The second question I’ll receive is how much someone should spend on a bike. Or rather, its usually the first question that I ask others when they ask me about where to find a bike. If you’re looking for a used hybrid bike to just get onto two wheels, then usually around $300 or $400 is a decent place to start. But if you’re buying used for that amount, you should expect to be taking the bike in for a tune-up that’ll run you another $100 plus parts.

So in my totally honest opinion, going used for a hybrid bike generally isn’t THE BEST option. Bikes like the Trek FX start new at about $500 to $600 and will often include the first year or two of servicing. Plus you know you’re getting the right sized bike, and you can select from one or two options. I figure, if you’re going to spend $400 plus $100 on a used bike plus service, you may as well spend $600 on a brand new bike thats yours and only yours.  Right now however, during Covid, bikes in that $500-$1000 sweet spot are actually a little scarce so you may need to do some shopping.

If you’re looking into getting a new or used road or mountain bike, that number starts to go up quickly. Typically decent used road or mountain bikes will start at around $1000. If you have any questions on that specifically, feel free to leave them in the comments!

Also, if you’re looking for a used road or triathlon bike and debating your options, I wrote a really great piece on what to look for in a used triathlon bike that probably no one read, so check that out for way more detail!