4 guides
Getting Started
Beginner guides for building an indoor cycling setup: what you need, what you can skip, and how to start.
Start with three things: a trainer or smart bike, an app, and air moving over you. A mat, a screen and a place for a bottle come next. The cheapest complete routes in our data are the JetBlack Victory ($449.00 before shipping and tariff) or the KICKR CORE 2 ($549.99), each with the free MyWhoosh app; you do not need a smart trainer to ride Zwift at all if you already have a wheel-on trainer and a power or speed sensor.
| Your question | Short answer | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Do I need a smart trainer for Zwift? | No: a classic trainer plus a power meter or speed sensor works; a smart trainer adds automatic resistance and ERG. | Four routes compared |
| What do I buy first? | Trainer, then mat, then cooling, then screen. A starter cave is about $629.98 before a fan with the CORE 2, a Zwift mat and a free app. | Pain cave setup |
| Do I need a fan? | Yes. A plain 20-inch floor fan moves as much air as a smart fan; the smart fan only automates the speed. | Cooling fan guide |
| Two riders, one setup? | One adjustable smart bike when storage is tight and both fit its range; one Cog-based trainer with two bikes when fit differs a lot; two stations if you ride at the same time. | Shared setup |
Short answers summarise each guide's opening; prices and sources are on the guide itself. The mat price is Zwift's listed $79.99 as recorded in the pain cave guide.
When the kit is in place, the direct-drive setup guide covers mounting and calibration, and the beginner training plan gives the first weeks a shape. The trainer data behind these pages is also on free tools as embeds, charts and downloads.
All 4 getting started guides
- Best Fan for Indoor Cycling
Two Lasko floor fans, Wahoo HEADWIND and Elite Aria on the makers' own pages: airflow units, price, weight, control, and what DC Rainmaker measured.
- Do You Need a Smart Trainer for Zwift? Four Routes
No: Zwift runs with a classic trainer plus a power or speed sensor. What each of four routes costs, what you lose, and Zwift's own zPower limits.
- Pain Cave Setup: What to Buy First and Why
How to set up an indoor cycling pain cave: a priced build order from trainer to mat to cooling, with sourced prices and footprints.
- One Indoor Cycling Setup for Two Riders: The Shared Pain Cave Guide
Build one indoor cycling setup for two riders. Compare shared smart bikes and trainers, solve fit and drivetrain conflicts, and create reliable rider.