Best home exercise bike reviews in 2021
With the best exercise bike options, staying fit is easier and more convenient than ever. If you are still dealing with local gym and fitness center closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are missing working out regularly, an indoor exercise bike for your home could be just what you need to make sure that you can stay on track with your regular cardio exercise routine. And, it’s a great way to enjoy cycling even when the weather outdoors is bad.
When looking for the best gym equipment for their home, an exercise bike is often the first piece of equipment that many people will buy. It provides you with an excellent, heart-pumping cardio workout that will help you burn calories and the best part is that you can easily exercise on the bike even when you are doing other things like watching your favorite TV shows, playing a video game, or catching up with your friends on Zoom. You can find various exercise bikes to meet your specific needs whether you’re looking for a way to exercise while getting on with daily tasks or want a challenging workout. Recumbent bikes are the ideal choice if you suffer from back or knee problems, or you can find bikes with moving handles that are great for toning your arms.
If you have a small living space, you can also find exercise bikes that are designed to fold up and roll away when you’re not using them. Many come with smart features that will easily connect to some of the most popular fitness trackers like Fitbit and Apple Watch, and there is an exercise bike option available to suit every budget. Whether you’re looking for an expensive machine packed with features or just want a great value piece of kit, there’s something for everybody.
Here are our top recommendations for the best exercises to help you keep fit at home.
What Are the Best Exercise Bikes Right Now?
The best exercise bikes have some basic qualities in common. A good exercise bike should be well-made, very durable, and tough enough to withstand everyday use. The Sunny Health & Fitness Indoor Bike is our top overall choice, boasting a 49-pound weighted flywheel and a sturdy steel frame.
If you are looking for a folding exercise bike, we recommend the Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Bike, which can fold to half of its assembled size but is strong enough to hold the weight of a rider up to three hundred pounds. The XTERRA Fitness FB150 Folding Exercise Bike is another great choice for those who need the bike to fit into a small home and coming in at under $200, it’s a very budget-friendly option too.
If you’ve got the cash to splash, the Peloton is a great high-end option that is popular due to its integrated and Wi-Fi-enabled touchscreen tablet feature. You can use the tablet to stream classes live and on-demand as you work out. If you’re looking for an alternative to the Peloton, the MYX Fitness Bike is one that we recommend.
If you’re looking for a high-end exercise bike but don’t want to subscribe to classes, the Wattbike Atom is an excellent smart bike option. You can use Bluetooth to pair it with Wattbike’s free app, or with a number of other exercise apps like Zwift.
The Marcy Exercise Upright Fan Bike is an ideal choice for those who are looking for a full-body workout. It has moveable handlebars that you can use to exercise your arms while cycling using your legs. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a lower-impact workout or want a bike that you can easily use with back, knee, or hip issues, the Marcy Recumbent Exercise Bike is a good fit.
For those who have almost no room for a bike in their home, don’t worry. The DeskCycle pedal exerciser is a fantastic alternative since it can easily be fitted underneath a desk or table where you can pedal it.
Sunny Health and Fitness Indoor Cycle Bike:
Pros
Cons
This bike from Sunny Health & Fitness has a sturdy steel frame and a 49-pound weighted flywheel. It can hold a maximum weight of 275lbs with ease and the seat has four adjustable settings. The pedals are caged with clips designed to hold your feet comfortably in place as you ride, and the leather band resistance system is designed to mimic the feeling of pedaling on a real road. Although the bike does not come with a digital screen, there is a bottle holder and it can be assembled very quickly – you’ll only need around ten minutes.
On Amazon, multiple reviews rated this bike the best exercise bike, with many using it instead of the more expensive Peloton. One reviewer even purchased two bikes and described them as being rock solid and easy to assemble.
Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Bike:
Pros
Cons
If you live in a small home without a lot of room for storing workout equipment, a folding exercise bike is a great choice. This exercise bike not only folds to half of its size, but it is strong and sturdy enough to hold up to 300lbs. It has a large, comfortable cushioned seat that can be adjusted to suit a height range from 5’3” to 6’1”. It comes with an LCD display that shows you distance, speed, time, calories burned, and more. The handlebar is fitted with built-in pulse sensors that you can use to monitor your target heart rate while exercising. It has eight tension levels that you can choose from to make your workout harder or easier.
According to one Amazon reviewer who purchased this exercise bike, it’s unbeatable in terms of cost, ease of setup, and quality. Another loved the fact that the machine can be stored away so easily when not in use.
Marcy Exercise Upright Fan Bike:
Pros
Cons
If you’re looking for the best exercise bike for an effective full-body workout, this sturdy, steel-frame Marcy Exercise Upright Fan Bike could be the ideal choice for you. It comes with dual-action arms that target your upper body muscles and a fan wheel that creates resistance for your lower body when you pedal faster. The wheel also produces a cool airflow that ensures you are kept comfortable while working out and sweating. The padded seat is comfortable and adjustable and the LCD screen displays information on distance, time, speed, and calories.
One Amazon reviewer who is also a CrossFit coach reckons that there’s nothing like going at 100% on this bike for just 10-30 seconds to get your heart rate raised. Another liked the fact that the resistance grows as you pedal harder, and loved the cool breeze that is generated by the wheel.
Peloton Bike:
Pros
Cons
Peloton is one of the more-high end bike options, and it has certainly become a bit of a craze recently with hard-core instructors and the HD touchscreen that you can use to easily access some of the best spinning classes right in your home. However, this bike is definitely one of the most expensive options on the market and you’re looking at spending around a couple of thousand dollars, with the basic package starting at $1,895. You will also need to buy shoes from a bike shop or Peloton that are designed to clip into the pedals. If you’re looking for even more high-end, the company has introduced the Peloton Bike+, boasting an even bigger touchscreen display, front and rear speakers, and four-channel audio.
However, the basic Peloton Bike is still an ideal choice. It is highly durable and very well-made, so it’s no surprise that spinning enthusiasts are impressed with the on-demand classes and competitive leaderboards.
MYX Fitness Bike:
Pros
Cons
If you don’t want to pay the high cost of a Peloton Bike, the MYX Fitness Bike is an ideal, cheaper alternative to the Peloton. It is also a better choice for people who are looking for a more personalized workout experience compared to virtual classes since MYX Fitness is as close as you can get to on-demand, personal training sessions in the comfort of your own home.
Delivery of the bike is free and it features a huge, swiveling HD screen that you can easily adjust to face in any direction that you are working out. The intuitive interface allows you to choose from a diverse portfolio of classes for the bike, cross-training, the floor, and recovery. There are easy to navigate menus to find the right classes for you based on recommendations, workout format, and classes that you have favorited in the past. Unlike Peloton, there are no leaderboards – it offers a more personal class experience rather than competitive.
Wattbike Atom and Atom Next Generation:
Pros
Cons
At a price of $2,599, the Wattbike Atom could be considered as an alternative to the Peloton Bike. It is just as sturdily built and well-designed; however, it does not have the same large HD screen as the Peloton. In fact, the Wattbike Atom does not even have a screen; instead, it offers smart and seamless Bluetooth connectivity. All you need to do is download the free Wattbike Hub app and pair it to the bike to be able to pre-set workouts or go on a ride within minutes. Unlike Peloton’s monthly class subscription, the use of Wattbike’s app is completely free.
The tank-like design of this bike means that it’s perfect for any type of workout, whether you want to gently cycle while watching Netflix shows or really push yourself to go on a bike ride that feels like you’re climbing a mountain. There are several options to customize the bike too, making it an ideal choice if you’d rather use different handlebars or toe-clips. While the price is higher than many of its competitors, Wattbike does offer a thirty-day-money-back guarantee and your bike is covered by a two-year warranty, including any technical problems.
