I’ve spent many years covering just about every awesome light electric vehicle that has come out of China, from e-bikes and e-scooters to more obscure rides like electric three-wheelers and more. After over a decade in the digital trenches, I’ve felt mighty overdue for a firsthand look at where these fun and functional personal electric vehicles come from. So I made the trip to China and snuck my way behind the scenes at a number of factories to check out some of the biggest and most important players in the industry.

It’s right there in the title. Having followed the electric bicycle industry for 15 years and running, I can pretty much guarantee you that there has never been a better time than right now to buy an e-bike. Here are the top three reasons why.

This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes new electric bike launches such as the Juiced JetCurrent Pro and Lectric XPress, Vinfast bringing its electric bike to the US market, the new Yadea Artist full-suspension lightweight electric scooter, waterproof e-bike batteries, and more.

I test a lot of electric bicycles. It’s kind of my whole thing. People tell me I test more e-bikes than anyone else on the internet, but who’s counting, right? Yet here’s the thing: most of my e-bike testing involves just riding around on e-bikes to see how well they perform.

This time though, I got the chance to try something entirely different. That’s right, I chucked an e-bike battery from the new Velotric Discover 2 into a tub full of water just for the hell of it.

E-bikes simply aren’t niche anymore. The US has awoken to the fact that electric bikes can replace cars for many around-the-town trips and even on longer commutes. But what if you need to take multiple kids to school or want to drive your family around the neighborhood without using a car? That’s where an electric rickshaw can come in handy, and the SixThreeZero EVRYjourney Electric Tricycle Rickshaw is one heck of a great way to do it.

Sure, it’s a mouthful of a name, but it works so well that I will look past that long moniker. Plus, I’m probably just going to call it a rickshaw, for short.

With Gogoro already surpassing one million swappable EV batteries in circulation, the company’s energy network has become something of a de facto standard in swappable batteries for e-motorcycles and scooters. Now, the company is announcing the next phase of its expansive GoStation network, rolling out over a dozen new 100% renewable energy-powered stations.

VinFast, the Vietnamese automaker known for its portfolio of electric vehicles, has officially introduced its VF DrgnFly electric bike to the U.S. market. It’s a move that the company says further solidifies its presence in the global push toward sustainable mobility.

In what should no longer come as a surprise to anyone, Phoenix-based Lectric Ebikes has done it again. With today’s launch of the Lectric XPress, the maker of North America’s #1 best-selling electric bike just entered yet another e-bike category with a new model designed to crush the competition.

Yadea, a global leader in electric mobility including scooters, mopeds, e-bikes, and more, has just launched two new full-suspension electric scooters. The Yadea Artist offers a lightweight, affordable ride, while the Yadea Elite Max adds more power and performance to the package.

Juiced Bikes has never shied away from offering riders more speed and power. And with today’s unveiling of its new Juiced JetCurrent Pro, the brand is offering up more speed and power than ever in a brand new e-bike form factor.

Electric bicycles continue to surge in popularity across the United States, bringing with them a host of benefits but also, inevitably, a few concerns. Despite e-bikes racking up points from new commuters across the country for being lower-cost car alternatives that turn commutes and errand running into joyrides, these powerful new transportation tools aren’t without their detractors, too.

Concerns among some members of the public have ranged from safety issues of sharing roads with cars to the risk of battery fires. However, there exists a straightforward solution that could alleviate nearly any worry anyone has about electric bikes: investing in better cycling infrastructure.

Ride1Up, a San Diego-based electric bicycle maker known for an increasingly broad range of affordably-priced electric bikes, is trying to make its e-bikes even more accessible. The company just announced that effective immediately, it is cutting prices on nearly its entire lineup.

I’ve spent countless hours here at Electrek doing detailed hands-on testing of hundreds of electric bikes. Through thousands of miles of riding, I’ve learned these e-bikes inside and out, top to bottom and front to back. That dedication to real-world e-bike testing has helped me find the best electric bicycles on the market for just about any budget.

Below are some of the top e-bikes I’ve hand-tested for every price range, current as of April 2024. Spring is finally upon us (at least, here in the Northern Hemisphere) and riding season is gearing up! After an ultra-competitive e-bike selling year in 2023, we’re still seeing some great sales into early 2024. So check out the awesome e-bikes below, any one of which could become your next electric bike.

