A gravel bike with suspension might help make your off-road riding a little more comfortable. But not all gravel bike suspension is created equal, so choosing the right suspension system isn’t trivial. In this guide, we’ve collated a range of the best gravel bikes with suspension and, lower down, provide you with pointers to help you to choose.
Over the last few years, there’s been an increasing divergence in the best gravel bikes, with what was once a homogenous do-it-all genre rapidly splitting into gravel race bikes at one end of a spectrum that extends to gravel adventure bikes at the other.
Gravel adventure bikes are getting more like mountain bikes, with geometry that’s slacker and longer. And at the extreme end come gravel bikes with suspension, usually with wide tyre clearance and wide gear range too. Read on for our pick of gravel bikes with added bounce.
Reviews of the best gravel bikes with suspension
Why trust Cyclist’s advice?
At Cyclist, we bring you reviews of the top bikes across the gravel and road spectrum, along with news and views on bike launches and bike tech. Although we’ve not reviewed all the bikes below, and in some cases we’ve ridden the rigid fork version of a bike that can be bought with a suspension fork, we’ve reviewed a fair crop of gravel bikes with suspension. So we know what to look for and are able to suggest bikes that might suit your requirements if you’re looking to add some extra bump-smoothing to your gravel rides.
We’re not paid for our reviews or product placement and all bikes are independently selected by our hugely experienced team, so you can trust Cyclist to bring you unbiased advice.
Best gravel bikes with suspension reviewed
BMC URS
From €5,499 | Buy here
BMC gives you a choice with its URS 01 gravel bike range, as it offers models without front suspension or with a suspension fork or stem. All URS 01 bikes also include the brand’s Micro Travel Technology (MTT) system at the rear. You can also choose a URS bike (without the 01), which has neither front nor rear suspension.
Rear MTT offers just 10mm of travel via a tuneable damper between the seatstays and the seat tube. There’s also the option of an MTT suspension fork. This works rather like Specialized’s Future Shock system (see below) and provides 20mm of travel with a tuneable hydraulic damper. Finally, there are URS bikes with an MTT suspension stem, based on the Redshift Sports damped system.
We rode the BMC URS 01 Three, which has both the rear and stem MTT suspension elements. BMC’s Gravel+ geometry is more akin to a mountain bike than a road bike, longer and slacker. This led us to push the gravel boundaries into true MTB terrain, where the URS offers confidence and stability. The suspension makes the URS 01 better suited to rides that don’t mix in too much tarmac though.
Cannondale Topstone Carbon Lefty
From £6,350 | Buy here
The Cannondale Topstone Carbon offers 30mm of travel at the rear across the range, thanks to its Kingpin system that, much like the BMC URS, links the seatstays to the seat tube using an elastomer damper. Choose the Lefty though and the front swaps a rigid fork for Cannondale’s distinctive Lefty Oliver single-legged suspension fork, which in the latest generation Topstone has travel increased from 30mm to 40mm.
The Lefty fork does have its downsides, as it limits the choice of wheelsets and makes removing the front wheel more complex. On the plus side, you can remove the front tyre without taking the wheel off.
Cannondale aims the Topstone Lefty at comfort on fast, light gravel rather than singletrack riding, but we found the suspension tech a boon on UK roads, even before we’d hit any gravel. It’s adept on more techy ground too, despite what Cannondale says, although the bike weight of just under 10kg and the added bounce make speed changes and climbing harder.
Canyon Grizl
From £3,299 | Buy here
While most specs of the Grizl are sold with a rigid fork, Canyon offers two options with its own 40mm travel Rift suspension fork, developed with DT Swiss. This has a remote lock-out on the handlebars, placed below the left shift lever, and the option to add load sleeves for extra carrying capacity. You can also choose a Rift fork on the Grail CFR gravel race bike.
In early 2026, you can choose between the Grizl CF 8 with a Rift fork and standard handlebars in Canyon’s OG range or the Grizl CF 9 ESC, which also features Canyon’s Full Mounty handlebars, which allow you to add luggage, accessories or extensions. Both Grizl specs include the Canyon VCLS split shaft seatpost, which provides 20mm of vertical travel.
Giant Revolt X
From £4,999 | Buy here
The Giant Revolt X adds a Fox Air 40mm travel suspension fork and a dropper seatpost with 30mm of suspension to Giant’s gravel bike, making for a fully-suspended ride. As with the standard Revolt, Giant includes a flip chip in the rear dropout, so you can tune the handling and add or remove tyre clearance.
