If you’re in the market to buy a treadmill, your timing couldn’t be better. Treadmills are giving you more value for your money every year. In fact according to a recent Runner’s World article:

“Today’s treadmills are better than ever. In particular, most brands have improved their stability and controls. Meanwhile, they continue to offer a dazzling variety of features.”

If you’re buying a treadmill no doubt you want to get the best price. Having been researching and reviewing treadmills for over 3 years, I’ve seen some killer treadmill deals and some completely overblown, overpriced treadmills.

I’ve also seen the same treadmill offered at vastly different prices – sometimes the difference is as much as $800! And people are still buying the overpriced treadmills!

There are ways to getting the best price on a high quality home treadmill that many people don’t know about. So to help you save some money, here are 3 key tips to getting the best price on your treadmill:

#1 Buy Online

If you want to save money, buy online. This is the case with most items from computers to DVD’s to electronics and especially treadmills. Because when you buy online, the treadmill dealer doesn’t have to pay to rent a storefront, pay salespeople, pay hydro, heat, etc.

They can ship directly from their warehouse. This saves them a lot of money and in turn these savings are passed on to you in the form of lower prices.

Obviously you don’t want to just buy from anyone online. Make sure the online treadmill dealer offers secure ordering, prevalent contact information (phone numbers, email, online help, address), at least a 30 day money back guarantee and of course – high quality treadmills. It also helps if they offer customer and/or expert testimonials.

#2 Buy Direct From the Treadmill Brand Manufacturer

Buying direct from the treadmill manufacturer means you skip the middleman (i.e. the store), which always has to mark up an item to make their profit (and pay their employees, rent, etc.) There are several treadmill manufacturers that sell online direct to the consumer at wholesale prices and it’s a great way to get a brand name treadmill for a discount price.

Also, if you watch closely, many manufacturers will drop their prices even more when they are phasing out a certain treadmill. I’ve seen a $1500 treadmill go for $899 when the manufacturer was trying to close the model out.

Again, make sure these treadmill dealers offer secure ordering, prevalent contact information, at least a 30 day money back guarantee and high quality treadmills.

#3 Save on Shipping and Sales Tax

Whether it’s an online store or an online treadmill manufacturer, many online dealers offer you free shipping. Some offer free shipping all the time whereas others offer it at certain times of the month.

Shipping your treadmill can cost you as much as $200 – so why pay for it if you can get it free? I’ve yet to see an actual store offer free shipping on treadmills – it’s always an add on at the cash register.

Another area where you can save money is on sales tax. Many online dealers won’t charge you sales tax (depending on the state) which can also save you a considerable amount on your treadmill.

So those are 3 key tips to getting the best price on your treadmill. Follow these 3 tips and you’ll easily save hundreds on your next treadmill.

There won’t be many who would think that there are different types of treadmills in the market. The fact is that there actually exist different types of treadmills. Most of us are familiar with the home treadmill, which is by far the most popular treadmill. Then there is the commercial treadmill that you would find in most of the gyms. If you want to buy a treadmill, the best option would be getting a home treadmill.
There are also different types of home treadmill. So, you can opt for a cheap, manual treadmill or you can opt for a high quality treadmill. But you should buy a high quality treadmill if you are thinking workouts with extensive running and cross training. The market for treadmills is very competitive and there are virtually hundreds of different brands selling you different types of treadmills. It would really be a tough task deciding on any one type from any one company.
Almost all of us feel a space crunch in our homes and that is why folding home treadmills are much preferred. You can easily fold it up and put it in a closet or under the bed. But you would find that such treadmill doesn’t have the same solid feel as other treadmills. As discussed earlier, there are the commercial treadmills that are generally found in gyms or at doctor’s clinics.
Commercial treadmills generally have comparatively higher-powered motors and also have more horsepower as compared to home treadmills. As for looks, commercial treadmills look very bulky and very rugged. It also looks very stable. More often than not, opting for commercial treadmills is generally not the best option.
Since the commercial treadmill is generally put to very extreme of usage, that is why its warranty is generally up to 3 to 4 years. It is very much advised that if you are thinking of any commercial usage of your treadmill, you should always opt for commercial treadmills. But you can always find some home treadmills that could be put to light commercial use, such as small hotel gyms. But you should always have a look at the warranty papers.
Any decision that you would make regarding treadmills would depend on your requirements. So, if you are just intending to use it for walking yourself, you can always opt for cheaper as well as smaller treadmills. That would suit you fine. But if you are someone who could be termed as an avid runner, it is always better to opt for high quality and relatively expensive home treadmills with longer warranties.
The only difference between these home treadmills is the length of warranty that is being provided and the usage that you could put it to. With high quality treadmills, you get a longer duration warranty and even if you put it to extensive use, you would find that the treadmill works just as well. So, finally, it all depends on your own requirements.

