Zwift power-ups explained: when and how to use them

Zwift power-ups are small, short bursts of advantage. Used well, they turn close races into wins. Used poorly, they vanish with no payoff. This guide explains what each power-up does, when to activate it, and how to make it count in real race scenarios.

How Zwift power-ups work

• You get power-ups by riding through banners: lap, sprint, or KOM/QOM. Event organizers can choose which power-ups are available and where they drop.
• You can hold one power-up at a time. If your slot is full, you must use or discard it to pick up a new one.
• Activate via your keyboard (spacebar), mouse click, or your companion app. The effect starts immediately and lasts for a fixed duration.
• Different banners tend to favor different power-ups. As a rule of thumb, sprint/lap banners often grant aero or draft; KOM banners often grant feather.

Power-ups amplify good tactics. Position, timing, and solid watts still decide the race.

The power-ups and how to use them

Aero boost (helmet)

What it does: reduces your aerodynamic drag so you go faster for the same power. The effect is strongest at higher speeds.

• Best timing: initiate 3–5 seconds before your full sprint or when you hit ~50+ km/h in a lead-out.
• Use cases: finish-line sprints, bridging at high speed, driving a fast group to keep a gap.
• Pro tip: combine with good draft before launching. Coast briefly in the slipstream, then hit aero and kick.
• Avoid: using aero on slow climbs or early in a long sprint when you are still boxed in.

Draft boost (van)

What it does: increases the benefit you get from drafting other riders.

• Best timing: when sitting 2–10 wheels back in the pack, especially during surges.
• Use cases: saving watts before a sprint, surfing wheels over rollers, moving up smoothly without big spikes.
• Pro tip: pair the draft boost with micro-accelerations on wheels ahead to slingshot forward at a lower cost.
• Avoid: using it while on the front or off the back with no wheel to draft.

Feather (feather)

What it does: reduces your weight so you accelerate more easily uphill.

• Best timing: on the steepest section of a climb or ramp (think 6–12% ramps).
• Use cases: cresting attacks, punchy climbs, making selection on KOMs, responding to accelerations.
• Pro tip: start the feather 1–2 seconds before the gradient bites so you are already lighter when the speed drops.
• Avoid: wasting it on flats or shallow 1–2% grades where aero matters more.

Steamroller (roller)

What it does: dramatically improves rolling resistance on rough surfaces so dirt and cobbles feel like smooth tarmac.

• Best timing: activate just before hitting dirt, cobbles, or wooden bridges.
• Use cases: Makuri and Watopia dirt sectors, Roule Maurir cobbles, gravel connectors.
• Pro tip: attack as the surface changes. Others will slow; you will not. It is a free gap if you commit.
• Avoid: firing it on clean tarmac or after you have already exited the rough section.

Ghost (invisibility)

What it does: hides your avatar briefly, making your move harder to spot.

• Best timing: 2–3 seconds before you surge off the front, or just before a banner to slip away while others sit up.
• Use cases: late flyers, bridging across to a small break without pulling the whole pack.
• Pro tip: increase power before you hit ghost so your speed difference is already building.
• Avoid: ghosting when the pack is at threshold on a climb. Speed differentials are small and you will be seen on the list anyway.

Burrito (no-draft)

What it does: riders behind you cannot draft you. You still benefit from drafting if you are not on the front.

• Best timing: when you are on or near the front and want to stretch the bunch.
• Use cases: stringing out the pack before a technical section, discouraging passengers in small breaks.
• Pro tip: pair burrito with a short, hard pull into a corner, ramp, or dirt sector to force splits.
• Avoid: using it mid-pack where it has little effect.

Anvil (downhill weight)

What it does: increases your weight to accelerate faster on steeper descents.

• Best timing: over the crest and onto a straight, sustained downhill.
• Use cases: opening a gap right after summits, maintaining momentum to drop climbers who are on the limit.
• Pro tip: start the anvil just before you roll over the top to carry maximum speed into the descent.
• Avoid: activating on shallow grades, technical descents, or in tight packs where braking kills the benefit.

Race-day strategy and practice

Scenario-based deployment

• Finish sprint: surf wheels on draft boost, then switch to aero for the final 12–15 seconds. Launch from 3–6 wheels back to maximize speed through the line.
• Punchy climb selection: hit feather on the steepest ramp. If you crest with 1–2 seconds gap, keep 5–10 seconds at VO2 to make it stick.
• Breakaway on flats: use aero to establish the gap at high speed. If you have two riders, alternate short pulls while the aero is active.
• Rolling terrain: use draft boost to stay economical through surges so you can spend more when it matters.
• Dirt sector attack: trigger steamroller 1–2 seconds before the surface changes and lift power by 10–20% to create separation.
• Late flyer: at 1 km to go, ghost and surge to threshold-plus. If unnoticed for 5–7 seconds, commit. If caught, sit back and reset for the sprint.
• Defensive play: burrito on the front to stop a free ride when the pack hesitates, especially before narrow sections.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Using aero too early in the sprint and running out before the line. Know your sprint duration.
• Firing draft boost while riding on the front. It adds nothing there.
• Pressing feather on shallow gradients where aerodynamics dominate.
• Sitting on steamroller without increasing power. The advantage appears when you exploit the speed difference.
• Holding a mediocre power-up for too long and missing new pickups. Use it or lose it.

Simple practice session (45–60 minutes)

1. Warm-up: 10–15 minutes easy with 3 x 15-second high-cadence spin-ups.
2. Pack surfing: 10 minutes sitting mid-pack in a group ride. Practice timing a draft boost during surges while keeping power smooth.
3. Sprint reps: 4–6 x 15 seconds all-out with full recovery. In two reps, trigger aero 3 seconds before the sprint; in two reps, sprint without it and compare speed and distance.
4. Climb surges: find a 1–2 minute hill. Do 2 x ramps where you hit feather on the steepest section and focus on cresting fast.
5. Surface change drill: roll into a short dirt sector, trigger steamroller just before entry, and accelerate. Note the gap created.
6. Cool-down: 8–10 minutes easy spinning.

Dial in the timing, then layer it onto solid race craft. Power-ups will not replace watts, but used with intent they are the difference between almost and done.