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Best balance bikes: teach your toddler or preschooler to ride with confidence
Which are the best balance bikes to help toddlers to learn the cycling basics? Our testers put the UK's top balance bikes through their paces to bring you our pick of 2024's best models.
By Poppy O'Neill | Last updated Feb 15, 2024
Balance bikes are small bicycles without pedals. They allow children as young as 18 months to learn to balance and steer by propelling the bike forward and lifting their feet up to glide when ready. Whether you’re looking for a garden toy, a nursery-run solution or something hard-wearing for off-road family trails, the choosing the best balance bike for your toddler will hugely impact their first experience of cycling.
As parents, we know the importance of getting kids outdoors - it helps burn off energy, builds their social and developmental skills and it's brilliant for mental health too. With the cost of living putting a squeeze on many of our budgets right now, we all want to know that we're investing our money wisely. That's why we've spent hours writing and researching our round-ups of Mumsnetters' favourite outdoor play equipment. From the best trampolines and the best paddling pools for the kids, to the best hammocks for you to relax in, we're on hand to help you make the most of your garden this summer.
What's more, we know balance bikes make a brilliant Christmas gift for a 2-year-old or 3-year-old, so we're keeping this page updated with the very best Black Friday deals on balance bikes this festive season.
But which balance bike is best? There are lots of different options out there from cheap and cheerful to high-spec and built-to-last. If you only have one child and know that you’ll only need a balance bike for a short time then a cheaper option might be best, but if you have more than one child it can be worth investing in something pricier that can be passed from child to child. A lot of balance bikes also have great resale value so that’s worth keeping in mind too.
Here at Mumsnet we know only too well how important safety is to parents, as well as price, looks, and longevity when it comes to things like bikes, and who better to get genuine information from than the parents in our community. So we’ve scoured the Mumsnet forums for authentic reviews and honest opinions on the best balance bikes to buy for toddlers. Partnering with parent tester Adele, a busy mum of three, we’ve put together our list of the best balance bikes available right now.
Best balance bikes for toddlers and preschoolers at a glance
Best balance bike 2024: Puky LR M 500 | Buy now
Best budget balance bike: Vitus Nippy | Buy now
Best balance bike for toddlers: Micro 2in1 Chopper | Buy now
Best balance bike for building confidence: Banana GT Balance Bike | Buy now
Best convertible balance bike: Trybike Steel 2in1 Balance Trike | Buy now
Best balance bike for 3+ year-olds: Specialized Hotwalk | Buy now
Best height-adjustable balance bike: Strider 12 Sport | Buy now
Best for easy carrying: Hornit AIRO | Buy now
Low seat
Ergonomic saddle
Safety grips
Footboard
No brakes
Price: £99 | Age range: 2+ | Weight: 3kg | Wheel size: 8.4inch | Tyres: Airless
German company Puky make balance bikes with lots of safety and comfort features, which is why Mumsnetters love them. The handlebars have soft grips, and the wheels and steering are ball-bearing operated for a smooth ride. After careful deliberation, the Puky's combination of great design features, toddler-friendly footboard and price make them our pick for the best balance bike to buy in 2024.
You can easily adjust the height of the saddle and handlebars, and the bike itself sits low to the ground, making it easy and comfortable for little ones. There's a footboard too - great for kids who don't feel comfortable with their legs out as they glide.
Incredibly lightweight
Great price
Similar quality to much more expensive bikes
No brakes
Price: £45 | Age range: 3+ | Weight: 1.9kg | Wheel size: 10 inch | Tyres: Airless
After much deliberation, we've chosen the Vitus Nippy as our best budget balance bike for 2024. The lightest of the bikes on our list, the Nippy is great quality where it matters, with tyres that can take any surface in their stride, a robust frame and lightweight construction for the times you'll inevitably need to carry it.
Suitable from age 3, available in seven colours and with an adjustable saddle, this bike will help your child learn to ride with confidence, without breaking the bank. Not bad for under £50.
Trusted brand
Stabiliser feature
Replacement parts available
Lightweight
Looks and feels less like a bicycle than other balance bikes
Price: £100 | Age range: 2-5 years | Weight: 2.88kg | Wheel size: 12 inch | Tyres: Airless
If you're looking for a balance bike with a little extra support for your toddler as they learn, the Micro 2in1 Chopper is perfect. With a choice of 2 small or 1 standard-sized wheel at the back, this bike will help your child transition from a trike to a balance bike and beyond with confidence.
Known and loved by Mumsnetters for their scooters, Micro is a trusted brand that makes high-quality, innovative products. Thanks to this, you'll be able to replace parts if it gets broken, or sell on the Chopper once your child grows out of it.
