• Having a bike pump handy ensures that your tires are always inflated to their ideal pressure, whether you just need to add a little air between rides or need to fully change a tube.
  • There are generally three types of bike pumps to consider: Floor pumps, hand pumps, and C02 inflators, each with their own advantages.
  • We tested models in all three categories to find the best currently available, no matter if you’re a road biker, mountain biker, or just a casual rider who wants something reliable to have around.
  • Our top pick, the Specialized Air Tool Comp V2, is a durable floor pump that features one of the most accurate gauges we’ve tested, and is a great choice for any style of rider or bike type.

Bike tires go flat for many reasons and while a flat is never ideal, it’s even worse to be caught without the means for fixing it. With a reliable bike pump, you can keep rolling either between fixing the tire itself or inflating a new tube. Regardless of how you use it, it’s smart to always have one on-hand and in your cycling pack whenever you head out.

How to shop for a bike pump

Before buying a bike pump, you’ll want to decide which style of pump best fits your needs. Though floor pumps, hand pumps, and C02 inflators all inflate your tires, each comes with its own set of advantages. Avid cyclists may even want to own one of each.

Here’s what sets each option apart:

Floor pumps: These have the biggest capacity and are able to get the most air into your tire every time you pull up and press down the handle. Most use a canister with a handle on a rod that moves an internal diaphragm forcing air into your bike tire.

Its foot platforms let you stabilize the pump while you’re inflating, and the handles accommodate two hands to make pumping easier. These tend to also feature a gauge so you know when you’ve reached the desired pressure.

The pump has a chuck or head that clips onto your valve, and most floor pump heads can be switched to work with Presta (a pointy valve) or Schrader (a flat top valve) - some even have ports for both. It's smart to double-check the type of valve your tube uses before purchasing a floor pump, too.

Floor pumps can also seat a tubeless tire, which is important because many modern bikes use sealant inside a tire to keep the tire inflated, not a tube. Floor pumps are mid-thigh tall, and designed for home use, or for carrying in a car to pump tires at a trailhead or the start of a ride.

Hand pumps: These are made to be carried on the bike, and they typically require a lot more effort to inflate your tire. A hand pump has a much smaller volume canister than a floor pump, so it takes longer to inflate a tire than a floor pump. Some are designed for high volume, which is best for a mountain bike or fat bike tires, and others are best for high pressure, like a road bike tire.

Hand pumps are usually used as a backup or emergency pump, and not often relied upon as a primary pump. These are small enough to fit in a pack or a pocket, though many also come with water bottle cage mounts for affixing it to your bike. Gauges are less common in hand pumps and most have a valve head attached directly to the inflation canister.

The pumps with a hose are easier to use but are also likely to snap a valve stem with vigorous pumping. Like floor pumps, most hand pumps have a head that can be swapped between Presta and Schrader valves.

CO2 inflators: This type of pump is the most convenient and compact inflation tool available for bicycles. They dispense small, disposable metal cartridges and some have an on/off switch so you can save the air you don't need for later. With CO2, inflation is instant, but when you've used up the cartridge, or if your cartridge doesn't have the capacity to inflate your tire to full pressure, you're out of luck until you find another cartridge or borrow a pump.

Here are the best bike pumps:

Updated on 8/7/2020 by Rick Stella: Added to the section on how to shop for a bike pump, checked the availability of each recommended product, and updated the prices and links where necessary.

The best bike pump overall

Specialized's Air Tool Comp features sturdy construction, smooth pumping action, and an accurate gauge making it one of the most reliable bike pumps available.

Specialized's Air Tool Comp has one of the most accurate pressure gauges I've tested. When pumping, its dual-stage pressure gauge gets close enough that you don't need to double check it with a dedicated pressure checker. While it's not digital, the gauge is accurate even at low pressures, where many pumps don't register PSI. Its oversized gauge numbers were easy to read and the gauge has a twist ring that allowed me to pre-select the pressure I wanted while also providing a visual cue when I reached it.

The Air Tool is ergonomic, with a flared, textured no-slip handle, and sandpapery footpads on the stable triangular base. Even with rapid-fire pumping, the pump stayed put. A 41-inch long hose made it easy to pump tires on bikes that were already loaded on a car hitch rack, too. The pump head also has a grip and an easy-to-grasp lever that locks securely onto the valve when flipped open.

Its steel base and aluminum air canister were extremely durable, as well. The twist ring on the pump head is textured for easy removal and replacement, and also allows for easy switching between Presta and Schrader compatibility.

The pump was efficient inflating mountain, gravel, commuter, e-bike, and road tires. It does have a max PSI of 120, so if you're a performance road biker who prefers higher pressure, this isn't the pump for you. When not in use, the hose wraps over the handle and clips to the top of the air canister on both sides.

Pros: Sturdy, well balanced, with an easy to read and accurate gauge.

Cons: Only goes to 120 PSI, doesn't seat tubeless

The best for tubeless tires

Foto: Source: Amazon

It looks like a standard floor pump but Pro's Team Tubeless Floor Pump seats tubeless tires, from road to mountain, without the bulky air reservoirs of other tubeless charging pumps.

