A cruiser bike, otherwise known as a beach cruiser, is a very popular bike for the everyday, casual rider. You’ll know it’s a cruiser when you see it because there’s just a lot about the design that screams casual riding. They are typically single-speed and have handlebars that are upright to give a more comfortable sitting position. They also usually have elongated frames, so riders can extend their legs when pedaling or put them flat on the ground when the bike is not in motion. All in all, a cruiser bike is designed for maximum comfort over tarmac and flat roads.
One other thing that’s notable about cruisers is the abundance of accessories available on the market as add ons for this bike, each with varying degrees of importance. Some of them are totally worth getting as they can improve, not just the comfort of your ride but also your overall safety.
With that said, we’ve rounded up the best cruiser bike accessories available on the market that offer the most fashion and function. So, without further ado, here they are.
Silicone Grips
To improve your cruiser’s comfort even further, we’d recommend you get a pair of silicone grips. They are an excellent addition, because, as their name suggests, they add grip to the handlebars, making the bike overall easier to ride.
We like the Astiboutique Eco-Friendly Silicone Foam Grips in particular (the red ones look cool!), and this is what we have on our cruiser bike. The silicone feels like it’s made from premium materials, and it’s absolutely weatherproof based on our experience.
Once it’s on your bike, there’s no taking it out. It is tight as a.. we’re forgetting out metaphors.. let’s just say it is really tight! I guess we learned this to our chagrin; we bought two pairs, black and red. We put the black one first, only to belatedly realize the red one might look better. Unfortunately, we had to literally knife the black silicone grips out in order to replace it with the red ones because there was no way to remove it without damaging it.
Metal Frame Basket
A Basket just looks so cool on a cruiser bike—especially the metal framed ones, which will give your cruiser bike a kind of industrial feel.
I guess the basket design of your choice will depend on your cruiser bike’s overall look, but for us, the metal-framed basket looked boss. It’s also awesome in terms of functionality, too, because you can carry a lot of stuff in it. Need to lug around your gym or laptop bag? No problem.
Our cruiser bike has the Nantucket metal framed basket, which we think looks fantastic. Nantucket offers a variety of baskets, some of which are made from good quality rattan fibers. Those rattan baskets will look great on certain cruiser bikes, to be sure.
Light Mounts
Naturally, you’d want a light mounted onto your cruiser bike for the times when you’ll be riding at night or in different low-light conditions. Light mounts are cheap, easy to install, and provide the exact function they were designed to provide.
Not all light mounts are made equal, however, and for our cruiser bike, we attached the Cygolite Metro Plus. It’s a great light mount that is easy to attach and remove thanks to a built-in quick release tab. And, boy, is it incredibly bright at 800 lumens. It is USB rechargeable, too, so you don’t need pesky batteries.
Hub Lights
Hub lights aren’t for everyone, but it’s definitely something someone who’s a sucker for attention will appreciate. And, yeah, we are suckers for attention.
They are very functional during low-light conditions, too. After all, you want to be visible to oncoming traffic to avoid an accident, and what could make your bike more visible to oncoming traffic than a pair of hub lights?
For hub lights, we’d strongly recommend that you check out Activ Lites—they have absolutely fantastic designs.
Soft Saddles
We’ve written a whole article on why mountain bikes need to have relatively hard and uncomfortable saddles, but since we’re talking about cruiser bikes here, then yeah, a soft, comfortable saddle is the way to go. A cruiser bike should be all about comfort—you’re not getting a cruiser bike to break speed records, after all.
And the Schwinn Wide Gel Comfort Saddle is, by our lights, one of the best saddles out there if you value your sit bone. The padding of this saddle will actually change and mold to your butt’s shape over time, and it has a bunch of elastomer springs that add another level of cushion and comfort.
The design of the Schwinn Wide Gel Comfort Saddle was made for riders who ride in the upright position, which is the leisurely sitting position that one would tend to be in when riding a cruiser bike. So we think this saddle is excellent for cruiser bikes in particular.
Phone Holder
Of course, it makes perfect sense to attach a phone holder to your cruiser bike—or just any bike, really—because nobody doesn’t have a phone these days. And for our cruiser bike, we have the Vibrelli Universal Motorcycle & Bike Phone Mount, which can fit just about any mobile phone. It is an excellent option for anyone who wants an affordable way to mount their phone on their cruiser bike.
Of course, we don’t recommend tinkering with your phone while biking, but for those moments when you’re not in motion, you can at least rest assured that this phone mount won’t be blocking any part of your screen, allowing full-screen access. Helpful when you’re using a GPS map application! Also, the ball and socket design allow riders to adjust the phone to any viewing angle, which we thought was a nice touch.
