Anybody who has had to endure the relentless, eyeball-melting squeak of a poorly lubricated or dry chain will know just how important bicycle chain lube is, but there’s much more to drivetrain lubrication than that.
A well lubricated chain will also wear more slowly, saving you cash in the long run, especially if you’re the kind of rider who likes to get the big miles in every year. Proper lubrication reduces friction through the drivetrain too, which can lead to efficiency gains, effectively helping you to go further for (slightly) less effort.
While the very best results can be gained by waxing your chain, in reality, most of us don’t have either the time, the willpower or the facilities (such as an ultrasonic parts cleaner) to go down that avenue. Liquid or ‘drip’ lubes offer the best solution for the vast majority of cyclists – they’re easy to apply and available for a whole range of conditions and cycling disciplines.
From chain lubes designed for dry and dusty conditions to wet lubes for repelling the worst weather, wax-based lubes for performance gains and all-condition lubes for ease of use, here we run you through our recommendations for the best bicycle chain lubes on the market. Read on for our buying advice below where we answer the most common questions about chain lubes, and help you work out which is best for you and your riding.
Our selection of the best chain lubes
- Squirt Long Lasting Chain Lube £13.99
- Silca Super Secret Chain Lube £16
- Fenwick’s All Condition Chain Lube £10
- Weldtite Wet Lube £6.99
- Tru Tension Banana Slip Wet Lube £5
- Peaty’s Link Lube Dry £12.99
- Juice Lubes Viking Juice, All Conditions Chain Lube £9.99
- CeramicSpeed UFO Drip Indoor £19.99
- Effetto Mariposa Flowerpower Wax £12
- Wolf Tooth WT-1 Chain Lube All Conditions £20
Read on for more detailed buying advice.
Related questions you can explore with Ask Cyclist, our new AI search engine.
If you would like to ask your own question you just need to Login, Register or subscribe.
Why trust our advice?
Chain lube formulas have come a long way in the past few years, and here at Cyclist, we’ve been here to try them out at every step of the way. From wet and dry lubes to wax-based solutions and all-condition options, we’ve tried them all.
Just like most things, there’s no one perfect option for everyone – and you can trust us that we’ve tried these on our travels by bike near and far, from soggy rides here in the UK to dry dusty rides across Europe and beyond.
As well as thoughts from our own experiences with these chain lubes, we also take into account figures from Zero Friction Cycling, which employs rigorous chain wear testing with various chain lube formulas, and have factored these results into our recommendations.
Best chain lubes 2025 reviewed
Squirt Long Lasting Chain Lube
RRP: £13.99 (120ml) | View offer
- Wax-based formula
- Designed for all conditions and bike disciplines
- Available in mini 15ml, 120ml (pictured), 500ml workshop size or from bike shop eco refill packs
Squirt’s business was founded on its chain lube in 2003, which has since massively grown in popularity as one of the best biodegradable wax-based formulas. Hailing from South Africa, the Long Lasting Chain Lube is designed to last for the duration of a marathon race – tried and tested by many at the iconic Cape Epic Mountain Bike Race.
For everyday riders, this may mean chain lubrication for multiple rides without reapplication, which is certainly a bonus. Unlike typical chain oils, Squirt lube attracts much less dirt, even in wet conditions, so you just need to brush your chain before reapplying more of the wax-based lube.
If you can get your hands on some of the tiny 15ml bottles then do – these are excellent minis to stash in a frame bag or hip pack for mid-ride top-ups on longer rides such as ultras or multi-day epics when you don’t want to be weighed down by a bigger lube bottle.
Silca Super Secret Chain Lube
RRP: £16 (60ml) | View offer
- Liquid wax formula with solvent carrier
- Designed for use between 5-30 degrees Celsius
- Tungsten Disulphide additive for enhanced lubrication
Silca is highly regarded for some of the best wax treatments for chains, and have also brought some of the benefits of a wax-based system to the wax drip market. This liquid wax application uses a solvent carrier to transport the wax into the chain to where it’s needed.
The Super Secret chain coating also uses Tungsten Disulphide (WS2), a lubricating additive used widely in the aerospace and military industries.
According to Zero Friction Cycling, the Super Secret Chain Lube places in the top half of available wax drip lubes for reducing chain wear, and Silca claims that the lube can save you up to seven watts compared to other chain oils in improving efficiency.
Fenwick’s All Condition Chain Lube
RRP: £10 (100ml) | View offer
- Biodegradable oil-based chain lube
- Designed for all conditions, wet or dry, and all temperatures
- Environmentally-friendly option
Easy to use and simple to apply, the clear oil-based formula from Fenwick’s has been designed to keep your chain lubricated through all conditions, be that dusty, dry and hot, abhorrently wet or below freezing temperatures.
