As there are many types of bike racks available for your travel trailers, it is common to get confused. Choosing the right bike rack needs much experience and you need to think it over carefully according to your requirements. So in this article, we present you with a list of bike racks that are suitable for any RV or travel trailer. After tremendous hours of research and hard work, we like to entitle the Swagman E-SPEC as our “Overall Best Choice” among all the bike racks.
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RV Approved + eBike Compatible Bike Rack | Overall Best Choice
The Swagman E-SPEC will be a fantastic bike rack when you are looking for a bike rack not just for regular bicycles but also for eBikes and fat-tire bikes. This rack offers an outstanding weight-bearing capability where it can load 2 bikes of 70 lbs each, now that is great. You can protect your bikes with locking ratcheting hooks and protect the rack itself with locking hitch-pin. So, you can guess this rack doesn’t compromise even for a bit when it comes to security. Load any bike effortlessly because this rack can hold a tire that is up to 3” wide. This rack is blessed with some impressive features such as foldability, convertible, versatile, and so on. And we can assure you, these features make this rack superb. A fat-tire tray is available to load fat-tire bikes that need to be bought separately.
- Type: Hitch-Mount (Tray-Style)
- Adaptable Hitch Receiver: 2”
- Rack Weight (lbs): 60
- Dimensions (inch): 39 x 12 x 11
- Bike-Wheel Diameter: 20” – 29”
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 70 lbs.
- Maximum Weight Limit: 140 lbs.
In the following table, we’ve listed the best bike racks that we have selected for your travel trailers:
| Bike Rack | Why do we recommend this |
|---|---|
| Swagman E-SPEC | RV Approved + eBike Compatible Bike Rack | Overall Best Choice |
| Yakima LongHaul | Premium Hitch Bike Rack for RV and Travel-Trailer |
| Swagman Dispatch | RV Approved Hitch Mount Bike Rack |
| Swagman 2-Bike Bumper Rack | Excellent RV Approved Bumper-Mount Rack for 2 Bikes |
| Swagman 4-Bike Bumper Rack | Heavy-Duty RV Approved Bumper-Mount Rack for 4 Bikes |
| Swagman Deluxe | Bumper-Mount Rack That Supports a Spare-Tire |
| Swagman Ladder Rack | Decent Ladder-Mount Bike Rack for Your Trailer |
| Camco RV Ladder Mount Rack | Another Great Ladder-Mount Bike Rack for Your Trailer |
| Swagman Traveler XCS2 | A Fantastic Towing Bike Rack |
| Jack-It (429756) | Provides Fine Jack Clearance |
| Stromberg Carlson CC-275 | Offers Stability of Your Rack to Carry 2 Bikes |
Driving an RV, motor-home, 5th wheel camper or travel trailer can be an unusual experience yet this experience will be exciting. These types of vehicles flourish a unique experience for any person who has never taken a journey by such vehicles. The most exciting part is – you will be living inside the vehicle, at the same time you will be traveling with it. Many outdoor sports lovers who are always enthusiastic to make outdoor tours and love to accomplish adventures with their bikes, purchase these types of vehicles. Trailers or RVs are always great for making long-distance tours and help to expand people’s encouragement for making adventurous trips.
But when you don’t have any proper medium to store your bikes, you cannot expect to transport them when you drive such vehicles. Your RV or trailer needs some medium in order to transport and protect them because it will be exhausting to load your bikes inside your RV. This will drain the inside storage a lot and your bikes will get damaged for sure.
11 best bike racks you can buy today for travel trailers
All of these 11 bike racks are outstanding in their own aspects. Although we have declared our overall best choice, your personal choice may migrate to another bike rack from our selection as you may be looking for a bike according to your own preferences. So we highly recommend you to read the whole post because we can assure you it will be worth your time. But for the people who are always busy and who can spare very limited time, we have made this comparison chart so that they can have an overall idea about all of the racks quickly.