They say there’s no better test of a relationship than riding a tandem bike with your partner. But I propose that whoever penned that axiom never tried the go-kart equivalent. Who’s ready to step right up and pop a squat into this dual-steering wheel go-kart for some around-the-track fun with your better half?!

One of the beautiful things about the state of the electric bicycle industry currently being in the equivalent of the 1920s car market is that you’ve got around a hundred different e-bike companies all trying new and crazy things with sometimes wildly divergent design concepts. The recently-announced Heybike HERO is the purest embodiment of that idea, showcasing what happens when a company says “Let’s build a super lightweight carbon fiber frame but also stuff it full of suspension and heavy, high-power components.”

This week on Electrek’s Wheel-E podcast, we discuss the most popular news stories from the world of electric bikes and other nontraditional electric vehicles. This time, that includes a new cargo e-bike from Gocycle, a huge heist of over $1M in e-bikes, Harley’s new electric cruiser motorcycle, how e-scooters responded to the Taiwanese earthquake, and more.

The largest earthquake to hit Taiwan this century rattled the entire island overnight, collapsing buildings, damaging roads, and shutting down train and subway services. Gogoro’s electric scooters quickly picked up the slack, providing a key accessible transportation option and offering free rides in the most populated area.

Believe it or not, there’s nothing new about major automakers and motorcycle companies trying and failing to build and sell electric bicycles. Despite millions upon millions of e-bikes being produced and sold each year by bicycle companies, automotive companies have spent decades failing to convert their design and manufacturing experience into e-bike success.

I’ve long championed the amazing benefits of electric bicycles in providing transportation autonomy to those who can’t afford a personal car and the massive expenses that come along with car ownership. A $1,000 e-bike can be the difference between a one-hour walk to work and a seven-minute ride to work. Now leading US e-bike maker Lectric Ebikes and the popular YouTuber Mr. Beast have teamed up to magnify the impact of a free e-bike 600 times.

If you’ve followed my writing or videos, you’ll know I’m a “life on two-wheels” kind of guy. If there’s an electric motorcycle, e-bike, scooter, or anything else remotely rideable out there, I’ve probably thrown a leg over it at least once. Over the years I’ve been fortunate enough to learn how each type of vehicle comes with its own unique personality and enjoyment, but also its own risk profile. And without the benefit of 5,000 pounds of murderous steel around us, out of necessity we motorcycle riders become masters of balancing risk.

But could the perceived risk of different types of rides, such as e-motorcycles versus e-bikes, cloud our judgment on personal protection? I think it might, at least for me. And so I’ve been on a hunt for the right gear to fix that.

I’m no stranger to collecting weird Alibaba electric vehicles, and that includes aquatic vessels. But after buying an ultra-cheap Chinese electric boat last year, this new one makes my own lazy lake cruiser look like a luxury yacht.

Velotric has been on a winning streak lately, spending the last year or more rolling out a series of impressive new reasonably-priced electric bike models with features and performance that handily beat the competition in several key categories. And by all indications, the company has no plans to slow down. The latest new update to the Velotric line comes in today’s announcement of the Discover 2 commuter e-bike. And you better believe we’ve been testing one out in secret to give you our early impressions.

Gocycle, a premium British electric bike maker known for its lightweight commuter e-bikes featuring exotic materials and designs, is now setting its sights on the growing market of cargo e-bikes. And the company has just shared the first photos of its upcoming CXi and CX+ cargo electric bikes.

After one of my most recent Alibaba import adventures, I was left with a shipping container in my yard. These engineering wonders are great for many uses outside of merely transferring goods around the world, with one of the most common secondary uses being watertight storage units. That seemed like a great idea to put to use for all of my electric “toys”. Between my electric bikes, e-motorcycles, e-ATVs, electric tractors, and a few other things I’m probably forgetting, having a weather-sealed, solar-powered off-grid charging shed would be a big benefit. And if I could add an air-conditioning unit to keep the machines from baking in the sun (and function as a dehumidifier at the same time), then all the better. As it turned out, the project was a lot easier than I expected. Here’s how I did it.