Tips and Tricks for Conquering the Tour de Zwift 2026 Ultimate Challenge
Tour de Zwift 2026 begins today, and thousands of riders are joining each event! (I just rode in the kickoff event, in fact, and there were over 1,100 riders in my event!)
It’s Zwift’s biggest series of the year, and the beauty of these popular events is that you can complete each stage at whatever pace you’d like. Whether you’re pushing yourself to the limit or just doing an easy zone 2 effort, everyone’s welcome, and no one rides alone.
There are 6 stages, each lasting a week, and each stage offers three route lengths: long, standard, and short. Ride just one of the route options and you’ll get credit for completing that week’s stage.
But some riders want a bigger challenge, so this year, once again, Zwift is holding “The Ultimate Challenge.” Completion requires you to ride all 3 route options on each stage, for a total of 18 route completions. Lots of riders have already begun the challenge by knocking out a stage or two today, the first day of TdZ!
But what does it actually take to complete The Ultimate Challenge, and what special unlocks do you get? Let’d dive in…
Total Distance, Elevation, Etc
I put together a quick table listing each stage’s route, length, elevation, time estimages at 2 and 4 W/kg, and the XP you’ll earn if this is your first time finishing the route (read more about route badges):
So completing The Ultimate Challenge requires you to ride nearly 575 kilometers and climb almost 7,000 meters. That will take you over 21 hours at 2 W/kg, or 15 hours at 4 W/kg.
How To Finish the Challenge
The simplest way to finish the challenge and check your progress is to click the TdZ card on your homescreen, then pick what you’d like to do. All the stages include a card you can click to free ride the route “on demand” by yourself:
In addition, the current week’s stage lists group ride and race events that you can join:
The on-demand option means you don’t have to wait 6 weeks to finish The Ultimate Challenge. In fact, some riders will certainly finish it this week!
Hack #1: TdZ Credit on Non-TdZ Rides
Personally, I think riding in actual TdZ events is far and away the most fun way to finish The Ultimate Challenge. Those big group rides let you push as hard as you want, offering plenty of challenges for those looking to push their limits.
That said, you don’t need to select a route or event from the TdZ picker to receive completion credit. In fact, if you join a non-TdZ event held on a TdZ route, you’ll get credit for completing that part of TdZ as long as you finish the route!
You can also pick routes and free ride them using the standard route picker, the My List tool, or any other method.
Hack #2: Structured Workouts
If you want to complete The Ultimate Challenge, but you also have structured workouts you want to knock out, just pick the route you want to free ride from the TdZ screen, then go Menu>Workouts once you’re riding. From there,you can pick the workout you’d like to ride, while also finishing the route. Just make sure you finish the entire route!
Hack #3: Entry-Level Bike 5% Boost
If you have a fully-upgraded Entry-Level bike in your garage, be sure to use it on the ride where you finish The Ultimate Challenge and get that final 11,000 XP. Entry-Level bikes that are fully upgraded give you an extra 5% XP earnings boost, which turns those 500 XP bonuses into 525 XP, and that 11,000 XP bonus at the end into 11,550!
Not exactly a “hack,” but worth a mention nonetheless…
The Route of the Week for January 12-18 is Ocean Lava Cliffside Loop, so if you do an on-demand ride of this route during this week, you’ll get the 500 XP ROTW bonus, plus credit for completing the route/stage for TdZ.
Unlocks
Zwift is giving rides an XP bonus as you progress through the Ultimate Challenge, with a big bonus upon completion!
9 Route Bonus: 500 XP
12 Route Bonus: 500 XP
15 Route Bonus: 500 XP
18 Route Bonus: 11,000 XP + Backwards After Party Cap
The Ultimate Giveaway
Additionally, when you finish the Ultimate Challenge, you’ll be entered for a chance to win a one-of-a-kind TDZ x Pedal Mafia Zwift Ride Smart Frame:
Stefan from my 5v5 Ladder team was once again trying to coach me out of a mid-summer slump. If you’ve ever been on a Ladder team, you know the chat quickly turns into a general discussion of all things Zwift racing. Because Club Ladder runs year-round, those chats never really go quiet in the off-season. Instead, teammates become people you banter with week after week, sharing every small victory and setback.
Stefan’s advice was well-intentioned: take a rest day. I took it as a challenge.
It was July 2024, and I was complaining about being tired for a Thursday afternoon race after doing WTRL Duathlon the night before. That comment got me thinking: what would happen if you ditched structured training altogether and just raced every day?
So I tried it.
I started with 30 races in 30 days. Then 80+ races in 90 days. Before long, I found myself in the “Top 25” most active racers on ZwiftRacing.app. But every three months the stats reset, and it all felt a bit hollow – until December 2024, when Tim from ZwiftRacing.app added a History tab to each rider profile.
