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2025 saw a whole host of new aero road bikes hit the pro cycling peloton but which is the best aero road bike for 2026? We've done lot's of aero road bike reviews in 2025 and these are the ones which we think are best if you want to go faster on the bike.
Here's our top 6 best aero road bikes which are currently on the market from Cervelo, Specialized, Giant, Boardman, Canyon and Ridley.
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The Colnago Y1 RS. Latest Cervelo S5 and Ridley Noah Fast 3 all joined the ranks of the pro
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peloton in 2025 with aero bikes being used in pro cycling more than ever. But if you've got your eye
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on a new aero bike in 2026, what is the best one out there? Well I've been lucky enough to ride lots
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of the latest offerings and these are my top picks for 2026 and a few which I would personally avoid
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If you want ultimate speed, then look no further than the recently updated Cervelo S5
0:35
I was recently invited along to the Cycling News Aero Bike Mega Test
0:39
and this was one of the fastest of the day, both without a rider on it
0:43
and more importantly, with a rider on it too. This latest version only sees some minor tweaks over the previous generation
0:51
so I'd keep my eye out for some bargains of that one too, but Cervelo has almost perfected its aero bike
0:57
Sure, it's not quite as light as some. For example, this build weighs in at 7.55 kilos
1:04
but it comes with some lovely kit on it. For example, the reserve wheels are excellent
1:08
and it handles like a dream. In fact, I got many Descent PRs
1:12
and even a KOM on my first few rides on this bike. So I think that's pretty good proof
1:17
that it's easy to feel confident on it. I was initially worried that this chunky front end
1:23
would mean it was a bit of a bone shaker, especially on less than perfect roads but it takes this kind of abuse with well far more grace than
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a lot of other aero bikes out there the van Riesel RCRF for example is a much firmer front end
1:36
there are a few negatives with this bike though a it will be expensive to get the fit you want as
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different bar widths are going to cost you extra and I'd personally go for a two by group set as
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the one by test bike had just two bigger gaps in between the gears if you want to see more on that
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then there's a video up there. Now if you want an aero bike that no one on your local group ride is likely to have but don want to compromise on performance then my pick for 2026 would be the Ridley Noah Fast 3 Now I must admit
2:08
I wasn't too enamoured by the looks of this bike when it was released and I also thought that the
2:13
low stack height and super steep seat tube angle would make it too aggressive for non-pro riders
2:20
Well, having ridden it, I am happy to admit that I was wrong. Kind of
2:26
For me, this bike was the best surprise of 2025. It rides exceptionally well. It's tested fast
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which is little surprise as Ridley has invested a lot of time and money into its own wind tunnel
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in Belgium. And it rides like an absolute tank. This is one of the most stable aero bikes that
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I've ridden. And actually, I rode this back to back against the Colnago Y1RS
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and the difference was stark. The Y1 RS, which you'll notice isn't in this list
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felt just a little bit disjointed and floppy at the front end
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Whereas you can absolutely nail this Ridley down anything. If you want an aero bike that is fast on bumpy roads
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as well as in the wind tunnel, then look no further. Now, before we take a look at my picks
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for the best value aero bike for 2026 and the best overall aero bike
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please make sure you're subscribed to the channel to support what we do and so that you don't miss any of our upcoming aero bike reviews
3:25
Some riders used aero bikes for every stage of last year's Tour de France
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with many now tickling the UCI weight limit. The bad news is that very often to get both aero and
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low weight, you need to remortgage a house, but you can get almost as much performance for a lot
3:41
less. It might not be as flashy but the sensible money is probably on this. I've scoured brand's
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ranges in both pounds and dollars and if I thought with my head and not my heart my money would be
3:54
going on a giant Propel Advanced Pro 1 Carbon wheels Tick Electronic groupset Tick Integrated routing Tick It has everything an aero bike should and yet it is less than half the price of the ones being used in the World Tour There not much else to say about it I sure you
4:11
can all argue with all my other decisions for all the other categories, but you just can't argue with
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Giants. They really do know what they're doing when it comes to making bikes, and they might not
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quite get your heart racing like an Italian thoroughbred, but it just works
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Sometimes aero bikes can come at a premium compared to climbing bikes. I guess you're
4:40
getting a bit more carbon fibre and I imagine R&D time for your money. But if you search around then
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there are some options which buck this trend. Just as a reminder we review all of the bikes
4:53
at RRP so don't forget to see if you can pick up one in the sales and we'll pop some links down
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below. At RRP if you're looking for wind cutting ability without the astronomical price tag then I
5:04
don't think you can beat this. This is the Boardman SLR 9.0. It's got 12 speed mechanical Shimano 105
5:12
Goodyear tyres and a full carbon frame and fork that's been designed using CFD but the key bit
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it's spent time in a wind tunnel to validate that. It's also under 1800 quid or 2400 dollars
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and is proof that you can get an excellent aero bike for less than some world tour wheel sets
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Now, very almost taking the top spot for best overall aero bike is the Canyon Aero CFR. I've
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thought long and hard about this. This is, of course, the bike of Jasper Philipsen and Mathieu
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van der Poel. And I believe when it released, Canyon claimed that this was the fastest bike in
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the peloton. Now, with most of our test bikes, I'm usually quite excited to get back on my own bike
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by the end of the review period. With this one though, I actually got in touch with Canyon
5:59
to see if I could hold onto it for a bit longer. I liked it that much Now Canyon has been slowly refining their Aeroad Aero bike over the last four generations And although not a lot has changed aesthetically
6:12
it's bang on the money when it comes to weight, speed, ride feel and maintaining the thing
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And for me, this is the right amount of aero without compromising so much comfort and weight
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that you don't want to use it on a lumpy group ride
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Now, with Canyon's new custom program, there are more options than before to make your bike look a little bit different to everyone else's
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because I know that was a criticism of Canyon before and well I'd happily have one of these
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back again please Canyon you're gonna hate me and I can feel the angriness in the comments already
6:48
I think the best aero bike for 2026 is the Specialized Tarmac SL8 now I don't know if you
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would strictly even class this as an aero bike it's the obvious choice I hate Specialized we've
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heard it all before in the comments but as it is one of the lightest bikes in the peloton but also
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fast enough for the team sprinters to use I'm counting it it's comfortable it's stiff it's
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physics bendingly light and it's unquestionably fast now whether you like Specialized or not
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they've got the resources and the know-how to make some excellent bikes and right now I think
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that it's the best in the world. Would I buy one? Well, no, I've got an SL7 and if rumours are to be
7:31
believed, then the SL9 might be with us in June. Even so, this is still the benchmark for others
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to be in 2026. The current generation of Cannondale Super 6 and the Trek Madone
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they just haven't managed to pull it off. So come on bike brands, 2026 is your year to finally
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dethrone the tarmac. Bring it on. It certainly looks like another exciting year for aero bikes
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we've already spotted new options from Factor. I really want to get on that new Argon 18
7:59
new Merida Reacto, and hopefully we'll be able to get our hands on all of them
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Let me know which one of these bikes you'd go for in the comments below, and we'll see you next time
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