Best women's e-bikes
Our top-rated women's e-bikes give you an extra oomph, whatever the terrain
While the bicycle industry continues to debate whether Women's specific models are necessary, many great options exist when choosing the best women's e-bike.
Here at Cycling Weekly, we test dozens of e-bikes every year, and we are lucky enough to have several very experienced female writers and editors in our team. So, while Women's specific models are fewer and further between than just a few years ago, we have tested a ton of great e-bikes that are perfect for women and are uniquely rated by our female reviewers.
In this guide, you will find six of the best women's e-bikes rated and reviewed by female riders. These include both women's specific models like the Liv Thrive E+1 and our best overall, the Whyte Rheo 3, which offers more unisex styling and sizing.
So, what makes a bike electric?
This might be a silly question, but the electric motors are integrated into the bikes in quite different ways. Some provide power from the battery to the wheels and some to the pedal arms. However, generally speaking, electric bikes will assist only when you pedal and have input.
Thats is why the clique that believes e-bikes are cheating has certainly been quashed, and riding with electric assistance, along with its many benefits, is now widely accepted. It's certainly not an easy ride; you will still need to put in some effort, but showing up to work a sweaty mess or struggling up every hill is a thing of the past.
For those who might already own a bike but are considering an e-bike, you should definitely check out our guide to the best electric bike conversion kits.
The Whyte's versatility makes it a great car alternative e-bike. All the included and Integrated extras ensure the RHeO is always ready to ride.
The Liv Thrive is a stylish and women's specific design; it offers a great user-friendly experience and a lovely sporty ride.
An e-bike that is going to get you noticed around town. The Canyon Precede:ON is a futuristic, highly integrated and sophisticated electric bike.
The Tern GSD S10 is one of the easiest cargo bikes to ride, and it truly can improve family life for the better.
As a lightweight, stripped-back e-bike, I found the Ampler Curt agile, nimble, and fantastic to race around town on. There is a lot to love about this simple e-bike.
Comfortable, capable and compact. The Compact Neo might not offer headline-worthy exploits, but given its wallet-friendly price, it is a great bike to get around town on.
Versatile, capable and always ready to ride anywhere
Our expert review:
The Whyte Rheo 3 is a lightweight e-city bike that really impressed me with its agility and design. Weighing just 16.9 kg/37 lbs, it features a compact 250Wh battery and a rear hub motor delivering 450W of peak power and 45Nm of torque. Thanks to its low-mounted battery, the bike handles incredibly well, whether I was navigating a flat, busy city or quiet, hilly rural lanes.
The Rheo 3 is well-equipped for everyday use, with integrated lights, mudguards, and a rear rack that makes commuting and errands easy. I appreciated the smooth shifting of the Shimano Cues 9-speed drivetrain, and the dropper seatpost was a thoughtful touch that made getting on and off the bike more convenient. It was the Maxxis Reaver tyres that helped make this a do-it-all, go-anywhere electric bike that took a variety of surfaces in its stride.
That said, the 250Wh battery worked best on flatter routes. The steeper hills and colder days here in the North of England drained it faster than I’d hoped, using 75% of the battery in just 20 miles (45km). I also thought the cabling could be tidier. Still, considering its cost—at a third of the price of a Specialized Turbo Vado SL —the Rheo 3 strikes an outstanding balance between performance and practicality, making it a very appealing alternative to using a car.
Read our full Whyte RHeO 3 electric bike review
The Liv Thrive E+ once featured in Cycling Weekly's Editors Choice Awards
Our expert review:
Speed on slicks is for everyone with Liv’s Thrive E+ Pro electric road style bike that will fit and ride a dream, thanks to its women’s specific design philosophy. Liv is the women's bike arm of Giant bikes, and we've got a full guide to the Liv bike range.
Providing the electric boast is Giant’s SyncDrive Pro motor, which engages instantly as it works with the company's PedalPlus 6-Sensor technology. For a guaranteed fluid ride, this takes six measurements about your riding so it can add the perfect amount of power at the exact right time.