If you’re looking for an environmentally-friendly option, Fenwick’s is hard to beat – even the bottle is made from Prevented Ocean Plastic (collected from beach cleans), and Fenwick’s is a 1% For The Planet business.
For the highest performance, Fenwick’s also offers its Professional Chain Lube for an additional £5.
Weldtite Wet Lube
RRP: £6.99 (100ml) | View offer
- Biodegradable oil-based lubricant
- Designed for use in wet, colder conditions
- Prevents rust after wet rides
Tinged cherry-red, the Weldtite Wet Lube is an oil-based formula that’s specifically designed for use in wet conditions. The semi-transparent lube repels rain, road spray and puddle splashes to keep your chain lubricated and protected from rusting during and after your rides, no matter how severe the weather.
As well as reducing friction, using wet lube will also stop the lubricant from washing away in the wet, therefore keeping your chain from squeaking or making any equally-irritating noises as you pedal along into the elements.
The Weldtite Wet Lube is made in the UK and certified biodegradable.
Tru Tension Banana Slip Wet Lube
RRP: £5 (50ml) | View offer
- Oil-based biodegradable lubricant
- Designed for wet and muddy conditions
- Made in the UK
A universal riding formula for road, gravel and mountain biking in wet and filthy conditions, the Banana Slip Wet Lube from Tru Tension even smells of banana sweets upon application.
The oil-based lubricant needs to be shaken before use and applied to a thoroughly degreased chain. Just like many other oil-based lubricants, Tru Tension points out that you can use this lube on other bike parts too, such as pedals and derailleurs.
Tru Tension also offer a Tungsten Wet Lube (£10 for 50ml), which contains Tungsten Disulphide. This compound is used widely in various industries as a lubricant to reduce friction, and interestingly originated in the aerospace industry.
Peaty’s Link Lube Dry
RRP: £12.99 (120ml) | View offer
- Wax-based water emulsion lubricant
- Designed for long, dry and dusty rides
- Dries onto the chain to minimise dirt capture
This very pale, opaque turquoise emulsion of water-based liquid with wax particles smells surprisingly of shea butter (my Body Shop gang will know), and has been designed specifically for those wonderfully dusty-dry summer rides when you never even set eyes on a puddle.
After application, the lube dries onto the chain, meaning that any dust or dirt from the road or trail isn’t attracted to it, which otherwise effectively creates a grinding paste – a big no-no for minimising chain wear.
Peaty’s Link Lube Wet is also a wax emulsion formula, designed to enhance lubricant durability in the worst of conditions and prevent chain rusting, whereas the minty-smelling Link Lube All Weather is more suited to everyday riding in damp and changeable conditions, and employs an oil-based formula.
Juice Lubes Viking Juice All Conditions Chain Lube
RRP: £9.99 (130ml) | View offer
- Oil and evaporating solvent formula
- Universal for all conditions and cycling disciplines, on and off-road
- Best applied in 2-4 layers
The Viking Juice lube is surprisingly runny, and that’s due to the solvent-based carrier, which allows the oil to navigate deep into the chain and act where it’s needed: at the rollers. The solvent then evaporates away, which leaves a dry finish on the chain, meaning road and trail dirt is less likely to get attracted to the surface and create a chain-eating grinding paste.
As an all-conditions lube, Juice Lubes recommends use in all conditions from very wet to bone dry, as well as for all bike disciplines, from road to mountain biking. Juice Lubes does also offer a number of other lubricants, including dry, wet, ceramic and wax-based lubes, all for a similar price.
CeramicSpeed UFO Drip Indoor
RRP: £19.99 (100ml) | View offer
- Wax-based biodegradable liquid formula
- Designed for use on turbo trainers or for track riding and racing
- Overnight application recommended
CeramicSpeed’s UFO Drip lubes are held in high regard among cyclists seeking to minimise chain wear and maximise efficiency, without the hassle of waxing chains.
The CeramicSpeed UFO Drip performed favourably in Zero Friction Cycling’s chain wear testing, second only to the Effetto Mariposa Flowerpower Max in the wax-based liquid lube category.
This variation to the formula is designed specifically for indoor riding, whether that’s track racing or turbo training. The UFO Drip Indoor minimises surface wax, which is usually shed, enhancing efficiency for indoor use where protection from road spray and grit is not required.
CeramicSpeed recommends an overnight application before riding, and suggests that each application should last between 5-8 hours of indoor riding time.
