Best Hybrid/Comfort Bikes For The Everyday Cyclist

One of the best pastimes and sports invested has to be bicycle riding. One of the most popular bike among cycling enthusiasts has to be the hybrid bike. It’s the type of bike that you can just jump on and feel right at home, even if you haven’t rode a bicycle for while you will still be able to pick up a hybrid bike easily, and it doesn’t matter if you’re a countryside or road cyclist, the hybrid will handle them both effortlessly.

Using a hybrid bike, will leave you delighted and feeling out of breath, and your leg muscles like you’ve just had a Thai massage. There are very few spots that allow you to burn up to 600 calories in an hour, and lose weight effortlessly. If you don’t have to lose weight, trust me, hybrid bike riding will keep you toned and slim. Some people even swear that it can help correct back pain. I would say that it strengthens your back. It’s also a great past time that you can enjoy with your friends, or you can even join a local bicycle club, and meet new people who are hybrid bike users too. Just remember to keep your bike locked up and have fun out there!

Click here to browse the best selling hybrid bicycles

Is a hybrid bike right for me? What Exactly IS a hybrid Bike?

Compared to a traditional road racing bike, most people while prefer what a hybrid gives them. Hybrids are just as the name suggest, a mix of a road bike, and a mountain bike They allow you to sit in a comfortable position and upright just like  a mountain bike does, but they also have slightly narrower tires that will give the the ability to travel faster and easier, just like a road bike.

There are many different styles of hybrid bikes for sale. For beginners, I would recommend a hybrid bike with 700c tires. This is the optimal tire size that allows you to pedal along safely on pavements, roads and gravel paths. Plus they are the most satisfying to ride. If you expect to be riding on gravel roads, then you will be better suited to buying a bike with a 26″ tire, as these are slightly wider and more puncture resistant. If your height is less than about 5.5 feet, you will also prefer a 26″ tire, as they are closer to the ground than the next level up.

Good quality hybrid bikes will come in different frame sizes. Normally the frame height is going to be measured from where the pedal crankshaft is on the bike, right up to where the seat is. Having the optimum frame height ensures you will be able to:

• Reach the pedals with enough power for traction

• Allow your upper body to remain comfortable on long rides

When you are shopping for your idea hybrid bike, it’s a good idea to use these height guides to help you pick the correct frame size:

4’11” – 5’3” : 13 to 15″ Frame

5’3” – 5’7”  : 15 to 17″ Frame

5’7” – 5’11” : 17 to 19″ Frame

6’0” – 6’2” : 19 to 21″ Frame

6’2” – 6’4”  : 21 to 23″ Frame

6’4” and up  : 23″ Frame

To get the ideal fit, you should site on your bike, and with the pedal in the lowest position, raise the saddle so that your knee position has a 30 degree angle in it. This is the optimum riding position.

Fitness Hybrids Vs. Comfortable Hybrids

Fitness based bikes

A fitness hybrid bike is a great choice if you are really serious about your riding, and you plan to use it on a regular basis, such as after work cycling, or even to and from your workplace. Fitness bikes sacrifice a little comfort to allow weight to be saved and to deliver more speed to the bike. They also have a slight positing to them that requires you to lean forward a bit and as well as use your quad muscles, also use the full power of your glute muscles too.

If you’re a seasoned bike rider, and don’t have any back, wrist or shoulder problems then a fitness hybrid is a great way to get your fat burning on. Runners and bodybuilders prefer to use this type of bike, as it gives them a low impact cardio workout to their regular exercise routine.

Comfort based bikes

With a comfort bike, you can expect to sit in as upright a position as possible. This allows the pressure on your hands to be removed, and allows the core of your body frame to support your own weight. These bikes will often come equipped with shocks to help make your ride as smooth as possible on the road, and compared to a fitness bike, much more fun to ride, especially if you enjoy some scenic sightseeing while you ride.

If you’re a regular fitness buff, and want to mix up your routine a bit, then a comfort bike will fit alongside your regular bike, and might even replace it. Although you don’t get the same lower body workout as you do with a fitness bike, you will find that you travel a much larger distance, giving your muscles an unexpected rigorous amount of exercise.

My Top Bike Choice Under $500: The Diamondback Insight Fitness Hybrid

This bike is in one word, phenomenal. It’s easily one of the best bikes on the market, never mind the fact that it is a hybrid too. It’s a versatile bike that will give you the ability to ride on smooth roads or pavements, and even gravel roads. Many people like to use this bike to both train, and commute to work. Some experienced riders have even used them to complete their first century.

Quality

The Diamond fitness hybrid is made from the well known bicycle building company Diamond, who have been making mountain and BMX bikes for a long time and are well known quality manufacturers. They know how to create bikes that can handle even the toughest of conditions. The frame is built with welded aluminum, and the wheels come with 2 layers of double walled aluminum, as well as use durable Shimano components.

