For longer days in the saddle, chamois cream can literally save your butt.
However, as with anything in cycling, there are plenty of creams to choose from, covering a variety of brands and at a range of prices.
Fear not, as these are the best chamois creams for cyclists, as rated and reviewed by the BikeRadar team.
The best cycling chamois creams as reviewed by BikeRadar
- Chamois Butt’r Original
- Udderly Smooth chamois creme
- Assos Chamois Creme
- Muc-Off Luxury CC
- Natural Little Bee Bum-ble-Bee Chamois Balm
- Happy Bottom Bum Butter
- QM Pro Race
Chamois Butt’r Original
!["Chamois]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/chamois-creams-chamois-buttr-01-1525808359545-1krdjer22guzm-aea4f37.jpg?quality=90&crop=8px%2C0px%2C1351px%2C900px&resize=620%2C413" "\"Chamois")
- £13 (227g) / $18 (235ml / 8 fl oz) / AU$25
This cream is based on mineral oil and includes lanolin and aloe in its ingredients. We got a lot of mileage from this, it’s easy and hygienic to apply from the tube, is minimally perfumed and long-lasting.
Also available in female-specific and cooling versions, but this is the crème de la crème of high-quality, budget-friendly creams.
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Assos Chamois Creme
!["Assos]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/chamois-creams-aesos_chamios-03-1525808359538-1h4p8qdslr5wo-2e3400f-e1581350342299.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"Assos")
- £13 (140ml) / $19 (140ml) / AU$30 (140ml)
Widely available and well priced for Assos, this tried-and-tested chamois cream is popular.
The present formula has little smell to it, just a touch of mint, and we found that a small amount of the thick white cream (or crème) went a long way, with the menthol giving it an initial cooling effect.
Assos also offers a women’s-specific formulation, available to buy from Wiggle.
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Muc-Off Luxury CC
!["Muc-Off]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/chamois-creams-mucoff-luxury-04-1525808359549-11zkprtw9d7ba-914474d.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C349" "\"Muc-Off")
- £14 (100ml) / $15 (100ml) / AU$26 (100ml)
This pleasant-smelling anti-bacterial cream contains aloe vera, witch hazel, shea butter and sunflower oil. We found this as good as any at keeping chafing at bay, even during a day-long ride.
While this is fairly expensive, it does double up as a moisturiser. Muc-Off’s R&D team has done a good job in diversifying.
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Natural Little Bee Bum-ble-Bee Chamois Balm
!["Natural]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2020/11/Natural-Little-Bee-Bum-ble-Bee-Chamois-creme-2-ce95b43.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"Natural")
- £9.50 (50g)
Not only does the Natural Little Bee Bum-ble-Bee Chamois cream not contain any chemicals or parabens, but it’s also made from raw, undiluted and natural fatty oils.
These act as a natural anti-microbial, anti-septic and analgesic, helping to reduce chafing and pain on long rides.
The Bum-ble-Bee cream is thick to the touch, more akin to a balm than a traditional, more liquified product. This means a healthy scoop is needed to provide enough coverage for long rides.
It felt cooling and smooth on our skin while riding, and its pleasant aroma has a minty essence.
Because it needs a generous portion per ride, the 50g tub we tested didn’t last very long, but knowing we were using an eco-friendly, chemical-free product produced by a small company more than made up for that.
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Udderly Smooth chamois cream
!["Udderly]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/chamois-creams-udderlysmooth-02-1525808359561-1s3e3akkojw4a-d098f6d.jpg?quality=90&crop=15px%2C0px%2C1351px%2C900px&resize=620%2C413" "\"Udderly")
- £9.99 (227g) / $8 (8oz) / AU$15 (8oz)
The name stems from the fact that this was first developed for use on dairy cows. Don’t worry, it contains no milk or bovine products, but is a thick white cream that’s long-lasting and resembles Assos’s offering, but it costs you less for a bigger tub.
Main ingredients, such as stearic acid, lanolin and the like, are joined here by shea butter too. Udderly Smooth feels great on long rides.
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Bikemonger’s Happy Bottom Bum Butter
!["Happy]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/12/chamois-creams-bikemonger-butter-05-1525808359539-1f8dcu2tqkzjn-e5929b4-8572346.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413" "\"Happy")
- £18 (100g) / $25 (100ml) / AU$33 (100ml)
Made-in Dorset, Bikemonger’s ‘Happy Bottom Bum Butter’ is vegan-friendly, made from 100 per cent natural ingredients and has a more ‘medicinal’ smell thanks to its use of clove oil.
It has a thick, Vaseline-like texture that takes a bit of massaging in but lasts the distance. The pot is recyclable too.
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QM Pro Race
!["QM]("https://images.immediate.co.uk/production/volatile/sites/21/2019/03/chamois-creams-qm-pro-race-06-1525808359557-40id872kwuqe-37f487b.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C349" "\"QM")
- £15.45 (150ml)
Belgian company QM has developed its cream in the pro cycling world, and though the petroleum jelly, beeswax and shea butter mix is the thinnest here, it covers well and lasts impressively.
It does tingle a little at first when you apply it, and we feel that a tube is a more hygienic way to package chamois creams.