Exercise Bikes · Buying Guide
Best Exercise Bikes UK
An exercise bike is the most practical piece of cardio equipment you can put in a British home. It is low-impact, it works in the rain and the dark, and a good one will still be going in ten years. We have compared 32 bikes across eight brands. These are the ten best exercise bikes in the UK, ranked on FitRank, with a full buying guide underneath.
There is no single best exercise bike, because the right one depends on how you want to ride. A studio spin bike suits hard, sweaty interval sessions. A recumbent suits comfortable low-impact riding and anyone with a bad back. An air bike is for people who want to be destroyed in twenty minutes. A folding bike is for people whose flat has no room for any of them. So the list below spans every type, and each pick is labelled with the job it does best.
Everything here is ranked on FitRank, our editorial score out of 5 covering performance, build, value and features. We do not rank by commission. Prices are current UK figures and move around, particularly in the sales, so click through to check before you buy.
The quick list
- Best overall · JTX Studio Pro · FitRank 4.6 · £799
- Best with a screen · NordicTrack X24 · FitRank 4.6 · £2,499
- Best air bike · JTX Ignite AirX Rider · FitRank 4.6 · £799
- Best value connected · Reebok Z-Tech Sprint · FitRank 4.5 · £699
- Best for classes · Echelon EX-5S · FitRank 4.5 · £1,099
- Best under £500 · Echelon EX-30 RCX · FitRank 4.2 · £449
- Best recumbent · NordicTrack GX10 Recumbent · FitRank 4.2 · £1,499
- Best compact · Reebok i-Bike · FitRank 4.1 · £349
- Best budget · Viavito Satori · FitRank 3.8 · £229
- Best folding · Viavito Onyx · FitRank 3.0 · £99
JTX Studio Pro
The best exercise bike we have compared, and the one we would buy with our own money. A commercial-grade frame, a heavy 16kg flywheel and 32 magnetic levels give a smooth, road-like ride that stands up to daily use, and it connects to Zwift and Kinomap through your own tablet. JTX are a British brand who sell direct and service their own machines, which is why the three-year in-home warranty means something.
It charges no subscription of its own, so the £799 is the whole price. For a rider who is serious but does not want a platform tax, nothing here is better.
Best for Committed riders who want a proper studio ride, a long warranty and no monthly fee.
Watch-out It is a real investment, and you supply the tablet rather than getting a built-in screen.
NordicTrack X24
If you want a studio in the spare room, this is it. A 24-inch rotating HD touchscreen runs iFIT, taking you through scenic rides and studio classes while automatically adjusting your resistance, and the screen swivels so you can step off for strength and stretching work on a mat.
The ride is heavy, quiet and genuinely commercial-grade. For anyone who has bought fitness equipment before and stopped using it, the guided structure is worth more than any specification.
Best for Riders who need coaching and immersion to stay consistent, with the budget to match.
Watch-out A £2,499 bike plus an ongoing iFIT membership, so the true cost of ownership is high.
JTX Ignite AirX Rider
A seated air bike with a freewheel, and the pick for anyone who trains in short, hard bursts. Air resistance scales with how hard you push and never runs out, so a maximal thirty-second effort is always available, and the performance console reports drag factor, splits and history so intervals can be measured rather than guessed.
It is a specialist tool, and within its speciality nothing else on this list comes close.
Best for Interval and conditioning training, and anyone who wants a demanding session in a short window.
Watch-out Loud, unforgiving, and a poor choice for long, gentle rides.
Reebok Z-Tech Sprint
The cleverest bike on this list. A 13kg flywheel with 50 levels of app-controllable electromagnetic resistance, meaning the bike adjusts itself as a virtual gradient rises in Zwift or Kinomap. It also pairs with the Peloton app, so you can follow Peloton classes with no Peloton bike and no Reebok fee of its own.
You get the immersive, class-led experience that keeps people training, without the platform cost that usually comes attached. It ships with a 60-day Kinomap trial and takes riders up to 150kg.
Best for Class-led training and automatic resistance without paying a bike-maker’s subscription.
Watch-out You bring your own tablet, and the Peloton app has its own separate fee if you use it.
Echelon EX-5S
A 22-inch HD touchscreen running Echelon’s live and on-demand studio classes, with app-controlled resistance and a smooth, quiet ride. The instructor-led format and leaderboard suit riders who train better with someone counting them through it, and it costs roughly half what the flagship screen bikes do.
If the boutique spin-studio atmosphere is what gets you on a bike, this is the sensible way to buy it.
Best for Riders motivated by instructors, leaderboards and the studio-class atmosphere.
Watch-out The screen exists to run Echelon’s membership, so budget for that on top of the £1,099.
Echelon EX-30 RCX
The best bike you can buy under £500, and it is not close. A genuine smart-connect indoor cycle with a quiet, weighty ride and app-controlled magnetic resistance, currently half price at £449 having been £899. At that money you are getting a premium bike in a budget bracket.
It is built around the Echelon app but rides fully as a manual bike without a membership, so the low price is not hiding a compulsory cost.
Best for Getting the most bike for your money, especially while the sale price holds.
