The 4 Best Electric Bikes For Easy Cruising Around Town

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Ditch your car, moped, or fixed-gear. This is the future.

You're not buying a toy here. This isn't a run-of-the-mill gadget. In metropolitan areas, electric bikes are straight up vehicle replacements. These aren't just for replacing a classic bicycle to get around the neighborhood; they can fully replace your car in some areas. As such, you need to treat this kind of like buying a car. Understand this is not going to be a budget purchase, and when you're doing 30mph in traffic, you'll be glad you bought a serious model.

And what is it that makes an electric bike serious? There's a lot that goes into it. We're pretty sparse here, but—again, like with cars—you could pour over specs and the differences between brands and models for years. They're all easy to ride, reliable, and well-built. The real differences are in what you want. The VanMoof is a proper city commuter. The TREK is a bicycle replacement. The Ride1Up is a value grocery hauler. And, the Amazon option is a do-it-all for under $1,000. It's about what you prioritize, but anyone can make use of any of these bikes.

So, here we go. The best electric bikes you can buy from across the internet. Buy now. Find your local repair shop. Look into insurance. And please, please, wear a helmet.

From Amsterdam, the world's cycle capital, is VanMoof. At this point, the brand is making some of the most noteworthy e-bikes on the market, with price tags to match.

The flagship model, the S5, features a super minimal LED interface to read speed and battery level. If you need more, a phone mount and app pairing give you a full dashboard-style display.

The bike runs smooth, runs 37 miles on full power, and charges from 0-100 in under seven hours. There's a Turbo button that functions as a partial throttle. When you need, you can get a burst of speed up to 20mph, then continue cruising on the pedals. (It's a really clever and intuitive way to bridge the gap of traditional and fully electric bike.) All that paired with top-of-the-line security tech and a really sleek look make this thing the best on the market.

Generally, TREK's FX + 2 is one of the most recommended electric bikes out there, especially for those just getting into the e-bike world. It's not crazy expensive, but it's not budget made. There's a wide network of retailers, so you won't have issues finding or fixing one. And at just over 40 pounds, it's lightweight and easy to maneuver around town, up stairs, and wherever else you need it. It also feels a bit more old school, without any sort of turbo features you see on other bikes. It's the easiest option on this list.

Unlike VanMoof's one-size-fits-all approach, TREK has a series of sizes that'll fit any rider. It's good for buying it now, but if you end up reselling your bike, it can limit you.

Overall, the FX + 2 is going to be the easiest bike to get used to on this list.

The Cafe Cruiser from Ride1Up is the perfect electric bike for around town cruising, grocery shopping, and getting from point a-to-b. It's got 28mph of pedal assist, as well as 20mph of throttle. With TREK's FX + 2, we really enjoy the lack of throttle, since it makes getting used to the bike a lot easier. But! a lot of riders are getting into e-bikes because of the throttle option. This one has it.

Elsewhere, it's got a nice 30-50 mile range, comfortable seating position, and really nice cargo capabilities. All that for under $1,500 make this a really, really good bike.

Like we said, you need to think of an electric bike more like an actual vehicle, not just a bicycle. You should invest in something worth it here.

That said, budget is always going to be an issue, and ECOTRIC does a great job of giving you a ton of bang for your buck. First, it's under $1,000. Second, its full throttle or pedal assist. The throttle takes you up to about 20mph, and pedal assist runs to the same speed.

And of course, it's not going to be as well-built as the other options on this list, but the big rims and off-road tires will make it a lot more versatile than the other options. If you're riding the occasional trail, or in a city with notoriously rough roads, you won't have any issues.

Luke Guillory is the Associate Commerce Editor at Esquire.

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