The best clipless pedals for road or off-road use will help you deliver power more efficiently as you ride. Almost all road riders use clipless pedals and cycle with cleats, although commuters might prefer flat pedals to be able to put a foot down more easily. Most gravel bike riders also ride clipless; it's only for mountain bikers that the choice to ride clipless or not is more divided.
There's one big choice to be made with clipless pedals: should you ride with two-bolt cleats, which are small, recessed into the shoe's sole and normally used with double-sided clipless pedals, or do you prefer three-bolt cleats, which are larger, sit below the shoe's sole and are used with pedals that are usually single-sided?
This guide is divided into our picks of the best road bike pedals to use with road cycling shoes and then the best gravel bike pedals to use with gravel bike shoes, based on our testing and reviews.
The best clipless pedals for road bikes
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Clipless pedals for road bikes can be further divided by brand, with each maker having its own take on three-bolt pedal tech and its own cleat system.
Best Shimano three-bolt pedals
Shimano is perhaps the default choice. All its pedals use a similar design with a rear retainer that's tensioned by a coil spring. The pedal release tension is changed via a hex bolt in the top of the retainer, with an indicator window to show you the release tension you have set.
Shimano cleats are wide, providing a broad contact area with the pedal, although the wide cleat can overhang the sole of narrower or smaller shoes. There are three cleat options with 0, 2 or 6 degrees of float.
The Shimano 105 pedal offers a carbon body at a very affordable price and includes much of the tech of the top-spec Dura-Ace pedal.
It has a similar, adjustable retainer spring and a wide platform for foot stability. Its bearings are easy to service and the steel plates in the top of the body ensure longevity. It's only in the weight stakes that 105 cedes much to Dura-Ace or Ultegra.
Read more in our Shimano 105 pedal review.
If you want Shimano's top pedal tech, the Dura-Ace pedals include features not found in 105 or Ultegra. The outboard main bearing lowers the stack height and increases the bearing separation for a more even load distribution.
Unlike 105, Dura-Ace offers a 4mm longer spindle version for greater stance width (also available in Ultegra). The 238g a set weight is some 22g less than 105 too.
Read more in our Shimano Dura-Ace pedal review.
Best Look three-bolt pedals
Look developed the original clipless pedal system (so-called because it replaced the toe clips and straps used previously)Look cleats are slightly smaller than Shimano's and it too offers three options with 0, 4.5 and 9 degrees of float.
Look's lower-priced Keo 2 pedals use a similar retainer with a coil spring to Shimano (it licensed the technology to Shimano in the 1990s). Its higher-priced pedals, named Keo Blade, use a carbon leaf spring on the underside of the pedal body to tension the retainer; the brand brought out an updated pedal body in January 2024, which it claims makes the Keo Blade the most aero pedal available.
While the coil spring allows the release tension for Look's cheaper pedals to be continuously varied, the Keo Blade pedals' release tension is changed in discrete jumps by swapping the leaf spring, of which there are four different tensions available.
The Keo 2 Max Carbon is top of Look's spring-tensioned pedal range, with a 250g a set weight that matches Shimano Ultegra. It has a full carbon body and a large engagement surface thanks to the wide steel plate mid-pedal.
It's a pedal that even some pros can be seen using and its durability and serviceability should match Shimano.
Read more in our Look Keo 2 Max Carbon pedal review.
The Keo Blade pedals received an update this year. The carbon leaf spring helps to lower weight to 232g a set. This Ceramic version has a chromo spindle, but you can upgrade to titanium to drop even more weight. As its name suggests, the bearings are ceramic, although there is also a steel bearing option.
We've not reviewed the newest version of the Keo Blade.
Best Speedplay three-bolt pedals
The third road-going option is Speedplay. Wahoo updated and relaunched Speedplay pedals and added the Wahoo Powrlink Zero power meter pedals to its portfolio.
Technically, Speedplay cleats are fixed to the shoe's sole with four bolts, but there is an adapter to allow them to be used with the more common three-bolt drilled road cycling shoes.
Speedplay pedals are unique among pedals for three-bolt cleats in allowing dual-sided entry (except the Speedplay Aero model) and having continuously variable float and release angles, although, unlike other systems, release tension cannot be varied.
