You don’t have to be a lottery winner to afford a top quality bike. Even now, during an economic downturn, premium bikes remain relatively affordable.

Luxury purchases like expensive cars or mansions are beyond the means of most of us whatever state the economy is in. Bikes are different. A top quality bike – the equivalent of a Bentley or Rolls Royce, perhaps – really is affordable on an average salary. Especially if you get it through Cyclescheme.

Let’s look at some numbers. You can input your own figures using the Cyclescheme Calculator. In this example, we’ll assume you earn £30,000 a year and would like the Brompton P-Line Urban below, which has an RRP of £2,264. With Cyclescheme you’d save 26.25% on it, for a total cost of £1,669.70 (including the Ownership Fee of £158.48). The net cost to you, for the one-year salary sacrifice period, would be £125.94 per month. That’s £29 per week (£125.94/4.33) or £5.80 per working day. Many people spend that on a couple of coffees.

The only justifications you need to buy an expensive bike are that you can afford it and you want it. Yet there are other reasons, which carry more weight the more you’re into a particular type of cycling. They include: improved performance, more features, lower weight, and a nicer style. There are diminishing returns as prices rise – the bikes get only incrementally better. Only you can decide where the best compromise is between price and performance. The bikes below are all excellent examples of their type but your mileage, as ever, may vary. Note that we’ll be covering e-bikes separately.

City bike: Canyon Commuter 7

This stylish city bike comes with everything you need for commuting: not just mudguards and a pannier rack but high-quality Supernova lights powered by a Shimano dynamo hub. The drivetrain features a wide-range Shimano Alfine 11-speed hub gear, which you can shift while stationary at the lights, and a Gates belt drive that doesn’t need oiling and won’t rust in the rain. Flared grips prevent pins and needles in the hands, while 40mm Schwalbe G One tyres will comfortably cope with potholes and that nasty chipseal highway authorities like so much. An aluminium frame and carbon fibre fork keep the weight down to 13.2kg. The Commuter 7 also exists in a version with a dropped top tube. Sizes: S-XL. Colours: mustard or anchor grey.

What you’re paying for: practical equipment such as hub dynamo lighting, mudguards, and rack; 11-speed hub gear; belt drive; relatively low weight.

Singlespeed: Condor Classico Pista

Singlespeed bikes are minimalist by definition, which is why you can you buy a serviceable one for a few hundred quid. An expensive singlespeed is primarily a bike for the cognoscenti, not for utilitarian riders. However, a front brake is a legal requirement for a fixie and a singlespeed with a freewheel must have two brakes, so don’t buy an expensive, brakeless race bike designed for velodrome use for commuting. Condor’s Classico Pista is a better bet. It’s a well-made, retro-style fixie with front and rear brakes. It’s built from Italian Columbus SLX steel tubing, the choice of racers in the 1980s, with a lugged and brazed frame and a traditional threaded headset. There’s no provision for mudguards and tyre size is limited to 25mm. If you want a more practical singlespeed, check out the Condor Tempo (£1,600). Sizes: 49, 52, 55, 58, 61cm. Colour: Rockshox blue.

What you’re paying for: well-made, lugged steel frame and fork; style.

Touring bike: Bombtrack Arise Tour

Like all good tourers, Bombtrack’s Arise Tour majors on practicality and durability. It has a sturdy steel frame with a wheelbase long enough that you won’t kick your panniers and plenty of fittings. The rear dropouts are adjustable, which means you can convert the bike to a singlespeed if the drivetrain breaks on tour. The drivetrain is a 2x10 setup with a 46-30 chainset, an 11-42 cassette, and bar-end shifters. This gives you low enough gears for loaded hillclimbing, more precise front shifting (doubles work better than triples), and simple and reliable shift levers. Chunky 40mm tyres will cope with bad roads and dirt tracks, while the twin-piston Tektro Spyre mechanical discs offer well-modulated braking. Mudguards, front and rear racks, and hub dynamo-powered lights are included. Sizes: XS-XL. Colour: blue.

What you’re paying for: durability; stability under load; well-chosen, wide-range gearing; touring essentials like racks and lights.

Folder: Brompton P-Line Urban

The Brompton is Britain’s benchmark folding bike because it folds so quickly and compactly into a stable package little taller or wider than its 16in wheels. You can take it anywhere, rolling it under desks or between the seat backs on trains. It also rides tolerably well and has a neat front luggage system. At almost 12kg, the standard C-Line model is quite heavy, given how often you have to lift it. The new P-Line models are palpably lighter at around 10kg. Weight is saved with a titanium fork and rear triangle, lighter wheels, and a new 4-speed derailleur system. There are still lighter folders – the Hummingbird, for example – but none that folds as neatly as a Brompton. Colours: midnight black or storm grey. One size.

What you’re paying for: a lighter, sportier version of the super-compact commuting folder. 

