>>21518272
That's (at least partly) because most bagels you see are just donut-shaped bread. Real bagels are boiled but the majority sold in supermarkets etc. are baked like normal bread instead and it doesn't matter as much that way.

Old-school bagels had a much bigger hole and the bread part was much skinnier. Montreal bagels are still somewhat like that, but if you see historical photos of bagels it's even more extreme, they almost look like onion rings or something.