Also unique to Speedplay, the adjustability is in the cleat, with the pedal just offering a fixed retaining surface.
The Zero is one up from the entry-level Speedplay Comp pedals but adds a stainless steel axle and full cleat covers, as well as higher release tension. It's also the only Speedplay pedal offered with multiple spindle lengths.
As with all Speedplay pedals, there's extensive adjustability, making the Zero a great choice if you need to fine-tune your stance and leg alignment.
Read more in our Wahoo Speedplay Zero pedal review.
The Speedplay Aero pedals differ from the Zero in offering a one-sided aero-profiled pedal body.
This results in single-sided only entry, but other features of the Zero, including low stack height and wide adjustability are retained. The Speedplay cleat is more awkward to set up and make position adjustments to than other systems though.
Read more in our Wahoo Speedplay Aero pedal review.
Best Time three-bolt pedals
The fourth main road-going pedal system is Time. It's another brand which, like Speedplay, is seeing a renaissance under a new owner, in this case Sram.
All Time's pedals use a carbon leaf spring to operate the rear retainer and, as with Look Keo Blade pedals, you can swap the spring to change the release tension by discrete increments. Time's system holds the retainer open when the cleat is not engaged, making it easier to clip in.
Time has two road bike pedal ranges. The cheaper is the Xpresso, which has two composite-bodied and one carbon-bodied option. Step up to the Xpro and there are three carbon models.
The top-spec Time Xpro 15 pedals have a titanium axle and CeramicSpeed bearings. Their claimed weight of 174.6g per pair makes them the lightest pedal option available, although at a price.
The Xpresso 7 is top of Time's lower priced range but still boasts a carbon body with wide-bearing separation and a wide platform with low stack height, as well as a low 196g a pair weight.
The streamlined pedal body offers plenty of support when pedalling, although it has sharp edges to the front and rear retainers.
Read more in our guide to the best road bike pedals.
The mid-range Time Xpro 12 weighs just 183g a pair, making it one of the lightest pedals available. Its narrow, enclosed body should slightly lower your wind profile too.
Despite this, the pedal platform spreads out to give good foot support, while the rear retainer has a smooth edge, unlike the Xpresso 7. It uses the same iClic retainer as the Xpresso for easy engagement.
Read more in our guide to the best road bike pedals.
The best clipless pedals for gravel bikes
The majority of two-bolt clipless pedals, regardless of manufacturer, use the Shimano SPD system. Despite this, there are other options with non-SPD compatible cleats, including Crankbrothers and Time, all of which offer purported benefits over SPD.
Best Shimano two-bolt pedals
As with road bike pedals, Shimano tends to be the default choice for the best gravel bike pedals, with its SPD system using a small hardened steel cleat. Even its lowest-priced M520 and M540 pedals have a reputation for bombproof durability, while its top-spec XTR pedals weigh a claimed 155g a piece.
All these pedals have skeletal bodies, but you can buy Shimano SPD pedals with a platform too, if you crave greater foot stability. Shimano also makes a pedal with an SPD retainer on one side but a flat pedal surface on the other, which can be useful for commuting.
Shimano's standard SH56 cleat offers multi-directional release, but you can also buy the SH51 cleat that only allows you to unclip by turning your heel outwards if you want greater foot security.
The Shimano M520 may be Shimano's entry-level SPD pedal, but it boasts a robust build that should carry you many off-road miles.
The skeletal body sheds mud and debris well, there's plenty of adjustability, it's weatherproof and the M520 can be serviced easily. It's a cheap pedal option that will serve for commuting too.
Read more in our guide to the best gravel bike pedals.
At the other end of Shimano's SPD pedal range, the top-spec XTR, as with Dura-Ace on the road, offers premium bearings and a lower weight of 310g than Shimano's lower-priced pedals, as well as two-axle length options.
The XTR pedal's 15.1mm stack height is lower than the M520, but it retains the same open design for excellent mud shedding.
Read more in our guide to the best gravel bike pedals.
