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There are so many exercise bikes on the market today that it is sometimes difficult to come to a conclusion. Honestly, which is the best stationary bike for home? Well, that’s what we wanted to find out ourselves.
Before we start going on about the best stationary bikes, why not know tidbits about them first? And find out why anyone would actually need such a bike.
Why Stationary Exercise Bike?
We use stationary exercise bikes or simply, exercise bikes to get a good amount of cardio and muscle exercise for our bodies. We all know that cycling is one of the best ways of performing the cardio workout. And as the stationary exercise bikes provide the same workout as the bicycles (sometimes even more), the user will get an excellent amount of cardio workout.
The normal stationary exercise bikes provide improvements to some targeted muscles. They are the legs, calves, glutes, lower abdomen, and you already know; the cardio. Some of the exercise bikes have additional features in them with which they can provide more exercise to many other parts of the body.
Types of stationary exercise bikes
Upright bikes can become the perfect choice for home use. If you want something to burn up your calories while making the pedaling seem easy peasy then upright is your pick.
Upright bikes can engage more of the muscles on your body than recumbent bikes for example. Abs, glutes, arms, neck, and other crucial part of the body are targeted when you start pedaling on an upright bike.
There’s nothing in the exercise bike world that gives comfort quite like a recumbent exercise bike. Large and wide seat, good paddings, and a strong backrest are the things that differentiate this bike type from the rest.
The intensity of exercise of the recumbent bikes is also a bit less than the other exercise bikes. Their resistance system is made lighter than the others.
This is why the recumbent exercise bikes are suggested by doctors for elders or people with back or leg problems. As most of the weight is taken by the seat, the pressure on the legs of the users becomes less.
Indoor Cycling Exercise Bike
You cannot ride anything better for getting a killer look than an indoor cycling bike. They are also known as spin exercise bikes. Indoor cycling bikes provide the most intense and vigorous cycling exercise.
If you are looking forward to building such a killer body or you are a professional who needs to stay fit always then you are perfect for indoor cycling bike.
Other than these types of stationary exercise bikes, there are also some other types among them. Such as foldable exercise bikes, mini exercise bikes, semi-upright exercise bike, semi-recumbent exercise bike, etc.
The Top 10 Home Stationary Bikes
- Marcy ME709 – Best Overall Exercise Bike
- Yosuda Spin Bike – Best Indoor Cycling Bike for Home
- Assault AirBike – Best Home Air Bike
- Schwinn 130 – Best High-end Upright Exercise Bike
- DeskCycle – Best Mini Exercise Bike for Home
- Exerpeutic 1200 – Best Cheapest Upright Bike
- SHF SF-B1002 – Best Flywheel Spinning Cycle
- Pooboo Indoor Cycle– Best Durable for Home Spin Bike
- Schwinn 270 – Best Console Recumbent Bike
- Marcy Fan Bike – Best Affordable Bike for full body workout
1. Marcy ME-709 recumbent exercise bike
This is one of the best stationary bikes for home use. This bike is good in every way possible. Its look, ability, strength, price, etc. all are good.
First of all, this is a recumbent type exercise bike. So it has a large seat and backrest. And its pedals are placed a bit ahead of the seat.
It’s made from strong 1 gauge steel tubing. In addition to that, it has powder coated finishing for making it extra strong and can survive through tough outer damages.
The seat of this Marcy ME 709 is large and ergonomically designed so that it can give comfort to anyone who sits on it. Besides, the seat is prepared with high-density foam to be comfortable. Like the seat, the backrest and the handlebars are also covered with the comfortable foam.
Moreover, all three of them; seat, backrest, and handlebars are adjustable. There’s a knob at the bottom frame with which you can choose the most suitable position of the seat for you.
To provide a hardcore exercise to the users, this machine uses the magnetic resistance system along with 8 levels of adjustable tension levels. Tension can be controlled by the tension adjustment knob.
The LCD monitor that is acting as the console of this exercise bike shows the time, speed, distance, odometer and the amount of calories burnt during using the bike.
The pedals of this bike are made counterbalanced and super supportive for the users. They also have an adjustable safety strap to hold on to feet without causing any accidental slipping.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 55.5 x 25 x 37.5 inches
- Bike weight: 61 pounds
- Resistance system: Magnetic resistance system
- Display: LCD monitor which shows time, distance, odometer, speed, burnt calories
- Max User Weight: 300 lbs.
