The best cycling water bottle – or best bidon, if you're classy – is essential if you enjoy long bike rides. These unassuming plastic companions help to keep you hydrated out on the bike and stave off muscle-debilitating cramps.
But even for the most demanding road bike jockeys, a plastic bottle is just a plastic bottle, right? NO. Some are better than others. It should be made from a plastic that's squeezy enough to help regulate flow and should be easy to clean, too. Some bottles can even keep your drink cold in summer and warm/not frozen solid in winter, which is a plus. A good water bottle will also be easy to open on the move. I mean, who wants to take a quick slurp when you can barely get the bottle out of the cage or open the nozzle without stopping at the roadside? After all, even if you're riding one of our best electric bikes, you are still going to develop a thirst.
The best water bottle for cycling is one of those rather unglamorous yet essential parts of the cyclist's kit list, alongside the best cycling socks or best cycling shoes… or one of the Best cycling backpacks – which you could also use to keep spare water bottles in.
So without further ado, here are three of the best water bottles for bike riding – many more are available but we wanted to keep this one simple for you.
The best cycling water bottles we've tried
Why you can trust T3 Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
• Buy Camelbak's Podium Chill Water Bottle at Amazon
Here’s a clever bottle for hot summer riders - the Camelbak Podium Chill has a double-walled construction to help keep your drink cool, even when it’s sweltering out there. You can also use it to keep warm drinks, well, warm on winter rides.
Camelbak’s JetValve is smart, too, and has a self-sealing design to prevent spillages. There’s also a lockout on the valve for leak-proof transportation. This is a slightly more expensive water bottle, but the extra features go some way to justifying the additional cost. And come on, it’s not that expensive.
• Buy Elite Corsa Water Bottle from Wiggle
Elite is one of the big names to look out for in the water bottle world (who knew?) and supplies a number of top-level professional cycling teams. The Corsa is Elite’s everyday bottle and does exactly what you want it to for a really good price.
The wide, screw-top lid ensures the bottle is a breeze to clean, while the rubber valve is easy to open with your mouth when riding. The tapered neck and ribbed cap provides good levels of grip, too.
If you happen to drop the bottle while riding (or it jumps out of your cage), the Corsa’s lid is designed to pop off if it comes into contact with another rider’s wheels. Safety first, eh? Larger 750ml and 950ml versions are also available for thirstier riders.
• Buy LifeLine Water Bottle from Wiggle
The LifeLine Water Bottle is cheap and cheerful but does the job. With an 800ml capacity (a 600ml version is also available), it’s enough for hot summer rides, without being drastically over-sized. A 74mm diameter means it’ll fit in a standard bottle cage.
The squeezable plastic means you can chug it down when particularly parched, the wide top allows for easy washing and when you're done, you can stick it in the dishwasher. What more could one ask?
