The 10 Best Electric Bikes
Special Honors
Rocky Mountain Powerplay Series These don't have the futuristic appearance of other luxury ebikes, but they are more focused on sport performance and are built with a plethora of powerful components. They come with massive batteries and fancy options like carbon fiber frames and 4-piston braking systems. They're also relatively adjustable and are built to ride for many, many miles without any of the hardware failing. bikes.com
Cannondale Electric Cannondale is a producer of fine, competition-quality bikes, and their e-bikes are as well-made as their traditional selection. Their best options offer an extra-low center of gravity, rock-solid frame, and especially agile controls. cannondale.com
Riese and Muller These are some seriously top-quality bikes; they both look and perform better than nearly anything else on the market. The company's also recently updated some of its smaller and less-costly models with all-terrain components. None of their products come cheap, but they truly are some of the best. r-m.de
Editor's Notes
November 02, 2020:
This category consists of mountain bikes, so the assumption is that the user has plans for their bike beyond riding to and from work. That's why higher-power models have been favored, with the 750-watt DJ HE004 as one of the best. There are quite a few 500-watt options, but they aren't all created equal. The Speedrid 500W can reach unnecessary speeds, but is very heavy. Conversely, the Macwheel Wrangler favors range over speed.
But let's not forget that these are bikes, meant to be pedaled. The top choice is the 24-speed Speedrid 36V because, when ridden without the motor, it's the best bike, and has enough power to reach 20 mph, which is the top speed allowed if you're taking this on the road in the US.
It's really about what you want this bike for. If your plan is to use the pedal-assist at all times in order to get where you're going faster, you could go with something like the NCM Prague, which isn't as powerful but has a great range, or the NCM Moscow, which is pricey but has more power than the Prague. If you plan to ride manually most of the time and just use the motor for a little kick to get you up tough hills, then the Speedrid 500W, Ecotric Fat Tire, and Ancheer Pro, while not being the top of the line, all have features that benefit riders taking on outdoor trails.
One last feature to mention is the ability to fold up a bike for compact storage. The Cliensy Lithium and Ancheer Folding both have this ability, with the Ancheer Folding being the more lightweight of the two, an important consideration if you plan to pick it up and carry it into the office each day after riding to work.
October 04, 2019:
You can spend a few hundred or several thousand on an electric mountain bike, depending on how long your rides will be, how much power you want, and how smooth you want your experience to be. Ancheer, Merax, and Rattan make some excellent models that are perfectly reliable, though their gears may not shift as smoothly and they may not work as consistently well as those from bigger names. Models like the NCM Prague and DJ HE004 are solidly in the middle of the pack price-wise, though the NCM isn't nearly as powerful as the DJ. In fact, the DJ offers more performance than almost anything else. If you're going for an attractive choice as well as highly dependable and efficient drivetrain, consider the Grace MX II. It's a fantastic machine, but its price tag may put off some potential buyers.
As with any bike, whether motorized or not, proper safety equipment is required, including but not limited to a high-quality helmet, and if you will be taking any intense off-road trips, you should consider getting one that's made for mountain biking. Also, it never hurts to look at upgrading integral transmission components and tires.
October 03, 2018:
Replaced several models because of availability concerns. Bumped the Cyrusher Fat Tire XF660 from #1 spot to #2 after finding the Addmotor Motan M-5800, a marvelous beast of a bike. Updated the Addmotor Motan M-550 with the newer model, the M-560. Removed models that function better as street bikes than they would in off-roading environments.