Suddenly, full-year totals were visible: races, podiums, wins. Looking back at my 2024 numbers, I saw 251 races, 93 podiums, and 34 wins.
I figured I could do more. And so a 2025 challenge began, aiming for 300 races, 100 podiums, and 50 wins.
The Logistics of Racing (Almost) Every Day
I’m based in Chicago, and most of my racing happens during lunch breaks – assuming meetings allow. If I have calls between 11:30 and 14:30 CST (17:30–20:30 UTC), racing options shrink fast. With many low-attendance community races removed from the calendar, meaningful racing outside those windows is limited, aside from the hourly zRacing events.
Weekends were a particular challenge with young kids in the house. Saturday activities became stressful once “it would be nice to race today” turned into “I have to race today.” Knowing there was only one race per hour created real friction at home.
Zwift’s lack of on-demand racing becomes trying, particularly in these low-popularity slots. Unlike most video games, there are no bots and no instant lobbies – you can only race at a set time against whoever shows up. That sometimes meant racing late in the evening in a pen where the only other rider dropped out. At that point, I’d happily take robots over an empty pen!
There were days I raced alone just to keep the streak alive. Occasionally, I leaned on formats like Tiny Races, where multiple short races count individually. It would be easy to inflate totals that way, but that wasn’t the goal. The goal was more simple: race as often as possible and see whether fitness would follow.
Chasing Podiums and Wins
So, how to judge success? Zwift racers joke about “little virtual trophies,” but there’s no denying they’re motivating. Even if no one else cares who won in Crit City last Tuesday, seeing a podium on your profile feels good.
The problem is defining what actually counts.
Zwift has long struggled with multiple results sets thanks to disqualifications and the opt-in nature of ZwiftPower. If you’ve raced on Zwift, you’ve probably seen an eighth-place in-game finish turn into second-place on ZwiftPower. That’s a podium. Hooray! But should it be?
Even worse is ZwiftPower’s time-based randomization – introduced to prevent racing in group rides – which can occasionally interfere with legitimate race results. Over the year, I lost more than a few podiums in WTRL Duathlon due to mismatches between systems:
Yes! Alright! 2nd Place! Until ZwiftPower weighed in with the sad trombone…
At the same time, does a third-place finish in a four-rider field really deserve the same excitement as third out of 70? And worst of all, a 1-of-1 finish counts as both a win and a podium when neither really happened.
Between races that didn’t count correctly and others that arguably shouldn’t count at all, podium stats became more noise than signal. Fun to look at, but not something to judge success on. Eventually, I dropped podiums and wins from my annual goal just to reduce frustration.
Fortunately, new APIs from Zwift now allow third parties to pull results directly from Zwift itself, meaning we can finally see results for non-ZwiftPower riders. ZwiftRacing.app has already integrated this, and ideally other organizers will follow. Soon, “if it’s not on ZwiftPower, it didn’t happen” may be a thing of the past.
A Year of Ranking and Categorization Systems
Over the course of the year, I raced under nearly every system Zwift currently uses: Category Enforcement (CE), Zwift Racing Score (ZRS), legacy ABCD categories, vELO, age-based pens, and even events with no categories at all.
None of them are perfect, but some are clearly better than others.
Category Enforcement (CE)
Category Enforcement does a good job limiting climbing speed, which helps make hilly courses feel fair. Power-based categories are a boon to riders near the top of their category, but those near the bottom are often doomed to uncompetitive races. On flat courses, unlimited watts in a w/kg system means some heavy riders are simply unmatchable.
Having raced on both sides of the dividing line in ZRL last year, I can say with confidence that being at the top of a category is definitely more fun. As a “barely B” rider, I struggled mightily under CE, but found a niche in crits where I could just about hang on and occasionally sneak a podium or win.
Legacy “ABCD” Categories
Legacy ABCD events are increasingly rare, and when they do appear, they often feature baffling rule sets: no pen enforcement, “see everyone” enabled despite staggered starts, and even late joining allowed. Even as someone who races nearly every day, I found myself irrationally irritated by a late joiner “winning” after only riding the final two kilometers – often from the wrong category. It’s hard to imagine we ever raced like that, but Zwift has clearly come a long way!
Zwift Racing Score (ZRS)
Power-based categories are mostly gone now that Zwift Racing Score was adopted for most races in 2025. ZRS aims to improve matchmaking using results, but frequent racing exposes a key weakness: inflation. Unless you finish dead last, score losses are minimal. Race often – especially in small fields – and your score tends to drift upward over time.
