Expert consulted: 
Cycling is a lifetime skill that pays big dividends in everything from hand-eye coordination to long-term cardiovascular health. In fact, daily cycling has been found to prevent weight gain, fight depression, and help stave off a host of health problems including diabetes and cancer. So for parents, there are few better ways to introduce a love of health, hobby, and sport to children than by putting them on a bicycle.
Parks, pump tracks, skateparks, lift-service mountain bike parks, you name it—there’s like a fun place for kids to ride not far from you. With the increasing variety and complexity of cycling environments for children, finding a bike that fits correctly and offers the right capabilities for the job has never been more critical.
Of course, the first step of buying a kids’ bike is to figure out what kind of riding your child will be doing, then select the type of bicycle for that endeavor. After that, grab the lightest bike that works for your budget and situation in the proper size.
Looking for more cycling gear for kids? Check out our picks for the best kids’ bike helmets, best balance bikes, bicycle bells for everyone, and best girls bikes.
The Best Kids’ Bikes
- Best Overall: Specialized Riprock 20
- Best Starter BMX Bike: Redline Rival
- Best Custom Build: Trailcraft Pineridge 24
- Best E-Bike: Woom Up 5
- Best Balance Bike: Woom 1
What to Consider
Style
Bikes for kids have diversified since every little ripper on the block wanted one of those super-cool, candy-colored “Krate” Schwinn Stingrays during the Summer of Love. Today’s options generally mirror adult models in design, equipment, and even price. So, if you expect to take long or skill-intensive rides with your child, ensure their bike matches or exceeds your bike’s capability.
BMX street bikes have long been the default choice for children, and for many situations, they’re still the best bet. They’re built to take a daily beating and can fit many sizes of young riders. The downsides? They’re slow and have a limited range due to their singlespeed drivetrain and inefficient geometry.
However, children who want to compete in BMX racing require a BMX racing bike, different from a BMX street bike, which is size-specific and usually quite expensive. If your child is interested in a skatepark or freestyle competition, they need a BMX park bike built for the rigors of landing on concrete.
Most children will be happiest with a front-suspension mountain bike in the appropriate size. This can be used for neighborhood trips, park outings, and general-purpose riding. It is unsuitable for downhill or jump-line riding; for that, consider an enduro bike with dual suspension or a dirt jumper with special geometry. It’s also possible to buy a traditional road bicycle for children, but unless you plan on doing long-distance touring with your kid, it’s not the best bet due to fragility, maintenance, and cost issues.
Sizing and Weight
Getting the lightest bike that meets your child’s needs in the correct size is critical. Adults are far more tolerant of “bad bike fits” than children with limited strength and experience. The same is true for bicycle weight; a rough guide is that a 1-kilogram increase feels to a child like a 5-kilogram increase in bike weight does to an adult.
The old idea of letting kids “grow into” bikes might save you a few dollars now, but it turns many riders away from cycling—and in certain disciplines, like mountain biking, it can be downright dangerous to ride a bike that is too large or heavy. Training wheels, as well, have fallen into disrepute because most children do better with a balance bike than they do with training wheels on a pedal bike.
Additional Criteria
If your rides are more than a few miles, a kids’ bike with multiple gears is worth considering. This adds complexity and cost but reduces effort over longer trips. When it’s time to slow down, make sure your child has the right braking setup. Coaster brakes feel natural for younger children, and they don’t require a lot of hand strength. Tweens and pre-teens will be better off with hand brakes. A few of the bikes we’ve selected offer both.
How We Selected
This story was originally written by Jack Buruth, a former professional BMX racer, bike store owner, and cycling coach, who has worked with young riders since 1991. He has spent more than 30 years putting kids on bikes, and over a decade riding with his teen son, a downhill mountain biker and BMX rider with multiple wins in different categories and a few Strava times that rival top-ranking adults at Snowshoe Bike Park in Snowshoe, West Virginia, and Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park, Colorado, among others. Baruth chose most of these bikes based on his expertise with youth riding, safety, and reliability.
For all other picks, we researched the market, considered the most popular options available, and sourced picks from the Bicycling test team. We landed on kids’ bikes from reputable brands, and only selected those with excellent specs. We also asked the parents of our test team what they’ve enjoyed riding the most.
