The Problem: In recent years, Peloton’s focus has shifted from hardware sales to retaining a growing base of digital app users. But while top-performing riders find satisfaction in leaderboards and personal records, many others, especially the casual or steady riders, feel overlooked. Peloton’s current system primarily rewards peak performance, leaving behind those whose success is measured not in sprint speeds, but by grinding day in & day out.

We saw a motivational gap forming. Many loyal users were putting in the work, riding multiple times a week, month after month, without any clear sense of progression or recognition. As one user put it: “I’ve stayed committed, but the app doesn’t really see me.” The lack of visible growth or social acknowledgment was causing riders to disengage, even if their habits were strong.

The People:

We interviewed Peloton users and dug into analogous communities, including opera singers, powerlifters, and college students. One striking insight came from our research with opera singers: in spaces where talent is subjective, people often build credibility by associating themselves with those they admire. They “cite” others, talking about colleagues’ achievements as a way to establish their own reputation. If they sang with someone respected, they gained respect.

This idea translated directly to Peloton. Riders weren’t just looking to prove themselves through numbers, they wanted recognition. They wanted to be seen as talented and dedicated by their community. We realized our solution had to move beyond leaderboards and create a new way for people to build social and personal status over time.

The Prototypes:

Inspired by gamified progression systems like academic citations and ladder-style rankings in games, we built out a framework we called Building Reputation Through Association. We then prototyped a new feature for Peloton: Peloton Peak.

Peloton Peak introduces a structured path of progression through consistency. Riders earn points and unlock status symbols (badges, visual milestones, level-ups) for repeated exercise, not just peak performance. These levels serve as both internal motivation and external recognition.

We built wireframes, tested interactions, and refined the visual system to ensure that riders of all levels could feel proud of their place in the ecosystem. Unlike the leaderboard, Peloton Peak doesn’t reset each ride, it’s cumulative, reflective, and deeply personal.

The Solution:

Peloton Peak is a layered reputation system that lets all riders, especially those in the middle of the performance curve, track and showcase their progress. It’s rooted in four key design principles:

• Create visual status symbols to drive recognition

• Design challenges and levels to help users prove their talent

• Introduce measurable progression to objectify growth

• Activate intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to keep users striving

This feature isn’t just a motivational tool, it’s a retention engine. By celebrating consistency and giving riders a tangible sense of development, Peloton Peak fills the gap for the silent majority: the ones who keep showing up.