Best 18" wheel kids bikes for 5 year olds

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18" wheel kids bikes are becoming more and more popular, as they plug the gap between a small starter bike and a larger geared bike.

Some children aren't quite the right size, ability or age to move up to a bigger geared bike, and a 18" wheel bike can be a great solution (plus they usually cost a bit less than a geared bike too!)

A word of warning though - it's a wheel size that has traditionally been dominated by very cheap "toy" bikes (and click here to read why we don't recommend these).

Thankfully now there's a number of good quality 18" wheel bikes that are available to buy or lease long term.

In this article we'll take a look at the best 18" wheel kids bikes - they're all great bikes that should bring years of fun for your child.

We include options on where to buy new and also how to lease long term or buy second hand (where available) so there's hopefully something suitable for every budget.

What age child is an 18" wheel bike for?

Obviously all children are different, but on average an 18" wheel bike is suitable for children aged between about 5 and 6 years of age. In general 18" wheel bikes tend to be suitable for children with a minimum inside leg of approx 50cm and a minimum height of about 110cm.

Every 18" bike has different geometry (sizing) so we've provided the measurements provided by the manufacturer, to allow you to choose the one that fits your child. Please measure your child carefully and if possible test ride the bike if you're worried it won't fit.

These articles will help you:

Bike: Raleigh Pop 18
Price: £239.00
Age Range: 5–7 years
Rider Height: 112–125cm
Colours: Green Blue
Bike Weight: 9.9kg
Frame material: Aluminium
Gears: 6 speed
Brakes: Aluminium V-brake with adjustable 3-finger brake levers
Tyres: 18 x 1.50, black tanwall with puncture protection

If you’re looking for an 18″ wheel bike with gears then one option is the Raleigh Pop 18. It’s available in blue and green and is aimed at ages 5 to 7 years old.

It’s worth pointing out that the Pop is about 2 kg heavier than a lot of the other 18″ bikes, so you need to consider whether your child is a strong and confident cyclist able to cope with this additional weight and the complexity of the gears.

Buy New

Read more about the Raleigh Pop 18

Bike: Kidvelo Rookie 18
Price: £260.00
Age Range: 5–8 years
Inside Leg: 50–69cm
Colours: Blue Green Pink Red
Bike Weight: 7kg
Frame material: Alloy
Tyres: Innova compass Lite BMX 18" x 2.0 tyres

The Kidvelo Rookie 18 is a great bike for slightly older children who may not have learnt to ride yet and will likely start pedalling soon.

It is aimed at ages 5 to 8 years old and starts off as a large balance bike and then if and when your child is ready to try out pedals the Rookie 18 then easily converts to a pedal bike, with a simple-to-fit pedal conversion kit. So you essentially get 2 bikes for the price of one.

You can convert easily if your child needs to try pedals for a short time and then revert back to a balance bike for a while longer. It’s designed to work effortlessly in either balance bike or pedal bike mode.

The Rookie 18 balance-to-pedal bike is also a popular choice for children with additional needs who may want to learn their balance using the balance bike mode and then have the opportunity to progress to using pedals.

We’ve reviewed the Kidvelo Rookie 12, which was the first bike in their range, and were very impressed.

Buy New

Bike: Forme Cubley 18"
Price: £319.99
Monthly Lease from: £13.99
Age Range: 5–7 years
Inside Leg: 50–54cm
Rider Height: 122–127cm
Colours: Red Blue Pink Purple Orange Green
Bike Weight: 7.56kg
Frame material: Alloy
Brakes: Tektro
Tyres: Kenda Small Block Eight 18"x 1.5"

Sadly Forme Bikes went out of business in March 2023, so new bikes are now hard to find. However the good news is most of their warehouse was bought by Bike Club so kids can continue to ride these great bikes for years to come.

The Forme Cubley 18 is a great bike for all round riding, if your child isn’t quite ready to move up to a geared bike.

It’s a good value, lightweight bike with well designed child sized components and performs well on most surfaces a rider of this age is likely to want to go.

Subscribe to the Bike Club and get this great Forme Bike for a low monthly cost. When it gets too small just upgrade it for another one (the bike, not the child!)

Further reading: Should I subscribe to Bike Club instead of buying a new kids bike?

Buy New Bike Club Buy Used

Read more about the Cube Cubie 180 SL

Bike: Black Mountain HÜTTO
Price: £499.00
Age Range: 6–9 years
Colours: Green Orange Purple Blue
Bike Weight: 8.6kg
Frame material: Alloy
Brakes: Tektro
Tyres: Kenda Small Block 8 - 1.75"

Buy New

The Black Mountain HÜTTO is actually a 20" wheel bike, but we've included in this article because it's actually designed to replace a 18" wheel and a 20" wheel bike, due to it's growing frame design, so may suit a taller child better than the 18" wheel KAPĒL.

The HUTTO comes in three different versions - the standard version is adequate for most types of riding, but if you're planning on getting out on the trails there's two mountain bike versions available. The HÜTTO Trail has front suspension and the HÜTTO Disc has the added benefit of disc brakes.

If your child is not pedalling you can buy a separate balance bike convertor kit for the HÜTTO.

Bike: Black Mountain KAPĒL
Price: £499.00
Age Range: 5–8 years
Colours: Green Orange Purple Blue
Bike Weight: 8.4kg
Frame material: Alloy
Gears: Twist Grip Shift — 7 speed 32T chainring 11-28T cassette
Brakes: Tektro
Tyres: Schwalbe Black Jack - 1.9"

Black Mountain Bikes have a really clever “growing frame” which means that when your child outgrows the original frame size you can adjust the frame and the gearing to make it last much longer.

This means you get at least two bikes for your money and don’t have the hassle of having to sort out a new bike.

The KAPĒL is their 18″ wheel offering, but taller children may want to move straight onto the 20″ wheel HUTTØ to get maximum usage.

Most 18″ wheel bike are single speed, meaning they don’t have gears. The KAPĒL is one of the exceptions, making it ideal for those who regularly ride hills. Do remember that not all children are ready to start using gears at this age.

Another clever feature about these bikes is the fact that they can start out in balance bike mode if needed (you do need to buy an additional balance bike convertor kit) so your child can progress from learning to balance through to pedalling all without you needing to buy a new bike.

Buy New Buy Used