The best children’s bikes to buy for Christmas

For a quick buy to get your kids riding on two wheels, you won’t find much cheaper than this Evo 10-inch. So-called because the wheel size is 10 inches. The smaller size is ideal for younger kids trying to keep up with older siblings or little ones.

Review: "Quality product, easy to build and my boy loves it."

There’s some clever thinking from the cycling superstore, Wiggle’s brand Vitus. Not only is the frame and fork made out of magnesium for weight saving, meaning this whole bike weighs only 3.2kg, but the hole in the frame is a very nice carry handle. There are also integrated footrests for the little ones when they’re gliding along, or you’re pushing them up a hill.

Review: "Got the red version of this for my son who was 20 months old at the time. He took to it straight away. He still loves it at almost 3.5 years old, even though he's also riding a pedal bike these days. Nice and light for those days when you end up having to carry it home..."

Tyres that match the handlebar grippers and saddle make this little balance bike, in adorable colour options, a firm favourite with us. Made out of high tensile steel, it comes in at over 4kg; while not the heaviest, it’s not the lightest either. Kenda tyres are solid and should withstand most of what the road throw at them.

A couple of things on this balance bike which others do not have. The step-through frame offers riders of all sizes the ability to ride. No doubt kids will even try and scoot with it too. The addition of a rear v-brake offers some stopping power. Our experience, though, is that these are relatively ineffective on balance bikes as kids tend to have two versions of grip on the brakes, on and off.

Review: "Very happy with this purchase. My 3.5-year-old son loves the bike. The store even put the bike together for me! My only regret is not finding this bike earlier to have gotten more use when he was younger. However, I am happy with going the balance bike route, he is learning to balance well before moving on to the pedal bike. Though the break is not essential (he has not explored using it so much yet), I like that he will learn the concept of the hand brake before moving onto a pedal bike with a hand break. This brake feature is very hard to find in a balance bike. I also like that there is a place to rest the feet when gliding rather than having to awkwardly hold legs and feet out."

We love this cutesy Raleigh bike, and we think that with these colours and looks, you will too. However, in a head-to-head with the Crème Mia above, you may not notice too much difference apart from the saddle and handlebar colours and the paint. Raleigh is a well-established name in the cycling world, and if you like the Crème Mia and it’s not in the sale (as above), you might as well plumb for the Raleigh.

We’re getting to the higher price for balance bikes now, and this from Strider has some reasoning for where the price has come from. Five-spoke wheels give stability and strength, and tool-free adjustments mean you can constantly adjust the bike on the go, not just in the saddle but also in the handlebars. This is handy because, at some point, your little one will ride along, and you’ll think it looks a little small for them… You’ll likely forget to do it at home. Having both the handlebars and seat adjustment elongates how long you can use the bike.

A cutesy design which incorporates our favourite things, ice-creams and doughnuts. These colours match up nicely, and it’s nice to have colour-matching pedals, too. But on to the more boring stuff like specification, a low step frame means your child can get on and off easily. Front and rear calliper brakes give you all the stopping power you should need from little hands, but the steel frame is heavy at over 8kg.

The 6061-t6 aluminium frame is a popular material in adult road bikes. It’s solid and light, making it an ideal option for many road cyclists. Tektro brakes are also something you’ll see used and well-regarded on adult bikes. Add a bumper pack of colour options, and this brand Vitus (from Wiggle) looks like a brilliant buy.

Review: "Bought for son's 4th birthday, he had mastered the balance bike, and after 3 attempts on this bike, he is riding by himself without stabilisers. Seems so much easier to ride than those horrible heavy plastic covered things you might find elsewhere."

You may be familiar with the name Raleigh; you may even have had a Raleigh chopper yourself when you were younger – this POP brings about all those years of kids riding experience to your kids. Oversized handlebars give that chopper feel, and a chainguard and mudguards protect against road spray, plus the stabilisers match the colour scheme nicely. It does come in on the heavier side, though, at over 8kg.

You’ve heard the name, and they cost a bit too. You’ve likely seen many older kids riding around on them and wondered whether they live up to the hype. In short, they are very, very good kids’ bikes. The aluminium frame and forks make the bike lightweight, which is good for you and your little one. Plus, Frog has suitable accessories with kickstands and mudguards too. But, is it really over £100 better than the Vitus? Knuckling down into the tech, it’s identical, the same. The only advantage the Frog brings is its name and its resale value.

You got yourself a real wild child who loves to fall off everything? The Stolen Agent 16” BMX bike is agile, durable, stable and built for skate parks, jumps, pump tracks and more. The contrasting wheels to the paint job look uber cool – however, it is not a bike for family bike rides. Weighing over 10kg will put a lot on your little one’s legs.