Blending effortlessly into the Thrive’s sleek chameleon blue aluminium frame is Giant’s EnergyPak Smart 375 battery. Liv claim this can take you up to 110km on a single charge.
Keeping your handlebar clear for accessories, the RideControl One switch fits snugly in the centre. It also uses LED lighting so you can always keep track of the battery level and which assistance mode you are on.
The Thrive also features Shimano hydraulic disc brakes for precise braking and the reliable Maxxis Re-Fuse 700x32c gravel tyres for optimal traction in all weather.
Read our full Liv Thrive E+ 2 Pro electric bike review
Our expert review:
Canyon's Precede:ON arrived with much of the bicycle industry looking on with pretty high expectations after it won a German Design Award. Offering futuristic styling, very high levels of integration and pretty much all the bells and whistles make the Precede:ON the Rolls Royce of urban e-bikes.
Riding around London, I didn’t worry about the Precede:ON ever; the Bosch motor is punchy and really pulls; even in sportier modes, it was giving me a 65km/40-mile range over undulating terrain. Jumping from the excellant cycling super highways to the bumpy horse-trodden tracks of the royal parks was really all take in the Precede's stride thanks to the wide but fast-rolling Schwalbe G-One tyres.
Despite the Precede:ON offering all the high-end e-bike features like the auto shifting of the Enviolo hub and integration, it comes with drawbacks. Its weight, especially when lifting or carrying it, can't be ignored, such as up steps or into a car; our carrying it down the stairs at the Greenwich foot tunnel due to the lifts being out of order.
However, what you're paying for here is the Rolls-Royce features: the crème de la crème of urban styling and convenience. They're not necessary, but they are nice to have and make the bike pretty much always ready to ride at the press of a button.
While Canyon no longer offers the Precede:ON in the CF (carbon fibre) version, the newer aluminium version offers nearly identical packages at a much more affordable cost.
Read our full Canyon Precede:ON CF 9 ST electric bike review
Our expert review:
I don't think a bike of the GSD's quality will ever be cheap, and rightly so; I think it is brilliant, espcially when you need it to do the majority of what a car can do. However, given the cost of new petrol cars and EVs, the Tern starts to look like a right bargain.
I could go into detail here about the spec, the weight and how that all plays into the Tern's ride and how great the Bosch cargo line motor is. Don't get me wrong, Tern has done a brilliant job here, putting the specification together for this bike, but thats not what is going to sell this bike, in my opinion.
The GSD changed how we use bikes here in the Bussey household. Of course, we always used bikes for transport and getting around town, but the GSD has put a very good argument in front of me that the best cargo bikes can actually replace cars.
Of course, it has saved us money at the petrol pumps, a load of time not sitting in traffic, and most of all, it has improved my mental state, arriving to places happier, more ready and more alert.
It is an expensive bike, and if I really had to find something wrong with it, the 400wh battery is a little small. However, if you want a highly versatile bike that can truly replace the car, it's at least a price most can stomach, and I would buy one in a heartbeat.
Read our full Tern GSD S10 electric cargo bike review
Our expert review:
Made from 6061 aluminium and a carbon fork, the Ampler Curt I tested weighed around 15kg with a 10-speed Shimano Deore groupset. The weight of the Ampler is a key to the Estonian brand's design, with 'stealth' and 'stripped back' used several times in their marketing. Ampler cleverly hides the 336 WH battery in the down tube, with the oversized rear hub housing the 250w motor being the only visible sign of its electronic features.
This is also probably where the biggest compromise of the Ampler comes in: with all the weight-saving and hidden motors, the battery is limited, as I found out several times. With a claimed range of between 45 and 100km, depending on terrain and assist mode, I found this was overreaching a little, with the former being more realistic.
That said, the bike is so light and has a rear hub, offering very little resistance when off, so you can either just pedal it like a normal bike or get charged up at a cafe or friend's house and get back on the road.
