The 12 Best Longboard Brands for Every Riding Style

Longboarding has exploded in popularity over the last decade, evolving from a niche activity into a mainstream sport embraced by thrill-seekers and casual riders alike. With so many brands and board types now available, choosing the right longboard can feel overwhelming for beginners and experienced riders.

This definitive guide breaks down the 12 best longboard brands on the market, including detailed overviews of each company‘s reputation, construction quality, board variety, graphics, and more. I‘ll also provide specific recommendations on the optimal longboard types and brands for different riding disciplines so you can find your perfect fit.

How to Choose the Best Longboard Brand

With hundreds of longboard companies in existence, narrowing them down to find the cream of the crop requires careful evaluation across a few key factors:

Reputation and Experience – Established brands with years (or decades) of experience typically offer better quality and construction than newcomers. They‘ve had more time to refine their manufacturing processes and build rider trust.

Deck Materials – The deck construction plays a significant role in the flex, weight, and durability of a longboard. Reputable companies use high-quality wood types (like maple, bamboo, oak) rather than cheaper alternatives.

Trucks – Quality trucks from trusted third-party brands help optimize turning capabilities and stability at speed. Custom or generic trucks often underperform.

Wheels – Softer, larger wheels provide more grip and a smoother ride while compact, hard wheels pick up more speed. Reputable wheel brands to look for include Orangatang, Hawgs, and Divine.

Graphics – Eye-catching graphics reflect the brand‘s style and influences. Whether you prefer wild designs or natural wood looks, graphics make a statement.

Specialization – Some companies focus on specific board types like downhill or dancing models. Opting for a specialized brand delivers a more tailored riding experience.

Price Range – As with most gear, higher prices often reflect better materials, construction, and performance. Expect to spend $150+ for a quality board, with some specialized models running over $300.

With these factors in mind, let’s jump into detailed overviews of the 12 best longboard brands across various skill sets and riding disciplines.

12 Best Longboard Brands

1. Landyachtz

Founded way back in 1997, Canada‘s Landyachtz has cemented its reputation as one of the most respected names in longboarding. Across their vast lineup of boards, you’ll find impeccable construction quality using high-grade Canadian maple wood, coupled with gorgeous nature-inspired graphics.

They offer a well-balanced variety of cruisers, downhill racers, dancers, hybrids, and surf-inspired boards to suit just about any riding style. Prices run on the more premium side from about $150 up to $400 for their high-performance downhill models built for speed. You’ll ride in style AND substance with Landyachtz.

Best For

• Downhill Racing
• Dancing
• Freeride

2. Loaded Boards

Since launching out of a California garage in 2001, Loaded Boards has gone on to become one of the most celebrated brands amongst longboard enthusiasts.

They focus exclusively on manufacturing high-end cruisers, push boards, and freestyle hybrids optimized for fluid street riding and tight technical tricks. Through innovative board shaping and premium materials like fiberglass and bamboo, Loaded decks deliver incredible flex patterns for lively rides.

And while their quality does come at a price – expect to spend $300+ on most completes – the refined performance is unmatched for flowing urban sessions.

Best For

• Street/Urban Cruising
• Freestyle
• Dancing

3. Santa Cruz

As one of the old school skateboard brands behind the sport‘s explosion in the 1970s, Santa Cruz has built a storied reputation for quality and iconic graphics over its nearly 50 year history.

Their longboard lineup captures that same aesthetic and smooth riding feel in a more versatile size better adapted for cruising and freestyling. Most Santa Cruz longboards utilize a classic pintail shape in sizes ranging from 28 to 40 inches. Expect lively concave patterns and eye-catching graphics on all their boards too.

With completes starting around $150, Santa Cruz delivers an ideal blend of heritage, performance and value sure to satisfy new and veteran riders alike.

Best For

• Cruising
• Carving
• Beginners

4. Sector 9

Renowned as one of the pioneering brands behind the mid 90’s longboard revival, Sector 9 has carved out widespread acclaim for its diverse lineup spanning snappy street decks to stiff downhill speedsters.

The California-based company leverages shape-specific construction techniques on each of their boards to optimize them for their intended riding style. Flex patterns, truck mounts, and wheel setups are all precisely configured based on the rider’s needs.

And with a rock-solid reputation backed by an impressive roster of sponsored pros, Sector 9 boards deliver advanced performance you can trust. Most completes fall between $150 to $300.

Best For

• Downhill
• Sliding
• Cruising

5. Arbor Collective

For riders looking to tread lightly on the planet without sacrificing performance, Arbor Collective sets the standard for sustainable construction while retaining a quality ride.

All their decks utilize eco-friendly building materials like bamboo, cork, and water-based glues for a globally-conscious design. And rather than outsourcing production overseas, each Arbor board gets hand assembled by skilled craftsmen in California.

