DeskCycle vs Cubii JR1
The two machines everyone shortlists in this category, and one published number decides it for a large share of the people comparing them.
By Stephen V. · Last updated
Check the Cubii JR1’s published 150 lb user weight limitagainst yourself before anything else — it is the lowest figure on this site and it ends the comparison for a lot of people. Past that: the Cubii is 6.5 in narrower with a lower knee path; the DeskCycle is the only machine here that tells you what desk height it actually suits.
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The table first
| Model | In use (L x W x H) | Unit weight | Max user | Resistance levels | Published noise |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DeskCycle Under Desk Bike Pedal Exerciser | 20" L x 24" W x 10" Hmanufacturer spec | Not publishednot published | Not publishednot published | 8manufacturer spec | Not publishednot published |
| Cubii JR1 | 23.2" L x 17.56" W x 10" Hretail listing | Not publishednot published | 150 lbretail listing | 8retail listing | Not publishednot published |
DeskCycle Under Desk Bike Pedal Exerciser
Fitting under a low desk
A 10 inch pedal height is the whole product — it is the seated machine most likely to actually clear a standard 27 inch desk.
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Cubii JR1
Low-impact seated motion
An elliptical stroke instead of a circular one, which keeps the knee lower — and it is the only seated machine here that publishes a user weight limit.
Start with the capacity figure, because it may end this
The Cubii JR1 publishes a 150 lb maximum user weight. That is the lowest published limit of any machine on this site by 70 lb, and it is stated on the listing rather than buried — but it is not something the marketing draws attention to, and it rules the machine out for a large share of the people who would otherwise buy it.
The DeskCycle publishes no user weight limit at all. That is a different problem rather than a better answer: a low published figure can be checked and rejected, while an absent one leaves you assuming. If capacity is genuinely your constraint, neither of these is the machine — the Stamina InMotion E1000 publishes 250 lb, and it is the only seated machine here whose maker publishes dimensions, weight and capacity together. Every published limit on this site, in one table.
Where the DeskCycle wins
It tells you what desk it fits
This is the reason it is our top pick among the bikes, and it is a documentation point rather than a hardware one. DeskCycle publishes a 10-inch overall height and states what that means: the standard model works at a 27-inch desk for a user around 5 ft 8 in or shorter, and the adjustable DeskCycle 2 sets to 9 or 10 inches, extending that to roughly 5 ft 10 in.
Nobody else in this category publishes a statement you can check yourself against before ordering. In a category where most returns are fit failures, that is worth more than any feature.
A published resistance range, not just a count
Eight magnetic levels up to a stated 39 lb of resistance. Cubii publishes the count and not the range, so the DeskCycle is the only one of the two you can compare quantitatively on how hard it will get.
Shallower under the desk
20 inches deep against the Cubii’s 23.2. If your knee well is short, or your chair sits close, the DeskCycle intrudes 3.2 inches less into the space your feet already occupy.
Where the Cubii JR1 wins
17.56 inches wide against 24
Nearly six and a half inches narrower, which is the largest single difference between these two machines. Under a desk with pedestals on both sides, or in a narrow knee well, this is often the specification that decides it outright — and it is easy to overlook because everyone compares height.
An elliptical stroke keeps the knee lower
Both machines are 10 inches tall, so the frames are equal. The difference is above them. A pedal circle lifts your knee by the full crank diameter; an elliptical linkage flattens that path into an oval, producing less vertical knee travel for the same leg movement.
That is geometry, not marketing, and it is the honest reason to prefer an elliptical under a low desk. It is also unquantified: neither maker publishes a stride length, so nobody can tell you how many inches it saves. The full geometric argument.
It publishes a capacity at all
An odd thing to file as a win given how low the number is, but 150 lb stated beats nothing stated. You can check it and walk away. With the DeskCycle you cannot check it and you cannot walk away for the right reason.
What neither spec sheet settles
Noise. Neither publishes a decibel figure, and the Cubii listing describes the machine as whisper-quiet without a number behind it. What is categorically true of both, and is the real point for an apartment: a seated machine produces no footfall, so nothing enters the floor structure as impact energy. That is the transmission path behind almost every noise complaint about home cardio, and both of these remove it entirely.
Also unsettled: pedal feel, whether the Cubii’s linkage develops play, whether either stays put on a hard floor under real effort, and durability. We have used neither machine. Our method, and what it cannot do.
Choose the DeskCycle if...
- You are over 150 lb. The Cubii publishes a limit you would exceed.
- Your knee well is short rather than narrow.
- You want a published resistance range, not just a level count.
- You want a maker that states what desk height it suits.
Choose the Cubii JR1 if...
- You are comfortably under 150 lb.
- Your knee well is narrow — 6.5 inches is a lot of width.
- Your desk apron is low and you want the flatter knee path.
- You have depth to spare behind your feet.
Questions people actually ask
DeskCycle or Cubii JR1 — which should I buy?
Check the Cubii JR1's published 150 lb user weight limit against yourself first, because if you are over it the comparison is finished. If you are not, it comes down to your desk: the Cubii is 6.5 inches narrower, which matters in a tight knee well, while the DeskCycle publishes a fit statement — it works at a 27-inch desk for a user around 5 ft 8 in or shorter — that no other maker in this category offers.
Are the DeskCycle and Cubii JR1 the same height?
Both publish 10 inches, so on the single most important specification in this category they are identical. Where they differ is knee travel above the machine: the Cubii's elliptical stroke flattens the pedal path into an oval, which raises your knee less than the DeskCycle's full pedal circle for the same leg movement. Neither maker publishes a stride length, so that advantage is real and unquantified.
Which has more resistance, the DeskCycle or the Cubii JR1?
Both publish eight magnetic levels. The DeskCycle goes further and publishes a figure for the range — up to 39 lb of resistance — where Cubii publishes a level count and no range. That makes the DeskCycle the only one of the two you can compare on resistance in any quantitative way.
What is the weight limit on each?
The Cubii JR1 publishes 150 lb, the lowest published user weight limit of any machine on this site. The DeskCycle publishes no user weight limit at all. So one of them gives you a low number and one gives you no number, which are different problems: the first can rule you out, the second leaves you guessing.
Which is narrower?
The Cubii JR1, at 17.56 inches against the DeskCycle's 24 — nearly six and a half inches. In a desk with pedestals either side, or a narrow knee well, width is the second constraint after height and that gap is decisive. The Cubii is deeper, though, at 23.2 inches against 20, so it reaches further back under the desk.
Read next
- Under-desk bike vs under-desk elliptical — the same shape question, across four machines.
- Will an under-desk bike fit under your desk? — measure four things before you choose between these two.
- DeskCycle vs YOSUDA under desk bike — sixteen resistance levels against a published pedal height.
- Stamina InMotion E1000 review — the machine to take if 150 lb rules the Cubii out.
- Best under-desk bikes and pedal exercisers — the wider field, ranked on what each maker publishes.