Valves for every purpose
Depending on whether you have Tubetype or Tubeless-ready tires, the bike tire valve may be different. For Tubetype (inner tube) tires, four bike tire valve types are available: Presta, Shrader, Woods or Regina. For Tubeless-ready tires, only the Presta valve is available.
Let's take a closer look at each of these valves.
Presta valve
This bike tire valve, which can be fitted to tubetype or tubeless-ready bikes, is adopted by most enthusiast customers who ride with a Presta valve, whether on the road or on a mountain bike.
Assembly specifications for Tubeless-Ready:
This bike tire valve must be fitted to the rim by the user. To do this, it is necessary to perforate the rim base (and not cut it out) at the location of the valve hole with the Presta valve. Simply remove the cap and tap lightly on it after inserting it. The tip protrudes sufficiently to pierce the TLR rim band.
It's important to make sure that the little rubber ring at the base of the Presta valve comes to rest on the hole afterwards so as to seal it completely. Once the bike tire valve has been inserted, screw the nut onto the inside of the rim to tighten the valve against the rim until its rubber surface is held firmly over the hole, ensuring a good seal.
For Tubetype, please follow our assembly instructions in our article "Fitting bike tires with inner tubes".
Advantages:
With this bike tire valve, you can adjust the pressure very quickly and easily by unscrewing the upper part, called the shell, without the need for any tools. A little pressure will let a little air out. If you press harder, more air will come out in one go. By unscrewing the shell, you can also inject air to re-inflate the tire. The shell can be completely removed, so you can quickly deflate an inner tube or, in the case of tubeless use, optimise the air flow to help inflate the tire.
Another advantage is that the Presta valve is thinner than any other bike tire valve, such as the Schrader valve, allowing a smaller hole in the rim. This is an important criterion in the cycling industry, as it helps to guarantee the solidity of rims, particularly for road use where they are quite thin.
Disadvantage:
The disadvantage of the Presta valve is its relative fragility. As we have seen, you have to unscrew the shell to adjust the pressure. And once this has been done, the bike tires valve's thin stem can be damaged during inflation, when a pump or compressor connector is screwed onto it. Take great care not to damage the valve during this procedure.
Note that the Presta valve is a bike tire valve that can be smooth or threaded. Michelin recommends a threaded Presta valve for tubes used for extreme gravel or mountain biking. The threaded valve allows the tube to be tightened to the rim and prevents the tube from rotating inside the tire.
Given that these activities tend to be carried out at low pressure, the risk of the inner tube rotating would be greater with a smooth bike tire valve rather than a threaded one.
For road use, we recommend a smooth valve. In this context, the pressure is higher and consequently the risk of inner tube rotation is reduced.
Standard valve (or Schrader valve)
Advantage:
This bike tire valve, which is the same as for cars and motorbikes, is compatible with service station compressors, so you can adjust the pressure anywhere, even if you don't have a pump.
Disadvantages:
If you want to add sealant or deflate the tire quickly, you'll need a special tool to remove the tire shell. Also, adjusting the pressure isn't easy because if you've put too much air in, you'll need a point (such as a paperclip or small pin) to press on the valve shell to remove it.
Note that for rim manufacturers, the Standard valve means a bigger hole. Premium lightweight rims therefore don't have one because it's too restrictive.
Woods valve (or Dunlop valve)
The Woods valve was widely used in the early days of cycling to compete with the Presta valve. This bike tire valve is still widely used in several countries (England, Sweden, Finland, Germany, Japan, Russia, Poland, Netherlands, Czech Republic, etc.) but is less common in French-speaking countries. It can be inflated with a Presta pump tip.
Advantages of the Woods Valve:
Robust and resistant to corrosion – ideal for humid regions.
Compatible with Presta pump heads – easy inflation.
Disadvantages of the Woods Valve:
Larger diameter – requires a stronger, heavier rim.
Difficult to adjust air pressure – once the cap is unscrewed, air escapes quickly.
Rarely found on premium road or MTB wheels.
Regina (or Italian) valve
The Regina valve is a bike tire valve that is used exclusively in Italy on city bikes.
Disadvantage:
It is a little restrictive because you have to screw the steel cap back on very quickly after inflation to avoid losing air. Initially designed to compete with the Presta valve, the Regina is less and less widely used because of these inflation problems.
Can I Fit Any Type of Valve on My Bike?
The limitations are imposed by the rims. A Standard (Schrader) valve has a much larger valve hole in the rim than a Presta valve (8.5mm for Standard and 6.5mm for Presta). So if you have a rim that can accept a Standard valve you can fit a Presta valve in it using a valve hole reducer.
On the other hand, if the rim has a hole designed for a Presta valve, it's impossible to fit a Standard valve, which will be too wide for the hole.
That's why it's simpler and more advisable to stick with the same type of bike tire valve you originally had.
Sealing and inner tubes
When changing a tire, it’s best to replace the inner tube rather than reuse the old one.
Why Replace the Inner Tube?
Inner tubes experience slight movements inside the tire over time.
These repeated movements can cause small cracks around the valve, leading to air loss.
If you must reuse the tube, inspect it carefully for wear before reinstalling it.
FAQ
Read our Frequently Asked Questions.
Three valves cover the vast majority of cycling: Presta (also called French valve), Schrader (also called Standard or American valve), and — used almost exclusively in Italy on some city bikes — Regina (also called Dunlop or Woods valve). Presta is the standard for road bikes and performance mountain biking. Schrader is more common on commuter bikes, leisure bikes, and some mountain bikes. The valve on your inner tube or tubeless rim must match the valve hole size in your rim.
Presta valves are narrower than Schrader, which allows a smaller hole in the rim — important for road rims, which are often narrow and thin where structural strength matters. Presta valves are also lighter and allow very fine pressure adjustment. Inflation requires a pump head compatible with Presta, and releasing air requires unscrewing the shell rather than pressing a pin. The smaller valve is also more fragile, particularly at the base — care should be taken when using a pump head to avoid lateral force on the valve.
Schrader valves are more robust than Presta and use the same format as car tire valves, meaning you can inflate them at a gas station compressor without a dedicated bike pump. The wider valve does require a larger hole in the rim, which limits their use on narrower road and performance rims but isn't a concern on wider mountain bike and commuter rims. Schrader valves are easier to use for riders who aren't doing frequent pressure adjustments, since they don't require unscrewing a shell before inflating.
Schrader tubes can be adapted to Presta rims using a valve hole reducer, which brings the wider Schrader valve down to the smaller Presta hole. Going the other way — using a Presta tube in a Schrader rim — doesn't work without a different approach since the Presta valve would move around loosely in the larger hole. The rim's valve hole determines which valve type it's designed for. When purchasing inner tubes or tubeless valves, match the valve type and the valve length to your rim depth.
Valve length is the distance from the base to the tip of the valve. For shallow rims, a standard length valve extends above the rim with enough clearance for a pump head. For deep-section aero rims — common on road racing and triathlon bikes — the rim depth can be greater than the exposed valve length, making it difficult or impossible to attach a pump. For deep rims, long-valve inner tubes (60mm, 80mm, or longer) or tubeless valves with sufficient length are needed. Measure rim depth before purchasing tubes or valves for deep-section wheels.
The valve core is the internal mechanism inside the valve stem that controls air flow. In tubeless setups, removing the valve core allows faster inflation — particularly useful when using a compressor or floor pump to seat a tight tubeless bead. A tool called a valve core remover (or core tool) is used to unscrew and remove the core. For injecting sealant through the valve into a tubeless tire, some prefer to remove the core for easier application. Always reinstall the core securely before inflating the tire.