Best Look two-bolt pedals
Again, Look is a major competitor for gravel bike clipless pedals, but in this case it uses Shimano's SPD cleat system, making its pedals and cleats cross-compatible with Shimano. It also uses a similar release mechanism operated via an adjustable coil spring.
Look's entry-level equivalent of the Shimano M520, the X-Track is available in three higher specs with upgraded body and spindle and lower weight.
The X-Track has a wider platform than Shimano's pedals, but still offers good clearance of debris. This Gravel Edition comes in brown rather than the standard black.
The X-Track En-Rage pedal offers the same SPD-compatible engagement mechanism, but a larger pedal body and the En-rage Plus adds front pins to that to further improve foot retention.
Although geared towards Enduro MTB use, the En-Rage is a good option if your gravel riding is on the more extreme end and you regularly tackle tricky terrain.
Best Crankbrothers two-bolt pedals
Crankbrothers' pedals are a little different from Shimano's and Look's. In their most skeletal Eggbeater form, they have a minimalist design with four points of engagement, which sheds mud easily making them popular for cyclocross.
Crankbrothers uses the same retention system, but with a platform in its Mallet and Candy pedals, adding some extra foot stability. The release tension is not adjustable, although you can change the float and release angle by changing your cleats.
Eggbeaters are the minimalist solution for gravel riding. The lack of a platform makes for excellent mud shedding, although it can affect foot stability.
The design also gives you four points of engagement rather than two, making quick clipping in that much easier. The four-model range is priced from $60 to $500.
Read more in our guide to the best gravel bike pedals.
If you like the Crankbrothers system but prefer more foot support, the Candy is one of several Crankbrothers designs that add a platform to the retainer.
It has the same easy engagement with four points of access and is available in an array of colour options. There's the same wide price range over its four models as with the Eggbeater pedals.
Read more in our guide to the best gravel bike pedals.
Best Time two-bolt pedals
As well as its road pedals, Time sells an off-road pedal system. Again, it's available with a range of different platform sizes. Its ATAC XC pedals were used for cyclocross by Wout van Aert for many years before he transitioned to road racing.
The sprung retainer is at the front of the ATAC pedal system rather than the rear, which Time claims assists in clearing debris from the pedal-cleat interface as you clip in. Its release tension is non-adjustable, although you can buy lighter release cleats. You can change the float for standard release cleats by swapping your left and right cleats with each other.
The five-pedal Time XC range heads up to the titanium axle XC 12, but we like the less pricey XC 4. It has a glass fibre composite body and is supplied with the Atac Easy cleats with 10-degree engagement, allowing easy clipping in and out.
The small pedal body and sprung front retainer help to keep the pedal-cleat interface clean and the sub-300g pair weight isn't too heavy.
As with the Crankbrothers Candy, the Time MX 6 is a design that adds a small platform to the pedal to improve foot support.
The Time MX6 pedal is top of the three model MX range, with a claimed weight of 380g a pair. The pedals are supplied with a set of standard Time cleats, which let you swap between 13 and 17-degree release angles.
Other brands
While road bike clipless pedals are dominated by Shimano, Look, Speedplay and Time (and principally the first three of these), there are additional brands which sell off-road pedals, often using the SPD system.
Ritchey's XC pedals have a minimalist design that is, if anything, even more skeletal than Shimano pedals. Trek sells a range of Trek and Bontrager-branded SPD-compatible pedals (it also sells a Look-compatible road pedal).
Hope too sells a small format clipless pedal, although it uses a unique cleat and retainer that's incompatible with the SPD system.
Other brands with SPD-compatible pedals include DMR and Nukeproof. If you want a large platform, they're worth considering, although they are more geared to MTB use.
Another minimalist pedal design, the Ritchey Comp has a reputation for quality. It doesn't give you quite such as stable platform as Shimano and Look's pedals, but it's more so than the Crankbrothers Candy.
The Comp pedal has a ChroMo axle and is available with a black, orange or red body.
At the other extreme, the DMR V-Twin pedal encompasses the SPD mechanism in a large platform. DMR sells a wide range of shims and bumpers to fine-tune your pedals and you can add pins to increase shoe grip.
The pedals are designed to be easily serviced and DMR sells a wide range of spare parts.