Focusing chiefly on stylish and versatile cruisers ideal for pushing or commuting around town, Arbor decks emphasize smooth rolling and visual harmony with nature. Completes typically run $200 to $300 for their eco-friendly flair.

Best For

• Eco-Conscious Riders
• Cruising
• Carving

6. Never Summer

Known predominantly as a snowboard manufacturer for over three decades, Colorado’s Never Summer industries has more recently carried that same ride-first approach over to crafting premium longboards.

Their unique presence outside the core longboard scene allows Never Summer to push innovation through advanced construction techniques like carbon fiber layering while retaining Downhill Diva approved shock absorption. Expect nothing but the highest grade U.S. maple, bamboo, and fiberglass layered in precision pressed packs across their entire line.

While most riders praise their downhill and freeride models starting around $250, Never Summer makes a versatile enough quiver to attack just about any discipline.

Best For

• Downhill
• Sliding
• High Performance

7. DB Longboards

For a relatively newcomer brand founded back in 2006, Washington’s DB Longboards has quickly ascended the ranks as a top rider-first company concentrating explicitly on advanced downhill domination.

Through their proprietary construction process called Fiber-X, each DB deck gets reinforced with fiberglass layers that dampen vibration while retaining oodles of pop. Coupled with stiff trucks and speed-ready wheels, DB’s setups stand ready to attack the toughest runs straight from the box.

While their elite quality does come as the price of admission – completes hover around $300+, DB has firmly established themselves as a trustworthy ally for sending the gnarliest slopes.

Best For

• Downhill Racing
• Sliding
• Advanced Riders

8. Zenit

Canada’s Zenit Skateboards may fly under the radar stateside, but their small-batch handcrafted boards command heavy praises amongst devoted riders. Through boutique manufacturing partnered with fine-tuned customer communication, this humble husband and wife operation delivers truly bespoke works of functional art.

Featuring gorgeous full-wood veneers absent of grime-attracting grip tape, Zenit boards highlight craftsmanship at a level beyond their competitors. And with entirely customizable dimensions and shapes through their Marble 40 line, each Zenit deck gets tailor made to order.

Expect to shell out $200+ for their figurative and literal custom works of art, but for some riders, a handmade board is worth every penny.

Best For

• Customization
• Aesthetically-Focused Riders
• Cruising

9. Moonshine Boards

While Moonshine may sound better suited to bootlegging mountain whiskey than crafting high performance skateboards, this unlikely Nevada-based company has been blowing the doors off downhill riders for over a decade through innovation and U.S. homegrown manufacturing.

Moonshine sets itself apart through groundbreaking construction techniques leveraging pressed fiberglass, maple veneers, carbon fiber layers and cork pads strategically tuned for lightning fast roll speeds with road-hugging stability. Name a design superlative, and you can likely find it across Moonshine’s advanced lineup starting around $300.

Just expect frequent grins, winded guardrails, and chattery teeth as their dynamic boards push speed barriers board after board.

Best For

• Downhill Racing
• Advanced Riders
• High Performance

10. Atlas Trucks

Trucks often get overlooked by novice riders focused chiefly on deck materials and wheel specs, but mounting quality axles plays a pivotal role in tuning turn response and stability. Started in 2013, New York’s Atlas Trucks has carved an esteemed niche catering to the most demanding downhill thrill seekers through precision engineered trucks milled to tenth of a millimeter precision.

Constructed from aircraft grade aluminum then tuned across a variety of adjustable hanger widths and responsive urethane formulas, Atlas Trucks provides highly adaptable components to fine tune your fastest rides. Expect to pay $50+ per set, but for downhill and freeride blazers demanding the most responsive axles, Atlas upholds its name.

Best For

• Downhill Racing
• Sliding
• Advanced Riders

11. Orangatang Wheels

Similar to Atlas Trucks, Orangatang concentrates wholly on manufacturing premium wheels intricately calibrated for discerning riders. By varying contact patch profiles, urethane durometers, and core offsets across their line dubbed the Cage, Nipple, and Kegel, Orangatang covers demands from slippery sliding to gripping downhill charging.

Expect to shell out $50+ per set of these California-born bullets, but you’ll roll away fully confident each spec hits your riding needs with exactness. While they may technically stand as a “third party” upgrade brand rather than a full deck and wheel package, no list of the best skate brands would feel complete without the Orangatang wheel gurus.

Best For

• Advanced Wheels
• Downhill
• Sliding
• Upgrades

12. Prism

Rounding out our recommendations, Pennsylvania upstart Prism Skate Co. has surged onto the scene over the last half decade through grassroots hype spreading their quality quivers highlighting both performance and aesthetic bliss.

Each Prism deck features precision pressing using tri-axle fiberglass cloth and twin bamboo cores for flex characteristics on par with the leading big dogs. And with its lineup spanning pin-tailed cruisers ideal for soulful Sunday strolls to high concave downhill drivers ready to charge, their array leaves little to be desired.

