Are you thinking of buying a new gravel bike for under $1000? Choosing which one to get can be a difficult decision because there are over a dozen types of gravel bikes available in the market in this range. Walking into a bike store without the basic knowledge of different types of gravel bikes wouldn’t help. The sight of hundreds of bikes hanging on the wall of your local bike store can be intimidating. Don’t worry; we’ll guide you through the maze.

Once you understand a few key points, the whole thing will begin to make sense. You’ll then be able to choose the gravel bike that fits your needs the best. The principles remain the same irrespective of your budget for a new gravel bike.

If you are reading this post, you’ve already figured out that you need a gravel bike. The first thing that you should look at when buying a gravel bike is the tire. Tire size is the biggest factor governing a bike’s performance. A steel gravel bike should have wide tires because they provide more stability than the narrow tires you see on standard racing bikes meant for paved roads. Wider tyres allow you to run at lower pressure, which ensures that your ride is comfortable.

The second thing that you check is geometry. While most road bikes are quite low and long, gravel bikes should be higher and shorter for comfort. If you want to go on a long countryside ride on your gravel bike, you wouldn’t want it to be uncomfortable. Apart from improved comfort, a higher and shorter gravel bike would also give you better control over bouncy tracks. The best way to check the geometry is to look at the geometry chart of the brand you’re interested in.

The third thing you should look at when buying a gravel bike is gears. If you’re going to indulge in steep, off-road climbing, the gear should be set low. Compact gear ratio ensures that you get fairly low gears.

These three parameters will help you select a gravel bike for your needs.

If you were thinking that the best gravel riding bikes available in the market are out of your reach because your budget is limited to $1000, you’re wrong. You can find some great gravel bikes in the $1000 price range and less in bike weight. We’re going to talk about ten different gravel bikes in this price bracket and tell you everything about them.

Journeyman Claris 700

• Frame not designed and tested with a suspension fork.
• Front der – Shimano Claris
• Rear der – Shimano Claris GS 8 speed
• FSA Tempo Adventure crankset
• Five-year warranty against manufacturing defects; applies to the original owner only.
• Warranty does not cover damage due to improper assembly.

• Maximum wheel/tyre diameter – 272mm
• Rigid fork length – 50mm
• Tyre size range for 622/700c – 32-51mm
• Tyre size range for 584/650c – 47-57mm
• Seat collar – 32mm
• Front derailleur mound – 34.9mm OD, bottom pull

The Claris 700 is built for relaxed riding, exploring and going long distances on different types of surfaces, including mud and clay. There’s no other bike in the market that can accomplish these tasks as easily as the Claris 700.

Journeyman Claris 700 is one of the most bought gravel bikes in the world. It comes in two different tyre sizes — 700c x 37/38mm or 650b x 2 inches. You can also choose from two handlebar styles — droop bar or flat bar.

Kona ROVE AL 650

• Frame material- Aluminium frame
• Comes with Kona Project Two Aluminium Disc
• Equipped with Samox crank arms
• One year limited warranty on complete bike and lifetime limited warranty on the frame of the bicycle.

• Headset – Feimin FP-H863
• Seatpost – Kona Thumb w/Offset 27.2mm
• Front Hub – Formula 100x9mm
• Rear Hub – Formula 135x10mm
• Spokes – Stainless Black 14kg
• Rims – WTB Sx19

The ROVE AL is a reliable gravel bike that can be easily adapted for use during your daily office commute or your countryside off-road bike-packing trip with friends or family. It comes packed with a large number of accessories to support your outdoor activities.

The ROVE AL 650 is Kona rove entry-level gravel bike. Because of its versatility, the bike is often classified as an all-road bike. This means that it is not only a fitness bike but for use on gravel tracks but also paved urban rough roads and bumpy hilly tracks in the countryside.