The Curt's handling is what really brought a smile to my face, with its nimble and responsive handling cut through town at speeds I would never normally do unless on a road bike. Thats is where the Ampler becomes really interesting as it sits very much closer to those e-road bikes than hybrid or urban commuter bikes. Its controlled manner also has a good 'let's get moving' mentality and is a lot of fun.
Read our full Ampler Curt Anyroad electric bike review
Our expert review:
I have to say, I was surprised by the Cannondale Compact Neo, and it's a pleasant and comfortable bike that is far better than any car or public transport alternative.
The compact frame, reminiscent of the 2008 Cannondale Hooligan, is stylish and practical, making it easy to manoeuvre through city streets and the house. Despite its small size, the bike offers a comfortable ride, thanks to its beefy Kenda tyres that I found offered plenty of grip without feeling draggy.
Useful integrations like the lights, fenders, folding pedals, kickstand, and unique handlebar system for storage add to its practicality. However, a minor drawback is the rear rack's limited utility due to its placement, which results in heel strikes on nearly every revolution when carrying anything wider than the rack itself.
The Compact Neo is more about leisurely rides than high-speed thrills and lacks a bit of zip you might expect from a compact bike. The 250Wh battery offers a moderate range, it lacks an intuitive display, making it tricky to monitor assist levels and battery status. That said, the bike rides well even without motor assistance, which is a plus for those looking to conserve battery life.
Overall, the Cannondale Compact Neo is a fun, stylish, and practical e-bike perfect for short-distance commuting and urban adventures. It's not the fastest or most powerful option, but it offers excellent value with very little competition unless you spend considerably more on something like the Tern Quick Haul.
Read our full Cannondale Compact Neo electric bike review
At Cycling Weekly, we have a dedicated team of testers who review a wide variety of cycling products. They provide objective assessments based on their daily experiences under various conditions.
With extensive experience, our testers are adept at comparing products, pinpointing their strengths and weaknesses, and delivering an honest, unbiased evaluation of their performance. For e-bikes, this generally involves examining the motor and battery quality, covering aspects from user-friendliness to charging time and range.
We also ensure that bikes are tested on various terrains, acknowledging that many cyclists use e-bikes for commuting and leisure. Like traditional bikes, we assess ride quality and component choice, evaluating their impact on critical aspects like comfort, gear range, and braking.
Read more on How we test products on our dedicated page.
Placement of motors
Motors in electric bikes can be found in the front or rear hub of the wheel, or on the frame.
Hub mounted motors tend to be found on cheaper e-bikes. Although they have the benefit of being a little quieter, they often don’t perform so well on hills.
Frame-mounted, or mid-drive motors, are mounted in the centre of the bike at the bottom bracket area. This positioning means the weight distribution of the motor is much better, giving the bike increased stability and balance. Also, as a mid-drive motor is connected directly to the drivetrain it offers better performance in terms of efficiency. Hills are conquered with ease with this style of motor.
Batteries
An e-bike’s battery's available range is an important consideration, both when purchasing the bike and forever after. Knowing how far the battery will take you is something you will learn the more and more you ride the bike. It’s not as straightforward as saying the battery will last X amount of miles. The battery life depends on the assistance setting you select, terrain and conditions and how long you stay in this setting.
Electric bike batteries are measured in watt-hours (WH) or amp-hours (AH). Typically, an e-bike’s battery capacity usually lies between 7-10Ah. This equates to anywhere between 25 to 70 miles of travel on a single charge of an e-bike. If you’re riding hard on full power expect less; if you manage your battery life well you could get more, while if you're managing over 25kph (that's 15.5mph) in most countries, the motor will cut out, so you won't be draining the battery. In the US the cut-off is at 20mph.
Bear in mind that all batteries deteriorate in time and so you will need to replace and dispose of them, although 500 recharge cycles can usually be achieved without significant degradation in capacity. Battery performance may also be impacted in cold weather.