Best Folding Electric Bikes of 2025, Tested and Reivewed

My family of three experienced bike commuters assembled and tested some of the best folding electric bikes currently available in our small, very hilly town in the Pacific Northwest. If you’re looking for a functional electric bike that can handle multiple kinds of terrain, and yet fold down to fit inside the back of an SUV or store away in a small garage, these bikes might be what you’re looking for.  

Each of these bikes arrived in a box, and after some tuning, we used these bikes to go to work, high school, and the grocery store. On the weekends we cruised paths paved and unpaved. Of the top five best folding electric bikes, there are four large models and the very compact Brompton. The Velotric is the one most of us reach for when it’s time to grab a loaded pannier and head to school or work. But when you need to actually fold a bike down, and you aren’t carrying much, the Brompton wins by a landslide. Read on to see where each bike excelled.

Best Folding Electric Bikes: Reviews & Recommendations

Best Overall: Velotric Fold 1 Plus 

Overall, the Velotric Fold 1 Plus is a well-realized bike. Not every aspect is as good as the top level bikes offered by industry leaders like Gazelle and Tern, but the gaps from this bike to those are impressively small considering the price. UL and IXP-7 Waterproof certifications mean water resistance and electrical safety are designed in. The concessions for the price start with the drivetrain, however. All 4 of the larger folding bikes in this test have rear hub motors, which are much cheaper to source than mid-hub drives like Bosch and Shimano drive systems. Hitting a low price point with these hub motors forces the rear wheel to be a “freewheel,” similar to what’s still being offered on many kid bikes, which usually limits the manufacturer to 7 rear gears. 

There are no seven speed rear cassettes with large gears, which means these bikes are limited to a relatively narrow range, and most of the shifters for these setups are simplistic. Having said that, the Velotric shifts decently well when set up correctly, so there is much value in having someone knowledgeable tune these bikes after unboxing. They’re unsophisticated, but they work if you dial them in. Also, having 500 to 750 watts helping you along out back means the limited gear range is much less of a restriction than it would otherwise be. 

The Velotric set itself apart from the other large folders in this test primarily on the quality of all the little things: the hydraulic brakes felt very good, nothing rattled over bumps, the built-in lights were well-placed and effective, the display and controls were intuitive and effective, and the motor response was mostly great. We live in a steep place, and I found that the torque sensor usually wouldn’t kick in enough help on the steeper uphills unless I pedaled really hard, so I found switching to cadence for the uphill journeys was much more pleasant. 

Conversely, the cadence sensor was overkill for flat ground or downhills, pushing much too hard, too early, and too often. So the ability to switch modes on the fly via a dedicated “M” button was a bonus. Overall the Fold 1 Plus was a pleasant city companion that did most things well, with minimal fuss. We were especially happy with the performance of the Tektro hydraulic disc brakes, which were at a suitable level of feel and power commensurate with the weight and power. I cannot overstate how important it is to be able to stop what these bikes so easily get started.

Best Folding: Brompton P Line

Brompton has been making folding bikes with this same frame design since production started in the late 1980s, and for good reason: It folds down very small, very quickly. If your goal is to get around a city using trains, buses, or cars to augment the ride, the Brompton will do that job much, much better than the larger folding bikes in this test. The difference in folding the Brompton compared to the others cannot be overstated. You can fold one in about 30 seconds (world record is currently 5.19 seconds), and then pick it up and carry it onto a train with no fuss. Folding any of the other four larger bikes by yourself is not a simple task, and the resulting folded-down bike is about twice the size of a folded Brompton, and very difficult to move. 

Having said that, if folding your bike is going to be a rare event, and you might ride unpaved paths, and you want to carry a lot of cargo easily, the Brompton will not do the job as well as the larger bikes. The Brompton isn’t meant to carry bigger loads or fit tires bigger than 35mm. Brompton’s front wheel motor and extremely simplified controls do an admirable job of flattening hills out and getting you to your destination without sweating, however. The low wattage rating on the motor is misleading — this bike weighs half what the others do, so 250 watts is enough. 

