We love the Peloton Tread. We gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars and praised the expansive running belt and vast HD screen in particular. However, we also love a treadmill deal, so we had concerns over whether it justified its high price, and that was when the Tread cost $2,695 in the US and £2,545 in the UK.
In August, Peloton increased the price to $3,495/£3,345, a huge hike especially when you consider you also have to pay $44/£39 a month to unlock all the classes. And unlike the similarly expensive Technogym MyRun, you can’t use the HD screen for anything other than the Peloton app.
Fortunately, there are more affordable alternatives to the Peloton Tread. If you’re looking for one of the best home treadmills to use with guided classes, the Echelon Stride is worth considering – especially since its price was just reduced by $200/£200.
The Stride now costs from $1,399/£1,399, plus a monthly rolling membership of $34.99/£29.99 (you can reduce the subscription price further if you buy a year or two years up front) to access live and on-demand classes in the Echelon app.
While the Stride doesn’t have a built-in screen or as impressive a spec sheet as the Peloton Tread, it has a top speed of 12mph and an incline range that goes up to 10%, which will more than satisfy most runners. We also found it ran smoothly for long periods even at its highest speeds when we tested it, and though the running area is shorter than the Peloton Tread’s, a 6ft runner could use it fairly comfortably.
The Echelon Stride also has a neat trick the Peloton Tread doesn’t, which is that you can fold it completely flat to make it easier to store against a wall or underneath a sofa. The classes in the Echelon app are also engaging and will help to motivate you in just the same way as the Peloton ones.
If you’re on the hunt for a home treadmill to use as winter approaches, the Echelon Stride is worth checking out – and it certainly now offers better value than the Peloton Tread.