The suspension smooths out ruts and rocks, although the Revolt X is more suited to flowy, non-technical gravel than to trail centre-style berms and jumps. We reckoned the ride position isn’t really well-suited to technical ground, but the suspension works better for extended rides on rough surfaces, although the dropper post then feels redundant.
While the standard Revolt was upgraded in 2024, adding cable integration and in-frame storage, the Revolt X is based on the older third generation Revolt frameset and lacks these features. As of early 2026, it’s sold by Giant in a single Advanced Pro 1 spec.
Lauf Seigla
From $3,590 | Buy here
Lauf adds its distinctive third generation Grit suspension fork to the Seigla (there’s a rigid fork option too). The carbon fork adds 30mm of progressive travel in a lightweight, zero maintenance design that now offers 57mm tyre clearance and, Lauf says, is tuned to handle small bumps and vibration better than a conventional suspension fork.
Lauf sells the Seigla direct in a range of 1x SRAM specs that offer good value, ranging from Apex AXS up to Red AXS XPLR and including mullet options. All are fitted with the brand’s Smoothie gravel handlebars, which incorporate glass fibre and carbon and are designed to further reduce the transmission of vibrations to the rider.
You can read our review of Lauf’s previous generation True Grit gravel bike for more on Lauf and the Grit fork.
Pinarello Dogma MX
From €8,500 | Buy here
The Pinarello Grevil MX bears more than a passing resemblance to the brand’s Dogma XC mountain bike, with a similar Y-shaped bottom end to the seat tube and extreme asymmetry to the seatstays. The bike borrows aero features from the Dogma road bikes though, including a one-piece Most cockpit and integrated cables.
The Grevil MX has 50mm tyre clearance and is equipped with a Fox Float 100mm travel fork and a SRAM XX SL Eagle AXS mullet drivetrain alongside DT Swiss carbon wheels. Pinarello targets the MX at performance on technical descents, steep climbs and off-road endurance rides and claims a weight of just over 9kg – pretty lightweight considering the spec.
Ribble Ultra-Grit
From £2,599 | Buy here
While the default specs of the Ribble Ultra-Grit, and that reviewed by Cyclist, come with a rigid fork, an additional £100 buys you an upgrade to a 30mm travel RockShox Rudy Ultimate suspension fork. It’s one of a range of options available on ordering via Ribble’s online bike configurator.
The Ultra-Grit ticks the gravel boxes of big 50mm tyre clearance, in-frame storage and aero design cues, setting it up for gravel racing, although you can just as well fit mudguards and there’s a full set of luggage mounts. All specs are designed around SRAM 1x groupsets, starting with Apex AXS and heading up to Red AXS XPLR, but there’s compatibility with 2x too.
It’s a fast bike with good power transfer, although with a rigid fork there’s plenty of vibration though the bars on rougher surfaces – something that a suspension fork should help alleviate. More compliance is on offer at the rear though.
Ridley Ignite GTX
From £2,699 | Buy here
Another monster gravel bike option with a longer-travel fork, the Ridley Ignite GTX is fitted with a 100mm travel RockShox fork and offers 58mm tyre clearance. The frameset incorporates flex stays to add extra compliance, the high bottom bracket improves ground clearance and the longer wheelbase adds stability, Ridley says. There’s a rigid fork alternative if you just want to rely on the huge tyres for bump smoothing.
Ridley reckons the Ignite GTX is a good option for long, technical gravel races such as the Atlas Mountain Race and calls it an ‘Alpine gravel bike’, hinting at its favoured terrain. You can choose from several specs with a mullet drivetrain starting with SRAM Apex mechanical.
Specialized Diverge
From £2,999 | Buy here
While Specialized has discontinued its full-suspension Diverge STR, the carbon Diverge continues to offer 20mm of front travel thanks to its Future Shock 3.0 suspension fork. Depending on the spec, this comes in three variants with tuneable ratings, with damped rebound on higher specs and the top Future Shock 3.3 allowing you to adjust the settings on the fly via a dial on the top of the steerer.
The latest Diverge also has increased 50mm tyre clearance, larger in-frame storage and geometry updated with a longer reach to improve stability. It’s fast on tarmac, competitively lightweight, comfortable and handles well both uphill and down.
