Hornplayer

FWIW my wife has had good luck with the Specialized Lithia and Myth saddles. Agree with previous poster that your wife likely needs a thinner seat.

zymphad

My experience has been padding is not the answer for saddles. That kind of comfort just comes from riding more until your body becomes accustomed to it.

If it's an anatomical problem, like thigh rubbing, then just need a different shape. I personally love the Specialized Power and I have yet to read of a negative review for it. Seems beloved by both men and women. It's marketing I know, but Specialized did seem to take into account for both male and female anatomy when they designed this saddle. Specialized claim the broad sit-bone area and the wide cutout channel were features that worked well with women. Nearly every review/impression I've read mirror my experience, you forget the saddle is even there.

tagaproject6

Aside from all the great suggestions already mentioned, sometimes the only way to get comfortable on the saddle is more time on the saddle. Since you mentioned that you are both particularly new to cycling, there will be some discomfort.

Aubergine 

I am an administrator for a Facebook group for women riders, and of course the saddle question comes up regularly. The favorite saddles there for road bikes are Brooks B17 and C17, Terry Butterfly, Selle Anatomica, and various of the other saddles already mentioned. All agree that less padding is typically better.

A couple interesting points have come out of those discussions. Women’s saddles are often shorter in the nose, designed that way so that they don’t snag the rider’s skirt. If you don’t ride in a skirt the short-nose designs are less comfortable than the longer « men’s » versions. I have found that to be true on my own bikes; the B17S is less comfortable than the regular B17.

The other relates to differences in labia. Women who were reasonably tucked in were happy without a split saddle, but women with more generous labia typically were more comfortable with a cutout.

zymphad

Then sounds like Specialized Power should be added to your Facebook's list of recommended saddle. Various widths to accommodate women's sit bone, short nose with generous cutout.

fietsbob

I have several Fizik Vitesse saddles unisex/women's.. A batch made for Brompton, with higher rail clearance, for the Pentaclip,

black pleather, (rather than white/pink) and a narrow nose.. since there is no center cut out ..


as said you cannot sit on another persons opinion of what will be best for you.






....

Kapusta

For the first several months of riding, my wife struggled to find a saddle that did not leave her in pain. It was not her sit bones, but rather everything else.

After trying 4 different saddles, we went to a Specialized dealer. They measured her sit bones with the Ass-O-Meter, and suggetsed a saddle (I forgot which one)

It was perfect. She has three of the same saddle on all her bikes.

I am often skeptical of components marketed as “women-specific”, but I am now a believer when it comes to saddles that there are real differences between people, and especially between men and women. Her saddle is for me, literally, the most awkward saddle I have tried to use.

Ramona_W

I have this saddle. They're not cheap but as soon as we put it on the bike I was more comfortable. I like the cut-out and the general lack of padding. Switching to bib shorts instead of regular shorts made a difference too maybe because I went with the men's.

goenrdoug

since you're fairly new riders and I haven't seen it mentioned, be sure that you and the wife both buy some chamois creme and slather up the old sit bones before your next ride -- it can make a world of difference.

Elaine

I used this saddle for a while and it was right for me.

I now sit on a Fizik Arionne -- not exactly a comfy saddle at first, but I got used to it after a while. The slim seat permits a lot more space for the inner thighs. But, again, it does require a good measure of familiarity.

If you go on long rides I'd say go for the Diva Gel Flow.

Nachoman

My wife and daughter both ride the Terry Butterfly saddle, which seemed to stop the complaining.

nwrig004

Selle Diva, ISM (pick your level) worked well for the women in our club. A few tried the Brooks Cadium saddles while the initial experience was great they seemed to sag onto the rail north of 40 miles in the on sustained climbs.

02Giant 

Another, whose wife and daughter use the Selle Diva Gel Flow. No complaints from them.

pinsonp2 

A female here that also suffered with inner thigh chafing. I have gone through lots of saddles in my search for comfort. Last summer I got serious about my search. Went to my LBS and went through all possible ones they had in stock. Although not perfect, my best fit was a saddle that was the same model as I had, but a smaller size. Bought a new road bike later and decided to have a Trek Professional fit. The fit was really helpful, but their saddle mapping process, after about 25 different saddles, could not find a comfortable saddle. Fitter recommended bib shorts. The chaffing got so bad, I found a female bike fitter who would do a saddle consultation. Could not find a perfect saddle, but she determined a better fore/aft and tilt for a saddle for me. She recommended higher quality shorts and a specific type of chamois (LG with beveled edge chamois). I bought a couple pair of the recommended shorts off of Ebay (too expensive otherwise). They worked much better on the saddle I was using. By then, road bike season was over so I bought a new hybrid for winter/fall riding. The new bike came with a 143 mm Specialized Phenom saddle. What a difference, Although I have one on my spin bike, because of weather no chance yet to try on my road bike. So far, so good though. Obviously, your wife's experience may vary. The point I want to make in this long post is that my solution was a combination of both shorts and saddle (a very expensive journey). I wish her luck in her search for comfort.

Penny

Pizzaiolo Americano 

Just wanted to give a quick update. I found a Selle Diva Gel on closeout at a local store so I grabbed it. I figured if the wife doesn't like it, I'll toss it on Ebay and probably not lose any money. I'll update after our rides this weekend. Thanks all!

goenrdoug

use chamois cream!

colnago62

There really aren’t men and woman saddles, just ones that fit you and ones that don’t. You need to find a fitter or shop that can accurately measure your wife’s sit bones and then recommend a saddle based on that data.

terrymorse 

Out of all the saddles I’ve fitted for women, by far the most successful has been the Selle Italian Diva.

Note that it comes in two widths: S and L. If your wife is slender, she probably will fit best on S width.

https://us.selleitalia.com/en/saddle...gel-superflow/

blakcloud

Sometimes I give up on battles I am not going to win. My wife's saddle on her Specialize Ruby is uncomfortable to her so I suggested that a new saddle is in order. She believes she knows better and wanted a gel seat cover which I purchased for her. It is frustrating that she is so stubborn on this antiquated belief that bigger and softer will work. No, the saddle cover does not fix her problem but she won't back down. Maddening as the bike just sits there un-ridden I would like to take terrymore's advice above because it sounds like from his experience this saddle would work. I have given up on this one. She just prefers to ride here upright Rivendell with a Brooks B67.

shelbyfv

It's been awhile but it seems folks are still interested. How did the Diva work for her?

Pizzaiolo Americano 

She did well with it and was still using it until she got a new bike. The new bike has a much firmer saddle but she likes it better so I probably won’t change it out. Miles in the butt do wonders for comfort…

Bah Humbug

It’s interesting to me that all of the higher-volume female cyclists I know in person (and most seen on TV as well) use unisex saddles, but there seems to be interest in them otherwhere.

Also, the last time I bought a saddle in an LBS, the (female) employee commented that it was harder, in her experience, for men to find comfortable saddles than women. Which makes sense to me, but seems less an issue with online discussion.