Gravel bike vs MTB: Suspension & tyres for hardtail and gravel bike in comparison
Jan Timmermann
· 18.10.2025
Hardtail mountain bikes and gravel bikes have many similarities but also many differences. Especially when it comes to tyres and suspension, the concepts diverge. How differently do wide and narrow tyres really ride? Which rubber do I need for which area of use? Many gravel bikes today are also offered with suspension forks. But when does this make sense? We have analysed the various advantages and disadvantages in laboratory measurements and practical tests and have come up with some surprising findings.
Wide rubbers bring comfort
On unsprung bikes, nothing determines the riding characteristics as much as the choice of tyres. While gravel bike manufacturers have agreed on tyre widths of around 45 millimetres, most hardtails now roll on 2.4 inch or 61 millimetre tyres. Assuming a high-quality construction, wide tyres absorb vibrations and impacts from the ground better than narrow ones.
If you look at the choice of tyres as an isolated comfort factor, it can be stated: The rougher the surface, the greater the advantage of a mountain bike. By the way: Our laboratory measurements of seat comfort show that Suspension elements over tyres. Even firm fullys offer around eight times more comfort than rigid bikes and are around four times more comfortable to sit on than hardtails with suspension forks.
Riding stability can also play a role for bikepackers and heavy riders. On a larger tyre, the weight is distributed over a wider area. The bike has a less tippy ride feel.
Inertia of the impellers
Logically, the wider the tyre, the heavier it is. Although high-end wheelsets for mountain bikes do not necessarily have a higher rotating mass overall than parts from the gravel segment, despite larger cassettes and brake discs, the weight of the tyres is on the outside and is therefore particularly critical for acceleration.
With high-quality carbon wheelsets, the wheel inertia of a hardtail is around 20 per cent higher than that of a gravel bike. This means that an MTB accelerates more slowly and requires more energy when changing speed. A gravel bike sprints faster right from the start.
On level, uninterrupted journeys, this difference between the concepts cannot be felt. Once the wheels have gained momentum, the wheel inertia plays a subordinate role in relation to other braking forces.
Wide tyres equal fast tyres
In principle, rolling resistance depends on the tyre structure, rubber compound, width, air pressure and surface. Even if it looks different, the tread pattern has the least influence on rolling resistance. This may also surprise many people: In theory, wide tyres roll faster than narrow ones. Due to a longer contact patch, more material has to be deformed on a narrow tyre in the direction of travel. Although the ground contact area is the same size for the same tyre pressure and weight load, it has a different shape. With a wide tyre, the surface is shorter and therefore the braking lever arm is also shorter.
The trend on gravel bikes is also moving towards wider tyres. At 1.9 bar, a 50-millimetre tyre rolls around 4.5 watts lighter than a 40-millimetre tyre. As the following rolling resistance table shows, gravel bikes are increasingly opting for tyre widths of 45 millimetres and more, and with good reason:
So why don't Tour de France pros ride wide tyres? Even at low speeds, the importance of rolling resistance is outweighed by that of air resistance. The wheels account for around eight per cent of the total aerodynamic drag. The effect of aerodynamics increases exponentially with speed. The narrower the tyre and the harder the surface, the more positive the effect of high air pressure. On the other hand, a tyre with low pressure rolls better off-road. Here is an example on gravel with practical tyre pressures:
This is the situation when it comes to traction
On a dry asphalt road, a tyre rarely slips, even under full load. On gravel, forest soil or in damp conditions, however, it is important to transfer the energy supplied by the rider to the ground with as little loss as possible in favour of efficient propulsion.
The contact patch of an MTB tyre, which is wider at the sides, offers greater support for power transmission. All the more so as they allow lower air pressures without making compromises. For comparable lateral stability and similar puncture protection, gravel tyres would have to be ridden with around 0.6 bar more pressure.
The effect is enhanced by the fact that the rubber on MTB rims with a standard inner width of 30 millimetres can be set up even further. The standard rim width for gravel bikes is around five millimetres less. Even with a comparable profile, a wider tyre therefore has greater traction. On gravel, there is less loss of propulsion to be feared with a mountain bike tyre.
The same applies when slowing down: Due to the higher traction, an MTB tyre gets more deceleration power from a brake than a gravel model on all surfaces. In addition, most mountain bike tyres have better self-cleaning properties thanks to their more open tread. The softer the ground, the more the lugs determine the contact with the ground.
When leaning into corners, mountain bikes generally have more contact area with the road surface and benefit from pronounced shoulder lugs. In other words: grip on a hardtail beats grip on a gravel bike. Grip and damping comfort can be maximised with a tubeless setup. Our test experience shows: Wide MTB tyres not only allow lower air pressures without provoking punctures, but also remain better sealed in the long term.
Forks: Control and damping
Compared to a rigid carbon fork, a gravel bike suspension fork with 40 millimetres of travel weighs around 750 grams more. A lightweight mountain bike suspension fork with 100 millimetres of travel adds another 100 grams.
Also important: high-quality suspension forks are significantly more expensive than rigid forks. In our tests, suspension forks noticeably improved the handling characteristics of gravel bikes on forest tracks and easy trails. However, the confidence and sensitivity of gravel forks has not yet come close to that of MTB models.
Connoisseurs say: "Only uncontrolled suspension is worse than bad suspension". There is little that can be adjusted on tyres and seat posts. The more off-road use, the more irreplaceable a suspension fork with easily adjustable damping becomes. Incidentally, suspension stems on gravel bikes add less weight, reduce costs and provide a comparable increase in comfort to suspension forks. However, hardly any manufacturer installs these ex works.
The variety of specific gravel suspension forks is still rare. The Rockshox Rudy XPLR has become the most widespread. Fox also has a specific gravel model in its range with the 32 TC. The SR Suntour GVX 700C is cheaper, but also significantly heavier. Only the high-end forks from 1000 euros upwards have a lockout function on the fork crown.
Only the DT Swiss F132 One currently offers a lockout with handlebar remotewhich, however, is only available on Canyon complete bikes until further notice. Without lockout, all gravel suspension forks bob when pedalling. If the focus is on efficiency, this can be a problem. Even on inexpensive hardtails, however, a lockout remote is often standard equipment.
Conclusion from Jan Timmermann, BIKE editor
A suspension fork is a game changer off-road. Which brings us to the question of how much terrain you really want to tackle with a gravel bike. The considerable handling disadvantages compared to a hardtail remain even with suspension.
Wide mountain bike tyres have a number of advantages. Comfort, grip and traction are in favour of hardtail tyres. A narrow gravel tyre is only more aerodynamic for fast rides on asphalt or fine gravel and therefore makes sense for sporty ambitions. Gravel bikes also accelerate faster from a standing start. They look similar to racing bikes and are therefore often associated with speed.
In fact, I believe that most purchasing decisions are not made between gravel bikes and hardtails, but between gravel bikes and road bikes or gravel bikes and trekking bikes. In these matches, gravel bikes certainly have the edge for many customers, but their arguments against an MTB hardtail are difficult. In the end, it comes down to personal preferences and the individual area of use.
Jan Timmermann
Editor