My own experience reflected this. Despite modest power numbers, I quickly found myself above 700 ZRS, locked into top pens against former A+ riders. Meanwhile, riders I’d been competitive with in the lower half of ZRL B fields under CE spent much of the year hundreds of points lower. Climbing against riders with 900+ ZRS capable of holding 6+ w/kg was a brutal reminder of why we had power-based systems in the first place!
ZRS is a major step forward, but if it takes ~100 races to settle and most riders only race once or twice per week, it may be a long time before the majority of riders truly find their level.
vELO
Let me preface this by saying I really like vELO as a concept. It has become my primary barometer for race performance because it answers a simple question: did you perform better or worse than expected, given the competition?
As a categorization system, vELO has meaningful advantages over both CE and ZRS. It avoids hard power caps while still considering power enough to prevent legacy A+ and C riders from landing in the same pen. The prediction model’s terrain modifiers are especially impressive, accurately identifying where riders with certain power profiles will struggle. (A rider who’s Gold with no sprint, for example, might be classified as Silver on Crit City.)
Unfortunately, race series can’t use those terrain-adjusted values for pen allocation. Worse, points-based series will ignore them entirely. I learned this the hard way by losing more than six months of vELO progress in just a few climb-heavy Dirt Racing Series events back in the Spring!
vELO 2.0, slated for 2026, will absolutely tighten this up. Today’s vELO is great, but the new version promises to be something really special.
Age-Based Racing
Age-based formats like WTRL Duathlon and the Inox Masters League have promise, but Zwift’s five-pen limit creates complications when more than five age groups race together. Results rely on post-race ZwiftPower adjustments, leaving riders unsure of their finishing position until well after the race ends.
There’s also no power limit, so, as with ZRS, you can end up with D and A+ riders in the same pen. That’s rarely compelling for the former, but with popular series like Inox Masters running short, punchy races, many riders can at least feel competitive. These were terrifying affairs as I did them, but afterwards, I remembered them fondly. The definition of Type 2 fun!
Everyone Together
Somewhat surprisingly, I’ve come to believe that the best categorization system might be none at all.
Some of the most enjoyable races I did all year featured “everyone in E” with a ZRS range of 0–1000. These weren’t mass-start events that still created winners and losers based on who could hang with the category above. Instead, they were true “everyone together” races. Riders naturally sorted themselves into groups, and success was measured by beating the riders around you – not chasing a podium.
HERD Winter Racing deserves special mention here. Those Friday events were consistently some of the most engaging races on the calendar.
The Advanced Pen Hack
While not a separate categorization method, the Advanced Pen felt like a revelation compared to the chaos that often defines zRacing. With a 650+ ZRS requirement, fields were more predictable and largely free of sandbaggers and “October Surprise” riders with artificially low scores after a summer outdoors.
Racing against 900+ ZRS riders was still brutal, but the hard cutoff minimized downside for riders near the bottom. When you’re predicted last, vELO and ZRS losses are small, and with stronger riders intentionally shedding points, you could even gain vELO while finishing near the back.
It almost feels like a hack: if you want to look good on paper, race Advanced Pen. Just be prepared to get dropped!
Unranked Racing: An Opportunity Area?
All of this raises an obvious question: why don’t we have more unranked races on Zwift?
Outside of WTRL Duathlon, Team Time Trials, and Chase Races, almost everything “counts.” That creates a real disincentive to race when you’re anything less than 100%, which is a shame, because racing against others is often the strongest motivator Zwift has.
Zwift’s “Friday Night Fun Races” were a welcome exception. Dinosaur costumes, big-head mode, tricycles, and sub-20km races sounded like an excuse to take it easy. Instead, three of my top five all-time 20-minute power efforts came from those events.
There’s something freeing about knowing there are no consequences for blowing up. I’d love to see more races like this appear on the calendar in 2026.
So – Did Racing Every Day Improve Fitness?
By January 2025, I was a recently relegated C rider adjusting to a new Zwift Ride setup and learning to sprint properly after switching to clipless pedals. By mid-year, I was solidly back in B, winning races and feeling confident in my sprint (though naturally climbs will forever remain an Achilles’ heel).
On paper, I improved. vELO rose from low Sapphire to high Emerald. ZRS climbed from the low 500s to over 700. Estimated FTP (eFTP) jumped from 298 in 2024 to 323 in 2025. I was setting new power PBs almost weekly.
The grind, in chart form.
In practical terms, though, the picture was more mixed.
Racing every day makes you very good at racing – specifically at 25–30 minute efforts. Over the year, I became exceptionally good at standing up and driving high watts for 30–60 seconds to close gaps.