Effetto Mariposa Flowerpower Wax
RRP: £12 (100ml) | View offer
- Wax-based lubricant derived from sunflower seeds with water emulsion carrier
- Suitable for all conditions and disciplines
- Biodegradable, with high wax content over 50%
Rated as the best wax drip lubricant for reducing chain wear according to Zero Friction Cycling (ranking even better than several pure wax treatments), Effetto Mariposa’s Flowerpower Wax lube is unusually derived from the wax in sunflower seeds and other natural sources.
The brand has become known for its unique innovations in the cycling world, and the lubricant sits alongside their Végétalex Tubeless Sealant, which is made from ground olive stones.
The water emulsion formula contains over 50% wax, which is high, according to the brand, where competitors’ inclusion rates are typically around 30%.
Rather than rely on additives such as Teflon or sulphides, the formula is as natural as possible, and readily biodegradable, lessening the environmental impact.
Wolf Tooth WT-1 Chain Lube All Conditions
RRP: £20 (59ml) | View offer
- Synthetic lubricant and chain cleaning treatment
- Designed for all conditions and disciplines
- Formula claimed to clean chain as well as lubricate
Developed in collaboration with SCC Tech, Wolf Tooth Components’ WT-1 Chain Lube is claimed to be more than just a lubricant for your chain. The all-conditions formula also penetrates deep into the chain to float away debris, according to Wolf Tooth.
Unlike other chain lubes, you don’t need to clean your chain before using the WT-1 chain lube, making it a very user-friendly option for those short on time (or elbow grease). After applying the chain lube, you then need to wait for 5-10 minutes and wipe the chain, which will remove the dirt build-up as expelled by the formula.
Wolf Tooth recommends that you reapply the lubricant at least once every 400 miles, claiming that it will last up to five times longer than other lubricant options. You can also buy tiny 15ml bottles, which are really handy for longer multi-day rides.
Chain lube buying advice
What are the different types of chain lubes?
There are a few different types of chain lubes, and the choice largely depends on the conditions that you’re riding in.
There’s dry or wet lube for the corresponding conditions, and all-condition or all-weather lube has become more popular, which can be a good choice for everyday use in changeable weather conditions. These all tend to be (but aren’t exclusively) oil-based lubricants.
Gaining popularity in recent years, though anything but new, a number of wax-based lubricants are also available.
You may also see ceramic lubes on the market. These are named after a ceramic additive that is a lubricant, just as Teflon was once a more commonplace additive. More recently, tungsten disulphide or boron nitride have become more popular additions among more premium lubricants.
What is dry lube?
As the name suggests, dry lube is designed specifically for use in dry, dusty and hot conditions. The formula doesn’t need to take durability into account like a wet weather lubricant might, so can be adjusted to minimise dirt attraction to the chain.
What is wet lube?
As well as resisting water from rain, road spray and puddles from quickly washing it away, wet lube is also formulated to help prevent your chain from rusting in between rides during wintry or wet weather.
Wet lube tends to be thicker and some can pick up dirt more easily, so good chain cleaning regimes are still key.
What are wax-based lubes?
Also known as wax drip, wax-based lubes offer a user-friendly alternative to waxing a chain using wax immersion (and the top-level cleaning that is required to wax a chain effectively), that still offers some of the efficiency gains and reduced chain wear of wax. The wax is transported into the chain via a liquid carrier.
You’ll still need to make sure that your chain is squeaky clean before applying wax-based lubes, but you can leave the chain on your bike and apply the lube straight from the bottle’s nozzle just like other liquid lubricants, making the process much more straightforward.
What is the best way to apply chain lube?
Each manufacturer will have its own recommendations, but generally speaking, you should apply a blob of lube to each roller, onto the top of the chain between the cassette and the chainring, before rotating the crank anti-clockwise to repeat the process on the next section of chain.
If you start at the quick link or link pin, it’ll be much clearer to you once you’ve done a full cycle of the chain. You’re aiming to lubricate the chain’s rollers, not the interface between the chain, cassette and chainrings.
Leave the lubricant to seep in for 5-10 minutes, before wiping down the surface of the chain with a clean rag or cloth. This will help to minimise dirt attraction to the chain.
How often should you reapply chain lube?
How often to reapply your chain lube will depend on the riding conditions, your mileage, and the lubricant itself – consult the packaging for each manufacturer’s recommendations.
However, if you can hear your chain becoming more noisy, that’s a sign that you need to reapply chain lube, and you should always reapply chain lube after cleaning your chain.