Watch-out The classes and auto-resistance need an Echelon membership, and you supply your own tablet.
NordicTrack GX10 Recumbent
The most complete recumbent we have compared. A large cushioned seat and full backrest, a low easy step-through, and a built-in touchscreen with iFIT that adjusts resistance for you through scenic rides and classes. You sit back in a supported, chair-like position with the pedals out in front.
It is the most comfortable and most guided way to do low-impact cardio at home, which makes it the natural pick for older riders, bad backs and anyone easing back into exercise.
Best for Comfortable, back-supported, low-impact riding with guided workouts.
Watch-out A serious £1,499 outlay for a recumbent, and the guided content needs an iFIT membership.
Reebok i-Bike
The affordable way into app-connected riding when space is short. An 8kg flywheel, 32 magnetic levels, self-levelling pedals and Zwift and Kinomap support, in a 131 by 51cm footprint that tucks into a flat or a spare room corner. No subscription of its own, and it discounts further with the GOAL10 code.
It gives you the connected experience at one of the lowest prices going, on your own free or paid app.
Best for Small homes and tight budgets that still want connected riding with no fee.
Watch-out A lighter flywheel and a 110kg user limit, so it suits steady cardio rather than hard standing efforts.
Viavito Satori
Remarkable value, and the cheapest genuine route into connected riding. £229 buys a 9kg flywheel, 32 computer-controlled magnetic levels, adjustable bars and Bluetooth for Zwift and Kinomap. It out-specs Viavito’s own pricier SB1, and as Sweatband’s house brand it is often discounted further.
It is enough bike to train properly on, and cheap enough to risk if you are not yet sure cycling will stick.
Best for The lowest-cost route into app-connected riding, and testing whether indoor cycling suits you.
Watch-out Budget construction, a basic console, and a newer brand with less of a track record.
Viavito Onyx
The answer when floor space is the binding constraint. A folding upright that collapses to just 33 by 41cm, so it lives behind the sofa or under a bed between sessions, at £99. You sit upright and pedal gently, which is exactly the sort of light daily movement a lot of people actually want.
It is a space-saver rather than a training tool, and judged as a space-saver it does the job nothing else here can.
Best for Flats, retirement apartments and anywhere a bike simply has to disappear between uses.
Watch-out A light 1.2kg flywheel, fixed handlebars and a 100kg limit, so it is strictly for gentle use.
The 10 compared
| # | Bike | Best for | Price | FitRank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JTX Studio Pro | Overall | £799 | 4.6 |
| 2 | NordicTrack X24 | Screen | £2,499 | 4.6 |
| 3 | JTX Ignite AirX Rider | Air bike | £799 | 4.6 |
| 4 | Reebok Z-Tech Sprint | Value connected | £699 | 4.5 |
| 5 | Echelon EX-5S | Classes | £1,099 | 4.5 |
| 6 | Echelon EX-30 RCX | Under £500 | £449 | 4.2 |
| 7 | NordicTrack GX10 Recumbent | Recumbent | £1,499 | 4.2 |
| 8 | Reebok i-Bike | Compact | £349 | 4.1 |
| 9 | Viavito Satori | Budget | £229 | 3.8 |
| 10 | Viavito Onyx | Folding | £99 | 3.0 |
Which type of exercise bike do you need
This is the decision that matters most, and getting it wrong is the most expensive mistake buyers make. There are five types worth knowing about.
Indoor cycles and spin bikes
A forward-leaning, road-racing position over a heavy flywheel. The most versatile choice and where most of this list sits, good for hard intervals and long steady rides alike, and the type virtually all connected bikes and virtual classes are built around. If you are buying one bike and are reasonably able-bodied, this is usually the type.
Upright bikes
You sit over the pedals as on a normal bike, with a padded seat and handlebars in front. More compact than a recumbent, gentler than a spin bike, and comfortable enough for general fitness without the aggressive riding position. A sensible middle ground.
Recumbent bikes
A reclined, chair-like seat with a backrest and the pedals out in front. The most comfortable and the gentlest on the joints, with a low step-through that makes getting on and off easy. Best for older riders, back or knee trouble, heavier riders and anyone returning to exercise. Our best recumbent exercise bikes guide covers them in depth.
Air and fan bikes
A fan provides resistance that scales with your effort and never maxes out, and on fan bikes with moving handlebars your upper body works too. Brutally effective for short interval sessions, loud, and no fun at all for gentle riding.
Folding bikes
Compact uprights that collapse for storage. Ride quality is a long way behind the others, with light flywheels and basic consoles, but if the alternative is no bike at all because there is nowhere to put one, that is not a fair comparison. Buy one to fit a space, not to train hard.
What to look for when buying
Flywheel weight
The single biggest influence on how a bike feels. A heavier flywheel carries momentum, which makes the pedal stroke smoother and more road-like, particularly out of the saddle. Around 13 to 16kg is genuinely good, as on the JTX Studio Pro and Reebok Z-Tech Sprint. Nine kilos and up is fine for the money. Anything under about 5kg, as on folding bikes, is for gentle use only.