But being good at repeated anaerobic surges doesn’t build endurance. Long rides all but disappeared, and my weight actually increased as the year wore on. While I might comfortably beat my former self on Glasgow Crit Six today, I’m fairly sure “old me” would have the edge on Alpe du Zwift.
In racing nearly every day, I didn’t become a better all-around cyclist. I became better at Zwift racing.
Year-End Numbers
According to ZwiftRacing.app, my 2025 looked like this:
313 races
58 wins (19%)
152 podiums (49%)
1 DNF (A black mark!)
Min vELO: 1479 Sapphire
Max vELO: 1800 Emerald
Final vELO: 1783 Emerald
Racing was nearly all I did, which my somewhat embarrassing Zwift Spinback highlighted in clear detail!
Zwift Spinback highlighted 2025’s depravity. But what was I doing on those 17 rides that weren’t races?
Final Thoughts
Racing can absolutely make you fitter… for racing. But when it crowds out everything else, something gets lost.
Over the year, I skipped group rides, fun activities like The Big Spin, tours like Tour de Zwift and Tour of Watopia, and much of the social side of the platform. Instead of riding primarily with my clubmates, I became a lone wolf – joining whatever race fit the time slot I had available that day.
My interactions with other riders dwindled to a “GLHF” in the pen or the occasional dinosaur joke on Friday nights. Zwifting became an obsession focused on results and metrics rather than fun and fitness. At some point, it kind of stopped being fun.
I like to think both Stefan and I were right. You can race yourself fit – but if racing comes at the expense of everything else, you may end up fitter at Zwift and poorer at things that matter even more.
So this year, I’ll remember to keep it light. We’re all here just trying to get fit, blow off some steam, and hopefully have a good time doing it. Ride On 2026!
A quick bit of news for anyone shopping for a new trainer in 2026…
First: Zwift and Wahoo are already holding a “Big New Year Sale” ending on January 5. If you’re looking for a great deal on the Zwift Ride with KICKR CORE 2, or the KICKR V6, this is a great time to do it!
But just yesterday, Zwift launched an additional 10% discount available on the KICKR CORE 2 trainer to EU and UK customers. Just use the discount code “EXTRA10” at checkout!
Price includes 1 free month of Zwift ($20 value) for new subscribers only.
Clearly, Zwift is looking to move some inventory in the UK and EU markets. This is the lowest price I’ve ever seen on the CORE 2 for UK and EU customers.
About the Wahoo KICKR CORE 2
The original Wahoo KICKR CORE’s longevity and reliability proved nothing short of startling, especially considering its price point. First released in 2018, the KICKR CORE is the “little brother” to Wahoo’s flagship KICKR trainer, and its hardware has remained unchanged since release.
It did, however, receive significant firmware updates to enable auto-calibration and Zwift virtual shifting, allowing it to become the de facto trainer paired with the Zwift Ride smart frame.
But competition in this price range is strong. September’s release of the KICKR CORE 2 brought premium features to Wahoo’s mid-budget workhorse, updating it to the standards set by the latest smart trainers.
What’s New?
New or upgraded features on the KICKR CORE 2 include:
WiFi connectivity for fast, reliable connections and automatic firmware updates
Race mode for near instantaneous response
Bluetooth bridging of heart rate and other sensors to consolidate connections (great for Apple TV users)
New flat leg design for easier, more stable setups
Improved multicolored LEDs indicate connection and trainer status
Redesigned flywheel lowers product weight while slightly increasing inertial load for better road feel
Reduced setup friction and waste: easier unpacking and assembly
Key Specs
Max Wattage: 1800W
Max Incline: 16%
Max Decline: -10%
Power Accuracy: +/-2%
Connectivity: WiFi, ANT+ FEC, ANT+ Power, Bluetooth FTMS, and Zwift Protocol
Cassette: sold with 11-speed cassette or Zwift Cog
Supported Hubs: 130/135mm QR, 12×142, and 12×148 Thru Axle
Note: shopping links in this post are affiliate links to Zwift and Wahoo. Your purchase through these links helps support Zwift Insider, so thank you in advance!
It’s the first weekend of 2026, and Zwift is a busy place with a variety of compelling events on tap. I’ve picked my favorite 5 below, and it’s a nice mix ranging from crazy hard efforts to beginner-friendly group rides. Ride on!
Team 3R and GoG have set up a cool event to kick off the year: a Personal Best Century Challenge! Choose from the A pen for a 100-mile effort, or the B pen for a 100-km effort. All pens will be on the fastest setup in game (Cadex Tri frame with DT Swiss 85/Disc), with drafting enabled.
Aren’t up for 100km? Join the B pen anyway, and push to a target like 50km. You do you, but whatever you do, start the year off with a bang!