Jamis RENEGADE A1

• Comes with Jamis Size Specific Design frame geometry
• Has an aluminium double-butted frame
• Gives the ability to mount up to a 47c tyre
• Has long and tall endurance geometry
• Three-year warranty

• Fork – Jamis Adventure ECO monocoque carbon
• Frame – Jamis Size Specific Design Omniad M30 monocoque carbon fibre frame
• Tyres – WTB Riddler Tubeless
• Derailleurs – Shimano GRX RX-R810 Shadow Plus
• Crankset – Shimano GRX FC-RX810 48/31T

Unlike most gravel bikes in the market, the RENEGADE A1 from Jamis comes with a rear axle of 12 mm diameter. This gives the rider greater stability on gravel surfaces and makes the ride comfortable for them. The 12 mm diameter also ensures that your back remains in a good posture throughout the ride, giving you a better aerodynamic position.

Jamis RENEGADE A1 offers great value for money in this price segment. The bike uses some of the best equipment available in the market, which makes its performance remarkably good. The bike also gives a lot of room to riders to change tyres depending on their needs.

Mongoose Guide Sport

• The guide of the bike features a relaxed and upright geometry.
• It is an evolution of the highly successful Selous line.
• Comes with a 2×9 drivetrain with Samox®
• Three-year limited warranty

• Tyres – Kenda Small Block, 700 x 47c, wire bead
• Crank – Samox TAM31-232
• Spokes – stainless steel, 14G
• Brakes – Promax DSK-330 flat mount
• Rims – WTB ST-19
• Chain- KMC Z99

Mongoose’s Guide Sport gravel bike is a perfect solution for long bike-packing adventures in rough terrain. If you’re looking for such adventures, this is the bike you should be buying.

Mongoose has made its Gide Sport gravel bike for use where the pavement ends. It is a revolutionary bike in this segment. Mongoose has incorporated features from its mountain bike line, which makes this gravel bike a unique product for off-road adventure.

State Bicycle 4130 Steel

• It comes with 4130-grade Chromoly steel
• Made up of lightweight components
• It has double butted tubings
• Produced in small numbers for exclusivity
• Subtle but stylish State logo
• Three-year limited warranty on components

• Handlebars – Bullhorn or Drop bars w/bar tape
• Dropouts: Horizontal
• Crankset: 46T State Bicycle Company Fixed Gear
• Brakes: Front & Rear Caliper Hand Brakes
• Saddle: State Bicycle Urban Comfort Saddle

The 4130 Steel comes from one of the largest manufacturers of bikes in the western hemisphere, State Bicycle. The maker has poured in the experience gained over decades into making this bike. The product of State Bicycle’s hard labour has turned out to be one of the best in the market. It has the right balance of State Bicycle’s legacy reliability and patented technology.

Although the 4130 is an entry-level gravel bike, it was State Bicycle’s first-ever bike in this segment. As a result, it has been built as a premium product to introduce users to the quality that State Bicycle brings to the table. It has been rated as one of the best gravel bikes for beginners because of its simplicity.

Octane Gridd

• The bike offers significantly more tyres clearance than other gravel bikes.
• It comes with mechanical disc brakes.
• Octane has equipped it with fender mounts.
• Great versatility; can be used on gravel, CX, endurance road.
• Comes in four frame sizes

• Fork – 9x100mm dropouts
• Stem – Octane One Road
• Grips – Velo bar tape
• Seatpost – Octane One alloy
• Front brake – Hayes CX Comp
• Rear brake – Hayes CX Comp
• Spokes – Spokes W/14mm Nipples

Riding gravel with Gridd is adventurous. The bike, which has been specially designed for rough and bumpy terrain, gives you a comfortable and confident ride. It provides you with a sound aerodynamic shape, which helps increase your speed while maintaining stability.

Octane has built its Gridd series bikes for beginners. This entry-level bike comes with great reliability that is associated with the name Octane in the bicycle market. It is one of Octane’s best selling gravel bikes.

What else can a beginner ask for?

Felt Broam 60

• Broam 60 comes with dual wheel compatibility.
• It has huge tyre clearance for users.
• It comes with sleek storage solutions and is fender-ready.
• Its components have low weight .