| Rack/Bunk | Preview | Style | Towing Receiver | Bumper Size | Bike Capacity | Weight Capacity | Dimensions (inch) | Rack Weight | Build Material | Foldable | Locking Option |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swagman E-SPEC | Tray Style | 2” | N/A | 2 | 140 lbs | 39 x 12 x 11 | 60 lbs | Steel | Yes | Yes | |
| Yakima LongHaul | Hanging Style | 2” | N/A | 4 | 150 lbs | 28 x 13 x 41 | 32 lbs | Steel | Yes | Yes | |
| Swagman Dispatch | Tray Style | 2” | N/A | 2 | 90 lbs | 37 x 14.5 x 9.5 | 44 lbs | Steel | Yes | Yes | |
| Swagman Bumper Rack | Bumper Mount | N/A | 4 - 4.5” | 2 | 60 lbs | 26.5 x 21 x 2.5 | 21 lbs | Steel | N/A | No | |
| Swagman Bumper Rack | Bumper Mount | N/A | 4 - 4.5” | 4 | 120 lbs | 43 x 45 x 2.5 | 41 lbs | Steel | N/A | No | |
| Swagman Deluxe | Spare Tire | N/A | 4 - 4.5” | 2 | 70 lbs | 34 x 12 x 26 | 22 lbs | Steel | N/A | No | |
| Swagman Ladder Rack | Ladder Mount | N/A | N/A | 2 | 70 lbs | 26.5 x 18 x 2 | 6.5 lbs | Aluminum | N/A | No | |
| Camco Ladder Mount Rack | Ladder Mount | N/A | N/A | 2 | 60 lbs | 23 x 11 x 3.7 | 8.2 lbs | Steel | N/A | No | |
| Swagman Traveler XCS2 | Towing Ball Mount | 2” | N/A | 2 | 70 lbs | 40 x 12 x 24 | 36.1 lbs | Steel | Yes | Yes | |
| Jack-It | Tongue Mount | N/A | N/A | 2 | 80 lbs | 30 x 20 x 8 | 25 lbs | Steel | N/A | No | |
| Carlson CC-275 | Tongue Mount | 2” (For the rack) | N/A | 2 | 100 lbs | 8 x 4.75 x 2 | 15 lbs | Steel | N/A | No |
# Hitch-Mount Bike Rack
1) Swagman E-SPEC: RV Approved + eBike Compatible Bike Rack | Overall Best Choice
- Type: Hitch-Mount (Tray-Style)
- Adaptable Hitch Receiver: 2”
- Rack Weight (lbs): 60
- Dimensions (inch): 39 x 12 x 11
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 70 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 140 lbs
- eBike Compatible: This rach was designed to carry any heavy bike or eBike that weighs up to 70 lbs.
- Locking Ratcheting Hooks: You will have peace in mind knowing that your bikes are safe with locking ratcheting hooks and hitch-pin that are included with the rack.
- Adaptable Wheel Size: Fits any bike with a wheel diameter ranging from 20” to 29” and with a tire width up to 3”.
- Bike Compatibility: Can accommodate any bike of different frame sizes, shapes and styles.
- Foldable: This rack allows you to conveniently access the rear hatch by folding itself.
- Convertible: You can convert this rack either into a folding eBike rack or a non-folding RV eBike rack according to the installation of the bolt.
- Versatile: A versatile rack for heavy-duty usage with a weight-bearing limit of 140 lbs for 2 bikes.
- Easy Assembly: This rack allows a simple installation process that should be completed within a few minutes if you go by the instructions.
- Corrosion-Resistant: A steel rack with durable powder coating that makes it corrosion resistant.
- Available Fat-tire Tray: For loading any 3” to 5” fat-tires, you will get an option to buy an additional fat-tire tray for this rack.
- A limited lifetime warranty will be provided with this rack.
- There are negative reviews that point to the bottom straps of this rack got snapped.
- This rack stays considerably far from the rear of the vehicle that makes parking or backing-out the vehicle a little bit difficult.
- Bike’s handlebars seem to remain very close to the RV.
It is not common to find a rack that can be used on an RV trailer and at the same time can be used as a normal bike rack with everyday functionalities when it comes to using it on a passenger vehicle. That is why “Swagman” has introduced the E-Spec. This bike rack is a tray-style hitch mount bike rack that is approved to use on RVs, 5th Wheels and Travel Trailers. This rack will support 2” x 2” class -3 hitch receivers for these types of vehicles. The ratcheting arms are very soft to protect your bike frame and the straps will keep the wheels of the bikes very steady during the whole time of the adventure.
Swagman E-SPEC
This rack is great for using on any passenger vehicle as well. It will fold up for convenient storage and also for rear hatch or tailgate access. You don’t need to worry about your prized possessions as this rack includes locking hooks and a hitch-pin that offer adequate security. Also, a fat-tire tray is available for loading any fat-tire bikes with 5” wide tires. With a total weight load capacity of 140 lbs, this rack is capable of holding any heavy bike up to 70 lbs each. Check out this video if you want to know about the installation process of this rack –
2) Yakima LongHaul: Premium Hitch Bike Rack for RV and Travel-Trailer
- Type: Hitch-Mount (Hanging)
- Adaptable Hitch Receiver: 2”
- Rack Weight (lbs): 32
- Dimensions (inch): 28 x 13 x 41
- Number of Bikes: 4
- Max Load Per Bike: 37.5 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 150 lbs
- RV Approved: This rack was tested and permitted to use on RVs.
