What’s the best bike frame material?

There are all sorts of half-truths and downright myths spread about what’s the best bike frame material: aluminium ones are harsh; steel and titanium bikes are springy; carbon-fibre frames outrank any other…

But the truth is, you can make an excellent bike from any of these frame materials. The ride characteristics have more to do with how the bike is designed and built than the frame material used.

Sure, some aluminium bikes do transfer bumps in the road straight through to you in the saddle, but not all aluminium bikes are like that. Plus plenty of carbon bikes, for example, are equally harsh.

The point is that it’s dangerous to make too many assumptions based on a bike’s frame material. So, is there really a ‘best’ one? Let’s take a look at the options…

The benefits of a titanium bike frame

Titanium has never made up a massive section of the market, but brands like Van Nicholas and Enigma produce many tri models.

Lots of people talk about the springy ride quality, although the fact that titanium can be made into light, strong frames that are highly resistant to corrosion is a very important benefit.

Such qualities make titanium a popular choice for endurance road bikes and gravel bikes, for those with deep pockets. The downside of titanium is that it’s relatively expensive.

The benefits of a steel bike frame

Steel used to rule the roost and there are still performance bikes out there made of various types of steel tubing, from the likes of Reynolds and Columbus.

Steel is strong, stiff and potentially durable, but aluminium is a much lighter metal with a higher strength-to-weight ratio. This is why it took over as the frame material that most manufacturers used for their performance bikes.

Like titanium, steel works well on long-distance models which prioritise comfort over low weight and stiffness. The ride quality of steel also feels fantastic off-road if you don’t want a superlight gravel bike.

Whether you choose a steel or titanium frame, on more expensive models the fork will typically be carbon.

• Steel road bikes: 3 of the best reviewed for tri

The benefits of an aluminium bike frame

Aluminium comes in different grades with different properties. But things like tube diameter and butting (where manufacturers vary the wall thickness to save weight while retaining strength) are important, too.

Although 6061 aluminium is generally considered to be superior to 7005, you can’t assume that a frame made from it will necessarily be better.

Many road racers favour aluminium because, in the event of a crash, it’ll be cheaper to replace than carbon. Fingers crossed this won’t happen to you. But this is worth considering if you might compete in bunch races like criteriums.

Due to its value for money, aluminium is one of the best frame materials for commuter and winter bikes. Competively priced gravel bikes are often made from aluminium too.

The benefits of a carbon bike frame

Carbon fibre is the number one choice for performance bikes right now.

Nearly all of the mainstream manufacturers make their cheaper performance bikes from aluminium and their high-end models from carbon fibre.

A carbon-fibre bike won’t always deliver a higher performance than an aluminium bike. But manufacturers can use it to produce frames that are very lightweight, stiff in certain areas to maximise power transfer and more flexible in other areas for comfort.

Racy and performance-oriented gravel bikes are usually made from stiff, light carbon. The compliance of carbon is also good on less race-focused bikes though.

Again, there’s the issue of crashing, but nearly all mid- to high-end mountain bikes are carbon.

Carbon fibre can also be shaped relatively easily for aerodynamic efficiency. Therefore, the best triathlon bikes are almost exclusively made from carbon.