During the 2025 event, a group of riders successfully broke the 100km record, clocking a time of 1:55:34, shaving 3 seconds off the previous mark. While there is no known official Zwift record time, the ride was verified against the fastest recorded on ZwiftPower.
This 2026 edition has been expanded to include an attempt to break the 100-mile record. The current benchmark to beat is 3 hours 11min 42 seconds, as recorded on ZwiftPower.
This 3-day stage race starts today (Friday) and includes stages on Saturday and Sunday, with lots of riders already signed up! Saturday is actually three separate mini-races, so be sure to join all three.
Join Zwift’s James Bailey and friends for this beginner-friendly rubberbanded ride on London’s Greatest London Loop Reverse. You’ll ride for 60 minutes, which should be enough to finish this 25.8km route with 319m of elevation gain.
Remember, this is a banded ride, so you can ride at any pace you’d like. As long as you keep pedaling, you’ll stay with the group!
Take on the January Resolution Challenge with the folks at Pas Normal Studios! To complete the challenge, ride a total of 1000 km during the month of January. Mix and match outdoor with indoor rides, make them long or short… all that matters is the total distance ridden.
Does your New Year training goals include more intensity in your sessions? Perhaps some VO2 max work? The Tiny Races are here for you! The short race format features four races packed into one hour for a splendid VO2 max workout.
We choose each weekend’s Notable Events based on a variety of factors including:
Is the event unique/innovative in some way?
Are celebrities (pro riders, etc) attending/leading?
Are signup counts already high, meaning the event is extra-popular?
Does the ride include desirable unlocks or prizes?
Does the event appeal to ladies on Zwift? (We like to support this under-represented group!)
Is it for a good cause?
Is it just plain crazy (extra long races, world record attempts, etc)?
Is it a long-running, popular weekly event with a dedicated leader who deserves a shout out?
In the end, we want to call attention to events that are extra-special and therefore extra-appealing to Zwifters. If you think your event qualifies, comment below with a link/details and we may just include it in an upcoming post!
2025 was a busy year for Zwift, which means it was a busy year for us at Zwift Insider. We published over 650 posts last year covering important Zwifty news and tips, but we only scratched the surface. There are always more stories to tell!
Zwift turned 11 this year, and inside sources tell me subscriber numbers and corporate financials are strong as we head into 2026. Streamlined onboarding, purpose-built hardware, and training platform partnerships have helped Zwift become even more accessible and useful in recent years, and the end result is lots of new riders in Watopia.
This is my look back at all things Zwift for 2025. Enjoy the ride!
29 routes were released using these new roads, but Zwift added a total of 60 new routes to the game in 2025. That’s a lot – way more than past years, in fact. Zwift seems to have decided since they can’t build new roads fast enough, they’ll make more routes on existing roads to satisfy all the badge chasers.
This year, Zwift replayed some popular events, while totally revamping/rebranding others. Without going into too much detail, here are the big new events I think were most worth mentioning:
Tour de Zwift: the biggest annual tour on the platform, because it happens at the Peak Zwift! 2025’s Tour included the first-ever Ultimate Challenge: riding all three routes for all six stages to earn additional unlocks.
Zwift Games: The second edition of the Games brought out lots of racers, and elite riders battled for the largest total prize pot ever on Zwift.
Zwift Big Spin: This fun ride series saw the return of the prize wheel and the introduction of the first-ever BMX bike to the game.
Tour Fever: As the Official Training Software Provider of the Tour de France, Zwift has held Tour Fever events in past years. This year was no different, with a Climb Portal Challenge and other special events surrounding Le Tour.
Zwift Unlocked Tour: This tour was sort of a replacement for the Tour of Watopia, awarding double XP and a cool new urban kit as riders took on new routes across several maps, including New York’s expansion.
Zwift Camps: Zwift organized a three-camp series this year in leiu of the Zwift Academy. Zwift Camp: Baseline and Zwift Camp: Build are already completed, with Zwift Camp: Breakthrough coming in February.
Zwift brought back the zFondo Series this year, but using the same routes and kits as past years, making it fall a bit flat for Zwifters who have been around a while.
The Zwift Camps initiative shows potential and indicates that Zwift rightly understands that a Zwift Academy-style talent search can’t have the same structure as a community-friendly training camp. (Zwift didn’t hold a Zwift Academy this year, but said it will return in 2026 better than ever.) The concept of a community-friendly training series holds much potential, but Zwift has yet to support it with the necessary planning and front-end tools.
On the racing side, Zwift Racing League continues to be the biggest racing series on the platform, while Zwift’s ZRacing series (see the current series here) is the most popular scratch race series on the platform. Shameless plug: Zwift Insider’s Tiny Races are still the most popular race each Saturday!
