10 Best Exercise Bikes of 2026, From Folding Uprights to Smart Spin Bikes

For most people, the S3 gets the basics right. Belt drive and magnetic resistance keep it quiet, the knob runs from 0 to 100 for small changes, and pressing it down stops the 7.5 kg flywheel in an emergency. Bluetooth links to the Yesoul app, and the listing names Zwift and Kinomap too, so you aren't tied to one platform, while the 101 by 51cm frame would fit the corner of my spare room. The weak spot is history rather than hardware, though: it's a new listing with almost no owner track record, and one spec sheet quotes a lighter flywheel than the listing does, so I've gone with the listing. Against the JLL, it trades flywheel mass for wider app support.

If you've never clipped into a spin class and have no plans to, this is the one I'd point you to. The FR30 is a proper upright, so you sit back on a gel-cushioned seat rather than hunching over the bars. Resistance is 32 computer-controlled magnetic levels, changed by button, and the console carries 28 programmes, including three heart-rate modes driven by the pulse grips. Grip sensors are fine for pacing, but I wear a chest strap at the gym precisely because grips get erratic once your hands are sweaty, so treat any reading as a training guide, not medical data. It also appeared in more than one roundup, which counts for something at this level.

You notice the screen before anything else. The Cross Training Bike carries a 23.8-inch Full HD touchscreen that swivels, so the same machine runs a spin class, then turns round for strength, yoga or Pilates on the floor. Auto resistance follows the instructor's cues, and the Movement Tracking Camera counts reps during off-bike sessions. The costs are the problem: most of that content sits behind a Peloton membership, a separate ongoing cost, and the listing itself warns it's extremely heavy to move and it needs a mains socket. Against the NordicTrack, you give up incline training for a slicker class library and stronger backing from UK roundups.

First things first: this listing isn't one bike. It offers a choice of the S22i, X24 and Studio 24, so check exactly which model you're adding to the basket before you pay. Across the range, the listing highlights 24 levels of digital resistance, incline and decline training, a pivoting touchscreen and two-sided pedals for SPD cleats or trainers. Workouts run through iFIT, which syncs with Strava and Garmin, and that membership is its own cost. Next to the Peloton, the draw is hill simulation, a real draw if you're training for a sportive in the Dales.

I'll be straight: I found no UK roundup covering this exact JLL model, so this pick rests on the listing and the spec sheet. A 10kg flywheel, belt drive and five magnetic plates give stepless resistance from a tension knob, and pressing the knob stops the wheel. The listed floor footprint is 96 x 54cm, which makes it one of the better options here for small spaces. One niggle is that the spec data lists 25 levels while the listing says stepless, so ignore the number. Compared with the Yesoul S3, you get a heavier flywheel and fewer app options.

Look, if the budget is tight and you still want an app on a stationary bike, start here. The Merach pairs a 6kg flywheel with a multi-slot belt drive and micro-adjust resistance from 0 to 100, and the frame is a dual-triangle design that should stay steady under normal efforts. It fits riders from 142cm to 188cm, with a 4-way seat and 2-way handlebar. My reservation is that one data source calls the brake magnetic and another calls it friction, so check the listing before you order, and a lighter flywheel won't carry momentum like the 18kg wheel on the Joroto.

If your exercise bike has to live behind a door between rides, this is the shape you want. The FB350 is an X-frame folder with a large contoured seat and a back pad, which makes it more forgiving for older riders or anyone who finds a spin saddle punishing. Resistance is eight levels on a big dial, and the small LCD shows speed, distance, time and pulse from the handlebar sensors. It runs on two AA batteries, so there's no trailing lead, and my dad kept a folding bike behind his sofa for years, and it got ridden precisely because it was easy to pull out. Fit riders will outgrow eight levels quickly, though.

Weight is the point here. The X2PRO uses an 18kg chromed flywheel with magnetic resistance from 1% to 100%, and a heavy wheel carries momentum through each pedal stroke so hard intervals feel smooth rather than jerky. The monitor shows load, watts and RPM alongside the usual figures. The flip side is moving it, since my old flat had a narrow stairwell and a bike this heavy would have been a two-person job there. The listing covers both the X2 and X2PRO and gives conflicting capacity figures, so read it carefully. Against the JLL, it's the heavier, steadier ride.

A sensible upright for beginners, held back mainly by a thin evidence base. The 510U offers 16 magnetic resistance levels, 13 built-in programmes on an LCD console and Bluetooth for Zwift and Kinomap. The extra-padded seat adjusts for height and depth, and at 26.5 kg with transport wheels it's one of the easier bikes here to shift between rooms. There's no editorial backing in my research, though, and the Reebok FR30 gives you twice the resistance levels plus a touchscreen console.

This is the hardest pick here to recommend on value. The EX-5s has a 21.5-inch HD touchscreen that rotates 180 degrees, 32 levels of magnetic resistance on an indexing knob, adjustable Aero handlebars and SPD-compatible pedals with toe cages. That's a capable studio bike, but the screen is built around Echelon's own classes, which need a membership, and it needs mains power. If you want a screen bike, the Peloton has stronger backing; if you don't, the Yesoul does the riding part for far less.