Our Picks for the Best Kids’ Bikes
Pros
- Geometry suited for small children
- Simple and easy to assemble
- Durable
Cons
- Not appropriate for long distances
Key Specs
| Frame | Aluminum |
|---|---|
| Tires | 20 x 2.35 in. |
| Brakes | C-STAR hydraulic disc |
| Weight | 21 lb., 13.2 oz. |
The Specialized Riprock family of bicycles offers a lot of solid options for young riders, but we particularly like the Riprock 20, which is easy to handle and has excellent geometry for kids. Specialized sized and designed it to be a quick and easy transition from balance bikes for riders who are precocious in their ability to start pedaling for themselves. It also looks great and is one of our favorite hardtail mountain bikes.
Assistant reviews editor and Bicycling columnist Adam Schram recommends Riprock bikes due to their reliability and accessible components, which makes working on them a breeze. “As a former mechanic, I’ve put together a boatload of kids’ bikes, and they have some of the most variable quality in the industry,” he says. “But I’ve built and serviced hundreds of Riprocks of all sizes and spec levels, and the process has always been pleasantly uneventful—no garish bells and whistles on these puppies. You can nearly service the whole bike with just a few allen keys and an adjustable wrench, regardless of the spec level. That kind of simplicity translates to a smooth first ride, no matter the rider’s age.”
Pros
- Great for beginner racers
- Affordable
- Long-lasting and durable
Cons
- Not ideal for street use
- Won’t work on a mountain bike trail
Key Specs
| Frame | Steel |
|---|---|
| Tires | 20 x 2.25 in. |
| Brakes | Coaster |
| Weight | 27 lb. |
Redline’s family of BMX race bikes has been very popular with new racers for quite some time. The MX Rival is intended for riders between 4-foot-6 and 5-foot-1. If your child is shorter, consider the MX Mini; taller kids can go straight to the Rival 20. You won’t need to change to go racing—just add a number plate. The narrow-diameter wheels and tires increase speed at the cost of daily-use durability.
Pros
- Incredible range of components available
- Excellent quality
- Retains value as child grows
Cons
- Relatively expensive for young cyclists who aren’t serious
Key Specs
| Frame | Aluminum or carbon |
|---|---|
| Tires | Custom |
| Brakes | Custom |
| Weight | Custom |
If you have a serious young cyclist who wants to race and ride with the big kids and adults, Trailcraft is the brand to consider. It offers a custom-built bike with reliable components and some serious upgrades for the price of an adult one. Want your kid to ride with a carbon wheelset? You can surely build that. A 75mm dropper post? You can do that, too. Trailcraft is becoming increasingly popular among serious youth cyclists, and anecdotally, senior test editor Matt Phillips says he sees children in the community-based mountain bike program, Durango Devo, riding them.
Test editor Bradley Ford highly recommends the Pineridge 24, which he bought for his son for ripping trails. “They have many build options, so you can get the bike set up from $1,500 for a lightweight bike to a $3,900 high zoot, race-ready machine.” He loves that he can make such a highly specialized custom build that won’t lose value after his son outgrows it, which means he can resell it to another serious young cyclist without losing much of his initial investment.
Pros
- Excellent fork
- Suspension smooths out the ride
Cons
- Grips spin and tear easily
Frame
| Frame | Aluminum |
|---|---|
| Tires | 24 x 2.35 in. |
| Brakes | Promax hydraulic disc |
| Weight | 34 lb. |
Woom makes some of the best balance bikes we’ve tested, and its Up 5 is one of the best e-bikes for young children who need some extra pep. The Up 5 has 24-inch wheels and is best for ages 7 and up, while the Woom Up 6 has 26-inch wheels for 10 and up. Both use a Fazua Evation 250-watt motor that kicks out 55 newton-meters (Nm) of torque.
Woom’s system weighs just 7 pounds—about half as much as those on most full-size adult bikes. With the relatively low torque and fewer high-speed power demands (the Up 5 tops out at 12 mph), the battery lasts plenty long. The Up 5 can go at least three hours on its highest power setting, but from our testing, we think it’s likely much longer.
The Up 5 also has excellent components, including a supple F1RST hydraulic air suspension fork with 90mm of travel, Schwalbe tires, updated Fazua drive, and Promax hydraulic disc brakes.
