PoorInRichfield

If you've been cycling for any amount of time, then you already know that finding a saddle that's compatible with your backside can be an expensive and frustrating "trial-and-error" process. While some LBSs (local bike shops) have systems for helping you find a saddle that will work and/or trial saddles you can borrow and test, many don't which leaves you to just guess at what saddle will work for you. Not only that, most LBSs (at least the ones near me) stock very few saddles these days due to online sales, so your in-store choices might be very limited.

Many saddle manufacturers provide "saddle finders" on their web sites and I've found the quality of such applications to range from useless to really good. It's my opinion that a good saddle finder should ask you for your "sit bone width" at a minimum, of which many don't. (FYI... measuring your "sit bone width" is something you can do at home... you don't need fancy machinery or an LBS for this.)

As such, I'm compiling a list of those "saddle finder" web sites and rank them according to how good they are/were at helping you find a proper fitting saddle. Please post links to saddle finders that aren't on the list and let me know if the finder helped you find a great saddle on the first shot!

Online Saddle Finders

1. fizik Saddle Finder - I ended-up buying a fizik saddle based on this finder as it asks questions that make sense to me, like my age, sit-bone width, intended use, race/non-racer, etc.
2. SMP Saddle Finder
3. Selle Italia ID Match
4. Trek / Bontrager Saddle Finder - I like Bontrager products but found their saddle finder a bit too basic. It never asked about sit-bone width, so in the end I was stuck trying to figure-out which width saddle they offered was right for me.

Manufacturers w/ No Online Saddle Finder

1. Prologo MyOwn Fitting System - Shame that a company that makes so many saddles doesn't provide an online way to find a saddle that fits. There are no Prologo dealers within hundreds of miles of me, so using their MyOwn system isn't an option.
2. Specialized - Really surprising that I can't find an online saddle finder from Specialized. They make some really nice saddles, but one will get dizzy trying to figure-out which one is right for you.

If you're interested in measuring your sit bone width at home, this video does a thorough job of explaining this and how to find a good fitting seat...