The United States is a country of vast and varied landscapes, from the iconic mountains of Colorado to the sunny beaches of Florida. And no matter where you go, there’s one thing which remains constant: cars. But what if we could offer an alternative?
What if we could offer an electric bike as a way for people to explore America’s diverse landscape without polluting it with exhaust fumes or using up petrol? It might just be possible thanks to this new form of transportation.
Electric bikes are quickly gaining popularity in countries such as China and Europe – but they’re yet to take hold in America. This guide will outline everything you need to know about why electric bikes might be your best option for exploring America’s landscape today.
Electric bikes getting cheaper is excellent news for two reasons.
First, it will make them more accessible to people who might not afford the current prices. Second, as electric bikes become more popular, the cost of producing them will go down, meaning that everyone will benefit from the lower prices.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the price of electric bikes and how they might get cheaper in the future.
The Price of Electric Bikes
Many things affect the price of electric bikes.
Batteries
One thing that makes electric bikes more expensive than regular bikes is their batteries. There are currently two types: Lithium-ion (Li-Ion) and Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH). The Li-Ion batteries are much pricier than NiMH but lighter and can store more energy.
Battery technology has made considerable advancements in the last few decades, meaning that if you bought an electric bike, it might be much cheaper than one today because the battery inside it will be much better quality.
If you have an old electric bike in your garage, look at how many times you’ve had to replace its battery packs – maybe it’s time to sell it and buy a new one so that you can benefit from modern electric bike technology.
Read How Much Does It Cost to Charge an Electric Bike
Amenities
Another factor affecting the price of e-bikes is whether or not they come with various bells and whistles. For example, some electric bikes have LCD screens to show battery power, speed, and other helpful information.
Others have USB charging stations to charge your mobile devices. Some high-end electric bikes even come with heated seats so that you can warm yourself up on cold days.
As more people demand amenities like these, the prices of e-bikes will go down because manufacturers will produce more amenities for less money (and they’ll need to spend less time designing each bike).
As amenities become cheaper, they quickly work their way into all types of electric bicycles – resulting in prices dropping across the board.
Read Are Electric Bikes Good For Exercise?
Charging Time Versus Range
The amount of time it takes for an electric bike’s battery to recharge is another factor affecting price (as well as range). The higher quality batteries are much faster to restore than the lower quality ones, but they also cost more money.
At the moment, most electric bikes take about five to seven hours to recharge their batteries (some even longer). Although this is annoying for those who commute far distances regularly, people tend to charge their electric bicycles overnight while they sleep.
So it’s not like you’re forced to pay extra for an overly-long charging time – you can plug it in before bed and wake up with a full battery first thing in the morning.
Although there are currently some slower chargers out there, as technology advances, so will charging times.
Furthermore, manufacturers are competing with each other over whose bikes have the quickest recharging times – meaning that prices will go down as the technology behind it becomes more widely available for everyone to use.
Read How Long Does an Electric Bike Battery Last?
Manufacturer Location
In some countries, electric bikes are taxed more heavily than regular bicycles. So if you buy an electric bike from a nearby country without those kinds of taxes, the chances are that it will be cheaper because the manufacturer didn’t have to pay as much money on transportation costs.
Take a look online and see how many different brands offer e-bikes in your city. Do they come from nearby countries where there is no tax? If so, then you might benefit from buying one of these instead.
Read Can You Ride an Electric Bike After Drinking?
Increased Competition Between Manufacturers
More and more manufacturers have been releasing new electric bicycles in recent years. This means increased competition between them – resulting in lower prices for everyone.
Another way to ensure that you get a cheap e-bike is to buy used, refurbished, or second-hand ones. It’s not unheard of that people sell their old e-bikes once they’ve purchased a newer one that has better technology inside it.
However, as the cost of new bikes decreases over time, so does the price of second-hand products because people can’t sell them for as much money.
Materials and Components
Finally, the types of materials and components that go into making an electric bike can also affect its price. For example, lower-quality batteries cost less than high-quality ones (meaning you’ll need to spend more time charging them).
Similarly, low-quality parts like spokes and tires are cheaper than higher quality ones (which generally last longer and don’t need replacing often).
With increases in technology, materials and components will go down. In turn, this leads to manufacturers producing more parts for less money – resulting in cheaper e-bikes.
Read Can You Take an Electric Bike on a Train?
Benefits of Cheaper Electric Bikes
There are many benefits to cheaper electric bikes.
Accessibility
The most significant benefit of cheaper electric bikes is that more people will afford them. This means that those who wouldn’t have been able to afford a bike before might now find e-bikes an excellent option for their commutes, weekend rides, and shopping trips.
