Written By: Jacob J

Estimated Read Time: 13 mins.

Last Updated: 9/5/2023

Best-in-Class Bike Racks for Every Mountain Biker

When it comes to packing up your mountain bikes and hauling them to the trail, your number one priority is making sure your bikes arrive at your destination in the same condition they started in.

Mountain bikes present their own unique challenges when it comes to finding the perfect bike rack to transport your gear. Common mountain bike features like full suspension and thru axles can limit rack options. Not to mention, mountain bikes are typically heavier than road bikes, their tires are beefier, and their handlebar spreads are often wider. It's even more challenging if you add in alternative bike frames or smaller kids' bikes.

We all know that there are different aspects to your bike rack decision that can make it much more personalized. Some people want an affordable rack, some want the sturdiest ride, and others are specifically looking for features or the ability to load up a variety of bikes easily. Check out the button below to browse our selection of bike racks, or read further to hear our opinions of the best bike rack for you and your bike.

Our team tested all of the bike racks we could find. These are our suggestions for the best-in-class (as well as a few honorable mentions if you're one of those folks that likes options).

What Type of Bike Rack Do I Need for My Mountain Bike?

The safest way to carry your mountain bike is with a hitch-mounted platform-style carrier. There are several reasons mountain bike enthusiasts prefer hitch-mounted platform-style racks over other types.

Hitch-mounted platform racks:

Carry bikes by wheels with little or no frame contact
Don't allow bikes to sway behind vehicle (unlike hanging racks)
Don't require overhead clearance (unlike roof racks)
Generally accomodate common mountain bike features (29" wheels, suspension, etc.)
Are more aerodynamic and fuel efficient than roof racks
Can carry women's bikes without adapters
Often can carry kids' bikes without adapters
Are less likely to be destroyed by low garages

Check out our list of the top hitch-mounted platform racks below!

Our Recommendations (without all those pesky words)

Bike Rack

Honorable Mention

Who Would LOVE This Bike Rack?

Hollywood Racks Destination

Swagman XTC2 TILT

Bikers who don't want to break the bank

RockyMounts BackStage

N/A

Bikers who love the bells and whistles

Thule T2 Pro XTR

Saris Freedom

Bikers who load a variety of bikes

Kuat Piston Pro

RockyMounts GuideRail

Bikers looking for an easy-to-use rack

Hollywood Racks RV Rider

N/A

Bikers looking for a sturdy and safe ride

Best Bike Rack for the Budget-Conscious Biker

Hollywood Racks Destination

When you are budget shopping for a bike rack, the options can seem pretty limited. Either you are sacrificing stability, functionality, ease-of-use, or in some cases, all three.

Now we're not going to pretend that this bike rack goes toe-to-toe with the pricier options, however, being one of the least expensive bike racks we tested (this may have actually been the least expensive), the sacrifices that we had to make were far from a deal breaker.

There are a number of knobs, straps, and attachment points on this rack, which can make adjustment more difficult than it needs to be. But it wasn't awful, and when it was all connected properly, the ride was actually much more stable than we expected. Besides, if you're hauling the same bikes every time you ride, you will only have to adjust it once. The bigger inconvenience was a lack of a tilting feature. It's less concerning at this price point honestly, but if you want that functionality you would have to look elsewhere (*ahem* honorable mentions).

If you're the type of biker that doesn't mind a little inconvenience to save a few bucks (seriously this comes in almost a thousand dollars cheaper than some of the higher-end bike racks) the Hollywood Racks Destination is easily one of the most cost-effective bike racks out there.

The dual "center mast" on the Hollywood Racks Destination allows you to load multiple-sized bikes relatively easily.

Honorable Mention - Swagman XTC2 Tilt

The Swagman XTC2 Tilt is tiny when it's completely folded up. Making it a perfect addition to the casual biker's broom closet.

The Swagman XTC2 Tilt makes a lot of the same sacrifices that the Hollywood Racks Destination has to make. However, it does come in a bit pricier despite those sacrifices. While that is enough to land it a silver medal in this category, there are some noteworthy additions that justify the small bump in price.

My favorite part of this bike rack was how it folded up. Seriously this thing could fit in a broom closet with ease. I honestly believe that if you live in an apartment, and have limited space, but still want to get out onto the trail, this is not only a budget-friendly option, but a space-friendly one too.

There is also the titular tilting feature, which is rare to see at this price point. While the tilting feature isn't as easy to use as higher-end racks, the fact that it's even here is extremely noteworthy. If you're looking for a bike rack that won't put you back too far, but will allow you full access to the hatch of your vehicle, this is a solid option.