Trek CheckOut
From £4,500 | Buy here
Trek’s most extreme gravel bike, the CheckOut offers 60mm of suspension at the front, 55mm at the rear and clearance for 56mm tyres. Front bounce comes courtesy of the latest RockShox Rudy XL, an air suspension gravel fork that is getting close to MTB levels of travel. At the rear there’s a RockShox SIDluxe Ultimate 3P shock moderating the double linkage suspension, while a dropper seatpost helps on descents.
Trek specs the CheckOut with 1x groupsets from either SRAM or Shimano in the two spec alternatives. It supplies a rack designed to work with the rear suspension, equipping the bike for bikepacking duties.
YT Szepter
From €1,999 | Buy here
YT Industries is predominantly an MTB brand and that shows in the Szepter, which has an MTB-adjacent geometry with a long wheelbase and 69.4° head tube angle. It’s specced with a RockShox Rudy fork and 1x groupset and has the option of a dropper post. YT hasn’t added the usual luggage mounts, as it aims the bike at gnarly dayrides rather than multi-day escapades.
The Szepter’s handling on-road feels light and reactive, despite the 10.5kg weight of our test bike. That’s carried over into the woods, with the agility to steer around roots and rocks. It’s a fun bike for a few hours thrashing around the local trails.
YT was bought from administration and relaunched by its founder, Markus Flossman, at the tail end of 2025. While YT looks to be phasing out the Szepter, it’s still available as of early 2026 in a limited range of sizes and specs.
What should I consider if I want to buy one?
Active vs passive suspension
Almost all mountain bikes have active suspension systems, where a suspension fork and, for a full-suspension bike, a rear shock include two parts which slide into one another, with damping to control the travel. They can be tuned to suit your weight, the terrain and your ride style. Many gravel bikes adopt the same type of system, although usually with less travel.
The disadvantage of active suspension systems is additional weight over a bike without suspension. If you’re riding almost exclusively off-road that might not matter too much, but many gravel rides also take in some metalled roads. Here, the bobbing that can occur can become annoying and sap your energy, as it is translated into up and down motion, rather than moving you forward.
Most active suspension systems include a lock-out so you can stop the bobbing, but then you’re paying extra and carrying additional weight for a capability you’re not using.
The alternative is suspension built into the bike itself, such as the BMC URS’s MTT. You can get as much travel as with short-travel active systems, although depending on the design it may not be as tuneable as an active system and may not lock out. There’s a limit to how far passive systems can go too, so if you want longer travel, you’ll need to look at active suspension.
Front-only or front and rear suspension?
If you’re drawn to gravel bike suspension, there’s an argument for considering both front and rear suspension. Adding front-end comfort if your rear end is being hammered around might seem unproductive.
But, in general, it’s a lot easier to build compliance into a bike’s rear triangle or include a compliant seatpost than it is to build compliance into a rigid fork. Choose a suspension fork only and you’ll save cost, weight, complexity and maintenance and have a greater range of gravel bikes to choose from.
How much travel?
Gravel bikes typically offer fairly short travel suspension systems relative to mountain bikes, which usually start at around 120mm of front-end travel for XC MTBs and can head up to 200mm or more for downhill bikes.
In contrast, most of the initial crop of active travel gravel bike forks offered 30mm travel, although that’s increased to 40mm for many newer gravel suspension forks. There’s typically around the same amount of rear-end travel on gravel bikes with active suspension. But many of the latest crop of monster gravel bikes are equipped with MTB suspension forks, so they match an XC MTB for suspension travel.
While older gravel bike designs often stopped at around 40mm of tyre clearance, newer gravel bikes are increasingly offering clearance of 50mm or more. Fit a wide gravel tyre or an MTB tyre and you’ll get a significant amount of isolation from the surface, along with roll-over of obstacles which may mean that you don’t need so much suspension travel.
Suspension fork compensation
Although the majority of gravel bikes don’t include suspension, many newer framesets are designed so that you can add a suspension fork at a later date. Since a traditional suspension fork such as the RockShox Rudy XPLR requires extra space to accommodate the double crown, it’s longer than a standard rigid fork.
So bikes such as the Argon 18 Dark Matter and Niner Oro 9 RDO have an extra-long fork and shorter head tube, so that you can swap in a suspension fork without impact on the bike’s geometry or ride characteristics. Several of the bikes above are suspension-compensated and available with either a rigid fork or a suspension fork. It’s something to look for if you think you might want to add a suspension fork at a later date.