Resistance type
Magnetic resistance is quiet, maintenance-free and now standard on any bike worth buying, so avoid old friction-pad designs. Electromagnetic resistance, on the Reebok Z-Tech Sprint, goes further by letting an app change the load automatically as a virtual road climbs, which is the immersive feature people usually associate with far dearer bikes.
Screen, tablet or neither
A built-in touchscreen is more immersive and removes the daily friction of propping up a tablet, but it costs a lot and it exists to sell you a subscription. A tablet holder gives you the same content on a smaller screen for hundreds less. And a plain console is entirely sufficient if you ride to your own numbers.
Footprint, weight limit and folding
Measure your space before you order, and remember recumbents are the longest and folding bikes the only ones that pack away. Check the stated user weight limit against your own rather than assuming, as they vary widely, from 100kg on the Viavito Onyx to 150kg on the Reebok Z-Tech Sprint.
Warranty and who you buy from
A long warranty and a real UK support line are worth paying for, because they are the difference between a bike that gets repaired and one that gets thrown away. JTX sell direct with a three-year in-home warranty, the strongest cover here. Buying through official retailers protects that cover, which an anonymous marketplace seller will not.
Do you need a subscription
This is the question that catches most buyers out, so it is worth being plain. Bikes from Echelon, NordicTrack and ProForm are built around a paid platform, Echelon’s own membership or iFIT. They all ride perfectly well as manual bikes without it, but the classes, scenic routes and automatic resistance that justify buying them need an ongoing fee, commonly somewhere between £120 and £400 a year depending on the plan. Across three or four years that can add a meaningful fraction of the bike’s price again.
The alternative is a bike that charges no fee of its own. JTX, Reebok, adidas, Viavito and Xterra all take this approach, and several connect over Bluetooth to Zwift, Kinomap or even the Peloton app using your own account, on your own terms. That is genuinely cheaper to own, and you can stop paying for an app whenever you like without the bike becoming less useful.
Neither approach is wrong. The honest question is whether guided classes are what will keep you consistent, because motivation is the scarcest resource in home fitness. If yes, pay the fee gladly. If not, keep the money. Our best exercise bikes without a subscription and best exercise bikes with a screen guides cover each camp in full.
How much should you spend
There is a good bike at almost every price. Under £250, the Viavito Satori at £229 is enough machine to train seriously on, and the folding Onyx at £99 solves a space problem rather than a training one. Between £250 and £500 is where the value is right now, because heavy discounting has pulled genuine smart-connect bikes into this bracket, the Echelon EX-30 RCX at £449 being the clearest example. For most people this is where to stop.
Between £500 and £1,000 you buy a heavier flywheel, a longer warranty and a more commercial frame, which the JTX Studio Pro at £799 exemplifies. Above £1,000 you are almost entirely paying for a large built-in touchscreen and the platform behind it. That is a legitimate thing to want, but be clear that it is what you are buying, and add the subscription to your sums. Our best exercise bikes under £500 guide covers the value end in depth.
Are the sale prices genuine
Mostly, yes, though it pays to check. The reductions on this page are seasonal and clearance pricing from established brands and retailers rather than inflated reference figures. The Echelon and JTX bikes are sold direct by the brands, while the Reebok, Viavito, adidas and Xterra bikes come through Sweatband, a long-standing UK retailer, and the ProForms through their UK channel.
Buying through those official routes is what protects your warranty and gives you someone to call when a part fails, which a grey-market marketplace listing will not. Prices at the budget end move week to week, so treat the figures here as a current snapshot and check the live price, plus any active code such as GOAL10 at Sweatband, before you commit.
How we compare and rank
Every bike on this site is scored with FitRank, our editorial rating out of 5 that weighs performance, build quality, value and features against each bike’s direct rivals and its price. The order of this list follows those scores, which is why a half-price connected bike can outrank a dearer one and why a £99 folding bike appears at the bottom rather than being quietly left out.
We do not rank by commission, and no brand pays for a position. Our scores draw on published specifications and on independent owner and reviewer feedback gathered over time rather than a single showroom session, because how a bike holds up in a real home over a year matters more than how it feels for ten minutes in a shop. We have compared 32 bikes across eight brands to produce this list, and you can read every one of them in our brand guides.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best exercise bike in the UK?
Are exercise bikes good for losing weight?
What is the difference between a spin bike and an exercise bike?
Do all exercise bikes need a subscription?
How much should I spend on an exercise bike?
Which exercise bike is best for bad knees or a bad back?
What flywheel weight do I need?
Is an exercise bike better than a treadmill?
How long do exercise bikes last?
Can you use a Peloton app without a Peloton bike?
Go deeper on the type you need with our guides to the best recumbent exercise bikes, best exercise bikes with a screen, best exercise bikes without a subscription, best exercise bikes under £500, best exercise bikes for seniors and best exercise bikes for weight loss.
Chris writes the home fitness reviews across our sites, including our sister site HomeTreadmill.co.uk. He compares every machine against its rivals on UK pricing and specs, and scores each one with FitRank.
We may earn a commission if you buy through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. It never affects our FitRank score. See our affiliate disclosure.