Looking for the best treadmill value? The treadmill market is growing more and more crowded each year, with new models, new brands and new advances in treadmill technology. It’s confusing to sift through all your options.
How do you find the treadmill that offers you the best value? By knowing what to look for.
This article will give you 4 key attributes of high value treadmills so you can make an informed decision and find the best treadmill value for you.
#1 High Powered Well Built Motor – The motor is the heart of your treadmill. You need to have a treadmill with sufficient motor power or else you’ll quickly burn the motor out (and start paying through the nose to fix it).
Motor power is measured by Horsepower (or HP for short). Most treadmills range from 1.5 HP to 3.0 HP. You want at least a 2.0 HP Continuous duty motor – preferably higher. Remember that the more strenuously you plan to use the treadmill, the more power you’re going to need.
#2 Excellent Cushioning – Cushioning is the ability of the treadmill to absorb the force of your step. Cushioning is extremely important because it protects your knees, hips, ankles and back.
Cheap cushioning means possible injury or muscle strains – especially if you’re a runner. Look for a good cushioning system built into your treadmill. It’s also important to make sure you wear proper, high quality running shoes for even more protection.
#3 Lengthy Warranty – An excellent warranty is a great indicator of the best treadmill values. It gives you an indication of the quality of parts used in construction.
So for example the 90 day warranty that covers your cheap department store treadmill does not indicate high value. A treadmill that comes with a lifetime frame, 10+ years on the motor, 2+ years on parts and 1 year on labor does indicate a higher value machine.
#4 High Stability – According to Runner’s World, stability is the most important factor when choosing a treadmill. You don’t want a treadmill that shakes or wobbles when you pick up your pace.
What factors make up a highly stable treadmill? Unit Weight – the higher weight the machine, the more anchoring you’ve got and in general, the more stable a treadmill.
Construction also contributes to stability. A highly regarded treadmill brand will often make more stable treadmills than a brand known for making cheaper units.
User weight capacity is another indicator of stability. For example a treadmill with a 300 lb user weight capacity is usually more stable than a treadmill with a 250 lb user weight capacity.
So those are 4 key factors that make up high value treadmills. Other factors you might want to look at are:
Belt size – make sure it’s long enough to accommodate your stride. Average height users will be fine with a regular size belt (up to 52″ long). However runners or taller users may want to get a longer belt (55-60″).
Workout programs and other extras – if you get bored easily you might want a treadmill with lots of workout programs. Some treadmills even offer built in TV’s, iPod stations and built-in speakers. It really depends on what you want.
And while you generally get what you pay for with treadmills – higher end machines are usually built much better than economy models – you can still get a great deal on a high value treadmill. With more competition and experience, many treadmill manufacturers are building more value into their treadmills. By knowing what to look for – and what you personally need – you’re assured of getting the best treadmill value for you.

