Which are the hottest drop bar bike brands of 2021? Which companies are most likely to receive your hard-earned cash in 2022? What components do you prefer and what clothing is in style? We have the answers – your answers!

First off, we want to thank you all again for your participation, engagement and trust! The fact that more than 11,000 bikers around the world answered up to 75 individual questions and provided us with such detailed feedback can’t be taken for granted! All the more so when we consider that the average time to complete the survey was almost 20 minutes! In turn, from the very bottom of our hearts: grazie mille, muchas gracias, tack, merci beaucoup, どうも, dzięki, obrigado, спасибо, hvala, teşekkürler, 谢谢你, شكرا, děkuji, hartelijk bedankt, thanks a lot!

But what exactly do we do with your responses? The results of our reader survey provide significant input into our editorial planning and the future direction of our magazine. It also allows us to select the most relevant brands for our group tests. As much as we would like to review every single bike out here, we can only pick so many. Finally, your feedback helps us determine the most relevant price points for our tests. As you can see, our readers really are an integral part of our editorial planning.

Below, you won’t only find out which brands you think make the best road bike products, but also who you’ll buy your next road bike from.

If you’re interested in the full results of our 2021 reader survey then check out our article!

The best drop bar bike brand 2021

Our readers’ choice: Specialized once again represent the best drop bar bike brand.

Your next drop bar bike

Like last year, Canyon sit at the top of the list of bike brands you will buy in the future.

The best drop bar bike brands 2021 in detail

So how have these results been compiled? It’s really simple: in our reader survey we asked which brands create the best bikes and which brand you are most like to buy. As a bilingual magazine, we made use of the opportunity to analyse data not just from our German-speaking readers but also from the international readers of our English edition. We looked at these separately and it revealed some exciting results.


Best Brand 2021: Parts & Accessories

A top-flight bike is more than just the sum of its parts but even the best bikes are only as good as their weakest component. So which brand makes the best products? We asked, you responded. Here are the best brands across 10 different categories.

The best parts and accessories in detail

Just like with the bikes, we’ve compiled two separate sets of data when it comes to parts and accessories, dividing German-speaking and international readers. While there’s common consensus in certain categories, there are stark contrasts to be seen in the brand preferences across others. Printed in bold you’ll find the brand that received the most votes overall – languages and nationalities have no effect on this result. As you can see for yourself, the breakdown of the results is pretty interesting:


Our lucky winner

One reason that we like our reader survey so much is not only that we get to know you better, but also that we can make one of you happy with a new bike. Together with our partner BMC, we raffled off the BMC Roadmachine 01 ONE from this year’s road bike group test worth €10,499 amongst the participants. Freshly tuned, of course! A real collector’s item for one lucky GRAN FONDO fan from France named Vincent. Congratulations and have fun riding this dream machine!

Our lucky winner Vincent from France.

So, these are the best brands of 2021! Not happy with the results? Then sign up for our newsletter so you can make your voice heard in our next reader survey.

If you’re interested in the full results of our 2021 reader survey then check out our article!


Did you enjoy this article? If so, we would be stoked if you decide to support us with a monthly contribution. By becoming a supporter of GRAN FONDO, you will help secure a sustainable future for high-quality cycling journalism. Click here to learn more.