Rowing Machine NerdThe Best Smart & Connected Rowing Machines
Connected rowers sell motivation. A big touchscreen, filmed routes, live instructors, gamified races, even real-time form feedback - for a lot of people, that's the difference between a rower they use and a rower that becomes a clothes rack. If a screen and a coach are what will keep you training, this category is worth the premium.
But go in clear-eyed about the model: a connected rower is really two purchases - the hardware and an ongoing monthly subscription, usually around $40-50, that unlocks most of the content. Over a few years, the fees often exceed the price of the machine. Here are the best, and the one big-picture alternative if subscriptions aren't for you.
Our top picks at a glance
- Best Connected Rower Overall: Hydrow Wave (~$1,695)
- Best Premium Connected Rower: Hydrow Rower (~$2,195)
- Best Gamified Connected Rower: Ergatta Rower (~$2,199)
- Best for Form Coaching: Peloton Row (~$3,295)
- Best Budget Connected Rower: Echelon Smart Row (~$800-$1,900)
Hydrow Wave
Smart/connected rower · ~$1,695
Best for: Buyers who want a guided, studio-style connected rowing experience in a compact footprint and are willing to pay an ongoing subscription.
The Hydrow Wave is the connected rower we recommend first. It delivers the polished, instructor-led Hydrow experience - a sharp 16-inch HD touchscreen and a large library of live and on-demand rows - over genuinely smooth, quiet electromagnetic resistance, in a more compact and affordable package than the full-size Hydrow.
The membership (around $44/month) is where the value lives, and the frame doesn't fold. But for most people who want instructor-led rowing, it's the sweet spot of price, size, and experience.
Read our full Hydrow Wave review
Hydrow Rower
Smart/connected rower · ~$2,195
Best for: Buyers who want an immersive, instructor-led connected rowing experience in a quiet home and are comfortable paying an ongoing subscription.
The full-size Hydrow steps up to a larger 22-inch pivoting touchscreen and a more immersive presentation, on a sturdy build with near-silent resistance. If you want the most cinematic instructor-led experience and the bigger screen justifies the cost to you, this is the premium pick.
It's expensive up front and still subscription-dependent, and the electromagnetic feel won't replicate an air or water flywheel. But the production quality and screen are genuinely a step above the Wave.
Read our full Hydrow Rower review
Ergatta Rower
Water rower · ~$2,199
Best for: Home exercisers who want an engaging, gamified water-rowing experience in a furniture-grade machine and don't mind paying premium hardware and subscription prices.
Ergatta is the connected rower for people motivated by competition rather than coaching. Its game-based platform turns intervals and races into something compulsive, all over real, self-adjusting water resistance on a furniture-grade wooden frame - a completely different flavour of connected from the instructor-led crowd.
It's premium-priced with a recommended membership and a closed ecosystem, but for gamified motivation plus genuine water feel, it stands alone.
Read our full Ergatta Rower review
Peloton Row
Smart/connected rower · ~$3,295
Best for: Beginner-to-intermediate home exercisers who want guided, instructor-led rowing with form feedback and are willing to pay a premium plus a monthly subscription.
The Peloton Row's standout feature is Form Assist - real-time technique tracking that's genuinely useful for beginners learning the stroke - paired with Peloton's famously strong class production on a large swiveling touchscreen.
It's the most expensive machine here and carries a short parts/labor warranty for the price, plus the usual membership. But if form feedback and Peloton's class library are what you want, nothing else offers quite the same coaching.
Read our full Peloton Row review
Echelon Smart Row
Smart/connected rower · ~$800-$1,900
Best for: Home exercisers who want a quiet, foldable rower with guided on-screen classes and don't mind paying for an ongoing membership.
The Echelon Smart Row is the affordable gateway into connected rowing - a big swiveling HD touchscreen and quiet magnetic resistance in a folding frame, at a fraction of the price of the premium machines above.
The experience depends on a membership and the magnetic feel is less lively than water or air, but as the cheapest credible way into screen-and-classes rowing, it's the value pick.
Read our full Echelon Smart Row reviewThe subscription-free alternative
Before you commit to a connected rower, consider the case against the whole model: a Concept2 Model D plus the free ErgData app gives you superb data, structured workouts, and even scenic or gamified rowing through paid third-party apps like Kinomap or EXR if you ever want them - with no mandatory monthly fee, on a machine that outlasts the connected rowers and holds its resale value. When a connected company changes its app or sunsets a model, your expensive screen ages fast; a Concept2 doesn't depend on a subscription staying alive.
The honest dividing line is this: if you will only train when an instructor or a game is pushing you, a connected rower may be worth every penny because it keeps you consistent. If you're self-directed, you'll likely get a better machine for less by skipping the screen entirely.
The bottom line
Among connected rowers, the Hydrow Wave is the best all-rounder, the full-size Hydrow the premium instructor-led pick, Ergatta the gamified choice, Peloton Row the form-coaching specialist, and Echelon the budget entry point.
But weigh the lifetime cost honestly. If you're not sure a subscription will keep you motivated, a Concept2 plus a free app is the lower-risk, lower-cost, longer-lasting buy - and you can always add paid apps later.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the best connected rowing machine?
- The Hydrow Wave is our overall connected pick - a polished instructor-led experience, smooth quiet resistance, and a compact footprint at a more reasonable price than the full-size Hydrow. For gamified training choose Ergatta; for form coaching, the Peloton Row.
- Do connected rowers require a subscription?
- Effectively yes - most of the content and value is locked behind a membership of roughly $40-50/month. The hardware works without it but offers limited functionality. Over a few years, subscription fees often exceed the price of the machine itself.
- Is a connected rower worth it over a Concept2?
- Only if instructor-led classes or gamified workouts are what keep you training. For data, workout quality, durability, and total cost, a Concept2 plus the free ErgData app beats connected rowers that cost two to three times as much - and it has no monthly fee.
Jordan Lockwood (BSc, CPT)
Certified personal trainer (CPT), sports-science graduate, and lifelong rower. Jordan writes and reviews every guide on Rowing Machine Nerd.