- Warranty: 2 years limited warranty
2. YOSUDA L-001A indoor cycling stationary exercise bike
This is one of the indoor cycling exercise bikes or spin exercise bikes I was talking about earlier. You already know that they provide the hardest exercise from all the other types of exercise bikes.
In the indoor cycling bikes, the flywheels weigh a lot. For instance, the weight of the flywheel of this bike is 35 pounds. Flywheel is the place where resistance is first produced and applied. YOSUSA uses friction resistance by the way.
Now, after resistance, drive system comes in line. Drives system is the connecting mechanism of the flywheel with the pedals. In the case of this YOSUDA spin bike, belt drive system is used which offers a quiet operation.
As for the pedals, the bike has adjustable toe cage for safety. Though the seat does not have much comfort equipment except for the pads, it is adjustable in all four ways. The handlebars, however, have a non-slip grip and also adjustable in two ways.
The console shows metrics like time, speed, distance, odometer, and burnt calories. But it has an additional tablet bracket for workout and entertainment at the same time.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 40.2 x 21.6 x 46.1 inches
- Bike weight: 68 pounds
- Resistance system: Friction resistance system
- Display: LCD monitor which shows time, distance, odometer, speed, burnt calories
- Max User Weight: 270 pounds
- Warranty: 1-year replacement warranty
3. Assault AirBike exercise trainer
After the first two regular types of exercise bikes, we have brought to you a different type of exercise bike. It’s neither upright nor spin bike. But technically it falls into the category of indoor cycling bikes based on its performance.
This bike doesn’t have flywheel or any resistance system like the regular exercise bikes. Instead of a flywheel, this bike has a fan. And it uses the naturally produced air resistance system which by the way has an infinite amount of resistance.
Though the exercise bikes are an excellent lower body exerciser, this one is also an upper body exerciser. And its ability to provide both upper and lower body exercise makes it a full body exerciser.
It has handlebars that can move like that of the elliptical. You can even stand on the bike while pedaling and use these dual-action handlebars to get a good upper body exercise.
This bike has a rich console also. It shows time, speed, distance, RPM, calories, watts. Moreover, it also has motivational programs like Tabata intervals to help build up stamina and strength and also monitor heart rate.
The seat is adjustable in the four directions as well as supports tilting adjustment. So it’s adjustable in a total of six ways.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 49 x 22 x 51 inches
- Bike weight: 95.64 pounds
- Resistance system: Air resistance system
- Display: High contrast monitor shows time, speed, distance, watts, RPM, calories
- Max User Weight: 350 pounds
- Warranty: 5 years on frames and 2 years on non-wear parts
4. Schwinn 130 stationary upright exercise bike
We have provided you with a recumbent exercise bike, an indoor cycling bike, and an air bike. Now you need to know about one of the best exercise bikes for home, the Schwinn 130 stationary upright exercise bike.
This Schwinn 130 upright exercise bike is a middle-class exercise bike ideal for the home. It is not that expensive and also neither cheap at all. But it has some great features that you will not find easily in the other exercise bikes at this price.
The eddy current brake resistance system is used in this bike. And this resistance system is further divided into 22 adjustable levels. We discuss about eddy brake later in the article. For now, just know that this resistance is the smoothest and the quietest resistance system available.
It has a decent 13-pound weighing flywheel. Although it is not as heavy as that of the flywheels of the indoor cycling bikes still it is more than enough for an upright exercise bike. Moreover, there are 22 workout programs and you can track your performance using Goal Track.
The console is extremely rich. It is a dual console. The upper part shows time, speed, distance, RPM, calories, heart rate, etc. and the lower region has the control. There are also fan, media holder, speaker, and USB charger with the console.
As other additional features, the bike has an adjustable seat, handlebars, bottle holder, floor levelers, and transportation wheels.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 41 x 22 x 58 inches
- Bike weight: 69 pounds
- Resistance system: Eddy current brake resistance
- Display: Dual Track display monitor shows time, speed, distance, calories, resistance level, RPM, heart pulse rate, etc.
- Max User Weight: 300 pounds
- Warranty: 90 days labor, 1 year electrical, 2 years mechanical, and 10 years on the frames
5. DeskCycle mini stationary exercise bike
Don’t think you can make time for a little cardio exercise? Too busy to workout? Then DeskCycle is the perfect choice for you. This is a mini exercise bike.
