When I first started testing the best treadmills, all I cared about were the biggest specs on the sheet. Things like top speed, max incline, and motor horsepower.
These are all very important, for sure, but having used a variety of home treadmills for long periods over the past decade or so, they’re not the features that have made the biggest impact on my enjoyment of a machine.
When you’re running on a treadmill regularly, it’s all about ease-of-use, and I’ve tested machines that excel on this front, and some that don’t, instead putting barriers up to make it harder to run.
So if I were looking to buy a home treadmill today, there are a few features I’d now consider dealbreakers that wouldn’t have occurred to me before using one regularly for several years.
Here are six questions I’d ask when looking for a treadmill.
How fast does the treadmill start?
If I’ve carved out some time to run, I want to spend that time running, not navigating my way through a series of increasingly annoying sub-menus on a treadmill console or, even worse, having to wait for a software update.
Ideally, a treadmill will have some kind of quick-start option with manual buttons, but if I do have to fire up an app or use the console, it should still take less than 30 seconds to get the belt moving so I can start running.
As someone who often uses a treadmill to fit in a run while my toddler has a nap, time is precious, and too many expensive treadmills in particular throw way too many options and menus at you before you can actually start running.
The Bowflex Treadmill 10 I’ve used for many years is brilliant in many respects, but not this one, and I’ve often started my runs on it in a mild fury at how long it’s taken to get going.
Is it easy to use without an app subscription?
This is tied to my first question because if you have to fire up an app on the treadmill every time you run, it does add time and software updates to the mix.
Beyond the extra time, if your machine relies heavily on an app to function, the odds are you’ll be paying a significant monthly fee to get the most out of it, so it’s important to know what you get from the machine without paying this fee.
If you’re buying something like the Peloton Tread, you’ll go in knowing that the app subscription is a big part of what it offers, but with machines from brands like Bowflex and NordicTrack it’s less clear how reliant they are on the JRNY and iFit apps baked into them.
You could easily end up using a treadmill for five to 10 years, and may well not want to be paying a subscription for all of that time, so check what features you get without subscribing.
Does it have manual controls?
Bright touchscreens that display all your stats and control the treadmill are fantastic at the start of a run, but after 45 minutes of running, they can become harder to use without smearing sweat all over the screen and inadvertently triggering the wrong controls.
Manual controls for speed and incline are a must for me, and ideally there will be some shortcut buttons to certain speed and incline settings you can use for fast changes during interval workouts.
Does it have a truly foldable design and is it portable?
Big treadmills are great if you have a lot of space and never have to move them, but as someone who has twice had to wheel a huge, very heavy treadmill around my neighbourhood with a friend, getting stuck in a narrow alley at one point, it is handy to have a more portable machine.
Also check how foldable the machine actually is, because that term is used a lot and often means you can lift the belt a little bit, which slightly decreases the floor space used by the machine while making it take up more space in every other way.
Many treadmills now fold completely flat, which is fantastic for storing them under something, or even against a wall (do properly secure them to that wall to avoid catastrophe), and also makes them easier to move around the house.
I think it’s actually worth sacrificing in some key areas like top speed or even belt size to get a machine that takes up less space, but that will depend on your situation with how much space you have to play with.
Does it have Bluetooth connectivity for third-party apps?
Lots of treadmills now come with fitness platforms baked in, or partner apps to link to, which is all very well, but I think being able to link the machine with any app you want is important.
For example, I like to use Zwift to track my treadmill runs, and having a treadmill that speaks directly to the app is easier and more accurate than using a footpod or my running watch to send my stats to Zwift.
This kind of Bluetooth connectivity was a very rare feature when I started testing treadmills, but should now come as standard given the amount of training apps out there you might want to link up with.
How large is the running belt?
This is a big feature, and one most people probably know to check, but still worth flagging up. How long and wide is the running belt on the treadmill you’re looking at, because this directly affects how comfortable it is to use the machine regularly.
I’m 6ft tall and a pretty fast runner, but have a fairly short stride length for my height and can get away with using shorter belts, but feeling cramped on a machine, or even anxious about hitting the front or sides of the treadmill, can really wreck the enjoyment of a run.
A small belt is usually the biggest drawback of cheaper, more foldable machines, but you can strike a balance. The most spacious machines offer 60in x 20in belts or bigger, but I’ve been fine running regularly on treadmills with 50-55in long and 17-18in wide belts.
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