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Adjustable handlebars and seat
Light aluminium frame
Banana-shaped step through design makes getting on and off easy
Just 2.9kg
Handlebars can turn the wrong way round
Price: £70 | Age range: 2-5 years | Weight: 2.9kg | Tyres: Pneumatic
With its unique banana-shaped step-through design, this bike is made to increase kids' confidence. There's no wobbling on one leg to get on the bike, so they can get going quickly.
The bike takes less than 10 minutes to set up, then kids from age 2-5 can begin the fun. With an ultra-comfy, ergonomic seat and bouncy air-filled tyres, they're in for a smooth ride.
Trybike Steel 2-in-1 Balance Trike
Easy to pump tyres
Converts into a balance bike
Sturdy without being overly heavy
Easy to manoeuvre
Can be used indoors or out
Takes up quite a lot of space
Expensive
As a trike it can’t be hooked onto a buggy
Price: £130 | Age: 15 months - 6 years | Weight: 6.3kg | Wheel size: 12 inch | Tyres: Pneumatic
Tested by MNHQ: Read our full Trybike Steel 2 in 1 Balance Trike review
With insta-ready looks combined with high quality materials, the Trybike is suitable from 15 months to 6 years, thanks to its trike-to-balance bike conversion kit.
Our tester Bethan found the set-up a bit tricky, and as a trike it takes up quite a lot of room in her hallway, but as a balance bike this is a really great option that'll last.
Related: The best toddler toys, as recommended by Mumsnetters
Great quality bike
Available in 4 cool colourways
Made by bicycle experts
No brakes
Price: £149 | Age range: 18 months - 4 years | Weight: Not stated | Wheel size: 12 inch | Tyres: Airless
Specialized say the Hotwalk is designed for "less crashes and more smiles" to help kids get on two wheels with confidence. The bike has a low standover and 12" wheels, so it's a great size for a 3 or 4 year old to get their bearings.
Using the same technology and expert know-how they apply to their range of adult bikes, Specialized have designed a fun, user-friendly and high-performance bike. The standard Hotwalk retails at £149, and they've also developed what might just be the ultimate balance bike - the £999 Hotwalk Carbon. Eye-wateringly expensive toddler bikes aside, we think the Hotwalk is a great bike for parents looking to purchase a high-quality alternative to the Islabikes Rothan or Frog Tadpole.
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Super lightweight
Quick and easy to adjust on the go
Comfortable footrest
Foam rubber tyres aren’t idea for rough surfaces
Price: £90 | Age range: 18 months (with an inside leg of 30.5cm) to five years (with an inside leg of 50.8cm) | Weight: 2.9kg | Wheel size: 12 inch | Tyres: EVA polymer
Tested by MNHQ: Read our full Strider 12 Sport review
One of the lightest bikes on the market, the Strider 12 Sport is the ultimate no-fuss option. Capable of being hooked onto the back of even the smallest of lightweight buggies, you may also find that you soon ditch said buggy because the Strider's weight and size allow toddlers as young as 18 months to get going quickly.
Special features include quick-release adjusters on the seat and handlebars to make adapting the bike as your child grows really simple. There’s also a handy footrest for your child once they learn to coast and puncture-proof foam tyres that won’t need any maintenance. The Strider is designed for toddlers of 18 months all the way up to kids of 5 years so you’ll get a lot of use out of it before it gets outgrown.
Super lightweight frame
6 vibrant colours to choose from
Grip-taped footrests for comfortable freewheeling
Allen key needed to adjust seat
Price: £139 | Age range: Suitable from 18 months to 5 years old | Weight: 2.95kg | Wheel size: 12 inch | Tyres: Pneumatic
Tested by MNHQ: Read our in-depth Hornet AIRO review
Sleek and incredibly lightweight, the Hornit AIRO is super portable and easy to carry when your child wants to take a break from riding. With air-filled tyres for a smoother ride and contoured foot rests for comfy freewheeling your toddler will be away in no time with this balance bike.
Available in a choice of six bright, funky colours, the Hornit AIRO looks great and thanks to the height-adjustable seat it’ll last your child for years. There’s even a lifetime warranty available for the bike so it’s a great choice for families who want to be able to pass it on from one child to the next.
What is a balance bike?
A balance bike is a kids' bike with no cranks or pedals. It allows a child to ride on two wheels without pedals so that they can learn to balance before moving on to full pedal cycling.
What age is best for a balance bike?
Children can start using balance bikes when they’re as young as 18 months old. They tend to last up to the age of three or four, sometimes even five.
Are balance bikes worth it?