These bikes are ideal for not only home, but also can be used at office or any other place. In fact, you can even use them from under your office desk or study desk.
Despite its small size, it’s not falling behind the regular exercise bikes. Just like the big exercise bikes, this mini bike has a magnetic resistance system of 8 levels of adjustable tension. You will get more than twice the resistance than the first level in the final.
With this bike, you’ll get additional features unlike the bikes from other manufacturers. For example, you’ll get the Kensington slot. While the monitor of other mini bikes is attached with its body, this one has an adjustable position for the console so that you see it from above the desk while the bike is under it. The mini but rich console shows the time, speed, distance, scan and the amount of calories burnt by using this mini bike.
Moreover, the console keeps the workout record of 16 hours. It also supports online apps to sync your workouts for further evaluation.
The mini exercise bikes are also both upper and lower body exerciser as the pedals work for both hands and feet.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 24 x 20 x 10 inches
- Resistance system: Magnetic resistance system
- Tension adjustment: 8 levels
- Product weight: 23 pounds
- Display: LCD monitor shows time, speed, distance, burned calories, scan
6. Exerpeutic 1200 folding upright stationary exercise bike
Although the manufactures of this bike and the previous bike are the same and from the first look they also seem similar but they are not. The previous bike was a semi-recumbent exercise bike for home and this one is an upright stationary bike for home.
This bike also slightly falls in the category of the semi-upright bikes. You can see that the seat of this bike is amazingly large. And way larger than the seat of normal upright bikes. The height of this seat is also adjustable by the user. And it has cushions for extra comfort.
The X frame of this bike is designed in such a way that you can fold it easily to store it at any small palace. Besides, it is very easy to get on and off the bike as a result of the frames. The design is also very strong on this bike. It can bear 300 pounds of maximum user weight which much higher than the number we see in these types of exercise bikes.
For bringing versatility in the workouts and make them more challenging, this exercising machine has magnetic resistance system. The resistance system is further divided into 8 adjustable levels of tension.
There is a tension adjustment knob just below the console. And right below the knob, there is an accessory holder. The display console shows the time, speed, distance, scan, heat pulse rate and the amount of calories burnt during working out with this bike.
With the handlebars, there are impulse sensors installed ergonomically that measures the heart pulse rate of the users.
Top Specs
- Product Dimensions: 31 x 19 x 46 inches
- Bike weight: 42.8 pounds
- Resistance system: Magnetic resistance system
- Display: Shows time, speed, distance, heart pulse rate, burned calories
- Max User Weight: 300 pounds
- Warranty: 1-year limited warranty
7. Sunny Health & Fitness SF B1002 indoor cycling stationary bike
How about we turn to the most intensive exercisers? You got it! This one is an indoor cycling bike best for home.
First of all, I’d like to start with the flywheel of this bike. You’ve seen previously that some bike weight around 40-50 pounds. But in case of this indoor cycling bike, we have the flywheel that alone weighs 49 pounds.
In addition to such heavy flywheel, there is the friction resistance system. (Read buying guide below to know more about the friction resistance system). And on top of the resistance system, there is the micro-adjustable tension system. Push down the knob and it’ll work like an emergency brake.
To make the operation of this bike quieter, the belt drive system is used. It also helps the pedals to provide a smooth pedaling experience.
Although you will not get a large and padded and soft comfortable seat with this indoor cycling bike or any other indoor cycling bike, you will get a 4-way adjustable seat in this bike. Not just the seat, the multi-position handlebars of this bike is also adjustable by the user.
If you’re looking for console then you’ll be disappointed as there is no console in this bike.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 44 x 20 x 44 inches
- Bike weight: 113.4 pounds
- Resistance system: Friction resistance system
- Display: No console
- Max User Weight: 275 pounds
8. Pooboo indoor cycling stationary exercise bike
How about another spinning cycle? Well, we’ve found Pooboo which certainly deserves a place among the best stationary bikes for home use.
The Pooboo is pretty hardcore in terms of its resistance, solid in its structure, and durable thanks to a steel body. Heavy flywheel is only expected in an indoor cycling bike. Pooboo is no different having a 35-pound flywheel.
In addition to that heavy flywheel, there is the friction resistance system which is micro-adjustable and quiet belt drive system used to provide the best experience to the users. The resistance also has an emergency brake for stopping the flywheel at once in case of any necessity.