Feature-Rich Racks for Bikers who Love Their Bells and Whistles

RockyMounts Backstage

Have you ever eaten a cake, and the cake was perfectly fine, nothing groundbreaking, it did what it was supposed to do, but the most memorable part of the cake was the absolutely delicious icing? That's the RockyMounts Backstage. You just ate a bike rack.

The Backstage is a perfectly functional bike rack on the surface. It holds the bikes effectively, is a good sturdy ride, and is easy to use. But the icing really makes the cake here, and the features are what turns this bike rack up to 11 in our book.

Not only does the RockyMounts Backstage tilt away like many bike racks at this price point, but it is unique in its ability to fold outward so offer unparalleled access to your tailgate or hatch. Not to mention loading multiple bikes on this rack is made significantly easier when a rider can load their bike on either side simultaneously.

The RockyMounts Backstage is able to fold out and allow complete access to the tailgate

"Fairly easy install. And now that we have tested it out on a few trips we can honestly say we really like this product. The platform style keeps the bikes from touching/damaging each other. The design is solid and simple to use. Easy to load and unload. The only downside is the lock is a deterrent but not bombproof so we will probably add our own locks when needed. Other then that great product, great service from etrailer as always. Highly recommend this RockyMount hitch."

5/5 Stars

-Delaware Dave

Versatile Racks for the Biker who Hauls a Variety of Bikes

Thule T2 Pro XTR

How are you at Pictionary? If your answer was anything north of "I'm alright I guess" then you could probably see the value in the Thule T2 Pro XTR. This bike rack checks all the boxes we tested. It was sturdy, it was easy to use once it was installed, and it felt like a good solid connection with some bulk behind it. The only hangup we had with this bike rack was the setup process. The good folks at Thule decided to go with the bold artistic choice of making their entire assembly instructions in picture form. So unless you can decipher what a drawing of a bicep means, get ready to guess!

Setup aside, we really liked this bike rack, but the real icing on the cake would have to be the versatility. The mechanisms for holding the bicycles are in no way connected, and there is a healthy amount of space in between both trays. So you can load a large mountain bike in the first tray, and a child's bike in the second with no issues for when you're off the trail and hitting the park.

This bike rack is an easy recommendation for those who are potentially loading multiple types of bikes, and want to be sure that their bike rack can handle whatever is thrown at it.

The Thule T2 Pro has two trays that allow multiple bikes to be loaded easily, and an available adapter that can hold two additional bikes

Honorable Mention- Saris Freedom

The Saris Freedom uses tool-less plastic knobs for adjustment (the yellow bits). And while we never saw them fail, we suspect they may as time goes on

The Saris Freedom has a number of the same strengths of the Thule T2 Pro. The mechanisms that hold the bikes into place are completely independent of one another, and this freedom (see what I did there?) allows you to load multiple bikes of varying size with ease.

There are a few other drawbacks to this rack though that aren't present in the T2, namely the center post. Loading your bikes onto this rack, while not prohibitively difficult, is harder to do because you must load the bikes around the center post, which provides the stability for the bicycle. We also felt like the plastic knobs for tightening the bike rack felt fragile to us, although they did their job just fine, we questioned how long they would hold up year after year.

However, with these headaches does come a somewhat significant decrease in price. The Saris Freedom allows you to own a perfectly serviceable and versatile bike rack, and still have the freedom (seriously I can't stop) to not worry about the price tag while you do so.

Easiest Rack to Use for the Biker Who Focuses on the Trail Ahead

Kuat Piston Pro

Biking is a demanding hobby, there is no denying that. But that doesn't mean ease of use shouldn't be considered when you pick out a bike rack. In this aspect, the Kuat Piston Pro is easily the top of the line. If you are riding the roughest of trails, and you know you are gonna leave it all out there, having a bike rack that doesn't demand much of you is important.

It doesn't get much easier to use than the Piston Pro. With a squeeze of the release handle, the supporting arm releases on its own with a satisfying "decompression" sound.

I do feel like this comes with a few caveats though. First and foremost, let's talk price. This one is easily one of the most expensive racks on the market, easily double or even triple the price of some of our more budget-friendly entries. And this is made all the worse by the second point, other than the cool pistons (and make no mistake, they're really cool), this bike rack doesn't really do much to justify the price tag in our opinion. The lever that controls the tilt-away function was underneath the bikes, so it was awkward to get to. And while the ride was fine, you could easily be just as stable (spoiler alert: or even more stable) for half the price.

