Our pick of the top 10 full suspension and hardtail mountain bikes under £2k
We all want to be railing like the pros and riding the bikes they do, but buying a bike like theirs can break the bank however the best mountain bikes under £2,000 are serious machines built to race spec and can perform brilliantly.
We’ve selected the best Enduro, All Mountain and Cross Country Bikes for you to look through based on press reviews, our customer reviews, staff favourites, and the bikes we ride.
Selecting What Is Right For You
There are lots and lots of bikes that fall into the £1000 – £2000 range and choosing what is right for you can be tricky. Bikes at this price work well across multiple disciplines however, they are typically designed with a specific discipline in mind, meaning they perform better in their intended discipline. So you will want to consider what you are looking to use the bike for most of the time.
Great advice when buying at this price is to concentrate on the frame rather than the parts, a quality frame will set you up and help you to get the best ride experience ensuring you have a quality starting point to build upon. Parts are easily upgraded when you are ready for a change or they wear out.
Cross Country Mountain Bikes
Cross-country or XC Mountain Bikes are designed to be fast on relatively smooth off-road tracks, with an emphasis on climbing. Typically an XC MTB will feature fast-rolling tyres that have a lower profile than you will find on other mountain bikes.
All-Mountain/Trail Bikes
A Trail / “All-Mountain Bike” is a bike that, as the name suggests, is designed to ride everywhere. The designs tend to be full suspension with suspension travel around 140mm and are fantastic bikes for anyone looking for a “one-bike-fits-all”. These bikes offer maximum fun, they can handle all terrains and are good to climb and descend.
Enduro Mountain Bikes
An Enduro Mountain Bike is a bike that has been specifically designed for Enduro riding. Enduro events consist of stages, with each stage offering up technical terrain that descends (think of them as a series of downhill sections), after each stage you will cycle to the next (typically, back uphill). Enduro bikes feature long-travel suspension with geometry that allows for extremely fast downhill speeds on some of the toughest trails around whilst still being capable of pedalling uphill to the next stage.
Downhill Mountain Bikes
Downhill Mountain Bikes are designed for exactly what you would expect, they descend down the steepest and roughest terrain at high speed. They feature very long-travel suspension (typically around 200mm) and are built for the sole purpose of flying downhill at extreme speed.
Other links to check:
The 10 Best Mountain Bikes Under £2,000 in 2022
- BMC Twostroke AL Two – £1699
- Trek X-Caliber 9 – £1525
- BMC Twostroke AL Three – £1549
- GT Sensor Sport – £2000
- BMC Twostroke AL One – £1899
- Cannondale Trail SE 2 – £1550
- Trek Procaliber 9.5 – £1925
- Bmc Speedfox Al Two – £1900
- Cannondale Trail SE 1 – £1750
- Trek Roscoe 8 – £2000
BMC Twostroke AL Two – £1699
The BMC Twostroke AL Two is designed to be a fast-paced XC racer or hill climber!
The frame is constructed from premium aluminium that has been hydroformed and features high quality smooth finish welds to give ultimate performance and stunning looks. BMC are proud to say that they utilize a fighter jet inspired design, to create the perfect blend of performance, functionality and aesthetics.
The Twostroke AL Two comes with Rockshox Judy Silver forks and features SRAM NX Eagle 12 speed gearing. The bike also comes with the beautiful Vittoria Barzo 2.25 tan wall tyres that really make the bike stand out. In short, this is a really high spec hardtail mountain bike perfect for anyone wanting to thrash through their local singletrack or take on the cross country race season and look great whilst doing it.
Trek X-Caliber 9 – £1525
The X-Caliber 9 is designed as a fast-paced cross country bike that flies around singletrack.
The frame is constructed from lightweight aluminium and utilizes fast-paced aggressive XC geometry that allows you to you cover more trail in less time.
A RockShox Recon fork, a 1×12 Shimano XT/SLX drivetrain, and a wide-range cassette make it a great choice for fast XC riders who want a great bike that’s ready to race right out of the box.
BMC Twostroke AL Three – £1549
Just like the Twostroke AL Two, the BMC Twostroke AL Three is designed to be a fast-paced Country-country racer or hill climber!
The frame is constructed from premium aluminium that has been hydroformed and features smooth finish welds to give ultimate performance and stunning looks.
The Twostroke AL Two comes with Rockshox Judy TK R forks and features Shimano Deore 12 speed gearing. The bike also comes with the beautiful Vittoria Barzo 2.25 tan wall tyres that really make the bike stand out. This high spec hardtail mountain bike is perfect for anyone wanting to thrash through their local singletrack or take on the cross country race season.
GT Sensor Sport – £2000
The GT Sensor Sport is a long travel all-mountain bike (with a little cross over into Enduro) engineered to go fast, get loose and have fun. Aimed at the off-road thrill-seekers, this stable and versatile bike encourages you to take on the most trails, demanding climbs and challenging descents.
The frame is constructed with high-grade aluminium in a modern geometry design that provides a super stable bike that’s ready to weave from trail to trail with control and composure.
