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Ellipticals are some of the best and most adaptive pieces of home workout equipment you can get. They are easy on your joints and therefore prevent a lot of impact and wear-and-tear that can hurt your joints. Yet, Ellipticals are still able to provide a full-body workout.

There’s a problem though.

Full-size ellipticals are bulky, like most home workout equipment. For all their advantages it can be hard to find a good system that is truly effective but doesn’t take up too much space in your home.

That’s where Compact Ellipticals come in.

All the benefits of a full-size elliptical packed into a smaller and more efficient space. Compact ellipticals are a great choice for anyone looking to be able to get a good full-body workout at home without needing a ton of extra equipment or a lot of space for bulky equipment.

We’ll talk about the benefits of compact ellipticals, which features and benefits are most important for users, and give our review of some of the best compact ellipticals you can get today.

Let’s get started.

Our 2021 Top Pick

The Best Compact Ellipticals Compared

Benefits of Compact Ellipticals

Compact ellipticals come with several advantages compared to full-size ellipticals, and nearly all the same benefits. Here are some of the most important advantages.

Great for Smaller Spaces

Compact ellipticals cut down on the floor space needed for your elliptical. They can cut down your maximum stride length slightly but make up for the space in vertical stride.

That means you get a lot of the same benefits as a full size elliptical, with a movement a little more like climbing than running.

These designs are more efficient since you don’t need as much room dedicated to the elliptical itself.

Great for Cardio

Ellipticals are one of the best ways to get more cardio in your workout because they are lower impact and easier to use than most cardio machines. Ellipticals reduce the impact on your joints even over traditional treadmills and are significantly gentler than walking, jogging, or running on pavement.

Since you can get a full-body workout on many ellipticals the also offer a more complete cardio workout than most options that only focus on your legs and feet.

Skip the Gym, Workout at Home

These smaller designs are a lot more home-friendly than the bigger ellipticals you’ll see at the gym. Having an effective compact elliptical at home makes it possible to avoid the crowds and the judgment at the gym and work out in peace.

Improving your health doesn’t require an expensive membership, a ton of space, or a ton of time when you have a great compact elliptical in your home.

Things to Consider When Buying a Mini Elliptical

Size and Weight

Both the size and the weight of your elliptical are important considerations when you’re choosing which version will work best for you. Size determines where you can put your elliptical and whether you can fit one in with your existing furniture.

But weight is equally important since it determines how easy it is to move the elliptical into position, relocate it later, and may even impact where you can place it. Lighter ellipticals are usually easier to move from place to place and get installed in the first place, but they also tend to be louder and less steady than ellipticals with a little more weight.

Stride and Incline

Standard ellipticals have strides ranging from about 18”-24”. Compact ellipticals usually sacrifice some of that stride in favor of vertical climbing steps. A good compact elliptical with a vertical design should have at least 9” vertical travel space.

However, some compact ellipticals have a small stride with less vertical space. When you’re looking at one of those models it’s important to look for a version that has at least a 10″ stride length.

Under desk, models might not have much travel at all, so it’s important to consider resistance when you’re looking for an under-desk exercise machine.

Resistance

Ellipticals need to offer good resistance to be a good workout option. Without resistance, you’re unlikely to reach fat burning exercise levels, so this is one of the most important features for getting a great workout at home.

A good at-home elliptical should have at least a few different resistance levels. 8 Levels is standard for most high-quality ellipticals, but an exercise machine that offers even more can help boost the effectiveness of your workouts even further.

Cost

Compact ellipticals can be more cost-effective than most full-size versions, but you’re very much going to get what you’ve paid for. A good elliptical is rare under about $150, though possible. Most good compact ellipticals will hover between $150-250. More expensive models are usually only worth it if they have a lot of extra features or offer a particularly impressive warranty guarantee.

Features

The best compact ellipticals should all have some kind of cardio monitoring program as well as a calorie and distance tracker so you have more information about the quality of your workout. Some will also offer additional apps or tracking information, and others can even calculate your current BMI and use your body metrics to provide more accurate calorie information.

The more features the more expensive your elliptical is likely to be, but you’re also more likely to be able to develop a customized workout program that helps you get or stay in shape at home.

Warranty

At minimum the best compact ellipticals should have a 1-year warranty. There are a lot of moving parts in an elliptical, and a 1-year warranty helps protect consumers from part failure and defects that weren’t caught in the quality assurance phase.

It’s better to look for a warranty that’s longer than 1 year, particularly for the elliptical frame.

Long warranties don’t just give you peace of mind. A long warranty also indicated quality construction and materials that are more likely to last.

The Best Compact Ellipticals Reviewed

The Sunny Health & Fitness Elliptical is a good option if you don’t mind a machine that uses a large vertical stride to make up for a shorter vertical one. The standard elliptical arms make it easy to get a full-body workout despite the change in stride length and style.

This design also offers relatively high weight capacity for a compact elliptical. It can tolerate up to 260lbs in user weight.

The oversized and textured pedals are designed to be comfortable for users of all shapes and sizes. The wider pedals give plenty of room for even the bulkiest tennis shoes. The rubber texture on the pedals also makes it possible to use lighter workout shoes safely on this system.

Pulse sensing grips make it simple to see when you’ve reached the fat-burning part of your workout, while also keeping a closer eye on calorie estimates and other metrics to show the quality of your workout.

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