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Aug 23, 2023

Best road bikes under £3,000 in 2023

Got £2,000 to £3,000, or between $2,000 and $3,000, to spend? Here are your

Got £2,000 to £3,000, or between $2,000 and $3,000, to spend? Here are your best options as tested by the BikeRadar team

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By Matthew Loveridge

Published: November 29, 2022 at 9:00 am

Choose one of the best road bikes under £3,000 or $3,000 and you can expect a great ride and high-quality spec. You’ll usually get a carbon frameset, although some of the best aluminium road bikes will come in this price range. The best steel road bikes and best titanium road bikes are also options if you’re looking for a different frame material, while some of the best women's road bikes are also available at this price.

If you’re looking to spend less, we’ve also got guides to the best road bikes under £2,000 and best road bikes under £1,000, while you can also home in on the best endurance road bikes or browse our full library of road bike reviews if you’re looking for something else.

Not sure what you’re looking for in a road bike? We can help you choose the right road bike for you…

The best bikes in this category tend to be the all-rounders that can take a decent stab at everything. Think lightweight frames that offer all-day comfort for those sportive riders chasing fast times, but that will also hold their own on your local chain gang.

These are bikes targeted at the sweet spot between stiffness, comfort and weight, while keeping prices affordable for the enthusiast. And, for this price, you can expect to find bikes with the latest features, including thru-axles and quality hydraulic disc brakes in many cases.

More specialist models, such as some of the best climbing bikes or best aero road bikes feature, although many of these performance-focused bikes are way more expensive.

Also, bear in mind that the type of riding the term ‘all-rounder’ encompasses is widening because the best gravel bikes are so versatile.

Whichever bike you choose, the good news is if you’re spending this sort of money you’re unlikely to be disappointed with your purchase.

You could certainly spend a lot more on a bike if the urge takes you, but over £3,000 or $3,000 the margins for improvement get smaller and smaller, while the prices get a lot higher.

So-called ‘halo’ bikes from the major manufacturers now routinely exceed £10,000 / $10,000 but, unless you absolutely have to have the latest top-spec model, that kind of outlay is very hard to justify.

Boardman's SLR offers a lot of kit for the money, with a full SRAM Rival groupset rarely seen at this price, along with Boardman's top-spec and svelte C10 carbon frame.

It has a somewhat firm, racy ride that rewards an aggressive style while retaining enough comfort for long rides. Hidden mudguard mounts and sensible gearing lend year-round practicality.

Boardman also makes a women's-specific version of this unisex bike.

Pitched as a four-season road bike, the steel-framed Strael can handle 36mm-wide tyres and mudguards. You can also fit a dynamo front hub with internal cable routing. There are custom-designed chainstays that help give the Strael exceptional ride quality.

The Strael is available in tall and regular options across the five different sizes, allowing a good fit for a broad range of riders, with each bike built to order.

It's a comfortable all-day ride, but with some extra stiffness from the ovalised tube profiles, it handles and responds better than many round-tubed steel bikes.

The Giant Defy is the brand's endurance bike and, in this spec, it's not only relatively affordable but offers a great ride that's not too upright, with Giant's D-shaped carbon seatpost adding compliance at the saddle.

The Defy is really well specced too, with a SRAM Rival eTap AXS electronic groupset and tubeless 32mm Giant Gavia Fondo 1 tyres on Giant's own lightweight wheels, soaking up road imperfections. We found it hard to fault.

The Cannondale CAAD13 incorporates enhancements from the brand's premium SuperSix EVO carbon racer. Seatstays are dropped, tyre clearance increased to 30mm and aerodynamics are improved.

The groupset is Shimano 105 with Cannondale cranks, and the brand supplies the finishing kit and wheels too. Mudguard mounts are a practical bonus.

Once you start riding, the CAAD13's assured handling, decent climbing and zingy ride assuage concerns about value. Still, it's £500 less than the carbon-framed and equivalent-specced SuperSix EVO and a better bet than other carbon bikes.

Canyon has updated the Endurace frameset for 2022 and the mix of light weight and comfort, a quality spec and the SRAM Rival eTap AXS wireless shifting make it a compelling choice. Rival gives 12 speeds with a sub-1:1 lowest ratio of 35x36t and a top end that's slightly higher than a 50x11t.

