Commuter bikes: The best bikes with full equipment for everyday use

If you are looking for a versatile, sporty bike that will also get you through everyday life, you will quickly end up with a gravel bike these days. Some manufacturers offer these all-round talents with lights, mudguards and pannier racks as standard. Quick, practical and roadworthy, these fully equipped gravel bikes are the ideal everyday companion - whether in bad weather or in the city. We explain what makes a good commuter bike and show you some recommended models.

What is a commuter bike anyway?

Road bikes and gravel bikes equipped with accessories suitable for everyday use are often referred to as randonneurs or commuter bikes. The randonneur is originally a high-quality road touring bike with mudguards, pannier rack and lights. Commuter bikes are appropriately equipped commuter bikes with comparable features, but there are no technical differences between the terms. Whereas specialised bikes were developed for this purpose in the past, the task was later often taken over by inexpensive cyclocross bikes that were fitted with accessories. Today, these commuter bikes are usually based on appropriately equipped bikes, favourable gravel bikes.

Gravel bikes as the ideal basis for commuter bikes

The Gravel bikes turn out to be the ideal basis for a roadworthy all-weather road bike. Cyclists also benefit from the robust construction, safe handling and usually comfortable riding position on their daily journeys through the urban jungle. The wider tyres are a safety advantage that should not be underestimated, as they not only cope better with kerbs and potholes. They are also less prone to punctures than typical road bike tyres due to the lower air pressure. Commuter bikes benefit from advanced road bike technology and high-quality accessories in equal measure. Low-maintenance disc brakes, bright LED headlights with hub dynamos, wide yet fast tyres - everything that used to be annoying about racing bikes in winter has been radically improved in recent years. There are still weaknesses in detail today, but overall the bikes offer a lot of riding fun for commuters, even in bad weather.

The tyres are usually somewhat narrower than on classic gravel bikes (30-38 millimetres), so that they are still firm and stable. Mudguards fit into the frame. This makes the bike a little more road-oriented and less suitable for off-road riding, and the tread of the tyres is usually only slightly pronounced. Due to the narrow tyres, the handling of the commuter bike is somewhat more agile and closer to that of a road bike. The gears offer many gears, including very light, minimalist single-speed drivetrains are the exception.

Commuter bikes: carefree packages thanks to customised accessories

The commuter bike category is characterised by the extensive range of accessories fitted as standard. This is because it turns the commuter and bad weather bikes into true carefree packages:

• Fixed mudguards not only keep the rider dry and clean, but also protect the drivetrain and brakes from splashing water from the tyres. It is important that the mudguards are wide enough and the tyres clearly overlapotherwise the water will fly past the side. They should also be long enoughso that they also protect your feet and the drive unit from splashing water. A mudguard on the rear wheel that is as long as possible prevents those travelling behind it from being hit by road dirt. The brackets are stable and matched to the frame or fork.
• Ideally, the lighting works with a hub dynamoso you don't have to worry about the batteries. Powerful front spotlights with LED technology illuminate the road perfectly without dazzling oncoming road users. A good rear light requires no more than three red LEDs, However, it should not only be clearly visible from behind, but also from the side.
• A good pannier rack does not have to have a high load capacity, as this only makes the models unnecessarily heavy. For typical applications, 15 to 20 kilograms is easily enough. More important for good handling with luggage is a construction that is as laterally rigid as possible. Bags can be easily attached to the side of many modern carriers using a click system.
• Passive lighting usually has to be retrofitted. Instead of classic spoke spotlights, we recommend using reflective tubes that you clip onto the spokes and/or tyres with a reflective sidewall. Stickers made of reflective foil on the frame or rims also increase visibility in poor conditions.

Good commuter bikes at a glance

In recent years, TOUR has tested commuter bikes from various manufacturers. Here we present a selection of recommended models that make winter road cycling or commuting to work more enjoyable:

• Bulls Daily Grinder 3
• Scott Speedster Gravel 40 EQ
• Bergamont Grandurance RD Elite
• Cube Nuroad Race FE
• Rose Backroad GRX810
• Rose Backroad AL
• Orbea Vector Drop LTD
• Lapierre Crosshill 3.0
• Centurion Crossfire Gravel 2000 EQ
• Ribble CGR AL
• Radon Regard 9.0 FE