The padded bicycle seat of this bike is adjustable in 4 different ways and the multi-grip handlebars are adjustable in two ways. This seat can support up to 400 pounds of maximum user weight.
LCD console helps to show you the time, speed, distance, scan, and burned calories. Below the console, there is a media holder that can easily make room for any device of the size of a tablet.
Besides, this bike has a bottle holder to keep its user hydrated during the intense exercise. And to move the machine from one place to another, there are two small transportation wheels.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 43.8 x 21.6 x 48.1 inches
- Bike weight: 75 pounds
- Resistance system: Friction resistance system
- Display: LCD monitor shows time, speed, distance, scan and burned calories
- Max User Weight: 400 pounds
9. Schwinn 270 recumbent exercise bike
This Schwinn 270 is one of the best recumbent exercise bikes for home. Although it is a bit costly, trust me when I say it is worth every buck. With this bike, you can bring down the whole gym in your home.
There’s a pretty good competition going on between Schwinn 270 and the Nautilus R614. But, I can tell you that the Schwinn 270 has a better functionality and is a more advanced bike.
This bike also has the eddy current brake system but with 25 levels of adjustable tension. This resistance system is assisted by the high speed and high inertia and perimeter weighted flywheel.
The seat of this bike is large and soft and it is mounted on top of a sliding rail which makes it easier to adjust to its optimum position. The backrest with the seat is also large and ventilated.
Now the most important part of this bike; the console. Its console is a DualTrack blue backlit LCD monitor. Firstly, it shows different workout statistics like time, speed, distance, amount of calories burnt while exercising, and the heart pulse rate.
In the console, there are 29 workout programs that will come to you as installed. Among them, 1 is a quick start, 2 fitness test, 4 custom, 9 heart rate control programs and 12 are profiles.
Moreover, this machine can support a lot of apps. It has Bluetooth connectivity and syncs with free Schwinn trainer app as well as other apps like the RideSocial app for virtual cycling experience.
Furthermore, there are speakers, adjustable fan, USB port, media or book holder, MP3 port, etc. come with the console.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 64 x 27 x 50 inches
- Bike weight: 93 pounds
- Resistance system: Eddy current brake resistance
- Display: DualTrack blue backlit monitor shows time, speed, distance, calories, and heart pulse rate, etc.
- Max User Weight: 300 pounds
10. Marcy Air-1 upright fan exercise bike
As our last product in the list of best stationary bike for home, we are bringing you another one of the air bikes. This time it is the Marcy Air-1 fan bike.
Their additional benefit is the infinite resistance in these bikes. Tension will automatically increase or decrease depending on your pedaling speed. There is another bonus benefit with the air bikes. You will get a free fan for cooling your body in addition to applying resistance.
This air bike is also a full body exerciser. The handlebars of this bike work simultaneously with the pedals to provide upper body exercise. So, your hands and legs will be together in a constant pedaling motion which will result in a total body workout.
Although there are no preset programs installed in the console of this bike, there is a high-quality LCD monitor that shows the time, speed, distance, odometer, RPM and the amount of calories burnt during workouts.
Top Specs
- Dimensions: 45 x 25 x 47.5 inches
- Bike weight: 79 pounds
- Resistance system: Air resistance system
- Display: LCD monitor shows time, speed, distance, RPM, burned calories and odometer
- Max User Weight: 300 pounds
- Warranty: 2 years limited warranty
Buying guide
Before you buy any of the stationary bikes, you need to know some things in detail about them. Or else, you might pick up something that will not suit your needs.
Resistance system:
The resistance system is very important for stationary bikes. Without a good resistance system, you will not get any amount of good exercise.
Magnetic resistance
This is the most common resistance system used in exercise bikes or other exercising equipment like elliptical and many more.
The magnetic resistance system works with the help of magnet and flywheel. When the magnet attracts the moving flywheel more, resistance increases and vice versa.
This resistance is quiet and smooth and the cost is also less to use it.
Friction resistance
This one works using friction. Hence the name “friction resistance”.
To produce friction, there is a friction pad or felt pad or wool pad kept in contact with the flywheel. When force is applied on the flywheel using the pad, friction is produced which eventually results in resistance.
Manufacturers are trying their best to make it quiet but still, it is not silent because of the friction. You can say that some are very quiet but still not at the absolute level.