XTERRA Fitness FB150 Folding Exercise Bike:
Pros
Cons
If you are looking for the best exercise bike on a tight budget, the XTERRA Fitness FB150 is the best option under $200 and comes with the additional benefit of not taking up very much room at all. It can be folded up and easily stored away when not in use and comes with wheels so that it can easily be moved around your home. The bike comes with a large seat that is designed for comfort and can easily be adjusted to suit your height. It has eight different levels of resistance that you can set manually depending on how easy or hard you’d like your workout to be, and the handlebars have heart rate grips built-in. The small LCD window can be used to track your speed, time, distance, pulse rate, and calories burned.
According to Amazon reviewers, one of the best things about this bike is how compact it is, despite the fact that it is sturdily built and can easily be used to work up a sweat.
Marcy Recumbent Exercise Bike:
Pros
Cons
If you are looking for the ideal exercise bike for seniors or people who suffer from hip, back, or knee problems, a recumbent bike is an ideal choice since it provides a gentler and lower-impact workout compared to an upright bike. With the Marcy Recumbent Exercise Bike, you will get more lumbar support with the cushioned backrest and there is less pressure put on your joints when riding. This bike features a comfortable padded seat and backrest, plus handles for additional support. The pedals come with adjustable straps to ensure that your feet are secured. It comes with an LCD display that shows the distance, time, speed, and calories burned.
One Amazon reviewer, who said that she was over the age of 70, found the bike easy to assemble and place in her home. Others praised it for being the ideal choice of home workout machine if you’re looking for something that you can use while sitting in front of the TV.
Exerpeutic ExerWorK 1000 Desk Station:
Pros
Cons
With more people working from home than ever before right now, this exercise bike is an ideal choice if you’re looking for a machine that you can use to work out and work from home at the same time. This recumbent bike has a 16x24” adjustable desktop included that can be used to easily hold a laptop, notebook, or tablet. Whether you’re reading, working, watching TV, or attending a virtual meeting, it makes it easy for you to work out at the same time. You can also use it as a standing desk when you are not cycling. When not in use, the bike can easily be folded or rolled away.
DeskCycle:
Pros
Cons
If you are really short on space in your home but want to get the benefits of an exercise bike, this under-desk exercise bike option might be the ideal way for you to burn some calories and add more physical activity to your day. With eight levels of resistance, super-quiet operation, and an easy, smooth motion when pedaling so that you can focus on any other tasks you’re doing, it’s a great choice. It can be placed under a table as low as 27 inches if you are under 5’8”, but if you’re taller, you will need a taller desk. It comes with a display screen that shows time, distance, speed, and calories burned.
Amazon reviewers love this bike for its portability, with one noting that the best thing about the bike was that they could use it while sitting on the sofa.
How to Choose the Best Exercise Bike for You:
Choosing the right exercise bike for you can be tricky, with so many options to choose from at various price points. Firstly, it’s important to consider how well the exercise bike fits in terms of your body and your personal needs and requirements. Consider whether the bike has enough weight capacity and if you are within the height range. If you suffer from any physical problems or limitations such as back or knee problems, make sure that the bike is designed to put less pressure on these areas or that it can be adjusted to ensure that you’re able to work out comfortably and safely.
Once you have considered the fit of the bike, it’s worth thinking about the type of workouts that you’ll want to do. If you want to have full-body, high cardio cycling sessions, choose a bike that offers enough resistance and consider getting one with handles that can be used for an arm workout.
Since you’re getting an exercise bike for use at home, it’s also important to make sure that you have got enough room for the bike you are considering. If you live in a small house or apartment, a folding bike or under-desk bike might be the best option.
Finally, consider how much you want to pay for your exercise bike. The good news is that there is an exercise bike in every price range and it should be easy to find something that suits your budget and is right for you.
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The mission of Cycles for Change is to build a diverse and empowered community of bicyclists. C4C implements a variety of programs that support people in getting access to a used bicycle, free bicycle repair, training in safe, confident cycling, and opportunities to help grow a broad-based, equitable bicycling movement. C4C’s operates two community bicycle education and repair shops in St. Paul and Minneapolis.