- ZipStrip cradles: Loading and unloading the bikes will become a breeze with the help of SuperCush ZipStrip cradles.
- Anti-Sway Design: The cradles are designed in an anti-sway style for keeping your bike in place and reducing bike-to-bike contact.
- Full SKS Security Package: This rack includes a full SKS Locking package where you lock the last to the RV with a hitch lock and lock the bikes to the rack with LockDown cables.
- Foldable Arms: Allows convenient parking and storage by folding the arms down when you are not using it.
- Stable Transportation: This rack Stabilizes your bikes with 2 integrated safety straps that come with buckles.
- Build Quality: Made of sturdy steel furnished with a silver powder coat that makes it chip-resistant.
- Yakima Bottle-Cap Opener: Take a break during your journey and enjoy a soft drink anytime by opening the cap with the help of Yakima’s signature bottle-cap opener.
- Bring-Your-Own-Lock Point: You can reinforce the overall security by adding extra locks with this threading point.
- Offered with a limited lifetime warranty from Yakima.
- This rack may not accommodate all shapes and sizes of bike frames.
- Bikes remain very congested that can make 2 bikes collide with each other.
- You cannot wish to mount a spare-tire at the back of your RV while this rack is being installed.
When the demand for using an RV and travel trailer grew rigorously, then Yakima thought of making a bike rack that can work both on regular type vehicles and on RVs, Travel-Trailers and 5th Wheel Campers. Thus the Yakima LongHaul was produced. The name suggests that it can stand up for tours that consist of long miles. As a result, it was built, designed and tested through and through. This rack is estimated to take 5 minutes to be installed and some assembly is required.
The LongHaul vows to transport 4 bikes with ease and care where each bike can weigh 37.5 lbs. So, the total weight limit for this rack is close to 150 lbs. This rack is very exceptional when it comes to security. This rack includes a full Same Key System (SKS) security package where you can lock your bikes as well as lock the rack to the vehicle. Also, features
“Bring-Your-Own-Lock” threading point that lets you add an extra lock for additional security.
Yakima LongHaul
3) Swagman Dispatch: RV Approved Hitch Mount Bike Rack
- Type: Hitch-Mount (Tray-Style)
- Adaptable Hitch Receiver: 2”
- Rack Weight (lbs): 44
- Dimensions (inch): 37 x 14.5 x 9.5
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 45 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 90 lbs
- Ground Clearance: This rack is designed to provide excellent ground clearance.
- Bike Compatibility: Most sizes, shapes, and styles of bike frames can be fitted on this rack.
- Locking Mechanism: Locking mechanism includes locking hitch pin and cable to protect your bike and the rack from theft.
- Bike Frame Protection: Padded hooks protect the bike’s frame from abrasions and scratches.
- Sliding Wheel-Tray: To adjust bikes of different lengths, you slide the tray for the perfect position.
- Folding Option: For better access to the rear hatch or tailgate, you can fold the vertical mast and make the rack into a compact unit.
- Ratcheting Hooks: These hooks hold the top tubes of your bikes firmly.
- Adjustable Hooks: To accommodate different bike sizes, you can independently move the hooks with push buttons.
- Available Fat-tire Tray: You can buy a fat-tire tray separately for this rack if you wish to load a fat-tire bike.
- Rated to be used on RVs, Travel-Trailers, and Motor-homes.
- A limited lifetime warranty will be provided with this rack.
- As the rack remains relatively far behind the back of the RV, parking and back-driving can be a little bit challenging.
- It would be better if the ratcheting hold-down parts were metal instead of plastic.
- The instruction in the manual is not very co-operative.
- Difficult to store the bikes.
Thinking about the people who are suffering from ground clearance, “Swagman” introduced the Dispatch. This rack sits 17” far from the hitch pin hole for sufficient ground clearance. “Swagman” send their products through rigorous testing to know if the products are capable enough to handle the extra pressure while they are towed behind the back of an RV. And the Dispatch has also gone through these types of testing programs to prove it is reliable enough to transport your bikes safely to their destinations.
This rack is capable of carrying 2 bikes with a total weight bearing limit of 90 lbs where each bike shouldn’t weigh more than 45 lbs. This rack can adapt fat-tire bikes where the tires are as wide as 5” if you combine it with the additional fat-tire tray. This rack provides adequate security for both your bike and rack by deterring the thieves.