While not a group event, Zwift’s Weekly Challenges are worth a mention here. Rolled out this year, the Route of the Week, Climb of the Week, and Workout of the Week featured routes, climbs, and workouts that awarded an XP bonus when finished. These have seen a lot of participation from Zwifters looking for a weekly challenge or a bit of direction on a free ride. And while Zwift has done away with the Workout of the Week due to low engagement, Routes and Climbs are still going strong (see calendar).
Lastly, Zwift Community Live deserves a mention. This was Zwift’s first-ever large-scale real-world meetup, a sort of “ZwiftCon” in Mallorca. It was an incredible experience for me and (I believe) just about everyone who attended (read my day 3 post). Unfortunately, I think ZCL may have been a victim of its own success. While it seemed like everyone who attended in 2025 thought the event was amazing and should be held again in 2026 on an even larger scale, what I’m hearing internally at Zwift is that it’s being scaled back to more of an “industry event” this year with mostly partners and influencer athletes attending. Folks at Zwift HQ who I spoke with agreed that the 2025 event was amazing, but expressed that it’s challenging, expensive, and frankly, too big of a distraction from their business goals to organize an even larger event for the general Zwifter population.
I won’t list all of Zwift’s major events for 2025 here, but you can certainly browse the events archive to see what was highlighted throughout the year, including many community-organized events.
Racing Changes
As I see it, there were four key developments in the world of Zwift racing for 2025.
First, Zwift Racing Score was released in earnest in October 2024, and really became the standard categorization scheme for Zwift racing in 2025. This includes Zwift’s use of multiple category ranges in their monthly ZRacing series, allowing riders to choose between categories where they rank near the top or the bottom.
Next, web-based standings were rolled out for the ZRacing series this year (see zwift.com/racing/zracing), giving riders access to a GC leaderboard at zwift.com for the first time ever. Is this Zwift moving away from ZwiftPower for race results? Absolutely. They want to simplify access to results and have the tech stack and branding all live within Zwift’s ecosystem. But will Zwift’s new web leaderboards ever have what it takes to host results for community races? That remains to be seen.
Next, Zwift rolled out Bike Upgrades in March, a feature that allows Zwifters to purchase a bike upgrade for a particular frame after putting in the time/elevation/distance to unlock that upgrade. This feature had the effect of driving riders to push hard to upgrade bikes for maximum performance, while also changing the way we thought about bike choice in each and every activity. Which bike do I choose for this free ride? This workout? This event? Bike upgrades changed everything.
Lastly, in July, Zwift announced they would not be hosting an Elite World Series in the fall. It wasn’t entirely surprising, given the challenges they faced in the previous year’s World Series as inaccurate data from approved trainers came to light, calling into question race results tied to real cash prizes. MyWhoosh has certainly stepped in to fill the gap for prize-driven elite racing, but without a significant viewing audience, Zwift’s concentration on the much larger community-racing market may turn out to be the smarter move.
Fitness and Training
Zwift began partnering with third-party workout and training plan providers near the end of 2024 via their new Training API, and finished that year with six partners. Now as 2025 draws to a close, that list of partners has more than doubled and includes TrainerRoad, the largest player in this space:
Seamless integration with a broad list of providers is a win for everyone, since Zwifters now have access to virtually unlimited workouts and training plans within Zwift.
Zwift has also turned their sights outdoors this year, which is a very interesting move. In April, Zwift announced that outdoor rides recorded with Garmin or Wahoo (and eventually Hammerhead) could be brought into your Zwift history to support Zwift’s new Fitness Metrics.
This is an important development, but there’s more to come. As I explain in this week’s post, Fitness Metrics is a part of something bigger:
Lastly, it’s worth mentioning that these metrics are just one part of the more robust training platform Zwift is building. You can see the pieces coming together: first, third-party workout syncing brought all the big training plan providers to the table. Then revamped automatic FTP detection made it easier to set your power zones. Next, Zwift started bringing in outdoor rides and computing training metrics.
Zwift released the Zwift Ride smart bike in June 2024, and it was an immediate success. In April 2025, Zwift released an adjustable crank arm option for the Ride, then in September, the Ride package got an upgrade as its bundled trainer (the Wahoo KICKR CORE) was replaced by the new KICKR CORE 2 with WiFi capabilities, race mode, Bluetooth bridging, and more.
Heading into 2026, I wouldn’t want to be a smart bike manufacturer. Zwift’s goal is to keep the setup experience simple and price low. Because in the end, they’re looking for subscribers, not hardware sales. So Zwift built the Ride as a budget-friendly solution for people looking to get into indoor cycling, and they’re able to sustain a profitable business while offering the Ride at a very low price.