At the base of this two-in-one pump's air cylinder is a foot lever that lets your choose between charge or inflate mode. To inflate a tire, flip the foot lever up to inflate and the pump works like a normal floor pump. To seat a tubeless tire on a rim, flip the foot lever down to charge and pump the handle as many times as you can to pressurize its reservoir. This pump also makes it easy to switch between Schrader and Presta valves and inflates to 160 PSI.

The Pro Team Pump's steel base and alloy barrel-over-barrel construction were strong and stable, able to withstand the strained push and pull of canister charging. The rubberized palm pads cushioned my hands and made it comfortable to use, too.

Oversized numbers in the gauge, which is in the pump's base, were easy to read and this pump works for all types of tires. The head is universal, so I didn't need to swap parts to switch valve types, either.

Pros: Super durable, seats tubeless tires and inflates any tire, universal head

Cons: Expensive

The best value bike pump

Foto: Source: Target

Schwinn's Air Center is the best pump you can buy for the price, with reliable performance and some of the bells and whistles of more expensive pumps.

This do-it-all pump will get you rolling on a budget. Schwinn's Air Center is the best pump you can buy that has a modest price tag, reliable performance, and some of the bells and whistles of more expensive pumps. It's versatile, too, allowing you to inflate kids' bike tires, pump up a basketball, or top off your e-bike.

The two-port Presta/Schrader head has an indicator to remind you when the pump is locked on to the valve and when it's ready for insertion and removal. The metal base and 24-inch steel barrel held up well to daily use and abuse and I appreciated the included sports ball needle and yoga ball inflation cone that stores in a clip-on plastic case.

The 49-inch fabric hose was even long enough to reach bike tire valves with bikes on a car rack. Its gauge in the handle is always close and easy to read and the pump pressurizes a tire to 160 PSI.

The Air Center features more plastic parts than other floor pumps here and though I didn't test it long enough for something to break, the materials don't feel as high-quality as others in this guide. Pumping was often loud and metallic, too, and the handle gauge necessitates that the hose also directly attaches to the handle. This means it moves with every pump stroke, giving it good reach while also creating some pull on tire valves.

Pros: Super affordable; head takes Presta and Schrader without conversion; gauge easy to see

Cons: Materials feel cheap, floppy hose

The best CO2 Inflator

Foto: Source: Amazon

Road bikers, mountain bikers, and any cyclist who prefers to carry less will pass on the pump and pack a CO2 inflator and a couple of air canisters instead.

With CO2, there's no pumping required. Simply screw the canister into and inflator, press it into your bikes open valve, and open the on/off knob to let air surge in.

I like Lezyne's Control Drive because the on/off knob let me dispense air more precisely than other inflators, and allowed me to turn off the flow to save some for later. The switch is knurled for a good grip even with bike gloves. The chuck has two heads, one for Presta and one for Schraeder, so there's no need to switch parts to move from one to the other - which can be especially hard roadside or trailside when it's easiest to lose parts during a conversion.

The 0.8-ounce CNC-machined aluminum inflator has brass internals for long term reliability. It comes in four colors and works with 16, 20, and 25g CO2 threaded cartridges. The Control Drive comes with a neoprene cartridge sleeve that slips over any size CO2 to protect your hand from canister freeze when using the pump, too. The inflator automatically prevents overinflating, which was especially handy when inflating a road tire with a larger cartridge.

Pros: Easy to keep track of; precision control knob, works with Presta and Schrader

Cons: Larger and heavier than some other inflators, Co2 cartridges expensive and disposable

The best on-bike pump

Foto: Source: Amazon

When you're far from home and far from help, you need a pump that's accurate and reliable. Crank Brother's handheld Klic HV is both, and it has more features than meets the eye.

The Klic HV is a plain-looking 10-inch long by 1-inch wide black cylinder when stored on your bike. When in use, its handle flips open into a T so you can wrap your fingers around both sides of the pump shaft for the best grip. Its pump hose features a built-in pressure gauge that stores inside the pump when packed.

The Klic HV is single action, so it only inflates when you push not when you pull. However, it can still take a mountain, gravel, hybrid, or road tire to 100 PSI, which is ideal for all but the most highly inflated road tires. If you don't want to tire your arm out pumping, the handle of the pump has a screw cap that hides a CO2 inflator.

Unfortunately, this pump doesn't have a universal head but switching from Presta to Schrader is straightforward. Just unscrew its valve adapter from the end of its pressure gauge hose, flip the valve head, and screw it back in. There are no internal pieces to reposition and the conversion is quick and easy.

The double-sided gauge was easy to read but only useful over 20 PSI. Experiment with this pump before you hit the road so you know how it likes to be held for the most efficient inflation.

Pros: Small enough to fit into a backpack, inflates up to 100 PSI even though it's a smaller pump, can hold a C02 inflator

Cons: Isn't strong enough to be a full-time, go-to pump