y If you’ve ever tried to ride your bike up a steep hill, you know how hard it is.
Now, try going up that same hill while standing on a regular wooden skateboard. You can’t get enough speed or force to get to the top by pushing with your feet.
You’re going against the force of gravity.
But when you add a battery and motor to your board, everything changes.
You don’t have to do any work if you have an electric skateboard. Just push the board’s throttle, and it should go up the hill.
No matter what, the board has a hard job to do! Let’s see how electric skateboards do against their biggest enemy: hills.
Can You Ride Electric Skateboards Uphill?
Yes!
Unless they don’t have any sense, most people who make electric skateboards know that streets are bumpy and hilly and that riders will encounter all kinds of terrain.
Almost all electric skateboards are made to climb a certain grade of hill, though some are better at it than others.
I’ve seen companies like Evolve and Meepo say that their boards can climb hills that are as steep as 30%.
Other brands with smaller batteries and weaker motors might only be 10 percent.
What makes hill climbing different?
Rider Weight
When you stand on an electric skateboard, you push down on the board with your weight.
The more weight you have, the more force you put on the board. This makes the board stickier.
Gravity makes this happen. Without gravity, there would be no friction.
So when you ride an electric skateboard up a hill, you have to fight both the hill and the pull of gravity.
The more you weigh, the harder it is for your board to get up that hill.
Motor Size
In general, the more powerful a machine is, the bigger its engine or motor is.
This is true in every field.
Cars, planes, lawnmowers, generators, and so on…
Your electric skateboard is the same. A motor with 50 watts will not make the same amount of power or output as a motor with 2,000 watts.
The size and power of the motor on your board will have a big effect on how well it can go up a hill.
Battery Life
Running out of juice?
You might not want to try to climb that big hill.
First of all, going up a hill requires more power and energy from your board.
This means that it will use more power from the battery.
Second, when the battery life gets low, a lot of electric skateboards lower their power. It’s a way to save the energy of the board.
When your board has full power, it might be able to go up a 30-degree slope, but when it only has 10 percent power, it might have trouble.
Wheels
How well a bike can climb hills will depend on the size and diameter of the wheels.
It’s on tactics.com.
“Smaller wheels are lighter, weigh less, and give you a faster, more responsive pop, which is good for street and technical skating. Bigger wheels are heavier, but they roll faster and keep their speed better, especially on rough surfaces.
Material and quality of the wheel also play a role in how well it fights friction.
The Orangatang Kegel 80mm skateboard wheels are big and some of the best you can get. They will help you work your way up that big hill.
Terrain
A hill with bumps, cracks, potholes, rocks, and sticks is not the same as one that is flat and smooth.
Electric skateboards are made to move, not to bounce up and down because of all the junk on the road.
Ever ride on a road that was just paved?
It’s so much easier and more comfortable now. Riding on an old, rough road gives you and your board a lot of little bumps and bruises.
When you ride up a hill, these things still matter.
Degree of Incline
The most important thing that affects hill climbing…
The actual hill.
I live in an area with hills. Some hills are almost 40 degrees!
No matter how hard I try to get my Ownboard Mini KT to climb, it can’t. As soon as I try to go up the hill, the board stops and starts to go in the opposite direction.
And this board is made for slopes of 30 degrees.
It’s just too much sometimes.
A 20-degree slope should be no problem for most boards. But 30 degrees and above is pushing things.
Always keep in mind that nature always wins.
What goes up has to come down.
When you ride up a hill, it’s more likely than not that you’ll ride down the same hill.
Riding down a hill is nothing like riding up it.
In fact, it’s much scarier and more dangerous!
Your board works with gravity instead of against it as you go down.
Due to the fast speed, this can quickly become dangerous.
You’ll get into trouble if you don’t use your brakes well.
There are a few things you should do when riding down a steep hill:
Don’t speed into it – When you’re getting close to the top of a steep hill, go slowly. Don’t rush. Take your time. If you’re in a hurry, you’ll have to stop really hard, which could send you flying off the board.
Hold the brakes – There are brakes on every electric skateboard. Your safety will depend on how you use them on a hill. Holding the brakes just enough to move slowly down a hill is always the best thing to do. Don’t let go of the brakes and keep pumping them. That’s just silly.
Stop and observe at the bottom – Because of other cars, the bottom of the hill could be the most dangerous place. Don’t just assume you can drive through an intersection at the bottom of the hill. Stop completely, look at the traffic, and then go if it’s safe to do so.
Hop off and walk – Just get off your board and walk if you don’t feel safe. No big deal. Like everything else, electric skateboards have their limits. It’s best not to risk your own safety just because you thought going fast down a big hill would be funny or dumb.
What are the best electric skateboard brands and models for hill climbing?
In general, most brands will have boards with similar results in terms of how well they can climb hills.
This is because most companies make their boards with motors and batteries that can be swapped and are the same size.
WowGo Boards
WowGo is a Chinese company that makes high-quality boards that work well and don’t cost much. Any board you buy from WowGo is a great investment.
All of their boards have a 30 percent hill-climbing rate, which is pretty amazing.
