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RYET 3D printed saddle review: I tested 4 AliExpress saddles

By Jack, Jack's Coaching Updated 7 November 2026 Bought with my own money

My pick

RYET hybrid 3D printed saddle

Carbon nose, 3D printed rear, big cutout. About 120 g.

About US$80

Buy on AliExpress ↗

Budget pick

PLSELIS 3D printed saddle

Softer mesh, bigger cutout, great for wide sit bones. About 170 g.

About US$39

Buy on AliExpress ↗

I've been riding for 15 years and I've gone through more than 10 saddles: Selle SMP, Selle Italia, Specialized Power, Toupé, Fizik Arione. When 3D printed saddles arrived I wanted one, but the big brands charge US$330 to US$475.

So I went to AliExpress and bought four cheap carbon saddles, three of them from RYET. One sent me to the doctor. One cracked. Two are brilliant.

What should a cheap carbon saddle get right?

For me it has to be light, comfortable, strong enough for an 85 kg sprinter, and under US$80. Saddles are personal, so if your list looks different, my pick might not be yours.

• Under 200 g, ideally closer to 100 g.
• A 3D printed surface, or something that does the same job.
• A cutout big enough to take the pressure off soft tissue.
• Sturdy enough for my 85 kg when I sprint.
• A slight upward curve at the back, so I can push against it when I'm putting the power down.
• Under US$80.

Which of the 4 AliExpress saddles is best?

The RYET hybrid won. The PLSELIS is the budget pick, the original RYET gave me pressure problems, and the RYET ultralight cracked.

Is the original full 3D printed RYET saddle comfortable?

It's comfortable to sit on, but its small cutout gave me pressure problems on long rides. It's full carbon with a 3D printed top, very rigid, and 173 g on my scale.

I liked it enough to own three (one was stolen off my bike). But I have wide sit bones, and on long rides I started getting pressure on my perineum. It got bad enough that I went to the doctor about it.

If you've got narrow sit bones you might be fine on it. For me it was the reason I kept looking.

Is the PLSELIS saddle a good budget pick?

Yes. At about US$39, it's the saddle I'd tell most people to try first, especially if you have wide sit bones.

It came on my TanTan X68. The cutout is much bigger than the original RYET's, and the 3D printed mesh is softer and smoother. It weighs about 170 g.

I moved it to my Giant TCR and I've done hundreds of kilometres on it with no issues. It also survived my crash.

Is the 97 g RYET ultralight strong enough?

Not for me. It flexed under me and cracked at 85 kg, so I returned it.

At 97 g it was the lightest saddle I've ever held, with a faux leather top instead of a 3D printed one. On paper it was everything I wanted. The shell just wasn't stiff enough for my weight.

A light climber might get away with it. I still wouldn't recommend it, and I don't link to it.

Why is the RYET hybrid the best cheap 3D printed saddle?

Because it uses two surfaces: smooth carbon at the nose and middle so your thighs don't rub, and a 3D printed rear third that holds your sit bones still. It's my GOAT saddle.

Half carbon, half 3D print sounds strange. Here's why it works:

• The 3D printed rear locks your sit bones in place. You sit on it and you don't move around.
• The carbon nose is smooth on your inner thighs, so there's less friction when you pedal than on a full 3D printed saddle. That matters on long rides.
• The cutout is big, so the pressure problem I had on the original RYET is gone.
• It curves up at the back. When I'm putting out big power I can push back against it.
• It's rigid. When I press down on it there's no flex, which is what I want after the ultralight cracked.

Mine weighs about 120 g and cost about US$80. It's been my race saddle ever since, and it's part of how I got my X68 down to 6.95 kg.

The 3D printed rear locks your sit bones in. The carbon nose doesn't rub. That's the whole trick.

Is the RYET 3D printed saddle too hard?

It's firm, and whether that's a problem depends on you. The carbon shell doesn't flex at all, so the 3D printed layer is the only give you get.

Owners on Reddit are split. Some find the RYET mesh very firm and end up with sit-bone pain. Others call it the best saddle they've ever owned.

I'm in the second camp: I prefer a stiff saddle. nikinik, who has ridden a RYET Aircode for three years, puts most of their comfort down to width (theirs is 150 mm) rather than padding, plus standing up regularly. If a firm saddle hurts, check the width and your setup before blaming the mesh.

Which RYET saddle width should I get?

Get the width that matches your sit bones. Measure them first, because wide sit bones need a wider saddle.

I have wide sit bones. On the original RYET's small cutout I ended up at the doctor, and the problem went away on saddles with a much bigger cutout. If you're in the same boat, look at the cutout as well as the width.

3D printed or EVA: which RYET saddle is more comfortable?

There's no clear winner: it comes down to your backside. RYET sells EVA (foam-topped) versions alongside the 3D printed ones, and owners on Reddit like both.

I ride the 3D printed hybrid and haven't tested a RYET EVA saddle, so the EVA column below is what owners report, not what I've felt.

If you're worried about your shorts, the hybrid is a middle ground. Only the rear third is 3D printed, and the nose is smooth carbon.

Is the RYET as good as the Specialized Mirror?

It's a lot closer than the price suggests. The RYET hybrid costs about a sixth of an S-Works Power with Mirror, but it's firmer and you give up the testing and the warranty.

The saddles RYET is copying are the Specialized S-Works Power and Romin with Mirror, and Fizik's Adaptive range.

The big brands give you proper testing, padding density tuned for different zones, a warranty and a shop that'll sort it out if it breaks. You're paying five or six times more for that.

Reviewers who've compared them say the RYET is firmer at the nose than the branded versions, and I'd agree that the cheap ones are stiffer overall. I actually prefer that. If you want a plush saddle, the big brands are better.

What is the RYET saddle weight limit, and do they break?

RYET's manual sets a 120 kg system weight limit, which means rider, bike and gear added together. And yes, some models do break.

That limit is tighter than it sounds. I'm 85 kg on a 7 kg bike, so I'm about 92 kg before kit and bottles. A 105 kg rider on a 9 kg bike is already at 114 kg before they've filled a bottle.

How do you set up a carbon saddle?

Clamp the rails properly first, then set height, tilt and fore-aft in that order. A great saddle will feel terrible if it's in the wrong place.

Change one thing at a time, and ride a few times between changes.

1. Clamp. RYET's rails are 7x9 mm oval carbon, and its manual says to use only a clamp made for 7x9 oval carbon rails and always use a torque wrench. nikinik keeps it to 5 to 6 Nm maximum and uses carbon paste on the rails.
2. Height. Use your bike fit measurement if you have one. If not, the LeMond method is a good start: multiply your inseam by 0.883, and that's the distance from the centre of the bottom bracket to the top of the saddle. Too high and your hips rock. Too low and it feels like you're squatting.
3. Tilt. Start level, at 0°. Most people end up between level and about 2° nose down. Nose too high puts pressure on your perineum. Nose too far down and you slide forward and push on your hands.
4. Fore-aft. Move it in 5 mm steps. If your quads are doing all the work and your knees feel loaded, it's probably too far forward.
5. Fine-tune. Once you're close, make tiny tilt changes. Tilt and fore-aft also change your effective saddle height, so recheck the height after.

Moving to a short-nose saddle like these? Measure your old saddle's height and where its widest part sits relative to the bars before you swap. Then put your sit bones back in the same spot instead of lining up the nose.

RYET saddle FAQ