3 SET YOUR BUDGET
Complete bikes can be roughly divided into six price brackets. Here’s what you can expect to get in each. Remember, cheap doesn’t necessarily mean good value...
SUB-£650
The half-grand mark used to be the starting point for a ‘proper’ MTB, but in recent years it’s risen closer to £650. Spend much less and you’re likely to find compromises have been made with key components (fork, gearing, tyres, brakes) in order to keep the cost down. That’s fine if you only plan to ride gravel tracks or forest roads, but makes for a fairly unpleasant ride on anything more technical.
£650-£1,100
If your budget’s tight, or you’re just starting out, we’d definitely recommend a hardtail. Full-sussers at this price are likely to be let down by poor suspension, underpowered brakes and less-thangrippy tyres. First and foremost, look for a frame that fits you and has good geometry, because this’ll give you a good base for future upgrades. A suspension fork and hydraulic disc brakes are both musts, and a wide handlebar (760mm+) and short stem (35-50mm) will significantly improve the bike’s handling. As you go up in price, look for an airsprung fork (because these can be easily tuned to your weight) and stiffer bolt-through axles in place of quick-release skewers. A single chainring up front paired with a wide-range cassette at the rear (known as a ‘1x’ drivetrain) will give you the same gearing as a double crankset, but will be simpler to use, lighter and less noisy. At this price, you won’t get a high-performance machine, but the best bikes are still a ton of fun to ride.
£1,100-£2,300
Full-suspension trail bikes worth considering start at just over £1,000 (take a look at our test on page 10), although if you stick with a hardtail, you’ll get a better parts specification (‘spec’) for your money. Things to look for include a RockShox, Fox or Marzocchi fork, a 1x12 SRAM NX Eagle or Shimano SLX drivetrain, grippier soft-compound tyres and a dropper seatpost (these let you lower your saddle with the flick of a lever for more manoeuvrability on descents). Better-controlled suspension and more refined parts make these bikes handle a lot better in the rough, even if they still feel a little clunky.
£2,300-£4,000
Unless you’re a hardcore hardtail fan, full-sussers take over in this price bracket. Bikes costing this much should be capable of tackling all but the toughest climbs and most fearsome descents. More specialised machines – crosscountry (XC) race rigs, enduro and downhill (DH) bikes, e-MTBs – start to appear. An increased emphasis on performance brings up-to-date geometry and lighter, more elegant frames, with neater cable routing and integrated protection. Carbon fibre starts to become an option, too. As price increases, you can expect considerably better-damped
suspension, as well as more adjustability. Wheels get lighter and tougher, and rims are wider (on trail/enduro bikes) to support higher-volume tyres. You should get a 1x drivetrain as standard.
£4,000-£6,000
At this point, performance gains start to become more marginal. You’ve got plenty of choice here – not just between an aluminium or carbon frame, but steel (including boutique handmade options) and titanium, too. Forks and shocks jump up another tier, and you can expect big-name parts instead of in-house kit. As you go up in price, you’ll see more and more carbon – bars, cranks, wheels, etc. While this adds bling and can save weight, the difference in ride quality is often negligible.
£6,000+
You’re entering the realm of the ‘superbike’ here. If you’re spending this much, you should have a good idea of what you’re looking for – but don’t buy without checking out our testers’ verdicts first!