Buying a treadmill? You’ll probably want to research before you buy – including reading treadmill consumer reviews.
Consumer reviews are very popular on the Internet at places like epinions and Amazon. And they can give you an overall idea of the strengths and weaknesses of certain treadmills.
But there are some major pitfalls to them that most people don’t realize.
This article will outline some of the major problems with treadmill consumer reviews – and some other features you can look at to find the best treadmill for you.
So what’s the problem with Treadmill Consumer Reviews?
First of all, the numbers can give you the wrong idea.
Most people read reviews of several different treadmills before buying. They may notice that one treadmill has more negative feedback than another.
Logically they assume that the treadmill with less negative feedback is better than the treadmill with more negative feedback. That’s where the mistake is made.
Here’s the thing. In the treadmill business, certain brands or manufacturers are larger than others. They make and distribute more machines than the smaller brands. This will skew the results that you see with consumer reviews.
For example, let’s say you’re trying to decide between Treadmill A and Treadmill B.
Treadmill A is made by a large company which sells 10,000 units of Treadmill A per month.
No treadmill is perfect and all treadmills will have some level of customer dissatisfaction. A high quality treadmill will have lower level of customer dissatisfaction than a poor quality treadmill.
Let’s assume that Treadmill A is a high quality treadmill with a very low rate of dissatisfaction of 1%. That means that out of 10,000 machines, only 100 customers will be unhappy and will leave negative reviews of that treadmill.
Now take Treadmill B. Treadmill B is made by a smaller company and only sells 1,000 units of Treadmill B per month.
But Treadmill B is not as high quality and has a much higher customer dissatisfaction rate of 5%. 1000 treadmills x 5% = 50. So 50 people are not going to be happy with their treadmill purchase. So you’ll see 50 negative reviews of Treadmill B.
Result?
Treadmill A – 100 Negative Consumer Reviews
Treadmill B – 50 Negative Consumer Reviews
So you, as a discerning buyer, logically assume that Treadmill B is the better treadmill since it has less negative feedback.
However in actuality, Treadmill B has a 500 times higher customer dissatisfaction rate than Treadmill A. So it’s actually the worse treadmill.
That’s an example of how the numbers of negative versus positive reviews can be skewed – and how many buyers can easily choose the worse treadmill.
There are a couple of other things to know when reading consumer treadmill reviews:
#1 – Reviews can be written by people working for that treadmill company – or even the competition. Trust me – it happens – more often than you think.
#2 – People are much more likely to complain than praise. It’s a shame but it’s human nature.
This again skews the results. So you may have a treadmill that gets 10 negative reviews. But there are 10,000 people who are perfectly happy with their machine and they never leave a review.
So while there’s nothing wrong with reading consumer treadmill reviews as part of the overall picture before you buy, you really can’t judge the quality of a treadmill solely based on consumer reviews.
So how can you find a high quality treadmill? There are several other ways to decide if a treadmill is a high quality machine. Here are 3 key factors to look at:
1) Price – The market is so competitive that treadmill manufacturers don’t have a lot of margin to play around with their prices.
Because of this high competition, the treadmill market is really very efficient. This is actually a good thing because it means prices are coming down to the lowest levels in years. Manufacturers are squeezing their margins in order to compete.
However it also means that in general, you get what you pay for. A $600 treadmill is just not going to have the same quality of construction as a $1600 treadmill.
If you want a higher quality treadmill, built to withstand heavier use, be prepared to spend a bit more. It may actually be worth it in the long run, when you consider the cost of repairing the cheaper unit.
2) Warranty Coverage – The warranty coverage is a huge indicator of the quality of construction. Servicing warranties cost money. Manufacturers know this.
So when they give a long warranty, it’s because they don’t think they’ll have to repair those treadmills during that time frame. When they know that a certain treadmill is not built well – they don’t want to pay for servicing them. So they slap a short warranty on them.
If you want a well built treadmill, examining the warranty length is a great indicator of quality.
3) Details of construction – If you want a great treadmill, examine the details of construction.
For example, Treadmill A may have a 1 ply treadbelt whereas Treadmill B may have a 2 ply treadbelt. It isn’t hard to figure up which one will last longer.
Treadmill C may have a 2.5 HP motor and Treadmill D may have a 1.25 HP motor. Again – not hard to decide which is the better treadmill. By looking at certain details of construction, you can often see which treadmill is the stronger machine.
So those are 3 effective ways to find your best treadmill. Again, treadmill consumer reviews are not bad – they can actually be very informative.
Just don’t make your final decision based solely on these reviews. Remember that the numbers can be skewed – and may lead you to the wrong conclusion.