No, road bikes don't come with internal gear hubs: this technology, used on city and hybrid bikes, has no place on a road drivetrain. Here's why, and what actually equips your road bike.
Browse our selection of hub road bike and drivetrain road bike in stock.
1. What is an internal gear hub?
An internal gear hub is a gear-shifting mechanism housed entirely inside the rear hub, with no external derailleur or cassette. The best-known technologies in this space are Shimano's Nexus and Alfine ranges, mentioned here purely for reference. This system typically equips city bikes, hybrids, and utility bikes, where ease of maintenance and weatherproofing matter more than light weight.
2. Why road bikes use derailleur drivetrains rather than internal gear hubs
Three reasons explain why this technology has no place on a road bike:
- Weight: an internal gear hub is significantly heavier than a standard hub paired with a cassette, a decisive factor on a road bike.
- Gear range: a derailleur drivetrain, with a cassette and chainrings, offers a wider and more progressive gear range, suited to varying terrain and pace in sport riding.
- Mechanical efficiency: a chain-and-derailleur drivetrain offers better efficiency than an internal gear mechanism, an important factor as soon as performance is involved.
Good to know: if you're after an internal gear hub for a city bike or hybrid, that's not a part we carry in our road catalogue. Check our dedicated urban bike categories instead.
3. What actually equips a road bike
On a road bike, the rear hub houses a freehub body that receives the cassette: it's the combination of cassette and derailleur that handles gear changes, not the hub itself. To understand in detail how this classic rear hub and its freehub body work, see our article Road bike rear hub.
