If you are simply looking for a Board to avoid walking everywhere, it can be hard to choose in the battle of penny boards vs longboards. Each has their own distinct advantages and disadvantages so ultimately the best one for you comes to what you want to do with it. I’ll explore all of the advantages/disadvantages of both options in the article below.
The Final Say: Penny Boards vs Longboards
| Penny Boards | Longboards | |
|---|---|---|
| Advantages | Small and Lightweight Easily portable - can fit in a backpack Variety of Designs Highly Durable | Can be used for a variety of purposes besides commuting More space for your feet Generally higher quality |
| Disadvantages | Only good for commuting Not alot of space for riders feet. Unstable at higher speeds | Not as portable or lightweight Range in price depending on the board |
| Our Opinion | Penny Boards are a great low-cost choice if you only want to use your board for commuting. | If you want a great commuter but also might want to explore skating a little further, a longboard is the best fit for you. |
Our Suggestions
If you still aren’t sure, take a look at some of our top picks from both sides. We carefully chose these based on our own experiences with each of these boards and how well suited they are for commuting and cruising.
| Product | What We Liked | More Information | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Penny Original Complete | Easily fits in a backpack Extremely lightweight | Check Price Now! | |
| Penny Nickel Classic | The longer length makes this Penny the better option for beginners or bigger riders. | Check Price Now! |
|
| Quest Super Cruiser Artisan Bamboo | Great Beginner board Plenty of space for different foot positions Affordable Price | Check Price Now! | |
| Sector 9 Shoots Complete | Short Wheelbase allows it to make tight turns Excels as a carving/commuting/cruising board | Check Price Now! |
All About Longboards
As the head of a website known as Review Longboards for around 2 years now, I know my way around longboards. I grew up skating and continue to longboard to this day.
Longboards are a variant of skateboards which feature longer decks, hence the name long boards. Longboards can be found primarily in the range of 30” all the way to 44” long but of course there are exceptions with extremely small boards or very long ones.
Longboards can be constructed out of a variety of materials with maple being the most popular for cheaper longboards. Bamboo is very common for smaller and more flexible longboards as it allows the deck of the longboard to bend easily without breaking.
Now if you are looking at the question of penny boards vs longboards, you will definitely want a cruising longboard. Explained more in our article about cruising longboards, this type of longboards feature a smaller deck(anywhere from 28” to 38”) and loose trucks which allows them to make tighter turns.
Penny Boards Explained
Penny Boards were created rather recently in 2010 and were named after the company, Penny Skateboards. They quickly became popular because of their small size, weight, and portability.
Unlike longboards, the main deck of Penny Boards are only made out of one material: industrial strength plastic. This allows the board to weigh only 4.2 lbs and withstand a tremendous amount of damage.
If you jump off of your longboard and it goes crashing into a curb, you’ll probably see a chip fly off of the front or a couple of nice scratches on your new board. With plastic instead of wood, the same thing happens and you simply pick up your Penny Board looking brand new as always and continue on your way.
Penny Original vs Penny Nickel
As opposed to the many many different shapes and sizes of longboards available, Penny Skateboards only makes two boards: the Penny Original and the Penny Nickel.
The only difference between them is the length. The Original comes in at 22” long and the Nickel comes in at exactly 5 inches longer(Guess why they called it the Nickel?) at 27” long.
While we have a complete rundown of the pros/cons in our full article: Penny Original vs Penny Nickel, the Nickel is better suited for beginners while the Original is best suited for people who like to carry around their boards a lot.
Penny Boards vs Longboards
The differences between penny boards vs longboards leads them to be very good at different things. We’ll break it down.
Penny Boards are great for simple bare-bones commuting. They simply weigh less than most longboards and have a smaller size that allows them to fit into backpacks or even hang from the outside of backpacks easily.
One advantage for Penny Boards is the wide variety of designs that they come available in. On any given board, there are upwards of 20 different designs that are made to be vibrant and stand out.
Penny Boards are also very cheap if you know where to look. If you want a true Penny Original or Penny Nickel, it will run you anywhere from $60 – $100. If, however, you are cheap like me, look towards cheap penny boards such as the High Bounce Short Plastic Board.
These boards take the price of the original Penny and knock off about $30 leaving you with the cheapest “penny” board that you can find. Look towards our article about cheap penny boards to find the best brands that don’t sacrifice quality in order to bring the board to you cheaply.
Advantages of Longboards
Longboards on other hand can be great at all sorts of riding! Not just commuting from place to place, choosing the correct cruising longboard can give you better performance than the Penny and allow you to ride more.
Longboards also will give you more space for your feet. If you are a beginner, I absolutely recommend a larger cruising longboard, such as the Quest Super Cruiser. Not only will it make it easier for you to learn how to ride, it will make the entire experience more fun too.
The best longboards that function like a Penny Skateboard are mostly around the same price also! With a combination of high quality and versatility, longboards can be hard to beat.
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