There's clearance for 35mm tyres, although we were disappointed that the 30mm rubber fitted wasn't tubeless-compatible. There are no mudguard mounts either.

However, the ride is first-rate: speedy with great handling, while the combination of a quality Fizik saddle and Canyon's VCLR seatpost make for great comfort. The Endurace is available in eight sizes too, so it should fit a wide range of riders.

Designed with extra compliance from its fork and seatstays, the Cube Attain GTC SL nevertheless offers the responsiveness for effective climbing and fast descents.

Cube bikes usually represent good value and this Attain spec comes with Shimano Ultegra and 28mm tyres on Fulcrum wheels, although we reckon a wheel swap would really bring out the bike's best performance. The Newmen cockpit is comfortable but stiff.

The Focus Izalco Max adds aero to its predecessors’ low weight, and its frame features dropped stays and truncated aerofoil tube profiles.

Focus gives you a full 105 hydraulic groupset and 45mm-deep Alexrims carbon clinchers.

The Izalco isn't the lightest bike in its class, but it's no heavyweight and it offers a racy ride. The only real niggle we had with the bike was an odd whistling noise present at normal riding speeds.

Kinesis has long been a go-to for practical everyday bikes designed for the realities of UK riding. The RTD is no exception, offering racy handling plus disc brakes and the ability to fit full mudguards.

Like other bikes from the brand, the RTD is sold as a frameset, so you can build it up to suit your budget.

The Merida Reacto 4000 gives you aero bike performance without the price tag. The cheapest Reacto in the range, it's equipped with Shimano 105 and uses lower-spec carbon than the pro-level models.

The frame weighs around 200g more than those more expensive bikes, but Merida says it has exactly the same ride characteristics and aerodynamics.

There's hidden cabling from the cockpit and room for 30mm tyres. Nice touches include a built-in rear light in the seatpost and a multi-tool concealed under the saddle. You should aim to upgrade the shallow wheels and low-spec tyres to bring out the bike's potential though.

We’ve also reviewed the slightly more expensive Merida Reacto 6000, if you fancy a spec upgrade to Ultegra.

With aggressive geometry enabling nimble handling and a firm, lightweight carbon frame with aero characteristics, the Planet X Pro Carbon is built for speed.

This doesn't mean the bike is uncomfortable on poorly surfaced roads, because the Pro Carbon has clearance for up to 30mm tyres.

Available as a frameset or entire bike from Planet X, the Pro Carbon is high quality at almost incomprehensibly low cost.

Despite the name, the Endurance SL is a racy machine and one that's very on-trend, with aero tube profiles throughout, dropped seatstays and an integrated aero cockpit.

Ribble gives you a full Shimano Ultegra groupset at this price, but a range of alternative builds starting at around £1,600 are also available.

The Scott Addict is designed for endurance rides and sits below the pro-level Addict RC in Scott's bike range. It shares the RC's aero tube profiling, although its carbon make-up is designed to be more compliant than the RC's.

There's clearance for 35mm tyres and you can mount mudguards. Full internal cable and hose routing makes for a clean front-end and the size 56's 8.3kg is good for the bike's price and Shimano 105 mechanical spec.

The taut frame leads to lively performance, while the long wheelbase keeps the handling calm and predictable despite the steep head tube angle, which makes fast cornering sharp and accurate.

Scott's Syncros-branded finishing kit works well, although its wheels are a little narrow by today's standards for the 32mm Schwalbe tyres and aren't tubeless-compatible.

The Vitus Vitesse Evo CR Rival AXS seems to be worth more than the sum of its parts. A light frame and fork, SRAM Rival AXS groupset, high-end alloy wheels and decent tyres round off a remarkable build for the money.

Aggressive geometry turns the Vitus Vitesse Evo CR Rival AXS into a fast, agile racer that doesn't abandon comfort. Since it doesn't have mudguard mounts, winter road riding might be all the bike isn't suitable for.

The Vitus ZX-1 EVO frame is now aero-optimised. Vitus claims the design, which mimics the geometry of the Vitesse Evo race bike, reduces drag by a fifth compared with the previous model.

Whichever spec you go for, the Vitus ZX-1 EVO has fully integrated cable routing. Paired with deep-section carbon wheels and an aero bar and stem, these propel the ZX-1 to high speed at stunningly low cost.

