riders are looking for, including the combination of speed, comfort, longevity, and puncture protection. But those tires that combine high numbers in those categories do command a premium for obvious reasons.
I’ve included tires with a width sitting between 25 and 28 mm. More volume obviously means more comfort, but the average road bike frame wasn’t built for tires wider than 28 mm. You should be looking in the gravel bike section if 28 mm is still too slim for you.
Another factor is suppleness, or how the tire conforms to road irregularities and absorbs them instead of sending them through to the rider. This is where TPI comes in, with a higher TPI count equating to higher levels of comfort. You do have to take tire pressure into account as well, but since a tire doesn’t come pre-inflated, it’s up to you to decide what suits you best.
TPI for road bike tires goes up to 120. Higher numbers are calculated simply by adding the TPI count of multiple layers. This would explain a TPI of 300, which would be the result of adding 3 layers of 100 each. By playing around with the TPI count, the thread material (nylon, cotton, silk) and the amount of rubber, you can infuse your tire with suppleness. Unfortunately, suppleness is not a standard in the tire industry, so for now we’ll have to rely on TPI as simply another metric that tells part of the story at best.
So that’s about what I have to say for an introduction. Let’s go to the list of most comfortable road bike tires.
Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR
Continental is known for their light-weight tire offerings and the Continental Grand Prix 500 S TR is no exception. It’s the tubeless ready version of the standard Grand Prix 5000, which is a clincher tire.
The tubeless ready Grand Prix 5000 has the same excellent stats. A 220 TPI moderately supple tire, that comes in your standard 25 and 28 mm width versions. At 250 grams for the 25 mm and 280 for the 28 mm version, these tires are pretty light. And on top of that, this tire scores extremely high markers in the rolling resistance department. That means you can check both light and fast of your list of requirements, when you go for this tire.
A tan wall version is included among the sizes for those who want to mount them.
- Light, very fast-rolling race tire, tan wall option available
- None
Schwalbe Pro One Tube Type
The Schwalbe Pro One is a top-tier tire from the German brand, which can also be used for time trials.
It’s very light and has one of the best low rolling-resistance numbers. Like many super-fast tires it’s still a clincher tire.
The 23 mm version weighs 215 grams and the 25 mm version 235 grams. The 25 mm version also comes as a tan wall.
- Super fast, lightweight, tan wall option available, one of the very best race tires on the market
- None
Vittoria Corsa Speed
The Vittoria Corsa Speed is basically Vittoria’s time trial version of its regular Corsa. A tubular tire where a considerable amount of rubber has been shaved off to create a 23 mm width 200 gram tire in either black or tan.
All that reduction in weight does of course come with a penalty, so this tire is best reserved when you really want to go really fast. Or else the 140 dollar price tag for a tire that isn’t all that durable might not be the best option for the average rider.
But if you do decide to go for this tire, just to experience what it feels like, you can rest assured that the 320 TPI count will provide both a very smooth and very fast ride, which will hopefully make you forget how much money you spent for that ride.
- Very fast, lots of grip
- Meant for race day, very pricey
Road Bike Tires Weight Rating
I’ve always been fascinated by bicycle tires, and road bike tires offer some of the most premium pieces of rubber you can put on your rims. It’s a good place to save quite a bit of weight without paying a really large amount of money. It’s not like there are titanium or carbon tires, which are traditionally materials to make bicycle products lighter that are very expensive.
The lightest 700C tire I’ve looked at is the Veloflex Record, which is a track tire sitting at 135 grams for a 23 mm version. The heaviest tire I’ve taken into account is the Schwalbe Lugano II Endurance weighing 490 grams for the same 25 mm tire width.
In the following graph you can find the weight ratings for each tire. The weight ratings represent a relative percentage irrespective of tire width and only looking at 700C versions of the respective tire. The numbers are compared against each other resulting in a percentage of 0 for the relative heaviest tire and 100 for the relative lightest tire.
Road Bike Tires Puncture Protection Rating
Nobody likes a flat tire. It’s one of the most jarring things to break the flow of a ride. That’s why puncture protection is an important factor when considering a certain bicycle tire.
Puncture protection sits at the other end of the tire weight, suppleness and possibly grip. The more rubber you add to a tire, and the more layers of protection sit underneath it, the more weight you add, and the stiffer your tire gets. That’s why racing tires have the most minimal protection, and touring or 4-season tires the most.
The puncture protection ratings you see here are a function of TPI, in combination with tire weight, and puncture protection technology added to the tire. From sidewall protection, multiple breakers and tire belts.
Specifications most comfortable road bike tires
Name | Size | ETRTO | Weight (gr) | Tread color | Sidewall color | Compound | Puncture protection | Tire bead | TPI | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Challenge Strada Pro | 700Cx25 | 25-622 | Black | Tan | SuperPoly | PPS2 | tubular | 300 | ||
Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR | 700Cx28 | 28-622 | 280 | Black | Black | BlackChili | Vectran Breaker | tlr | 2/220 | |
Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR | 700Cx28 | 28-622 | 280 | Black | Transparent | BlackChili | Vectran Breaker | tlr | 2/220 | |
Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR | 700Cx25 | 25-622 | 250 | Black | Black | BlackChili | Vectran Breaker | tlr | 2/220 | |
Continental Grand Prix 5000 S TR | 700Cx25 | 25-622 | 250 | Black | Transparent | BlackChili | Vectran Breaker | tlr | 2/220 | |
Schwalbe Pro One Tube Type | 700Cx25 | 25-622 | 235 | Black | Black | ADDIX Race | V-Guard | foldable | 2/127 | |
Schwalbe Pro One Tube Type | 700Cx25 | 25-622 | 235 | Black | Transparent | ADDIX Race | V-Guard | foldable | 2/127 |
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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