Picking up from where its younger sibling left off, what can we say about this that we haven’t told about its smaller counterpart already? This is a very healthy option if you’re moving away from a balance bike to a first pedal bike. Using 6061-t6 aluminium, Tektro v-brakes with a Vee Tire offer grip in all conditions and can handle a bit of mud OK too.

Review: "The bike is very nice. It's lightweight and gives my son enough confidence to ride the bike. He just started riding it on his own with in a day. Bike quality is awesome. Home delivery was quite quick and packaging was also good."

Specialized make bikes for adults across all disciplines, from mountain biking and urban cycling to road riding, so it only seems fitting that they should make a bike for kids, too. At this size and with the components it has on it, it’s well equipped for life beyond stabilisers. But, made from high tensile steel, it comes in at 10kg, and even with a carry handle on the saddle, it’s going to be cumbersome and heavy to carry. However, it’s durable and should see through smaller siblings after the eldest is finished.

Review: "Bought for my son, who is now ready to transition from his balance bike. Great service from Tredz, bike was dispatched quickly and only needed to attach the pedals and straighten the handle bars. Really impressed, thank you!"

Boardman bikes hold the name of Chris Boardman, Team GB’s Olympic Gold Medalist from 1992, Tour de France yellow jersey wearer and active travel activist. This super sleek 16” wheel bike is light, easy to ride, uses geometry from its adult bike range to help kids to ride and has tyres which have low rolling resistance and plenty of grip.

Let’s address the elephant in the room right away. It’s pricy. Cube is a respected German bike brand whose adult bikes are in the professional peloton, so let’s look at what you get for that price to what might set it apart from others. Made from Aluminium Lite 6061, it comes at a whisker over 6kg. The brakes come with a Powermodulator, which stops grabby hands from slamming the brakes on, a Chainlooper is an enclosed chainguard, and Schwalbe tyres offer low roll resistance, superior puncture prevention and all-season grip. A high price but has plenty of durability and resale value.

Mountain bikers and road bikers will know the bike brand Carrera. With this 20” wheel bike, they bring a bit of knowledge from both worlds to deliver a do-anything kids bike. The low step frame allows for easy access and flexibility when it comes to the rough stuff. 7 Shimano gears changed with Revoshift shifters, which means that their grip and twist to change up and down the gears. Not our personal favourite, but Shimano’s quality and durability are nonetheless.

Orbea makes quality bikes, their adult versions are ridden in the Women’s World Tour peloton, and they’re a well-respected brand. This version is a bit hybrid, perfect for getting to and from school and weekend adventures. The front and rear mudguards offer protection from road spray, while the factory-fitted front and rear lights provide visibility in lower light conditions. Add to that the kickstand, and you’ve got a fantastic kids’ bike for a snip over £300—worth considering.

Nifty features in abundance with internal cabling to make cleaning easy but do mean maintenance is a bit more tricky. With a 6061 Aluminium frame, weight is kept low.

Review: "Amazing build and product quality, with first class support and excellent delivery. I will continue to be a loyal customer to Tredz as they have never disappointed!!

We rate the 14” version, and guess what? We rate the 20” too. Weighing around 8.6kg, with an aluminium frame, we also need to mention the paint surrounding it. It’s stunning. A nice finish on this bike makes you wince each time your child drops it on the floor. The Vee Speedster tyres offer an all-weather grip and should see off some mud, but if things get slippy, you’ll need something a bit more knobbly.

Shimano gears, derailleur and shifters offer easy, precise and durable gear changes time after time after time.

Frog will always sell bikes because of the name the brand has built up over the years – however, with the likes of Boardman, Specialised and Orbea getting involved with quality bikes in the kid’s market, they will have to do a lot more to shift bikes, now.

They’re undoubtedly well-specced with Kenda tyres, an 8.15kg 6061 T6 aluminium frame and 8 Shimano gears which are easy to change. For the extra £50 over the Boardman, you get a slightly lighter bike (450g lighter) and mudguards. It’s nip and tuck between whichever you would like.

Review: "This is the 4th frog bike we've purchased. They aren't the cheapest to be fair, but they are well made and built with the understanding that kids need brakes they can reach and pull and light enough for them to pick up and move about. My kids love these bikes and want to ride them all the time. Probably worth the money just to get them out and active."

We’re getting serious now, and this is undoubtedly a bike for a serious mountain biker. BMC has taken geometry cues from their adult mountain bikes to bring this, the Twostroke. 8-speed SRAM gears bring plenty of options for getting up and down those gnarly climbs, while hydraulic disc brakes (on a kids bike?!) offer ultimate stopping power and better modulation than cable drive brakes.

Seeing some of this stuff on a kid’s bike is what you’d expect from range-topping adult bikes, which explains the higher price.