Zwift released the new Click v2 controllers in September, effectively replacing the original Click and the Play controllers. The affordability of the new Click controllers and the long list of trainers supporting virtual shifting means we’re seeing a huge number of Zwifters shifting virtually nowadays.
New Features
Along with everything listed above, Zwift released or improved many game features in 2025. While most of these changes are small on their own, their combined weight helps drive the platform’s continued adoption. Here’s a complete list in chronological order:
There are still just three companies in the indoor cycling app market that Zwift is competing against: TrainingPeaks Virtual, MyWhoosh, and Rouvy. Each is chasing market share in unique ways:
TrainingPeaks Virtual quickly built a reputation as a rapidly evolving, feature-rich, race-centric platform. This year they added the GPXplore feature so more iconic routes can be added to the platform, including a “My Routes” option of riding any GPX file. (And while Zwift chose to end their Free Monthly 25 km program this year, TPV has “Free Tuesdays” on the first Tuesday of each month, and offers other free riding opportunities. Seems like a smart way to entice people to try the platform who may have signed up months or years before…)
MyWhoosh hosted the UCI Esports Worlds for the second time this year and will be hosting it next year as well. They’ve added some new roads and features also, but in talking to other riders, clearly the main reasons people are on MyWhoosh are because it’s free, and you can win cash in races.
Rouvy has been advertising heavily this year, and features real-world footage that the other platforms lack.
While Zwift is still the massive leader in terms of user base, these other platforms keep Zwift on their toes by releasing new features and hosting events Zwift would like to see on their own platform. The good news is, we all benefit from this competition.
What’s next?
What’s coming soon to Zwift in 2026? Here are a few things I know about:
Personalized Recommendations: This feature tries to easily answer the question, “What should I do today to get stronger?” It’s already released (in beta) to a small cohort of Zwifters, and lots more will probably see it in the next month (read more here).
More Levels: Eric Min has said they’re coming soon, and internal sources tell me the same. I would expect to see level 150 or even 200 within the next month or two, although Zwift hasn’t promised any delivery date.
Refreshed Zwift Academy: Zwift said in their forum, “Zwift Academy returns in 2026, with work already underway to make the 10th edition our best yet.”
There’s definitely more to come in addition to what’s listed above, though. Zwift keeps me in the dark on some of their future plans, while others (including map expansions!) I get to peek at, under embargo.
Regardless, I’m looking forward to 2026 and all the Zwifty upgrades it will bring. Hopefully you are, too.
Your Comments
What are your thoughts on Zwift’s 2025? Favorite new features, things you wish Zwift had released but didn’t? And what would you most like to see in 2026? Share below!
First launched in 2017, Tour de Zwift is the biggest annual tour on the platform – a celebration of discovery across all Zwift worlds!
This year’s tour has just been announced. Beginning January 5, it consists of six weeklong stages spread across Zwift’s worlds. Each stage offers three group ride options of varying lengths, a race option for those who want to go all out, and two run options. The Ultimate Challenge has also returned, with bonus XP and a big prize giveaway.
So grab a friend and explore! Here’s everything Zwifters need to know about this year’s TdZ.
Ride stages can be completed on demand as a solo effort, or join a group ride or race to complete them with friends. Group rides are available in three lengths, and races use the same route as the “short” group rides.
Group rides and races are scheduled every hour, except during the makeup week, when they’ll be scheduled every 30 minutes.
Run stages can only be completed in events. Short Runs are scheduled hourly on weekdays, while the Long Runs are scheduled hourly on weekends.
If you miss any group stages, they will all be available to ride during the make-up week. During this week, make-up rides are scheduled every 30 minutes, with each stage following the next every half hour.
On Tuesday, January 20th, Zwift is planning a slate of events led by pros, creators, and other Zwift legends. The goal? Wall-to-wall Zwifters all rolling out together in the biggest rides of the Tour.
The full ride leader list is still to be confirmed, but here’s what we know right now:
Eric Min – @ 3:00AM PST | 9:30PM ACDT | 11:00AM UTC
This year, your TdZ progress can be tracked in-game. Just click the TdZ card on your homescreen, and click the trophy cup at the top-left:
This progress page summarizes which stages you’ve finished, which unlocks you’ve earned, and your progress toward The Ultimate Challenge.
Unlocks
Riders and runners will unlock items progressively as they complete TdZ stages:
Party Shadess: 1 stage
Party Cap: 3 stages
Ride Kit: all 6 stages
Run Kit: 1 stage
To complete a stage, simply finish one of the group rides, races, or runs.
The Ultimate Challenge
Just like last year, this year’s Tour includes “The Ultimate Challenge.” This is for riders only, and completing the challenge requires you to complete all 18 routes featured in this year’s stages.