Swagman Dispatch
# Bumper Mount Bike Rack
4) Swagman RV Approved 2-Bike Bumper Rack: Excellent Bumper-Mount Rack for 2 Bikes
- Type: Bumper-Mount
- Adaptable Bumper Size: 4 – 4.5” Square
- Rack Weight (lbs): 21
- Dimensions (inch): 26.5 x 21 x 2.5
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 30 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 60 lbs
- Special Design: This rack was designed in such a way that it can endure the pressure for being used on an RV, 5th Wheel Camper or Trailer.
- Installation Bolt: You need to install this rack around the square shape RV bumper with 6.5” and 8” long installation bolts.
- Additional Support: While you are towing with your bikes, the upright bar in the center of this rack provides additional support.
- Bike Compatibility: The tire rails of this rack support most regular shapes and sizes of bikes.
- U-Bolt: With these steel bolts, this rack secures itself with the bumper of your RV.
- Simple to Use: Pretty simple to load and unload the bikes.
- Build Quality: Made of Steel and the powder coating makes it corrosion-resistant.
- When you purchase this rack, you will get a limited lifetime warranty.
- Both of the bikes need to be in the same shape in order to load onto this rack.
- Bikes may lean toward the RV and hit the rear glass that shows its lack of adjustability.
- The inside slot will only load a bike with 2” wide tires.
- This rack was not designed to be used on a C class or a larger RV bumper.
- Poor design and might get rusty within a few months.
The Swagman RV Bumper Rack 2 provides an economic way to transport 2 bikes efficiently. The rack was designated as an RV approved rack by “Swagman”. They give this title to those racks which were engineered to be strong enough to withstand the extensive stress while they are being mounted on the back of an RV, 5th Wheel, or a Trailer. This rack can accommodate most common bike shapes and frames except for those where the tire is wider than 2”. So, some of the MTBs, eBikes as well as most fat-tire bikes won’t adjust onto this rack.
This rack keeps the first bike 6.25” far from the bumper and there is almost 34” distance between the bumper and the end of the rack. Any spot-welded bumpers or bumpers that are made of aluminum and wider than 4.5” will not suit with this rack. With a decent weight load capacity of 60 lbs, this rack can hold 2 bikes of 30” each.
Swagman 2-Bike Bumper Rack
5) Swagman RV Approved 4-Bike Bumper Rack: Heavy-Duty Bumper-Mount Rack for 4 Bikes
- Type: Bumper-Mount
- Adaptable Bumper Size: 4 – 4.5” Square
- Rack Weight (lbs): 41
- Dimensions (inch): 43 x 45 x 2.5
- Number of Bikes: 4
- Max Load Per Bike: 30 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 120 lbs
- Special Design: To withstand the extra load of pressure for being at the back of an RV, Travel trailer, or 5th Wheel camper; this rack was designed in a special way.
- Installation Bolt: 6.5” and 8” long bolts need to be used for installing this rack.
- Additional Support: While towing, your bikes will get additional support from the upright bar in the middle of this rack.
- Bike Compatibility: Most bikes with regular frames and sizes will accommodate this rack.
- U-Bolt: This rack gets itself secured to the bumper with some steel U-shape bolts.
- Simple to Use: This rack is fairly easy to attach and use.
- Build Quality: Constructed with steel and coated with powder in order to resist corrosion.
- This product will be warranted for a lifetime at the time of purchase.
- Sometimes, the mounting holes are not in the correct alignment.
- Each of the 4 bikes needs to be in the same shape if you wish to mount them.
- The quality of the hardware is very poor and it is hard to tighten them permanently.
- Provides the minimum safety for both your bike and RV when you load all 4 bikes on the rack.
The Swagman RV Bumper Rack 4 is basically the upgraded version of the Swagman RV Bumper Rack 2 where you will be able to load 4 bikes effortlessly instead of 2. Although it is updated, most of the features are pretty much the same. For example – this rack is designed as an RV approved product, this rack has the same build quality and other features are also the same. The main difference between this rack and the Swagman RV Bumper Rack 2 is the number of bikes that can be loaded. It can load 4 bikes where the Swagman RV Bumper Rack 2 can load only 2.
Like the Swagman RV Bumper Rack 2, this rack keeps the first bike 6.25” far from the bumper. This rack will not fit any spot-welded bumper or any bumper that is made of aluminum with more than 4.5” wide. This rack has a maximum weight capacity of 120 lbs for 4 bikes where each bike should weigh approximately 30 lbs.