Every small detail on the Brompton is well thought out, well engineered, and is dialed in from day one. Riding the bike, you quickly get used to the small size of it under you, and it feels remarkably normal for having small 16 inch wheels. The decades Brompton has spent dialing in and refining their bikes shows. This testing family has owned non-electric Bromptons for over a decade, and we can say from personal experience that a Brompton will last a very, very long time with minimal upkeep thanks to the quality components and thoughtful engineering. But the starting price of this electric model is not something every potential buyer can float.

A bike in this price bracket really has to be seen as a car replacement for the price to make sense. With that in mind, if you want to do what the Brompton does well, it is a wise investment. If you want to stretch miles and flatten hills on something that can vanish into your car, your train, or your office, the Brompton reigns supreme.

Best Budget: Buzz Centris

What the Buzz Centris lacks in sophistication, it attempts to make up for in value. The other bikes in this test are better-realized designs, to be sure. Better motor responses, better brakes, better handling, better controls. But the Buzz will get you there, and it will carry plenty of cargo. The bike required a little more tweaking out of the box than the others to get everything lined up correctly: I had to adjust all the controls to lay at the right angles, the brake calipers were rubbing the rotors until I centered them, and one of the crank arms was ever-so-slightly bent from shipping, resulting in one pedal not being perfectly parallel while rotating. It was very minor, but it was there. 

The motor response was abrupt at low speeds even on the lowest setting, causing us to fight with the motor by using quick stabs at the brake levers to cut the power when it pushed too hard while turning slowly. Handling underway is acceptable, but the very narrow handlebar makes the bike more twitchy than we would like. Rolling along on paved streets, the knobby 4-inch tires make a dull roar as the rubber knobs add rolling resistance to your commute. Get the bike on a hardpack or gravel trail, however, and the tires suddenly make much more sense, with the Centris offering the best off-road grip of any of these bikes. 

If you’re always going to ride on pavement, these tires are not ideal. If you’re looking for a low-cost point of entry into the world of folding e-bikes, the Centris gets the job done. Just know that in many cases even a hundred dollars more gets you meaningful upgrades. The component spec on the Centris is a few generations back from the more current offerings in this test, but there is a six-month components warranty.

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Most Improved: Lectric XP4 750w Step-Through

Unboxing the Lectric XP4, after having done the same for the Lectric XP 3.0, was a pleasant surprise. The packaging Lectric uses on the 4.0 is much more sustainable, with cotton twine replacing zip ties, crinkled paper replacing styrofoam. The bike’s fit and finish is noticeably nicer than the 3.0, although the 3.0 was perfectly acceptable for its price. The tires now have sensible pavement-centric tread, the controls are much improved, the display is nicer, and the “over the bar” 80’s Shimano shifter employed on the 3.0 is replaced with a nicer modern mountain bike style shifter. The basic stats remain similar for both: Even though the 4.0 has eight gears instead of seven, the cassette only has one size larger cog (32t vs 28t) so it doesn’t really widen the limited gear range much. 

There are decent hydraulic disc brakes, budget tires, a robust-but-short rack out back, lights and fenders standard, front rack mounts available if you opt for one. Many important, small details are improved, however. The torque sensor on the new model works much better than what is available on 3.0, which makes riding more intuitive and wastes less battery, though it still launches too hard in the lower settings. The larger battery available on 4.0 has a truly heroic range of 85 miles, if you go easy on it. The motor itself is now quieter, which makes a real difference in how much you enjoy riding the bike. 

We especially appreciate the upgrades in braking power and safety, with thicker rotors and better lever feel, that show a company paying attention to the problems other popular manufacturers are experiencing by saving money on brakes at the expense of consumer safety. These brakes don’t have a major name on them, but they feel very good, and they stop this bike quite well. On the downside, my daughter confirmed my take on the Comfort saddle with one ride: “Whoa, that saddle is not good.” Too thick, too firm, and shaped like two hamburger buns. We don’t recommend opting for the Comfort saddle.

Fire Sale: Lectric XP3 Step-Through

The XP3 we tested is the outgoing model in Lectric’s step-through electric lineup. Testing was an interesting exercise, to see how far the company was able to progress the model line in just one revision. Most of my grievances with the 3.0 were indeed addressed with the 4.0 that they were able to send slightly later: This earlier 3.0 model requires a metal key to be inserted under the battery to operate, the controls and display are much less dialed than the 4.0, the brakes were much less effective, and the knobby tires on the 3.0 aren’t a good choice for pavement work. The 3.0 is still available on closeout via Lectric’s website, and if the price dropped more we could recommend it as a via option, but as priced currently there are more compelling options.

