cycling mini pumpsThe best cycling mini pumps are light and take up little space, but they vary hugely in quality and usability. Some mini pumps work almost as well as frame pumps while others are, let's be honest, pretty lousy. In this guide we'll steer you towards the best mini pumps, as uncovered in dozens of inflation tests from our reviewers, and help you choose which compromises you can live with.
If you value portability and are prepared to invest, you'll want to get a mini pump that will deliver a decent blast of air to mend a roadside repair. Compared to a standard floor pump, which can't be carried on the bike but will be capable of delivering a much bigger blast of air, even the very best mini pump will be a compromise. Too small and it'll take ages to inflate a tyre; too big and it'll be, well, big. And heavy!
Think about how you're going to carry it. The smallest mini pumps will fit in a pocket or saddle bag, while larger ones may come with a mount that shares your bottle cage bolts.
Durability is important. Look for tough materials, so you don't find your pump has been beaten to death in your saddle bag when the time comes that you really need it. Some mini pumps can also deliver the contents of a CO2 inflator cartridge into your tyre, which can be handy for fast repairs.
Without further ado, here is our pick of the best mini pumps plus some handy tips to help you choose whih one is right for you...
Our pick for the best mini pump in terms of portability and function is the Topeak Pocket Rocket which weighs a measly 109g and is a smidge over 22cm long.
It can easily nestle down in a jersey pocket without falling out and despite its small size, it works really well, pumping up a 28mm tyres in around 150 strokes.
It's well made too, and looks like a much more expensive pump than it is.
The Lezyne Micro Floor Drive Digital HPG is an efficient mini track pump that's ideal for travelling abroad.
At 30cm long, around 6.5cm wide and 224g, it's considerably bigger and bulkier than a typical mini-pump and won't fit in your jersey pocket but it does come with a frame mount.
It shifts lots of air quickly, giving you a live pressure readout and proving far, far easier to use – even from flat to high pressures – than a mini-pump, while not really being much larger than one as far as packing is concerned.
The SKS Airboy XL mini pump is excellent quality, can handle up to 73psi, and fits easily into a pack or jersey pocket. Its efficient action makes it ideal for high volume, low pressure gravel and mountain bike tyres, and for the price it's a strong choice; it's our choice for the best mini pump for gravel bikes.
The quality and finish of the Airboy XL is impressive. The body has a smooth anodised finish, the plastic end caps feel sturdy and the action is smooth even after prolonged use. The size and shape is comfortable too, while the rubber pad on the end adds welcome cushion whilst pumping.
The Topeak Roadie 2Stage is ideal, as it's small and light. Measuring just 162mm in length and around 25mm in diameter, it can fit in a jersey pocket or saddlebag without you thinking about it and can deliver a lot of air for its diminutive size.
As its name suggests, it has a two-stage design: high volume and high pressure which are selected using the twist knob on the bottom of the pump. From flat on high volume it achieved 55 psi on a 28mm road tyre in 150 strokes and then switching to high pressure at 55psi, another 100 strokes saw the tyre reach 65psi.
One thing to note is that the Roadie 2Stage only works on Presta valves.
The Vel AR-Flow Travel Pump is a handy companion to have on any cycling adventure. It's efficient, simple to use and very well made. It's quite a bulky piece of kit for attaching to your frame, though.
The AR-Flow is a miniature floor pump and at 315mm long it's not designed to fit in your jersey pocket, but this is the only time its size can be seen as a slight negative.
Normally, there are a lot of trade-offs when designing a portable pump compared to a track pump but the AR-Flow effectively eliminates many of these compromises.
The Lezyne Grip Drive HP is a very efficient mini pump with great build quality and neat design touches such as the 155mm-long flexible hose under the rubber cap which improves the pumping action. The HP part of the name refers to 'high pressure' and Lezyne claims 120psi is achievable.
The Grip Drive HP is available in two lengths, medium at 231mm and small at 186mm. We reviewed the medium and found the length to be about right for delivering a decent amount of air per stroke, while still being small enough to fit in a jersey pocket.
On a 28mm tyre, after 100 strokes it achieved just over 50psi, which is pretty efficient and easily enough to get you home.
The Beto EZ-055A Pre-Loaded Alloy Mini Pump is very easy to use - the head fits easily and securely to valves and thanks to its two-way pumping system you can get your tyres pumped up in a fraction of the time it takes with some mini pumps.
The EZ Head is a clever design that stays in place securely so you don't have to hold it in as the pressures get higher and the 185mm flexible hose helps to stop any jerky hand movements being transferred to the valve, making the head come loose.