Environmentally Friendly Commutes
Electric bikes are environmentally friendly because they don’t require any fuel at all – meaning that your trips to the shops or work won’t contribute towards pollution in the environment.
Furthermore, if you’re concerned about finding parking at the shops or getting sweaty on your commute, electric bikes can make things easier by helping you arrive cooler and with less sweat on your brow.
Affordability for Manufacturers
Cheaper electric bikes mean that manufacturers will make greater profits from their sales – meaning they can use inexpensive materials while still making huge profits from each e-bike sold.
It also means that they’ll have a greater incentive to invest in innovative technologies, which should result in better quality bikes being created at reduced prices for everyone to enjoy.
Revenue for Government
Cheaper electric bikes can also be great for governments. A large portion of the revenue generated from motor vehicle taxes and registration fees comes from petrol-powered vehicles – not to mention the revenue generated by fuel sales that go along with it, too.
If more people switch to electric bikes due to their increased affordability, then governments will see a boon in terms of lost revenue from petrol-powered cars. It means that cheaper e-bikes could also lead to tax breaks for those who choose them.
Read How Easy Is It to Ride an Electric Bike
Future Trends in the Price of Electric Bikes
If e-bikes become more affordable, then we’ll see the following trends.
Increased Number of E-Bike Brands Available Online
As more brands start producing cheaper electric bikes, finding high-quality bikes at low prices becomes easier. It means that you don’t have to wait as long to receive your bike once you’ve placed an order (if you wait at all).
Furthermore, there are likely sales available online, which reduces the price even further.
Decreased Charging Times
As technology advances, so do electric bikes. As more brands produce cheaper e-bikes, they also embrace the latest charging technology to ensure that their bikes are as quick as possible to recharge – meaning you can spend less time waiting for your bike to charge and more time riding it!
Larger Selection of Design, Color, and Style Options
With cheap e-bikes becoming increasingly popular with budget-conscious buyers, manufacturers will have to compete over who can offer the best designs at the lowest price.
It means that although there might be fewer design options available overall (due to increased competition), those which are offered will likely be cheaper than ever before – meaning more significant savings for you!
Will Electric Bike Prices Get Cheaper?
Electric bike prices may get cheaper in the future. As more manufacturers produce e-bikes and competition between them increases, they’re likely to lower their costs – especially for good-quality bikes.
Thus, if the price of electric bicycles has put you off up until this point, then now might be a great time to invest.
Read How Fast Can You Go On An E-Bike?
How to Find the Cheapest Electric Bike?
If you’re looking to buy an electric bike, you must consider all available options. Remember that the cheapest isn’t always the best – if a bike is too cheap, it may be because the manufacturer has used sub-par components in its construction.
With this in mind, make sure you read plenty of e-bike reviews before taking out your wallet.
When buying an electric bike, there are many things which you’ll need to take into account – whether it was affordable when new, how often you use it, what style would look best on your home, etc.
Also, check for warranties and return policies just in case. A warranty could save some money down the line as most bikes will have defects or malfunctions in rare cases.
The good news is that there are plenty of affordable e-bikes readily available which can suit your needs – but make sure you read numerous e-bike reviews before making a final decision. This way, you’ll no longer need to worry about costly prices when buying an electric bike in the future.
Related electric bike articles:
- How Much Does an Electric Bike Battery Cost?
- Can You Ride an Electric Bike on the Sidewalk?
- How to Convert a Mountain Bike to Electric Bike
- Are Electric Bikes Allowed on Bike Paths?
- How Long Does an Electric Bike Battery Last?
- Are Electric Bikes Safe?
- How to Make Your Electric Bike Go Faster?
Conclusion
Cheaper electric bikes can be an excellent investment for those looking to make the switch from petrol-powered vehicles. Furthermore, as technology improves and more brands compete with each other, you can almost certainly expect the cost of e-bikes to decrease even further.
With the decrease in the price, we can expect to see greater and faster adoption of electric bikes, increasing the demand for even cheaper e-bikes in the future. It means that if you’re looking to buy an electric bike, now might be one of the best times where you can get it at a lower price than usual.
My name is Matthew, staying in Seattle, Washington. Electric Vehicles (Electric Cars & Electric bikes) caught my attention for the last few years and my love for electric cars and bikes is everlasting. I spend many of my weekends traveling to various places all over various cities with my electric vehicle (e-bike and electric car). Here I am sharing my expertise, experience, and invaluable information about electric cars and electric bikes. Check out more.