Besides, the pad will eventually wear out because of the constant friction and you have to replace it with a new one.
Eddy current brake system
This is the new coming resistance system whose demand is increasing day by day in the market. Its working process is a bit complex so I will just give you the main gist of its procedure.
Eddy current brake resistance is more improved magnetic resistance which works with the help of current, flywheel and magnet.
The result of this complex procedure is very sweet. It gives the smoothest and most silent resistance experience and made it the best resistance system of this time.
Air resistance system
Well, this one also has high demand but it is still a unique one. Its working procedure is most simple. And you are already aware of that. Unlike the typical exercise bikes, this one does not have any flywheel. Instead, there is a spinning fan that provides resistance depending on how hard you pedal.
Flywheel
This is the prime source of resistance in the exercise bikes. If there is no flywheel then there is no way of producing any sort of resistance.
The main job of the flywheel is to be heavy so pedaling can be hard. They are categorized from this perspective.
The three major types of exercise bikes; the upright, the recumbent and the indoor cycling bikes have flywheels of different weight ranges.
In the recumbent bikes, the weight is lowest like around 10 pounds or less. Then in the upright bikes, the weight of the flywheel is from 10 pounds to 20-25 pounds sometimes. And in case of the spin bikes, weight of the flywheel is most. It’s usually from 25-30 pounds to around 50 pounds.
Drive system
In the operation of the exercise bikes, the drive system plays a vital role. The drive system is the connecting component of the flywheel and pedals.
There are two types of drives system mostly used in the exercise bikes.
Chain drive system
You can know from the name that this kind of drive system uses chain to connect the flywheel with the pedals. As the chain is made of metal, there is a possibility that it will make some noise.
Belt drive system
In this system, a belt is used instead of a chain to create a connection between the pedals and the flywheel. This one does not make any noise. You can get a smooth as well as silent pedaling experience from it.
Seat
If the seat is not comfortable enough then using the bike will become impossible.
The seat of the recumbent bikes are and should be large and comfortable. Sometimes they have an extra foam to be extra comfortable. The recumbent bikes also have a backrest. And this backrest of some bikes are padded or sometimes ergonomically made to be comfortable.
In the upright exercise bike, the seat is sometimes large and comfortable and sometimes just a padded seat.
And in the indoor cycling exercise bikes, normally there are not extra comforting features. They have a normal seat like bicycles.
When considering seat of any exercise bikes, you should get something that is easily adjustable. In addition, the best choice is no doubt the ones that adjust in all four directions.
Console
The work of the console in the exercise bike is to show the different workout statistics of the user. But now, the console does many more things. Some of them have preset workout programs installed in it.
Some of the consoles have control of different features of their respective bike.
And in some consoles, there are some additional features like Bluetooth connectivity, fan, speaker, media or book holder, several types of ports and many other things.
Other…
Although I have covered almost everything about the exercise bikes, there are some additional features found in them. They include foldability, bottle holder, transportation wheels, dual-action handlebars, multiple sets of handlebars, floor stabilizers, etc.
Frequently Asked Questions about Stationary Bikes
- Which exercise cycle is best for home?
It depends on your need to be honest more than anything else. Indoor, upright, recumbent, or even a fan bike can work great at home.
- Will a stationary bike keep me fit?
Yes! That’s what exercise bikes are for. If you can make the time to hop onto a bike regularly then you can expect good outcome in a very short time.
- How long is ideal to ride an exercise bike for a beginner?
It is better to start off easy if you’ve never tried an exercise bike or if you had a big gap and only restarting exercising. 15-20 minutes in the first week (with 5-10 minutes interval if needed) should get you back to speed.
- Can the seniors use any type of exercise bike?
We do not recommend that. Try using recumbent stationary bikes for seniors. That is safest and most comfortable choice for the elder people.
- Is there any alternative to an exercise bike?
Treadmill, rowing machine, elliptical trainer, etc. are all good alternative options to an exercise bike for home.
Decision Time!
Stationary bikes are awesome if you wanna workout at the comfort of your home. Hands down; these machines can help you to reach any fitness goals you might. And now that you know some of the best stationary bikes for home use, there’s nothing stopping you from getting that killer look you’ve always desired.
There you go! I hope that you can make the right purchase and start having a good cardio exercise at the comfort of your home. Bye for now.
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