Weight

They have borrowed elements from the road bike design, and used a lighter frame and also revised wheel design to keep you riding at optimal pace with hardly any effort. If your weight is around 300 pounds, you’ll still have no problem riding this bike, as there are no heavy shock or cheap heavy welding that has been used with the bike.

Speed

This is a fast bike, mainly due to you having to lean forward more, as if you were riding a mountain bike. This does make you more aerodynamic, and also allows you to work both your glute muscle, and quad muscles, meaning you burn more calories, and deliver more power to the pedals. It’s a bike that will allow you to complete your century ride with an average of 14-17 miles per hour.

Click here to read more reviews of this cycle and see the price

My Second Best Choice For A Fitness Hybrid Bike: Diamondback Trace

If the first Diamond bike wasn’t rugged enough for you, this one certainly will be. It’s built for the city rider that needs high curb navigation, and stop on a dime braking performance. This Diamondback bike has great durability features that are woven into the build of the cycle.

Disc Brakes

A feature that is quite rare on hybrid bicycles, these great disc brakes will have you stopping safely in busy streets, and still perform  well on gravel tracks. You also get added control in wet conditions.

Double Walled Rims

Although the Diamondback Insight also has double walled rims, the Trace rims are much stronger, and will help when you hit too much air time, and need a strong foundation to support your weight.

Off Road

If you make your way along any dirt trails or gravel roads, you will find it a smooth ride with the Trace. It has that extra above the Insight when you need to really give a hard road workout.

Click here to read more reviews of this cycle and see the price

The Best Budget Fitness Hybrid Bike Under $300!

If you are looking for a hybrid bike priced around the $300 mark, this is an affordable performance hybrid, and one of the best deals you’ll find on Amazon. Vilano is a relative new comer to the bike scene, but this bike will impress you with what they bring to the table. It has a high quality frame, and they use all bike shop quality components, so this is far from a cheap walmart bike, and more similar to the Diamondback range.

The Vilano uses a much lighter wheel set along with the double wall rims, but the gear quality has been scaled down slightly. It’s not something that you will really notice, but compared to the Diamondbacks setup, they don’t shift as smooth, or will handle the abuse that you can give a Diamondback gear system. To reach that $300 price range, Vilano have also had to turn down the volume on their hub, and freewheel design. The ball bearings have been moved from the outside axle, to the inside of the hub, which means this bike won’t support a very heavy weight wall that well. You can replace them though, so it’s not the end of the world.

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The Best Hybrid Comfort Bike: The Schwinn Discover

This is a stylish hybrid bike that is not only functional, but comes with a stylish rack if you want to use this bike for commuting, or to store your backpack on. This bike has everything you want from a hybrid comfort bike. You won’t have any back strain as you pedal, plus it has a shock on the front wheel to absorb all those city bumps and curbs your going to encounter. This is a fun calorie burning bike.

Reliable

You might have seen similar bikes at discount stores such as Walmart, but this bike uses professional level parts and components, not low grade parts. By aiming for the high quality market, this bicycle costs a bit more, but is still a very affordable hybrid bike. You will save in the long term, as you’ll find that this bike requires very little maintenance, or part replacements.

Adjustable

This bike features swept back handlebars and an adjustable handlebar stem which means you can adjust the frame for maximum comfort. It isn’t called a comfort bike for nothing. You can adjust the frame parts to lean forward a little but it’s meant to have you sitting in an upright position, which is more beneficial to your back and spine if you experience discomfort in these areas.

Click here to see the men’s version

Click here to see the Women’s version

The Best 26″ Hybrid Comfort Bike: Diamondback Citi

Something that is rare on comfort bikes are 700c tires, and the reason is they are a little bigger than regular tires. With the same gear combinations and the same number of pedal strokes, you will find that you travel faster on a 700c bike. Plus, there are several nice advantages to a hybrid with 26″ wheels.

First of all, it’s easier to get on the bike, as the tires are shorter, and the bike itself is closer to the ground. The width of 26″ tires is larger, so you get more cushion, thanks to the increased air surface. Perfect if you stay in a city that has potholes in many of their roads and tracks. You also get increased stability from the wide tires too. This in turn will give you more confidence as a city or off road rider, and especially if you happen to ride in icy or wet conditions.

There is much to like about the Diamondback Citi. To start with you’re getting an optimal setup for your money, and above average bicycle comfort. It has a front shock absorber, and a rare one too, almost unseen in hybrid comfort bikes. You’re getting great quality for a fraction of the price. If you stay somewhere hilly like Pittsburgh or LA, this bike will give you the quality super low gears you need to climb easily. The Diamondback Citi comes in both men’s and ladies style.

Click here to see the men’s version

Click here to see the Women’s version

Wrapping It Up

Whatever your choice in a hybrid cycle, you can be sure that the ones reviewed here will last you a long time. As already stated throughout, you have to make sure that you pick the one that is going to be the most applicable to not only your cities, or areas riding conditions, but also the type that suits your fitness needs and health goals. Hybrid bikes are the new wave of the future for cosmopolitan cyclists who want flexibility, and hopefully when you choose yours, you get lots of great riding under your belt.