Unlike many aero road bikes, the ZX-1 manoeuvres more like a racer. The ride is by no means plush, but far less severe than you’d expect from such an aero bike.

The All-City Zig Zag combines an old-school steel frame with the best of modern tech, such as a carbon fork, hydraulic disc brakes, tubeless wheels and tyres as stock, and clearance for up to 35mm tyres.

All things considered, it's great fun to ride. It handles very confidently and feels faster than its 9.71kg weight and steel tubing would suggest.

There's no denying All-City's wonderfully stylish steel bikes are a little pricier and heavier than your equivalent carbon road bike, but we’d also argue the Zig Zag has a lot more character.

Priced competitively for an Italian race bike, the Basso Venta Disc 105 has clean, classy lines, aero tube profiles and a more endurance ride position than Basso's Diamante. The frame geometry retains a racy edge and the ride quality is quite firm, although not uncomfortable.

The 105 spec comes with 28mm tyres, but you can increase that if you want, while the stock wheels weigh over 2kg, so we’d expect a lighter set of hoops to liven up the ride considerably.

A steel frame and 650b wheels with 47mm tyres make the Audax something different from most endurance road bikes. It's not a gravel bike though and feels fast and lively on tarmac, coping well with typical rough road surfaces and hurtling down descents.

We rated the drivetrain, which is a mix of Shimano 105, with a 48/32t chainset and an 11-34t cassette, paired with an Ultegra RX clutched rear derailleur. The saddle was a bit hard and narrow for our tastes though.

A cheaper version of Cannondale's pro-level all-rounder race bike made with lower-spec carbon fibre, the SuperSix EVO Carbon 105 boasts aerodynamic Kammtail tube profiles and dropped seatstays for great ride quality and smoothness.

The groupset is Shimano 105, but with a Cannondale 52/36t chainset with FSA chainrings. It works well. Better wheels and tyres would bring out the frame's ride qualities though and with recent price increases we questioned the value.

Billed as a fast all-rounder, the Felt FR Advanced Disc is stiff and agile, with racy geometry figures. The frame has been around since 2017, but its features still rival modern bikes, although at 28mm its clearance is not as large as newer entrants.

We rated the stiff frame's climbing, with the bike's 52/36t chainset and 11-30t cassette offering enough range for steep hills. There's a bit of road buzz at the front on poor surfaces, although the rear of the bike feels comfortable and compliant.

The Kinesis Aithein Disc frameset is a racer's dream at a good price. The stiff alloy frame responds quickly to accelerations, suiting fast-paced club runs and competitive riding.

Although the ride may be too uncompromising for some, the pared-back Aithein frame is not meant to deliver all-day comfort. It excels at what it's designed to do – hammering along the flat, and up and down climbs.

You can build up the frameset as you wish. The Ultegra-equipped build we reviewed costs £2,680.

Lapierre has added aero tube profiles to its Xelius lightweight bike, with the seatstays fixed to the top tube rather than the seat tube for extra flex, leading to a really smooth ride quality.

The geometry is quite aggressive, long and low, but at this spec the Xelius isn't particularly light at 8.8kg. It feels more lively than this headline number would suggest though, thanks to lively handling and impressive bottom bracket stiffness.

Orro might not yet have the history or social status of an established WorldTour brand, but it more than makes up for that by offering fast, smooth bikes that represent excellent value for money.

If you want a racy aero bike that delivers a smooth ride, even on British roads, and is rapid on undulating courses, then Orro's Venturi Evo 105 could be right up your street.

The Specialized Allez Sprint Comp shows a superbike can still be alloy. Geometry and tube shapes are identical to the Tarmac SL7, the brand's do-it-all road bike. The frame's responsiveness could lead you to believe you’re riding a carbon bike, albeit a heavy one.

Value is iffy though. The stock wheels and tyres don't harness the frameset, one of the best of its material type. A host of lighter and better-specced carbon road bikes are similarly priced or cheaper.

Contributor

Matthew Loveridge (formerly Allen) is BikeRadar's former senior writer, an experienced mechanic, and an expert on bike tech who appreciates practical, beautifully-engineered things. Originally a roadie, he likes bikes and kit of every type, including gravel bikes and mountain bikes, and he's tested a huge variety of all three over the years for BikeRadar, Cycling Plus, Cyclist.co.uk and others. He looks like he should be better at cycling than he actually is, and he's ok with that.

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