When doing workouts indoors, most riders choose use Erg Mode to help them stick to the target power. However, GCN has reason to believe Erg Mode may actually hurt your training. In this week’s top video, hear from GCN as they break down the pros and cons of using Erg Mode.
We’ve also picked videos about improving the Zwift Ride, climbing Alpe du Zwift in under 49 minutes, FTP gains after a year of TrainerRoad, and a comparison of budget and premium indoor setups.
Is Erg Mode Making You A Worse Cyclist?
Could Erg Mode be making you a worse cyclist? GCN puts this to the test and explains the pros and cons of using Erg Mode for your indoor workouts.
Zwift Ride One Year Review – I’d Change These Things
After clocking over 4500km on the Zwift Ride, Liam Walker shares a one-year review of the setup.
Alpe du Zwift | Sub 49 mins.
As part of a big training session, Max from The Watt Life attempts to set a PR on Alpe du Zwift. Can he break his old PR of 49 minutes?
Did One Year on TrainerRoad x Zwift Make Me a Faster Cyclist?
For the past year, J Dirom has been using TrainerRoad and Zwift to see if he can get faster on the bike. In this video, he shares an update on how much his FTP has increased with the use of TrainerRoad.
Budget vs Premium Zwift Setups: What’s Actually Worth It?
Is it really worth the extra money to upgrade your Zwift setup? ChadRides compares a stock setup, a budget setup, and a premium setup.
Got a Great Zwift Video?
Share the link below and we may feature it in an upcoming post!
There are lots of popular, long, or otherwise unique events happening this weekend as Rapha’s Festive 500 gets underway and riders are indoor in earnest. So many events, in fact, that I had to choose 10 instead of my regular 5! See them all below…
🤝 Rapha Festive 500
✅ Popular ✅ Festive 500! ✅ Unique
Zwift has organized a set of RoboPacer-led rides throughout the Festive 500. Rides alternate between “long” 50km rides on Triple Flat Loops at the top of each hour and “short” 25km rides on Watopia’s Waistband at the half hour.
Cycling Time Trials – the national governing body for time trials in England, Scotland, and Wales – is holding a slightly crazy special event this weekend, in two different timeslots.
Your experience will vary significantly depending on the category you join, so choose carefully:
Category A is a drafting-enabled ride with powerups enabled
Category B has drafting disabled and no powerups
Both categories allow riders to choose any bike, including a TT bike. (So I’d recommend choosing a TT bike!) Late starts are allowed for up to 30 minutes.
Back for another year, it’s “the toughest and longest Zwift race of the year”, TFC’s epic Christmas race on Watopia’s The Uber Pretzel! At 128.8km with 2381 of elevation, this route is a tough one… especially the finish up Alpe du Zwift!
There are always a few teams crazy enough to plan full 500km events during the Festive 500, but this weekend I only see one. It’s an open-paced ride on Tempus Fugit with the FAAST crew, and the sparse event notes says, “Bring your big boy pants!”
Stay for the full ride, or just see how long you can go. This will be a challenge no matter how you slice it!
Sunday has been declared Global vEveresting Days, and The Torturefest Club, in collaboration with Everesting.com, are holding a series of virtual Everesting events on Zwift on December 29, 2025.
🤝Galaxy Cycling Club -– Fundraiser Ride for Simon Richardson MBE
✅ Banded✅ Good Cause
Join the Galaxy squad for a social banded ride and fundraiser to raise £2500 towards a specialist, lightweight wheelchair for Paralympian Simon Richardson MBE.
Simon is a valued member of club, offering helpful advice and inspiration to many. Read his story here.
The Cheesecake Crew is holding a 161km ride with two pace options on the France Classic Fondo route this Sunday. To help pass the time and make the ride unique, they hold a live Zoom call during the event (details in event description).
One last crazy event to finish off our weekend list. How about 100+ laps of Downtown Dolphin? This is a 200km group ride with open pacing, and since the laps are so short, you’ll always be able to find a wheel to draft, or push hard to bridge up to someone new!
We choose each weekend’s Notable Events based on a variety of factors including:
Is the event unique/innovative in some way?
Are celebrities (pro riders, etc) attending/leading?
Are signup counts already high, meaning the event is extra-popular?
Does the ride include desirable unlocks or prizes?
Does the event appeal to ladies on Zwift? (We like to support this under-represented group!)
Is it for a good cause?
Is it just plain crazy (extra long races, world record attempts, etc)?
Is it a long-running, popular weekly event with a dedicated leader who deserves a shout out?
In the end, we want to call attention to events that are extra-special and therefore extra-appealing to Zwifters. If you think your event qualifies, comment below with a link/details and we may just include it in an upcoming post!
