As one of the top bike manufacturers in the world, you’ve likely heard of Cube Bikes already… but, did you know Cube has only been established in the UK since 2006, or that its top-end Litening C:68X SLX costs considerably less than pro-level bikes from most rival brands? To find out what Cube’s increasingly hyped road and gravel range is all about, we took the 2025 Litening C:68X SLX for an extended road trip across borders and terrains.
A brief history of Cube Bikes
Chances are you’ve already heard of Cube. Its bikes have been sold in UK bike shops for the last couple of decades, and are regularly reviewed in magazines and websites, including here at road.cc.
Less well known is the back story of a German brand that’s managed to undercut premium competitors on price without, seemingly, compromising performance or build quality.
Founded in 1993 by Marcus Pürner in his father’s furniture factory in Waldershof, Bavaria, Cube began with a 50m² production area. Fast-forward three decades, and the brand now has over 55,000m² of production space, selling bikes in more than 70 countries.
The brand produces an astonishing 4,500 bikes and e-bikes per day – 1.2 million annually – and its current catalogue includes more than 400 different models. Unlike many competitors, Cube designs, engineers, and assembles its bikes in the same region where it all began. Despite its scale, Cube remains privately owned, which the company says allows it to prioritise long-term goals over short-term shareholder gains.
Our road trip bike…
On our trip, we rode the Litening C:68X SLX – a race-focused aero bike that, on paper, punches far above its price tag. It also received a 9/10 score and a road.cc Recommends badge when we reviewed it back in April, our reviewer praising the bike as “light, fast, affordable and good-looking.”
> Review: Cube Litening C:68X – SLX
Cube’s naming system might seem opaque at first glance, but there is logic to it: ‘Litening’ is the aero race line, ‘Agree’ focuses on endurance, and ‘Attain’ is designed for comfort and versatility.
“C:68X” refers to the carbon layup – 68% carbon fibre, minimising resin for reduced weight without compromising strength. This is Cube’s premium frame tech, sitting above the still-impressive C:62 layup and aluminium offerings.
The SLX spec includes top-tier SRAM Red AXS, Newmen carbon wheels with carbon spokes, a one-piece integrated cockpit, carbon-railed saddle, and even Tubolito inner tubes.
Weight? Just 6.55kg for the full bike. And while this certainly isn’t a ‘cheap’ bike priced at £7,299, you’d need to part with about £4,000 more for similar top-of-the-range performance from most rival brands.
So… how does Cube do it?
1,000km in the saddle left us with one question: how does Cube keep its pricing so competitive?
Firstly, economies of scale. Cube is a massive company. With daily production numbers rivalled by few, they can accept slimmer margins per bike while remaining profitable.
Secondly, vertical integration. The brand has increasingly brought production in-house, but Cube also forged a close relationship with component brand Newmen, which supplies wheels and other components. The handlebars, seatpost, and even the bottle cages are all designed and manufactured under one roof. This, Cube tells us, eliminates middlemen, reduces shipping costs, and ensures consistent quality.
And thirdly, efficiency. By producing everything in its high-tech Bavarian facility, Cube claims it can streamline assembly and logistics in a way that most rivals simply can’t match.
The ride
Setting off on a multi-day ride is always a true test of a bike’s character. Our 550km route spanned four days, with early starts, ferry crossings, varied terrain and weather, and sometimes, quite unexpectedly, through completely deserted French villages. We rolled around the countryside hungry and tired, only to find shutters down and not a baguette in sight.
So, what’s it actually like to ride? In short, superb. The Litening C:68X SLX offers a responsive, razor-sharp ride that easily competes with big-name models from Trek, Specialized, and Cannondale.
It’s stiff under power, stable at high speeds, and manages to be surprisingly comfortable for a race bike. Even with frame bags and long hours in the saddle, it was surprisingly comfortable and the Cube handled everything we threw at it.
Through it all, which included everything from Alpine climbs to windswept flats, the Litening felt consistently composed. It didn’t flinch on descents, didn’t rattle over rough tarmac, and never once left us wishing for more expensive options – just the next open bakery. It’s a bike that does everything very well.
Top-tier performance without the top-tier pricing
It’s hard to argue with the numbers – and even harder to argue with the experience. Cube Bikes might not have the heritage or brand prestige of some rivals, especially here in the UK where it only landed in 2006, but it is making a serious case for being one of the best value manufacturers on the market.
Privately owned, German engineered, and increasingly innovative, Cube is showing that you can have top-tier performance without top-tier pricing. Whether you’re an elite racer or an amateur enthusiast, there’s likely a Cube bike that suits your needs – and leaves enough in your wallet for a cafe stop or two.
Too good to be true? Not the case, as we found out during our extended test ride.
Find out more about Cube Bikes by heading to the Cube website
7 thoughts on “How does Cube keep its bike prices so low? We crunched the numbers and took a huge road trip on Cube’s latest and greatest road bike”
There’s an art to making
There’s an art to making sponsored content read like it’s still legitimate content, albeit with a slant, rather than straight up ad copy and it starts with not giving it a headline like “Why are we just the totally awesomest ever“.
The banner across the top of
The banner across the top of the article saying that it’s paid promotion is a bit of a giveaway anyway.
Sponsored doesn’t have to be
Sponsored doesn’t have to be bad though – take GCN’s stuff, it’s all paid for by someone but there’s still interesting stuff there, it’s just (e.g.) if they do any sort of ‘how to’ you know they’ll be doing it in front of a wall covered in Park Tool kit etc.
It’s not just “These guys paid us to say they’re great, and btw – breaking news – these guys are great“. There’s actual content as well.
Cube, though, do make amazing
Cube, though, do make amazing value bikes that ride very well, which is what this paid-for article is saying. I’ve ridden Cubes as hire bikes and can confirm that they’re good.
The weight and price are
The weight and price are impressively low. And the bike surely has good aerodynamic properties. …and the first thing you do is throw bags and a luggage rack on it so all those properties of the bike go right out the window 😛
‘and sometimes, quite
‘and sometimes, quite unexpectedly, through completely deserted French villages. We rolled around the countryside hungry and tired, only to find shutters down and not a baguette in sight’
have u never been to France before? The countryside is always deserted and especially in the summer. It is a very strange and inexplicable phenomena – French ( and Belgian) ghost towns; always shuttered, no one on the streets, deserted – yet not abandoned.
I have a Cube Attain. It’s
I have a Cube Attain. It’s chuffing brilliant & came in with 105 Di2 at a really good price.
This is not sponsored content (happy to accept commission though 😜)