The best treadmill for 2020: NordicTrack, Nautilus, Peloton and more

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

The Nautilus brand also owns Bowflex and Schwinn, so all three treadmills I tested had similar designs and features (see the other two reviews below). All three offer integrated training programs and allow you up to four different user profiles. Where the Nautilus finds its advantage is the solid build quality and the premium design.

One thing that I really liked about this electric treadmill is that the start, stop, speed and incline buttons are large, rubberized, and easy to press. The button design seems to be a trivial thing until you run at a high speed on a motorized treadmill and just have to adjust your speed. I also appreciated that the side rails are rubberized so they are easy to grip and that they have built-in buttons to adjust the speed and incline. The LCD display is easy to read. The machine also has a weight capacity of 350 pounds.

After each workout that lasts longer than 10 minutes or has a total distance of more than one mile, your fitness score is displayed on the LCD screen, a proprietary number based on an estimate of your VO2 maximum and your calorie expenditure over your last Value is based on five workouts.

You can also use the Pacer function to view the details of your current training session, e.g. B. Compare the number of calories burned with previous runs or walks. This is a great way to achieve your fitness goals and track your progress, especially if you are trying to lose weight or exercise for a specific program and time, e.g. B. 10 km.

You can synchronize all of this data with the Nautilus Trainer 2 appHere you can set cardio goals and export your data to training apps like Apple Health, Google Fit, MyFitnessPal and others.

Considering the quality of the treadmill functions and the price, this is my first choice for the best treadmill.

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The NordicTrack and Proform machines I tested have almost identical features because the brands belong to the same company. ICON Health & Fitness.

Both motorized treadmills have built-in 7-inch touch screens that you can work with if it, the company’s on-demand workout streaming service. iFit was by far my favorite feature on both machines. You can choose from more than 16,000 guided workouts, including over 1,000 filmed outdoors on courses around the world that follow coaches while walking or running. You can also choose to have the workout automatically change the settings on the treadmill to match the speed and incline set by the trainer. Of course, you can overwrite these settings at any time.

I have never delved so much into my cardio training until I started using iFit. I almost completely forgot that I was jogging on a treadmill while my personal trainer and guide took me on a hike in Costa Rica, training me on the way, and bringing out facts about the rainforest we were walking through. With the purchase of the treadmill you get a free one-year membership in iFit. After that, it’s $ 15 a month – that’s less than half the $ 40 monthly class price for Peloton virtual training sessions.

The biggest blow to the NordicTrack is the build quality. Compared to the design of the other machines, this felt less high quality. At the seams where two plastic parts should meet, I noticed gaps and parts crooked. Considering the quality of the treadmill functions and the price, this is my first choice for the best treadmill. I also wish the screen was bigger – you can double the screen size for a a few hundred dollars more.

Still, I was so impressed with iFit that I was able to look beyond the lackluster fit and get ready to rate it as the best treadmill for guided workouts.

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

This Proform treadmill has all the treadmill functions of the NordicTrack and a few more. This includes a -3% rejection mode to simulate running or walking and down a hill, a big fan to cool you down after an intense workout, and a tablet holder. The kicker is that it’s also $ 400 more.

The treadmill is slightly larger, both in size and how bulky it feels. The design seems to be best suited for a home gym due to its heavy usage.

As with the Proform 2000, iFit is the killer feature on the NordicTrack. If you really don’t like exercising on a treadmill, video streaming workouts can make getting into cardio much more enjoyable.

Is a larger machine with a rejection feature worth an additional $ 400? I think so, mainly because the build quality of this machine is better than that of the NordicTrack.

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I haven’t had the opportunity to personally test the Peloton Tread treadmill, but CNET editor Megan Wollerton praised it as attractive, simple, and entertaining. The design is undoubtedly top-notch: a 32-inch touchscreen with a soundbar, a slate belt design, and the ability to switch the machine to a manual mode in which you move the belt when walking or running.

When you purchase a Peloton Tread, you also need to sign up for $ 39 a month Peloton membershipThis includes training programs, live training metrics, and the company’s live and on-demand video training courses. You can connect with your friends who also have peloton gear and view their workouts on a leaderboard.

Unlike the NordicTrack and Proform machines, which automatically adjust the treadmill settings during a training course, you need to change the speed and incline settings during a course on the Peloton Tread to keep up with the trainer.

Getting a peloton is a status symbol, much like a Louis Vuitton wallet. Can you get something almost as good for less? Of course, but you will miss the luxury of real business. If you don’t have to pay more than $ 4,000 for a treadmill, go for the peloton. If you’d rather spend a lot less, read on to choose the best treadmills.

Read our Peloton Tread Test.

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

Sole Fitness’s treadmill costs less than $ 1,000 and offers many of the same fitness features found on more expensive equipment at a cheaper price.

It has a built-in tablet stand for watching videos while exercising and built-in Bluetooth speakers that connect your phone to play music. The rubberized handrails have built-in speed and incline controls and there are special places where you can place your feet if you want to get off the treadmill at certain intervals. Overall, this motorized treadmill feels stable and well built.

My biggest criticism of this machine is that the statistics on the screen are a bit confusing to read while you exercise, but it’s still the best treadmill when you take the value into account.

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

As a wild card for this list, I used the Sunny Health & Fitness treadmill because I wanted to know how it works compared to a thousand-dollar machine. I learned three important things about it.

1. It is not built for everyone. The entire machine is small, with a 48 inch long and 15 inch wide running belt – all the others that I tested were at least 60 inches long and 20 inches wide. Walking and jogging felt tight (my foot occasionally brushed the plastic cover on the top of the belt) and I’m only 5 feet 3 inches with a short stride. The maximum weight this treadmill can carry is 220 pounds or 100 kilograms. The maximum weight for all other treadmills on this list is at least 136 kg.

2. It doesn’t feel particularly cheap. The treadmill has all the features you want – it reaches speeds of up to nine miles an hour, three incline options for the treadmill – 0%, 2% and 4.37% – and nine built-in exercise programs. The handrails have controls to adjust your speed and start / stop your workout, a feature you see on high-end treadmills.

3. Assembly is required and the guarantee is short. When you buy this treadmill online, it doesn’t come with professional assembly as standard, but assembling was really easy. If you’ve ever put together Ikea furniture, it’s easier.

However, the guarantee for everything except the structural framework of the Sunny treadmill is 180 days (four months). I haven’t tested this machine in the long term, but Reviews on Amazon complain about its longevity.

Bottom line: If you have really little space and money and are ready to get rid of the treadmill when it dies in a year, get it. However, if you want more of your treadmill, save for a better option.

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

The Schwinn 870 treadmill has the same features as the Nautilus, including pacemaker and fitness score. You can synchronize all of your training data with the Schwinn fitness appHere you can set goals and sync your data with Apple Health, Google Health, MyFitnessPal and others. You can also export your data from the device by connecting a USB drive.

In addition, the treadmill is in the middle of the street. Not terrible, but not particularly remarkable. For around $ 1,000 (prices vary online) I would choose the brine machine instead.

Sarah Mitroff / CNET

If you have a special affinity for racing cars, you will really like this machine. When you start a new workout, you are counted down using lights and sounds, and the controls look like a map’s dashboard.

Unfortunately, the rest of the treadmill’s features are nothing special and the price is too high to pay off compared to the other options on this list. Instead, choose the Nautilus to get the same features and quality for less money.