Should You Invest in a Peloton Bike? Learn More About Costs, Benefits & Alternatives

Should You Invest in a Peloton Bike? Learn More About Costs, Benefits & Alternatives

Looking for some equipment to help you on your fitness journey? If so, you've probably considered buying a Peloton Bike. This expensive exercise bike is popular for a reason — it has all kinds of special features that set it apart from its competitors. Still, that price tag may not be worth it for everyone.

The last thing you want is to invest in a Peloton and not even end up using it. That's why we've created a detailed buying guide to help you determine if buying a Peloton is the right choice for you and your wallet. We'll be covering everything you need to know to make an educated decision, including:

• What Is Peloton?
• Why Do People Like Peloton?
• How Expensive Is a Peloton?
• Common Peloton Complaints
• Affordable Peloton Alternatives

What Is Peloton?

Peloton is a fitness company that creates exercise bikes. What makes Peloton and their bikes unique is that they're leaders in the realm of "connected fitness." Rather than having to go out to a gym or studio, you can enjoy streamed and on-demand home workouts. You can attend live group workouts and enjoy Peloton's built-in community.

The bikes themselves are also very impressive. Their standard Peloton Bike is compact, sleek, and high-quality. It comes with a large 22" HD touchscreen and gives you access to in-workout metrics like output, resistance, and heart rate. You can even pair your heart rate monitor or Apple Watch to track and sync metrics from your workouts.

Why Do People Like Peloton?

Despite being on the expensive side, millions have bought a Peloton Bike. That's because they offer lots of special features that you won't find in most standard exercise bikes. This includes live weekly classes with motivating instructors, a sizable on-demand library of classes ranging from 5 to 90 minutes, and a wide range of class types to suit your preferences (different difficulties, music choices, themes, etc.)

How Expensive Is a Peloton?

There's a lot to like about Peloton bikes, but all these great features come at a price. A Peloton Bike costs $1,445 (minus tax), including setup and delivery. You'll also have to pay a $44-per-month membership fee for the Android/iOS app and streaming content. This is obligatory for your first year. Otherwise, you'd only have access to free-ride mode and three classes.

Common Peloton Complaints

On ConsumerAffairs, Peloton has received almost 1,000 ratings. They're mostly positive, and they have 3.9/5 stars, but there are still some recurring complaints among verified reviewers. Here are a few that you should know about if you're thinking of buying a Peloton Bike.

• Troubles with customer service: Many Peloton reviewers on ConsumerAffairs had negative things to say about Peloton's customer service. Some claim their calls were dropped after an hour on hold, others struggled a lot while trying to make returns, schedule repairs, cancel orders, or use warranties.
• Pricey monthly membership: Peloton has a great selection of classes available through their monthly membership, but the $44-per-month price tag just wasn't worth it to some reviewers.
• Suddenly stops working: A few reviewers had their Peloton cease working after very little use. For some, the screen went black and the base stopped working soon after. Peloton can send a service tech to help you, but one reviewer noted that this process may take a long time if you don't live in one of their service areas. 
• Not ideal for tall people: Some reviewers found the bike was a bit too small for them to use comfortably. These reviewers were generally 6'2 and taller. 

Just because these reviewers experienced these issues doesn't mean that you will. Still, it's good to be aware of these potential problems before making such a big purchase.

Affordable Peloton Alternatives

You don't have to spend over $1,000 on an exercise bike. Peloton offers lots of great features, but there are more affordable alternatives out there that might suit your budget better. The bikes below don't have all the same qualities as a Peloton Bike, but they're good quality and significantly more affordable!

Fitnation - Flex Bike Ultra

This attractive bike offers more than just looks! With a heavy-duty steel frame construction, this sturdy Fitnation bike is very durable and reliable. You can track your progress by viewing the LCD, which features several functions like calories burned, distance, time, speed, and pulse.

The Flex Bike Ultra comes with built-in resistance bands for working your upper body, multiple levels of adjustable magnetic resistance, an adjustable cushion seat, and nonskid foot pedals. If you buy the Flex Bike Ultra through the Fitnation website, you'll also receive a free month of FitPass. This is a program that gives you access to live-streamed and on-demand classes featuring a variety of equipment-free workouts.

Best Feature: One of the best features of the Flex Bike Ultra is its fold-up design and wheels. These qualities make the bike so easy to transport from room to room, especially compared to all the heavy and bulky exercise bikes out there.

Price: $329.99 at Fitnation

Lanos Brands Foldable Exercise Bike

The Lanos Foldable Exercise Bike is the cheapest on this list, so you shouldn't expect too many bells and whistles. That said, it's a solid bike for people that want to get into fitness without spending a ton of money.

The bike has a nice LCD monitor, along with a built-in phone and tablet holder so you can watch videos or listen to music while you exercise. You'll also be able to choose between 10 magnetic resistance levels, meaning you can easily increase the difficulty of your workouts at your own pace.

Best Feature: A standout quality of the Lanos exercise bike is its ultra-quiet operation. You can use this bike in the living room without disrupting others, which can't be said for all exercise bikes.

Price: $179.99 at Walmart

Schwinn - 170 Upright Exercise Bike - Black

The Schwinn 170 is the most expensive bike on our list, though it's less than half the price of a Peloton Exercise Bike. It's a solid choice for anyone that wants a high-quality bike with lots of features, including Bluetooth connectivity, app-based tracking tools, heart rate monitoring, and an adjustable padded seat.

Of course, that's just the beginning of what this bike has to offer. It also comes with 29 workout programs and 25 resistance levels so you can customize your workouts. Looking for a bike for the whole family? The Schwinn 170 lets you create up to 4 user profiles so each user can save their own workout progress.

Best Feature: Subscribe to the Explore the World app, and you can use your Schwinn bike to explore 50+ global routes! The subscription fee is fair, and it's an easy way to make your workouts more fun and engaging.

Price: $549.99 at Best Buy

XTERRA FB360 Folding Bike

You can easily fold up this XTERRA bike and store it somewhere convenient in between workouts, which is ideal for people without a ton of space. The bike also has a simple LCD that relays key metrics and offers 8 levels of resistance, which admittedly is less than the other bikes on this list. That said, the XTERRA bike has plenty of other great features, including padded handlebars with heart rate sensors, foot pedals with adjustable straps, and a built-in phone and tablet holder.

Best Feature: The XTERRA bike offers a large padded seat and a nice supportive seat back. The padded seat can also be adjusted to suit your body and preferences.

Price: $319.99 at XTERRA Fitness

YOSUDA Indoor Cycling Bike Stationary Bike

The YOSUDA Indoor Cycling Bike is a great all-around bike for its price. It's very solid and stable without making a ton of noise. It has an adjustable non-slip handle bar, a great padded seat, and a variety of resistance options.

Its LCD monitor makes it easy for you to track several metrics, including distance, time, and calories burned. It does take approximately 30 minutes to assemble, but the tools are provided and the instructions in the package are relatively straightforward.

Best Feature: With an exercise bike this inexpensive, some might assume it's not high-quality. However, a standout feature of the YOSUDA bike is its heavy-duty steel frame, which gives you the stability you need to tackle each workout.

Price: $279.99 at Amazon

Get Free Coupons and Codes for the Peleton and other Fitness Equipment

Making your health and fitness a priority doesn't have to cost a fortune. With DealDrop, you can save on all different kinds of fitness gear. We have coupons for Peloton, but you can also use our site to save even more on the less expensive Peloton alternatives. Of course, you can use DealDrop to save on much more than fitness equipment.