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How We Tested the Best Folding Electric Bikes

Each bike was unboxed, assembled, then tuned up. All but the Brompton required some kind of tuning — be it rotating the controls on the bars, correcting the seat angle, re-centering brake calipers, or adjusting the shifting so it didn’t skip between gears. The Brompton worked perfectly out of the box. Each bike was run through two full charges on a mix of shorter daily runs (2 miles each way to work) and longer weekend runs (8 miles each way). The estimated mileage in the key features of each folding electric bike is manufacturer reported and supported by testing. 

All of the bikes were used to carry one of several rear rack pannier bags, and the bikes with front racks had groceries bungeed down to them so we could assess the impact of weight up front. All bikes were ridden at night on darker streets to assess the light level and spread. Riders ranged from 5-feet, 4-inches to 6-feet, 1-inch, and with no prior e-bike experience to quite a lot. The town we live in is quite hilly, so all of these bikes were used on commutes that average 5 percent grade, but have some segments that are more like 10 percent.

How to Choose the Best Folding Electric Bike for You

The most important step in choosing the right e-bike for you is to understand how you’re going to use it. How much cargo will you want to carry? Do you want to mount a kid seat? How often are you really going to need to fold it? Will you have someone to help you lift and move it? Are you taking it out once in a while on sunny weekends for a short ride, or are you trying to replace one of your cars? Considerations like sensors, price, and brakes can help you make your decision.

Pedal Assist Sensors

Cadence Sensor

There are two kinds of sensors that affect how much pedal assist electric bikes emit. One is a simple cadence sensor. If the bike thinks you’re pedaling at all, it throws all of whatever power level you dialed in at the motor. It’s effective, but wasteful.

Torque Sensor

The other option, included in addition to the cadence sensor on the Velotric, Brompton, and Lectric XP4, is a torque sensor. Built into the bottom bracket of an e-bike, it can sense how hard you are pedaling. If you’re pedaling gently, it gives you a light assist. If you push hard, it throws the full amount of assist you dialed in at the motor. In practice, this feels more intuitive, and wastes less battery, but only if the sensor and software work correctly. 

Price

Each iteration of Velotric and Lectric torque sensors and associated software gets noticeably better, though none of them are as good as the Bosch systems normally used on more expensive bikes. The literal price difference between the bikes with torque sensors and the Buzz or Lectric XP 3.0 might be $500-600, but it feels like more. But a simple cadence sensor will certainly work — they’re on hundreds of thousands of bikes. They will push harder than you want when you’re turning slowly in tight spaces. And because they’re pushing hard all the time, they will deplete your battery faster.

 If you’re likely to put a decent number of miles on your bike, or you’re thinking of riding it to commute to work, then spending a few hundred more dollars on higher quality is a wise choice. And if you’re thinking of multi-modal urban commuting, with your bike flowing through bike lanes, trains, buses, cars, and offices, then the Brompton is by far the best choice. And if it’s going to help you get rid of an extra car, then the finances might make sense.  

Brakes

If you need to haul cargo and/or a kid, the four larger bikes in this test do that job much better than the Brompton. If you’re specifically going to carry a child, then it’s even more important than usual not to settle for budget brake systems.

The quality of cheap hydraulic disc brakes has come up quite a bit in the last few years, and we were really happy with how all the hydraulic setups performed on the three bikes that had them. The difference in feel and power between these brakes and the cable-actuated discs on the Buzz and other lowest-pricepoint bikes is huge. We mention brakes a lot in this review, because these bikes are powerful and heavy. Many first-time consumers don’t realize how important the brakes are for stopping these big bikes safely, so the presence of effective hydraulic discs on three bikes at this price range is a welcome sight. 

Final Thoughts On the Best Folding Electric Bikes

The Velotric, and the Lectric XP4.0 do an appreciable job of closing the quality gap between these classically lower-priced brands and the industry leaders like Tern and Gazelle. The Brompton’s price, on the other hand, is high enough to take it out of consideration for many people. Having said that, there are countless Brompton fans across the globe, because the bikes are so well made and supported. If you’re going to rely on your bike for transportation, and it needs to fold quickly, the Brompton is immeasurably nicer to use.