7 of the best high-performance lightweight clipless pedals

Switching to a pair of the best high-performance lightweight clipless pedals can lop a chunk of weight off your bike. It's also a chance to switch to pedals that work better in other ways such as providing a broader platform for your shoes or user-friendly double-sided mechanism.

• For our purposes, high-performance lightweight clipless pedals means the lightest one of two models of each major clipless system: SPD, SPD-SL, Look, Time and Speedplay

• Big, powerful riders should probably steer clear of many of these, especially pedals with titanium axles whose makers set weight limits

• Most road bike pedals are single-sided but we've included three double-sided models here too, from Speedplay and Xpedo

• Factors such as the size of the contact area, the clip-in and release action and the amount of float are also important; see our guide to clipless pedals for more

7 of the best high-performance, lightweight clipless pedals

• Xpedo M-Force 8 Ti — ~£150
• Speedplay Zero Stainless Pedals — £145.17
• Shimano Dura-Ace 9100 Carbon SPD-SL — £149.99
• Xpedo Thrust XRF08CT — ~£140
• Look Keo Blade Carbon Ti Pedals — £184.99
• Time Xpresso 15 —  £349.95
• Speedplay Zero Titanium Nanogram — ~£540

In the selection of lightweight, high-end pedals below we’ve picked pedals designed to save weight but that also improve over regular or less expensive designs in other ways.

For example, Look’s latest Keo Blade pedals have a very large steel contact plate, which in theory makes the cleat — and therefore the shoe — steadier on the pedal.

The Hairsine ratios for these pedals are based on Shimano’s 330g R540 pedals, except for the Xpedo M-Force 8s which we’ve compared with Shimano’s 374g M520s.

>>Read more: Buyer's Guide — The best clipless pedals

Xpedo M-Force 8 Ti — ~£150

Weight: 215g Hairsine ratio: 1.06

With the Ritchey Micro pedals discontinued, these are now the lightest pedals we can find that work with walkable SPD shoes.

Xpedo is the the upmarket arm of Taiwanese pedal giant Wellgo, so there's a decent level of pedalsmithing competence there, and we liked Xpedo's upmarket road pedals when we tested them a few years ago.

Perhaps the biggest caveat here is that with titanium axles, these pedals have a rider weight limit of 85kg.

Speedplay Zero Stainless Pedals — £145.17

Weight: 208g Hairsine ratio: 0.84

Those who love Speedplays rave about the low weight, adjustability, and shallow stack. But it's undeniable they need more looking after than most pedals, the large cleat is awkward to walk in (the new aero cleat is a big improvement on the original naked cleat though) and they're susceptible to clogging from even the smallest amount of dirt.

But if you have knees that are in any way fragile, or you want pedals that are incredibly easy to enter and release but fit stiff-soled road racing shoes, their free float and double-sided design make Speedplays well worth considering.

Read our review of the Speedplay Zero Stainless Pedals
Find a Speedplay dealer

Shimano Dura-Ace 9100 Carbon SPD-SL — £149.99

Weight: 228g Hairsine ratio: 0.68

Shimano's top-level Dura-Ace R9100 pedals offer loads of security and stability and they're a few grams lighter than the previous version, although still not quite as light as some of their biggest rivals.

The pedals feature an injection-moulded carbon composite body with three small stainless steel plates across the centre to provide protection from wear. These plates are moulded in and aren't replaceable (the screwed-on plate of the previous generation Dura-Ace R9000 pedal wasn't replaceable either).

The pedal platform is 66mm wide – a little wider than previously – and provides plenty of stability. That broad platform is one of the best things about these pedals, and is especially welcome when you're riding out of the saddle.

Read our review of the Shimano Dura-Ace 9100 Carbon SPD-SL

Xpedo Thrust XRF08CT — ~£140

Weight: 174g Hairsine ratio: 1.11

Despite their conventional steel springs, these carbon-bodied Look Keo clones from the upmarket arm of Taiwanese pedal giant Wellgo are very light, thanks to their pared-down carbon fibre bodies and titanium axles.

Out on the road these provide you with a whole lot of stability. That wide pedal body gives you a solid platform underneath your foot for putting down the power, with no rocking from side to side. The mechanism hangs on to your cleat securely, and if you wind up the tension there’s virtually no chance of your foot disconnecting unexpectedly.

Read our review of the Xpedo Thrust XRF08CT

Look Keo Blade Carbon Ti Pedals — £184.99

Weight: 180g Hairsine ratio: 0.81

This is the lightest incarnation of Look’s Keo pedals, and uses a weight-saving carbon fibre leaf spring to provide the retention force in place of the usual steel coil.

We like the less expensive Keo Blade and these have even more bells and whistles, including a very large steel contact plate for stability (700mm² rather than the Max’s 400mm²) and titanium axle.

The latest versions of the Keo Blade Carbon and Keo Blade Carbon Ti have interchangeable leaf springs; they come set up with 12Nm springs, but there's a 16Nm spring in the box, and a special tool to help make the job easy. You can also buy a 20Nm spring, but Look warns that you shouldn’t come crying to them if you crash because you can’t get out of the 20Nm version.

Read our review of the Look Keo Blade Carbon Pedals

Time Xpresso 15 —  £349.95

Weight: 140g Hairsine ratio: 0.54

The Time Xpresso 15 pedals are extremely light and clipping in/twisting out could hardly be easier. The downside is the price, and the cleats wear noticeably faster than those of other brands.

At just 140g for the pair, they're phenomenally light thanks to carbon bodies, titanium axles, aluminium top plates and ceramic bearings. Clipping in is very easy thanks to a spring mechanism that stays open after you click out.

Read our review of the Time Xpresso 15
Find a Time dealer

Speedplay Zero Titanium Nanogram — £449.99

Weight: 120g Hairsine ratio: 0.39

At just 120g/pair these race-day-only pedals are Speedplay's demonstration that the Zero design can be made extraordinarily light. Speedplay has often displayed superlight bikes at trade shows; these pedals help make bikes like those even lighter.

The low weight is achieved by the use of every lightweight material you can think of: carbon-reinforced thermoplastic bodies; ceramic bearings; titanium axles; titanium bolts; and aluminium top plates. The cleats have been lightened too with carbon fiber replacing the plastic and aluminium fasteners instead of steel. They're bonkers expensive, but you have to admire the fanaticism.

Find a Speedplay dealer

>> Read more: All road.cc pedal reviews