Best cheap cycling shoes 2024 - get your hands on road or mountain bike shoes for under £100 (2024)

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Boardman has delivered an absolute belter of a spec list for the sub-£100 price tag on their latest Carbon Cycle Shoes. It's quite rare to seea full carbon fibre sole on an £85 shoe and while there is a little bit of flex, they offer decent stiffness,coping with the majority of scenarios it's likely to find itself in. The sole is compatible withthree-bolt cleat options only though – no option for two-bolt SPDs.

They are also well vented and the upper gives a supple feel for comfort too – plus the adjustment of the ratchet dials allows you to tweak them on the fly.Performance is also helped by the retention system, provided by Atop. It's a dial system that tightens a cable evenly across the top of your foot, similar to Boa and the like. Cheaper shoes tend to use one dial with a Velcro strap at the toes, so it's good to see Boardman showing no signs of penny-pinching and speccing twin dials.

Read our review of the Boardman Carbon Cycle Shoes

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Bont's Motion shoes are comfortable and offer many of the benefits of the brand's higher-end models – stiff soles, an anatomical fit, and a low stack height – at an entry-level price. They are excellent value and are currently half-price for £39.95, thoughthe Velcro straps won't appeal to everyone.

The 'anatomical design' is distinctive of Bont's shoes, making them more foot-shaped than most. If you find that your feet get squeezed, pushed around or pinched by other shoes, it's worth giving Bont a go.One of the other key features of most Bont shoes is a bathtub-shaped carbon-fibre sole that extends around the sides of your feet and is heat-mouldable. You don't get that with the Motion – instead, you get a fibreglass sole that doesn't wrap upwards.As it is, the Motion's sole is still very stiff, especially considering the price.

The sole takes three-bolt cleatsand you can slide the bolt holes fore and aft in their slots, giving you a little adjustability there. One interesting feature is Bont's adaptor plate for compatibility with two-bolt cleats too.

Read our review of the Bont Motion shoes

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The Giro Berm Cover MTB Cycling Shoes are versatile cycling shoes that are great for gravel or commuting,with plenty of grip and minimum cleat clatter. Although these are labelled as 'MTB' and only accept two-bolt cleats, the fact is, loads of people use mountain bike-style SPD pedals on their tourers, commuting bikes and, very much on-trend, gravel and adventure bikes, where the Berm Covers will really come into their own.

The smooth, synthetic outer material is wrapped around a mesh structure that allows plenty of ventilation.There's no pretence at waterproofing, though so these shoes are best suited forsummer and warmer spring or autumn days.

There are two sturdy Velcro-fastened straps to deal with so gettingin and out is very quick and easy.These allow excellent adjustment across the instep, but the (broad, well-padded) tongue ends at the lower strap, and below that, there's no adjustment.If you're narrow-footed, you may appreciate shoes with additional adjustability.

Read our review of the Giro Berm Cover MTB Cycling Shoes

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The Endura Hummvee Flat Pedal Shoesare comfortable and extremely versatile as they're an excellent choice for both on and off the bike.The grippy sole provides sufficient stiffness for riding without compromising off-the-bike comfort for walking.

The Hummveesfeel light not only in comparison with walking boots, but also when compared with other flat-pedal off-road shoes, so you don't feel like you've got anchors on your feet after an hour or so.They're also decently ventilated along the sides and on the toe box, which helps to provide a nice balance between breathability and keeping your feet warm.

TheHummvees are unisex so the styling is quite neutral except for the choice of laces.The shoes come with two pairs of laces, described by Endura as 'wild and mild'. The shoes also feature an elasticated lace stash, which helps to keep the lace away from the chain and cranks. The Hummvees come in four colour options - the olive green pictured above, black, navy and pebble.

Read our review of the Endura Hummvee Flat Pedal Shoe

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The Shimano MT3W Women's SPD shoes sit in that rare midground of being a dedicated bike shoe that's stiff for riding, yet easy to walk in. They're a cost-effective and comfortable option for on or off-road riding and touring, with relaxed low-key looks. Able to be used with or without cleats, they're spot on for those first venturing into clipless pedals. If you want to go the clip-in route there's a bolt-on/off plate that you need to remove so you can attach the cleats – or leave it in place/reattach for a flat-soled non-clip-in shoe.

The shoe fastens and adjusts with straightforward laces and there's an elasticated keeper to hold them secure.The laces make things easy to adjust, and aren't so long that there's loads left flapping.

The soles are very flexible – they're not designed for demanding riders looking for an injection of power – but they are still stiffer and better shaped than trainers or casual shoes. They look pretty low-key, too, meaning they won't look out of place with casual clothing rather than Lycra.

Read our review of the Shimano MT3W Women’s SPD Shoes

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The FLR F-11 Knits are very crisp-looking shoes, super-comfy, with a smart white knitted upper and a good retention system.FLR has pretty good credentials, with pro riders Jay Vine, Thibault Guernalec and Alexandre Balmer among others using its shoes, proving they don't hinder performance. These F-11 Knits are its second-tier offering, behind the carbon-soled F-XX used by the pros.

The F-11s use a single retention dial from Atop rather than Boa, which tightens in increments. Tester Josh said, "I found the retention good, too; I didn't feel like my foot was going to move at any point, even when sprinting".

They feature an R250 nylon sole with injected fibreglass which has some noticeable flex while ridingso these are more aimed at casual riders rather than racers looking for all the performance gains.

Read our review of the FLR F-11 Knit shoes