With the head stowed away into the handle, the pump measures 220mm in length and about 55mm at its widest point. That's a bit too long for many saddlebags, but it does fit fine in a jersey pocket, or you can use the included mount that utilises your bottle cage mounts.
Blackburn describes the Core Slim mini pump as 'Slim, trim and wickedly powerful'. It's certainly the first two, and it's powerful enough to be genuinely useful.
The all-alloy construction makes it feel like a good quality unit and like much of Blackburn's range it's backed by a lifetime warranty.
This mini pump is particularly useful if you're running tubeless and fixing a hole with sealant or a tubeless repair noodle as it has a handy tubeless valve core tool built in so you can add more sealant before you start pumping without unseating the tyre. It's really good, too.
The Birzman Swift hand pump is a very good mini pump, small enough to fit into a jersey pocket and light enough to not be too noticeable weighing in at 86g, while still being powerful enough that you won't spend hours inflating a tyre.
It features a hose that pulls out of the top which is 12.5cm long including the valve making it easier to use as it gives you more freedom to move the pump around as you use it, and the valve itself works really well, with the ability to fit Presta or Schrader depending on which way around you screw it in.
Bear in mind that when you need to use a mini pump out on the road, nine times out of ten you're already teetering on the edge of a bad mood. You've just had a puncture, you've had to take your wheel off and check for a thorn in your tyre, and if it's winter you're probably also getting cold.
What you need in this situation is a pump that'll get you back on the road quickly. What you definitely don't need is something that looks and performs like it fell out of a Christmas cracker.
You might be tempted to go for the smallest and lightest mini pump you can find on the basis that it'll be the easiest to carry around. After all, you won't use a mini pump on the vast majority of rides, right? That thinking is faultless right up to the point that you actually get a flat.
Some mini pumps are so small that you'll spend an age trying to inflate your tyre enough to ride home never mind getting up to recommended pressure, and many are simply flimsy and don't last long.
Something else to beware of is that with a head that's integrated into the main body of the pump (as opposed to at the end of a hose) you can put a lot of pressure on the valve as you inflate. It's quite easy to damage a slim Presta valve as you pump – and perhaps even snap it – if you aren't able to hold the barrel steady.
A floor pump will typically pump up a tyre faster and with more accuracy but a mini pump should be an essential piece of armoury that you take out with you on your riders just in case you puncture.
A mini pump can help you get enough air in your tyres to enable you to ride home where you can then top up the tyre pressure with a floor pump.
A mini bike pump works in a similar way to a full-size floor pump in that it's a manually operated device that you can use to inflate your tyres while out on a ride.
They are designed to be compact, lightweight, and easily carried in your back pocket, saddle bag or attached to the frame.
Some mini pumps comes with a reversible valve head allowing you to switch between Presta and Schrada valves but you'll need to ensure the pump's valve head matches the valve on your tyres.
Mini pumps usually have a handle that you can push and pull to inflat your tyre and some even operate as mini track pumps.
Some higher-end mini pumps will also come with a built-in pressure gauge while most are just done on feel, putting enough air into your tyres to get you home where you can use a floor pump with an accurate pressure gauge.
A few mini pumps have a pressure gauge – some markedly better than others. Reviewer Shaun Audane was surprised by the accuracy of the gauge on the Topeak Roadie DA that he tested (also available without a gauge). A gauge can be handy, especially if you're touring, say, and you're not going to have access to a floor pump between rides, but it would still be quite a long way down our list of important features.
Some tubeless tyres will mount with a normal floor pump but a mini pump isn't suitable to seat the bead of a tubeless tyre as you need a strong burst of air.
Mini pumps are still useful for carrying with you even if you're riding tubeless as if you have a puncture that doesn't seal you may need to use an inner tube and pump it up.
When looking for a mini pump it's most important that it's compatible with the valve type on your bike. While many mini pumps are designed to work with both Presta and Schrader valves, it's important to check before purchasing.
Another feature you might look for is an extendable hose which reduces the strain on the valve stem during pumping and can make it easier to pump up a tyre.
The main advantage of a mini pump is its portability so we would recommend choosing a pump that's compact and lightweight so that it's easy to put in your jersey pocket, saddle bag or mount onto your bike.
Dave is a founding father of road.cc, having previously worked on Cycling Plus and What Mountain Bike magazines back in the day. He also writes about e-bikes for our sister publication ebiketips. He's won three mountain bike bog snorkelling World Championships, and races at the back of the third cats.
First Published Aug 31, 2023