• Derailleur- Shimano Claris clamp-on
• Crankset- FSA Tempo Adventure, 46/30T
• Chain- KMC 8-speed
• Cassette: 8-speed
• Brake levers – Shimano Claris R2000

Felt claims that it’s Broam 60 is one of the most capable drop bar bikes on the planet. It is built for fast group rides and all-day-long excursions in rough terrain. The bike can be easily adapted for use on paved roads. 

From the outset, Felt designed Broma for those looking for the best of road and mountain bikes in their first gravel bike. To accomplish this, it built a bike that is as good on pavements and hilly trails as it is on gravel, the surface it is built for. It is a versatile beast if you ask us.

Diamondback Haanjo 2

• The bike comes with mechanical disc brakes.
• Diamondback offers special assembly options.
• It comes with a 30-day return option.
• Unlike many others, it comes with a frame warranty.

• Cranks – Aluminum Cross Compact
• Dérailleur – Shimano Claris FD-2400
• Cogset – Shimano HG50 Cassette
• Front hub – 28h Aluminum Quick Release
• Rear hub – 28h Aluminum Quick Release, Cassette
• Tyres – Vee Rubber, Speedster, Wire Bead

Haanjo 2 from Diamondback is a bike-packing ride in the truest sense of the word. You can load your water bottles, food packets and backpacking gear on the front and rear mounts that the bike comes with. If you’re looking for bike-packing adventures, this bike will be your true companion.

Diamondback Haanjo 2 is one of the most versatile bikes in this list of gravel bikes. It is technically a combination of road bikes, endurance bikes and mountain racing bikes. It draws the best features from these types and emerges as a market leader in the gravel bikes category.

Poseidon Flatbar Redwood

• The bike is built to absorb shocks and vibrations.
• It comes with a tubeless wheelset.
• Flatbar Redwood also offers large tyre clearance.
• You can buy the bike in four interest-free instalments.
• It has a five years manufacturing warranty.

• Frame: Double Butted Hydroformed Aluminum
• Handlebars: Poseidon 720mm
• Brakes: Mechanical Flat Mount Brake Calipers
• Chain: KMC 10 Speed
• Saddle: Poseidon X alloy rails
• Shifters: Micro Shift Advent

A lot of bike enthusiasts who want to try gravel biking complain that the Poseidon’s Flatbar Redwood isn’t available in their local bike stores. Well, that’s because the bike gets sold out the moment stocks come in. It is immensely popular with those who find pleasure in gravel biking. If you’re one of them, go ahead and buy it now. We’ve told you everything there is to know about this amazing bike from Poseidon.

No list of bikes can be complete without an entry from Poseidon, a market leader in multiple sectors of the bikes industry around the world. The Flatbar Redwood gravel bike from Poseidon has set the standards for gravel bikes in the entry-level segments. The bike is a combination of Poseidon’s patented technology, its rich history and its legacy. 

Marin Nicasio

• It offers enhanced stability for off payment use.
• It comes with full-fender, disc brakes and rack mounts.
• The bike’s steel frame offers clearance for 700x35mm tires.
• Three-year warranty on bike and parts.

• Frame – Double Butted CrMo Beyond Road
• Rims – Marin Aluminum Double Wall
• Rear hub – Forged Aluminum Alloy frame, 32H
• Front hub – Forged Aluminum Alloy, 32H
• Tyres – 650Bx47mm
• DERAILLEUR – 1×9 w/ Clutch Mech

Having been designed as a bike-packing bike from the beginning, it is perhaps the best one for this purpose in the market. Its versatility makes it more adaptable than any other bike on this list. With enhanced stability for off-pavement use, it also keeps your safety before everything else. This makes Marin Nicasio a perfect bargain for beginners.

Marin Nicasio is a long-distance bike-packing machine, built for those who love gravel surfaces more than paved urban roads or mountainous trails in the countryside. The bike offers a great range of features to make your bike-packing experience a pleasant one.