- Blog
- April 27, 2026
Yes, SRAM and Shimano Are Compatible (Sometimes)
My friend picked up a bike at a garage sale for cheap. She needed something to tootle around with her kids at campgrounds this summer. A $10 garage sale hybrid checked all the boxes, and it taught me that SRAM and Shimano are compatible.
She brought the bike to me to fix up. I went through the basics to get the bike up and running. I patched a hole in the front tube. I adjusted the brakes’ cable tension. I switched out a bolt on the kickstand so that it wouldn’t fling into the spokes and send her flying.
The bike was in decent condition, and it would have been a quick turnaround except that the rear SRAM X-5 shifter was split in two.
I certainly didn’t mind putting in time and work, but I didn’t want to spend much money to fix up a $10 bike. I scooped up a pair of used SRAM 3×8 trigger shifters for much cheaper than a new set.
The bike had a SRAM X-5 rear derailleur, so you may be thinking that a SRAM 8-speed rear shifter would be compatible, but you’d be wrong. I bought SRAM Attack shifters that are not compatible with the 1:1 cable pull ratio normally associated with SRAM drivetrains.
SRAM’s Attack shifters are compatible with 1:2 cable pull ratio drivetrains, ala Shimano. There are no noticeable differences between the X-5 and Attack shifters from the outside, other than the branding. But the shifters’ internal parts differ.
You may now be thinking that I made a mistake, but you’d be wrong once again. I had a Shimano rear derailleur in my parts bin.
I swapped out the broken shifter and stock derailleur for the ‘new’ used parts. I needed to replace some cable housing and adjust the chain length due to the physical differences of the derailleurs. In the end, the bike shifts through all the gears.
There are many morals to this story. Working on bikes is always a learning experience. Cheap bikes are perfect for making and correcting mistakes. Most importantly, SRAM and Shimano are compatible, sometimes.