Pros
- Excellent handling, very agile
- Brakes are easy for the little ones to grab
- Great weight, especially for an e-bike
Cons
- Parental controls require tweaking via a mechanic
Key Specs
| Frame | Aluminum |
|---|---|
| Tires | Disc |
| Brakes | SRAM hydraulic disc |
| Weight | 35 lb., 11.4 oz. |
The Levo SL earned high praise from our team due to its reliable motor, outstanding weight (for an e-bike), and a level of accessibility that even smaller kids can handle.
“It’s hard to fathom a kids’ e-bike that’s this well put together at this price,” says features editor Louis Mazzante. “The all-black paint and parts, dropper post, grabby brakes, and slick battery integration make it a fantastic e-bike.”
Mazzante’s 9- and 10-year-old testers found the Levo SL fun and intuitive to use, and everything from blipping through power settings to charging the battery was easy for them to do on their own with minimal instruction. Our testers reported that it felt agile enough on trails–not too different from the brand’s full-suspension bikes—and that the brakes were strong and “easy to grab.”
A downside? Specialized has built-in parental controls that limit the top assisted speed to 10 or 15.5 mph, but it requires taking the Levo to a Specialized dealer to make the switch. But that’s a lone, small frustration on an otherwise stellar bike.
Pros
- Comes with a rear brake
- Extremely light
- Solid steel rims
- Excellent style
Cons
- Brake may be too large for toddlers
Key Specs
| Frame | Aluminum |
|---|---|
| Tires | 12 x 1.35 in. |
| Brakes | Coaster with single-hand brake |
| Weight | 6.6 lb. |
The team at Woom has produced some innovative children’s bikes in the past few years, numbered 1 through 6 for the order in which they should be purchased and ridden, from ages 1.5 to 14. The Woom 1, the first in the five-bike series, features a V-brake with a brake lever scaled for hands 18 months or older. Standover height is exceptionally low thanks to a curved monotube, and the seat is adjustable. It has a (removable) rubber steering limiter to prevent accidents caused by a quick “folding over” of the steering at speed. It’s also got excellent style, making that toddler feel like they’re on a big kid bike.
Kids’ Bike FAQs
Buying a Kids’ Bike? Our Expert Jack Baruth Shares What to Spend, What Size to Try, and More.
What age should a child get their first bike?
There’s almost no such thing as “too young to ride”; a surprising number of 3-year-olds are ready to pedal themselves in a controlled and safe environment. If a child shows interest in riding, it’s time to learn.
If your child is between sizes, which bike should I buy?
Most manufacturers have overlap in their sizing recommendations; buy the smaller of the two bikes. It will be easier to control. Tweens and teens who are already competent riders can “size up” with fewer consequences.
What is a great price for a kids’ bike?
As much as you can afford. The quality of a child’s first bike has a big impact on their enjoyment of cycling, and high-quality children’s bikes are much easier to sell secondhand than their adult equivalents.
What do I do with the bike my child outgrows?
Depending on what you paid initially, either pay it forward or sell it. Consider an online marketplace near you if it originally sold for $500 or less. Higher-end children’s bikes are easy to sell via Pinkbike classifieds; I’ve sold several four-figure kids’ bikes there on the same day I listed them.
Kevin Cortez is an editor for Runner's World, Bicycling, and Popular Mechanics covering reviews. A culture and product journalist for over ten years, he’s an expert in men’s style, technology, gaming, coffee, e-bikes, hiking, gear, and all things outdoors. He most recently worked as the Style Editor for Reviewed, a top product recommendation site owned by USA TODAY. He also helped with the launch of WSJ's Buy Side commerce vertical, and has covered the music and podcast industries for Mass Appeal, Genius, Vulture, Leafly, Input, and The A.V. Club. Equally passionate about leisure as he is his penmanship, Kevin dedicates his spare time to graphic novels, birding, making cold brew, and taking long, meandering walks.
Jack Baruth is a writer and competitor who has earned podiums in more than fifteen different classes and sanctions of automotive and cycling competition, in both amateur and professional capacities, as well as an enthusiastic hobbyist musician and audiophile who owns hundreds of musical instruments and audio systems. His work has appeared in Bicycling, Cycle World, Road & Track, WIRED, Wheels Weekly, EVO Malaysia, Esquire, and many other publications. His original design for a guitar, the Melody Burner, has been played by Billy Gibbons, Sheryl Crow, and others.