For impressive pop at just half the price, Prism’s entire saga of boards rings in around just $150 making them a prime option for newcomers looking to plunge into the sport without breaking the bank.

Best For

• Beginners
• Cruising
• Carving
• Well-Rounded Riding

Most Suitable Longboard Types by Riding Style

Beyond the specific brand itself, dialing in your deck construction and dimensions makes a significant impact across riding comfort, stability, maneuverability and discipline versatility. Let’s explore some of the factors to evaluate when selecting the ideal board variety tailored to your needs.

Cruising and Commuting

For casually riding around town, campus or shoreline pathways, cruising-focused deck varieties offer maximum stability and comfort across extended distances. Ideal construction features include:

• Deck Size – Generally larger decks 36”+ feel more stable for newer riders while compact sizes under 30” suit experienced veterans.
• Deck Style – Surfboard inspirations like rounded pintails increase turn leverage while flat noses allow easy pushing foot positioning.
• Flex – Medium deck flex absorbs road vibration for smooth, fatigue-free rides.
• Concave – Minimal concave avoids foot locking for easy placement while pushing.
• Mount Type – Lower drop through mounting drops stability for casual riding.
• Wheels – Large soft wheels maintain momentum while absorbing imperfections.

Recommended Brands – Arbor, Santa Cruz, Zenit, Prism

Downhill Bombing

For riders looking to achieve maximum roll speed by bombing steep hills, specialized construction features include:

• Deck Size – Compact decks around 30-34” improve stability by lowering center of gravity.
• Deck Style – Stiff symmetric shapes improve balance at speed.
• Flex – Stiffer decks reduce speed wobbles and vibration better than flex options.
• Concave – Deep concave grips feet firmly in place on steep slopes.
• Mount Type – Top mounts lower risks of wheel biting on acute turns.
• Wheels – Smaller hard wheels pick up roll speed quickly.

Recommended Brands – DB Longboards, Moonshine, Landyachtz, Never Summer

Freestyle Maneuvers

For stringing together technical flip tricks, creative hybrid board shapes lend maximum pop and aerial agility through features like:

• Deck Size – Mid-sized decks ~34-38” provide ample room for flipping without sacrificing board control
• Deck Style – Bi-directional twin tipped tails lend symmetry for reversible tricks.
• Flex – Moderate flex boosts pop off the pavement for ollies and shuvits.
• Concave – Medium concave adds foot grip without restrictive locking.
• Mount Type – Top mounts avoid wheel bites mid-maneuver.
• Wheels – Mid-sized wheels ~65-75mm optimize spin velocity.

Recommended Brands – Loaded Boards, Santa Cruz, Arbor

Pushing and Pumping

For endurance athletes more interested in mile eating distance sessions than tricks or downhill, dedicated push boards feature:

• Deck Size – Longboard lengths help retain momentum but widths still narrow enough for easy pumping.
• Deck Style – High raised trucks enable leveraged energy transfer side to side.
• Flex – Stiff boards allow efficient energy transfer to the wheels.
• Concave – Deep wells dig in feet to maximize force output.
• Mount Type – Lower drop-downs center gravity closer to the pushing leg.
• Wheels – Larger ~75-85mm wheels roll longer per push stroke.

Recommended Brands – Loaded Boards, Arbor

Key Factors When Choosing a Longboard

Beyond riding style considerations, keep these essential factors in mind while searching for your perfect fit:

Skill Level – Less experienced riders generally benefit from bigger cruiser boards with extra stability while seasoned veterans often prefer more compact decks for advanced flipping tricks and technical slides.

Size/Height – Larger riders typically want bigger boards with extended wheelbases and widths to accommodate their frame while smaller shredders can upsize maneuverability on more compact decks.

Terrain – Long distance pavement pounders do best on flexible wooden decks while downhill bombers need stiff boards capable of absorbing heavy impacts while maintaining integrity for the next run.

Personal Style – While riding performance reigns first and foremost, longboarding also operates as a lifestyle outlet full of artistic self expression. Opt for graphic styles aligned with your aesthetic preferences to complete the package.

Budget – As with any hobby, deciding on budget expectations helps narrow the playing field of options. Generally expect to invest $150 to $400+ for a quality pre-built complete longboard.

Final Thoughts

With knowledge of the various riding disciplines and board construction particulars, dialing in your perfect longboard gets much simpler. Start by determining your skill level, budget and intended uses from cruising to racing. Consider if a specialized downhill deck suits your regional terrain or if an all-around hybrid shapes up best.

From there, the 12 brands above provide industry-leading options optimized to your needs. And soon enough, you‘ll be out rolling in style aboard your ideal board to pump, carve, slide, dance or bomb at will!