Swagman 4-Bike Bumper Rack
# Bumper-Mount Spare Tire On Bike Rack
6) Swagman Around the Spare Deluxe Bike Rack: Bumper-Mount Rack That Supports a Spare-Tire
- Type: Bumper-Mount (Spare-Tire On)
- Adaptable Bumper Size: 4 – 4.5” Square
- Rack Weight (lbs): 22
- Dimensions (inch): 34 x 12 x 26
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 35 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 70 lbs
- Spare-tire Compatibility: This rack can be mounted around most of the spare-tires.
- Spare-tire Access: You can remove the top half of the rack with some release-pins for quick access of the spare-tire.
- Adaptable Bike-Frame: This rack can adapt any bike-frame where the diameter is up to 1.5”.
- Anti-Sway Cradles: The anti-sway cradles reduce bike-to-bike contact and its durable rubber straps won’t let any scratches on the bike’s finish.
- U-Bolt: You need to mount this rack to the bumper of your RV with U-bolts and brackets.
- Secure Bike’s Top Tube: This rack secures your bike’s top tube with 2 Nylon straps from excessive shocks and jolts.
- Build Quality: Constructed with sturdy steel and it is corrosion-resistant for the black powder coat finish.
- All mounting hardware for attaching the rack to the bumper is included in the package.
- This product is warranted for a limited lifetime.
- May not adjust the spare-tire of current model RVs.
- Will not accommodate some mountain bikes such as some GIANT brand bikes with 28” tires.
- This rack is not very suitable for accommodating women’s bikes.
- Some people complained that this rack had ripped off their bumpers.
If your RV, 5th Wheeler, or Travel-trailer contains a spare-tire at the back and at the same time you wish to load your bike in a convenient way as there is no space inside, then the Swagman Around the Spare Deluxe bike rack will be a perfect choice for you. This RV approved rack lets you carry 2 bikes even when the spare-tire is mounted at the back. With a weight load capacity of 70 lbs, you can load 2 bikes where each bike must weigh 35 lbs at the max.
This bike rack includes anti-sway cradles that hold your bikes still. This rack can be installed onto 4”-4.5” continuously welded square-shape RV bumpers. If you are uncertain whether this rack will match your RV or not, then you should consult the manufacturer or local RV dealer. This rack provides 12.75” spare-tire clearance and the maximum diameter of your bike frame should be 1.5” in order to be mounted on this rack.
Swagman Deluxe Bike Rack
# Ladder Mount Bike Rack
7) Swagman Ladder Rack: Decent Ladder-Mount Bike Rack for Your Trailer
- Type: Ladder Mount
- Rack Weight (lbs): 6.5
- Dimensions (inch): 26.5 x 18 x 2
- Number of Bikes: 2
- Max Load Per Bike: 35 lbs
- Maximum Weight Limit: 70 lbs
- RV Approved: This RV approved rack mounts quickly and effortlessly to your ladder with hooks.
- Soft Cradles: These cradles hold your bikes gently and make sure they don’t fall off.
- Rubber Strap: 2 rubber straps are included for securing your bikes to the rack and the rack to the ladder.
- Dual Arm Design: The design of this rack promotes dual arms that provide excellent support for holding the bikes.
- Corrosion and Rust Resistant: This rack is made of lightweight aluminum for resisting rust and corrosion.
- Versatility: This rack is versatile enough to fit any ladder rung shape of most RVs and motorhomes.
- Foam Pad: 2 foam pads are attached to both arms so that it doesn’t damage or scratch the ladder.
- Safety Reflectors: Both arms have integrated reflectors at the ends that ensure safety at night.
- Like all the Swagman bike racks, you will get a limited lifetime warranty with this rack.
- People have misleading comments about this rack, which hints at its inherent breakdown.
- You have to do a lot of rigging in order to secure your bikes as you expect.
- This rack stays pretty high to reach. So loading and unloading your bikes might be difficult.
The Swagman Ladder Rack is designed to adjust any RV, motorhome, or trailer’s ladder. This rack needs to be installed on the ladder. Therefore, you will get the access to use your trailer hitch and mount a spare-tire at the back if you wish. However, make sure your RV has a ladder or at least supports installing a ladder. This rack has become an RV approved rack by “Swagman” that indicates its versatility to withstand the exerted abuses.
This rack provides safety for transporting 2 bikes with soft cradles and rubber straps. With a weight-bearing capacity of 70 lbs, you can load a bike with 35 lbs of weight. It is very light for its aluminum construction that helps you to lift it up while you install it on the ladder. Its dual arm design offers great stability and the rear reflectors at each end of the arms ensure safety traveling at night.