While some people would argue that it’s better to dive straight into a standard bike with stabilizers, we think that balance bikes are absolutely worth it and a great place to start learning bike riding skills.
They can be used from as young as 18 months and teach toddlers how to balance and move on a bike without the added complication of using the pedals. They’ll also build their confidence and learn bike control which will make the transition to a full pedal bike almost seamless when they’re older.
What to consider when buying a balance bike
Weight: Lightweight is key. Even a kilogram of difference between bikes could represent a significant proportion of your child’s body weight, which could make the bike difficult to ride and negatively impact their first impression of cycling.
You want to make sure your bike doesn’t weigh more than 30 percent of your child’s bodyweight so that they're not forced to work too hard or forced to become frustrated. 3kg tends to be a good marker for most toddlers.
Also bear in mind that you’ll probably have to lift your child’s bike in and out of the car boot or, at the very least, carry it should they get tired, so you’ll thank yourself later for going that little bit lighter.
Size: Cycling UK advises that your child should be able to sit comfortably on the balance bike, knees slightly bent and feet flat on the floor.
You’ll want to check the size of the tyres to ensure that the bike you’re getting your 18-month-old isn’t better suited to a four-year-old. Most start at 12 inches and stop at 16, although you can find bigger or smaller models if needed.
We’d always advise that you take a close-up look at the bike you’re interested in at a local bicycle shop or high street retailer, if only to check that it fits your child.
You may also want to go for a balance bike with decent adjustability so it can grow with your child, ideally spanning two to three years. Some bikes allow both the seat and the handlebars to be fitted to size so you’ll also want to check how easy it is to adjust them.
Wheels: There are two common types: EVA foam or pneumatic rubber tyres with an inner tube.
EVA polymer wheels are better suited to smaller riders who tend to stick to pavements and are less likely to need servicing, while pneumatic tyres are generally more comfortable and have better traction on bumpy ground.
Steering: You want to be sure that the handlebar is responsive and unlikely to need a great shove to get turning. To help with this, look for ball bearings in the hubs of the balance bike’s wheels.
Brake: A handbrake is an optional choice on a balance bike as a child will instinctively use their feet to stop, at least at first.
However, many balance bikes do offer rear brakes, which could be helpful as kids develop into speedy riders much later on. This could also go a long way to aiding their confidence and also protecting their shoes.
Quality of build: Make sure that the bike you end up with is sturdy and finished to a high standard. This could indicate how well it’s built, how durable it is and how much maintenance it needs.
The saddle should also, ideally, be in a ‘scoop’ shape to deal with the amount of weight targeted towards the centre of the saddle and to aid positioning.
Cost: Balance bikes start at around £20 and go into the hundreds which means that you'll find a fairly decent bike for most budgets.
Consider how often your child is likely to use it, how long you'd want it to last and if it could be resold later or passed down to a younger sibling.
Related: The best ride-on toys for young children
What’s the best balance bike to buy?
Striking a balance between great quality, thoughtful details and price, we've picked the Puky LR M 500 as our best balance bike for 2024.
How we choose our recommendations
Parent testers
We asked real parents to put some of the UK's top balance bikes through their paces, letting their young children try out each model and taking detailed notes on a number of points:
Assembly
Weight
Price
Safety features
Recommendations from real parents
Before recommending the best balance bikes for toddlers we spent time searching through our Mumsnet forums to find the balance bikes that come most highly recommended by the parents in our community.
Expert guidance
We always ensure our information represents the latest recommendations from experts so you can rely on it, and we research each product thoroughly to ensure it follows the latest expert advice and stands up to scrutiny.
Consumer feedback
We also scour the internet, leaving no stone unturned to check out real reviews from customers who have bought the products themselves and given both positive and negative feedback.
Finally, we cross-referenced all of the above information to find the best balance bikes for toddlers that had won the most accolades and recommendations across the board to bring you a selection of the best ones at various price points. We think there’s something here for everyone.
About the author
Poppy O'Neill is a Content Editor at Mumsnet and a mother of two. She's been researching and reviewing baby and child products for 2 years, with a particular focus on baby essentials, toys and books for toddlers and outdoor play equipment. From potties to paddling pools and bunk beds to bedtime stories, she loves to deep-dive into research and find the best products out there.
Poppy is also an award-winning, best-selling children's and parenting author of books such as Don't Worry, Be Happy, The Extraordinary Book That Makes You Feel Happy and Mother Power. She specialises in children's mental health and her books are used by therapists, teachers and SENCOs across the UK. She won a The Week Junior Book Award in 2023, her books have been translated into several languages and she's been featured in The Guardian, The Sunday Times and The Sun.
Why you should trust us
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