Their list of electric skateboards and how steeply they go uphill:
- WowGo Mini – 30% incline rate
- WowGo 2S – 30% incline rate
- WowGo 3 – 30% incline rate
- WowGo 3X – 30% incline rate
- WowGo KT – 30% incline rate
- WowGo All-Terrain – 30% incline rate
Meepo
Another brand of Chinese boards that works well. Their prices are a little bit higher than WowGo’s, but they are still very cheap compared to all the other brands.
One of their boards is the only one that doesn’t have a 30 percent slope.
The Meepo AWD Pro is the only board that is different. This board has a 35 percent chance of going up a hill. I’ve never seen an electric skateboard go that high. This is because its four hub motors, each of which is 540 watts, add up to 2,160 watts.
- Meepo V3 – 30% incline rate
- Meepo Mini 2 – 30% incline rate
- Meepo NLS Pro – 30% incline rate
- Meepo City Rider – 30% incline rate
- Meepo AWD Pro – 35% incline rate
- Meepo Classic 2 – 30% incline rate
Ownboard
Ownboard is the last Chinese brand that needs to be talked about. All of their boards can go up hills that are 30 percent steep. (Except for the AT1W, which has a 20% grade)
As a person who owns an Ownboard Mini KT, I can only say good things about it. Not just me
- Ownboard W2 – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard Carbon AT – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard Bamboo AT – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard W1S – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard AT1D Pro – 20% incline rate
- Ownboard M1 – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard Mini KT – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard C1S – 30% incline rate
- Ownboard W1AS – 30% incline rate
Evolve
These are some of the most expensive and best electric skateboards you can buy. They are like the champagne of electric skateboards.
The performance of the Carbon GTR street version can’t be beat.
A top speed of 26 mph and a range of 31 miles.
Its younger sibling, the Bamboo GTR, gets the same results. The cool thing about these two models is that when you check out, you can choose between street wheels and all-terrain wheels.
- Carbon GTR Street – 30% incline rate
- Carbon GTR All-Terrain – 25% incline rate
- Bamboo GTR Street – 30% incline rate
- Bamboo GTR All-Terrain – 25% incline rate
- Stoke – 30% incline rate
Boosted
You were probably wondering when Boosted would show up on this list, right?
Even though Boosted boards are some of the best-built boards out there, they don’t climb hills as well as other boards.
Even though they can climb hills, some of these Chinese companies are just a little bit better.
At the moment, all four Boosted Boards have a hill climbing grade of 25%.
- Boosted Stealth – 25% incline rate
- Boosted Plus – 25% incline rate
- Boosted Mini X – 25% incline rate
- Boosted Mini S – 25% incline rate
Winners Who Stand Out
If you want to buy an electric skateboard based on how well it climbs hills, you should definitely buy…
The Meepo Pro AWD
Which has an unbelievable 35 percent slope.
The retail price starts at $849, but it all depends on which warranty you pick when you check out.
- Standard Warranty (6 months) – $849
- 8 Month Warranty – $918
- 12 Month Warranty – $968
The AWD Pro also has a top speed of 34 mph, which is very fast! (Which is a little too much in my opinion).
I think it would be too hard to stay in control of an e-board going 34 mph. Going 25 mph on an e-board is already pretty fast and dangerous.
Among other things:
- 15 miles range
- 40” Canadian maple and bamboo deck
- 23 lb net weight
- 4 x 540 watt motors (total 2,160 watts)
- Regenerative breaks
- 100 mm wheels
- 2 carrying handles (on each side)
The AEboard AX
The AEboard AX is a board that wasn’t talked about above.
This board can also go up hills with a 35 percent grade. Its retail price starts at $559 and goes up or down depending on which battery you choose at checkout.
Here are the types of batteries and how far they can be used:
Sanyo (AA2200)
| Battery Style | Capacity | Mileage |
| 10S2P | 4.4 AH | 15 KM/9.3 Miles（Carry on the plane) |
| 10S3P | 6.6 AH | 22 KM/13.6 Miles |
| 10S4P | 8.8 AH | 29 KM/18 Miles |
| 10S5P | 11 AH | 36 KM/22.3 Miles |
Samsung 35E
| 10S3P | 10.5Ah | 40 KM/24.5 Miles |
| 10S4P | 14Ah | 52KM/32.2 Miles |
| 10S5P | 17.5Ah | 65KM/37 Miles |
Other performance features and specs:
- 28 mph
- 35% hill climb rate
- 330 lb max load
- 4 ride/speed modes
- Two 500 watt motors
- 17 lb net weight
- 7 ply Canadian maple deck
40 percent Electric Hill Climbing Skateboard?
The goal of this article was to find the best electric skateboards for going up and down hills.
With a 35 percent hill climbing rate, both the AXboard AX and the Meepo AWD Pro tied for first place.
But I still wondered if there was something better than these two boards that could climb hills at a rate of 40%.
After quite some time searching, I ended my quest.
In the end, 40% is really pushing it. Skiers call a 40 percent slope a “black diamond,” so the idea of an electric skateboard going up a mountain seems crazy…