The Sensor Sport is equipped with RockShox Recon Silver RL, 140mm forks and X-Fusion 02 Pro RL, 130mm rear travel, with a Shimano Deore 11-Speed drivetrain which gives you plenty of gearing to get you through the most challenging of routes. GT have finished the bike with powerful Shimano MT200 hydraulic disc brakes which keep you in full control, making this a superb choice of upgrade for every off-road adventure.
BMC Twostroke AL One – £1899
Just like the BMC Twostroke AL Two, the BMC Twostroke AL One is designed to be a fast-paced Cross-country racer and hill climber!
The frame is the same as the one used on the Twostroke AL Two, constructed from premium aluminium that has been hydroformed and features smooth finish welds to give ultimate performance and stunning looks.
The BMC Twostroke AL One is equipped with Rockshox Recon RL forks and features SRAM NX Eagle 1×12 drivetrain providing a wide range of gearing to tackle any terrain. BMC finished the bike with Shimano Deore hydraulic discs that provide incredible stopping power. Just like the Twostroke AL Two, this is a really high spec hardtail mountain bike perfect for anyone wanting to thrash through their local singletrack or take on the cross country race season and look great whilst doing it.
Cannondale Trail SE 2 – £1550
Cannondale developed the Trail SE 2 bike for the mountains, so you can enjoy it everywhere. It features slacker geometry with a longer front centre, longer travel forks, a shorter stem, wider bars and fatter tyres all with this “ride everywhere” goal in mind.
The frame features lightweight aluminium construction and utilizes contemporary geometry creating a lively, stiff, and most of all, fun bike.
Cannondale fitted Rock Shox 35 Silver R 120mm forks to the Trail SE 2. The drivetrain used is the SRAM SX Eagle, 12-speed which provides a huge range of gears allowing you to tackle any terrain. This unique bike is a real “one-bike-for-all” and will have you riding with a huge smile on your face from the moment you step on the pedals.
Trek Procaliber 9.5 – £1925
The Trek Procaliber 9.5 is a lightweight carbon hardtail designed to thrash around singletrack, it’s built for speed and efficiency!
The frame is constructed from Trek OCLV Mountain Carbon and features their trail-smoothing IsoSpeed decoupler that decouples the seat tube from the top tube. This feature greatly increases comfort but keeps the stiffness of the frame to provide excellent power transfer, providing speed and comfort in one tidy package!
The Procaliber 9.5 features RockShox Judy SL 100mm forks coupled with a Shimano Deore 12 speed drivetrain and Shimano RT26 hydraulic disc brakes to provide serious stopping power. This solid carbon race bike is ideal for anyone with a love of single track and/or anyone wanting to give XC racing a serious go.
BMC Speedfox AL TWO – £1900
The BMC Speedfox AL Two is designed to be a true All-Mountain bike. BMC describe this as “The most versatile and functional machine in our MTB range, delivering a unique blend of performance and capability, for all-round stoke.”
The frame is constructed from Speedfox Premium Aluminium and is combined with BMC State-of-the-art geometry that delivers playful handling and maximum stability both uphill and descending.
The BMC Speedfox AL Two is fitted with X-Fusion RC32, 130 mm front fork and that is coupled with X Fusion 02 RL rear shock, with 120mm travel. The drivetrain used is Shimano Deore 12 spd that provides a huge range of gears allowing you to climb or descend with ease. This is a true “All-Mountain” bike ideal for someone who needs something versatile and above all fun.
Cannondale Trail SE 1 – £1750
Just like the Trail SE 2, Cannondale developed the Trail SE 1 bike for the mountains, so you can enjoy it everywhere. It also features slacker geometry with a longer front centre, longer travel forks, a shorter stem, wider bars and fatter tyres all with this “ride everywhere” goal in mind.
The frame is made from lightweight aluminium construction and utilizes contemporary geometry creating a lively, stiff, and most of all, fun bike.
Cannondale fitted RockShox 35 Gold RL 120mm forks to the Trail SE 1. The drivetrain used is the SRAM SX Eagle, 12-speed which provides a huge range of gears allowing you to tackle any terrain. This bike is perfect for someone who’s looking for a “one-bike-for-all”.
Trek Roscoe 8 – £2000
The Trek Roscoe 8 is a bike that could be described as a playground. It’s a playful trail bike with high-quality parts that’s perfect for anyone who just wants to have fun and hit the trails.
The frame is constructed from lightweight aluminium and uses laid back trail geometry perfect for tackling anything from packed singletrack to loose stuff.
The Roscoe 8 is built with 140mm RockShox 35 Gold forks, a SRAM NX Eagle 1×12 drivetrain with a wide range of gears for climbing, powerful 4-piston brakes and a dropper post for room to get low on descents, corners and jumps. This is a bike specifically designed for fun so if you want a bike to go and have a blast on, the Roscoe 8 is an excellent choice.
*Item prices correct at time of publishing – prices are subject to change