There are a few drawbacks that we have listed, but all in all, this is a solid rack that knows it's niche, ease-of-use. If that's your primary concern, then there is literally nothing better out there. Just be prepared to pay a bit more for the convenience.

The sleek form factor of this bike rack is one of the many things we did like about the Kuat Piston Pro

Squeezing the release lever was all it took for the arms to raise and your rack to be ready to load up

Honorable Mention - RockyMounts GuideRail

We loved the fact that every moving component had a slick blue finish. It wasn't much, but it made this one stand out aesthetically

If you just finished reading the section about the Kuat Piston Pro above, and were a bit turned off by the list of cons, then oh boy, do I have a surprise for you. The RockyMounts GuideRail is also extremely simple to use (although lacking the pistons the aforementioned pro is named after), and handles all of those issues. The ride was stable, the tilt-away lever was in a much more accessible position, and all of this comes in at a much more reasonable price.

The GuideRail takes the silver medal in the ease-of-use category because it lacks the pistons that almost automate the Kuat, but for my money, I would probably still go with the GuideRail over the Piston Pro. To me, the added convenience of the piston-operated holding arms and the inconvenience of the tilting feature come out in the wash, so adding the extra weight to the price tag makes this "second place rack", number one in my heart, even if it isn't necessarily as easy to use as the Piston Pro.

This bike rack also sports a "tiered" platform design, which makes the tilt-away feature easier to use, increases ground clearance, and makes bike-to-bike contact that much less likely when you're traveling down the road. All in all, many bike racks felt very "over-engineered" and complicated. The RockyMounts GuideRail was a simple to use, easy to understand product that had all the features I wanted, and none of the fluff. It's a great bike rack for any rider who happens to find it within their budget.

Sturdiest Bike Rack for Bikers who Want to Protect Their Investment

Hollywood Racks RV Rider

When we were testing bike racks, we tended to notice some patterns when it came to price vs. quality. Generally speaking, you get what you pay for when buying a bike rack. There are some notable exceptions, some bike racks seem a bit overpriced for what they offer, and some of the budget racks seem to be a bit sturdier or user-friendly than their price tag would suggest. But with some minor exceptions they generally tended to follow that pattern.

The Hollywood Racks RV Rider threw that entire balance on its head. This rack comes in very middle-of-the-road with its cost. It's definitely an investment, but nothing that compares to the super-high-end entries. However, despite that reasonable cost, this bike rack outperformed literally everything else that we tested. BIke racks that cost literally twice as much as this one wobble more in the hitch on our test course.

There were some annoyances that we have come to expect with Hollywood Racks, namely that they tend to require an entire hardware store's worth of pins, bolts, and screws to assemble and adjust. There is also the center post that you have to load your bikes around which can be a hurdle for some users. But if you are only hauling a specific load of bikes repeatedly and not having to adjust the rack often, and don't mind loading around the center mast, this thing is punching well above its weight in value.

If securely mounting your bikes is your prime concern, and you don't mind a few minor inconveniences to do so, there is literally no rack that comes close to the stability and security of the Hollywood Racks RV Rider. I think our opinion of it is summed up best by Amber, one of our writers who participated in this bike rack test.

"I was so impressed with how sturdy this thing was. Like, forget the e-bike, I’d ride on this thing."

-Amber

The RV Rider looks as complicated as it is. But once all of those knobs and screws and doo-dads are in place, there's no tighter hold on the market

The frame mount is adjustable, so carbon fiber frames might want to steer clear, but step-through bikes and abnormal frames will be just fine here

Our Final Thoughts

I think the biggest thing to remember about choosing a bike rack, is that they are all very different from one another, and they all have different pros and cons. What may be a perfect bike rack for one biker, may be completely out of the question for another. And those specific needs have to be taken into account when making that choice.

Hopefully this guide was as helpful to read as it was fun to make! Now that you know what bike rack is right for you, it's time to decide which trail to conquer first...

About Jacob J

To say that my path to etrailer was complicated would be an understatement. I have always had a passion for helping others, and throughout my education and career as a social worker or community liaison, I have loved writing as a hobby. When I found etrailer and was given the opportunity to turn something I enjoyed doing into a career that helped people access information and products they need to live the best life they possibly could, I was instantly interested.

I am a lover of the outdoors, have been loading and unloading trailers since I before I was old enough to drive them, and have spent my recent years working in and around the automotive industry. And I am excited to share all of the things I have learned (more often than not the hard way).

I consider myself a perpetual student, and etrailer gives me the opportunity to learn something new every day and share my findings with others. Which is something I am extremely grateful for. I look forward to continuing to help people find the answers they need to make memories for a lifetime.

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