Cargo bike: Larry vs Harry Original Bullitt

A favourite among cycle couriers, the Bullitt is well liked for its low weight and its manoeuvrability in traffic. It weighs 22.3kg without extras, and at 46cm is narrower than the handlebars of many bikes. Yet it has a total load capacity of 180kg, and whatever that load is – groceries, building materials, a couple of children in seats – you’ll be able to keep an eye on it. Various box types and extras are available, and it comes in lots of different colours and specifications, including electric-assist versions – have a look at the Bullitt bike builder to see the options. There’s a sturdy stand to make loading and unloading easier, and all versions come with hydraulic disc brakes so you can keep the loaded bike in check. One size. Many colours.

What you’re paying for: a lightweight cargo bike with lots of build options that handles well and is easy to live with.

Road bike: Mason Definition 105

The Mason Definition is a four-season road bike, one that can be ridden year round thanks to the facility to fit full-length mudguards. It also takes a rear rack. It’s no utilitarian plodder, however, but a lightweight endurance road bike whose tyres – up to 30mm with mudguards or 35mm without – will cope with green lanes and neglected backstreets. The nicely designed aluminium frame and full carbon fibre fork are equipped with high-quality, handbuilt wheels from Hunt. There are various 1x and 2x drivetrain options; this 2x11 Shimano 105 version is the cheapest. You could comfortably ride the Definition to work one day and tackle a 100-mile sportive on it the next. Sizes: 48-62cm in 2cm increments. Colours: blue, black, or light grey.

What you’re paying for: versatile frameset with good clearances and fittings; benchmark wheels; balanced handling.

Hybrid: Trek FX Sport 6

Trek’s top of the range hybrid tips the scales a 9.5kg thanks to a carbon frame, a carbon fork, and carbon-rimmed wheels. Less weight should mean a bit more pep on recreational rides, whether on country lanes, bridleways, or wide forest tracks. Lightly treaded 40mm gravel bike tyres will work fine in any of those scenarios. Unlike many carbon bikes, the FX Sport has hidden mudguard and rack mounts so it remains practical for commuting to work. For longer recreational rides, there are mounts to fit a frame bag under the top tube. The frame is relatively short and upright for a sporty bike – Trek calls it ‘just right geometry’ – which with the flat handlebar gives a head-up position that’s good for traffic awareness and kinder to your lower back. Sizes: XS-L. Colour: deep smoke.

What you’re paying for: lightweight carbon fibre frame and fork with practical fittings; lightweight carbon wheels.

Tricycle: ICE Adventure 20 with rear suspension

Recumbent tricycles have a lower centre of gravity than uprights so they’re more stable when cornering, making them a better choice for riders with balance issues or other disabilities. A laid-back seat is more comfortable too. The Adventure is ICE’s touring/commuting model. It has 20in front wheels and either a 20in or 26in rear. There a lots of other options, such seat height, electric assistance, accessories, and suspension. All versions of the Adventure have: a folding frame, making it transportable by car; wide-range gearing; and no brake steering (so the trike won’t skew to one side if you brake harder with one lever than the other). One size. Colours: blue or green.

What you’re paying for: recumbent comfort; fun ride; folding frame; versatile design that’s adaptable for all abilities; made in the UK.

Mountain bike: Specialized Stumpjumper Evo Comp

Like other capable trail bikes, Specialized’s Stumpjumper Evo Comp has a slack head angle for assured steering on technical singletrack, a steep seat angle to help you put the power down (and keep the front wheel down) on climbs, and a lowish bottom bracket for stability at speed. Its 160mm travel Fox Float 36 fork and 150mm travel Float X rear shock will absorb trail chatter and big hits alike on mountain bike centre black routes without unduly affecting pedalling performance. The carbon fibre frame is the standout at this price: it’s the same one used on the Evo Comp’s £10k S-Works stablemate, and it saves valuable weight over an aluminium frame. Nice details include the SWAT in-frame storage for stashing tools and accessories. Sizes: S1-S6 (see website for details). Colours: arctic blue and black or ‘satin doppio’ and sand.

What you’re paying for: great carbon fibre frame that’s the same as the £10k top-end model’s; refined trail geometry; capable Fox fork and rear shock.

Gravel bike: Vielo V+1 Strato GRX Mechanical

This is the entry-level Vielo V+1; these carbon fibre gravel bikes can cost over £10k! Most of what’s special about the Vielo V+1, in all its incarnations, is the frameset. The frame and fork are made from high-spec carbon fibre, designed in a way to give stiffness where you want it (bottom bracket, main triangle) without making it feel harsh and unyielding where you don’t want that (fork, seatstays). There’s clearance for tyres up to 50mm so you can ride ‘proper’ off-road tracks but most builds are so light (around 8kg or less) that it’s equally enjoyable on tarmac. There are hidden mudguard mounts for road use. Sizes: XS-XL. Colours: frost green or plum.

What you’re paying for: superlight carbon frame and fork with stiffness and flex in the right places; good performance on road and off; 50mm tyre clearance.

Check how much you can save or find a retailer.

Ready to revolutionise your commute?