Pro-Form Exercise Bikes are a popular series of exercise bikes available from Walmart, Amazon, Sears, and a number of other popular retailers. Find out if they’re worth the price today in our review.
What Are Pro-Form Exercise Bikes?
Pro-Form is a fitness equipment manufacturer known for its treadmills, ellipticals, and exercise bikes. The company sells its products online through Amazon, as well as in Walmart and Sears stores nationwide.
Today, we’re specifically looking at the company’s lineup of exercise bikes, which range in price from $400 to $1500. The company offers a range of different studio bikes, recumbent bikes, upright bikes, and hybrid bikes.
The Exercise Bikes come with some similar features. They typically feature a backlit display, for example, that tells you different information about your workout. They’re also all iFit-enabled.
iFit is Pro-Form’s smart coaching system that promises to be “a coach for every aspect of life”. When your machine is iFit-enabled, it works with the iFit platform to help you manage your exercise, nutrition, sleep, and other trackable metrics.
If you’re buying into the iFit system, then you’ll want to use the iFit wearable device, which is actually included for free with your iFit membership. iFit is priced at between $10 and $40 per month, depending on the level of coaching you want.
You don’t need to sign up for coaching to use the Pro-Form Exercise Bikes. Let’s take a look at the specific exercise bikes available today.
Types Of Pro-Form Exercise Bikes
Pro-Form offers four different categories of exercise bikes, including their studio series, recumbent bikes, upright bikes, and hybrid series. Each category tends to feature one “low cost” option and one premium model with additional features.
Studio Series
The Studio Series bikes are designed to replicate the bikes you’d see in an spin class or exercise studio. There are two models available, including:
- Studio Bike: $999
- Studio Bike Pro: $1499
The main advantages of the Pro option are that you get a 10” HD touchscreen and the ability to go from -20% to +20% include. The basic Studio Bike option features a smaller display and a -15% to +15% incline.
Both bikes let you participate in spin classes from the comfort of your own home. A $39 per month membership is recommended when using this bike. When you sign up as a member, you’ll get professionally-led cycling classes from the comfort of your own home.
Recumbent Bikes
The recumbent bikes work in a similar way to the Studio Bikes listed above, but feature a different setup. They’re recumbent bikes, which means you’re resting on your butt and back and pushing forward with your legs, as opposed to sitting on your butt and pushing down with your legs. The two models available include:
- 440 ES: $599
- 740 ES Commercial: $799
The 440 ES is the basic version. It features a 5” backlit display. You can use that display to show workout apps. 32 apps are included on the trainer, letting you follow along as you bike through exotic destinations or play games as you bike.
The 740 ES Commercial, on the other hand, features a 7” color touchscreen and is iFit-enabled, which means it will sync with other parts of the iFit platform. It also has a slightly heavier flywheel (20 pounds instead of 18 pounds).
Upright Bikes
The Upright Bikes let you bring your favorite gym cycling class home. They’re similar to the studio bikes, but significantly cheaper (and don’t let you participate in workout classes). The two models include:
- 8.0 EX: $499
- 14.0 EX: $799
The 8.0 comes with a 5” backlit display and a 16 pound effective flywheel, while the more expensive 14.0 EX comes with a 7” color touchscreen and an 18 pound effective flywheel. Both are iFit-enabled.
Hybrid Series
The Pro-Form Hybrid Series exercise bikes are unique devices that combine the features of an elliptical with the sit-down comfort of a recumbent exercise bike. You get the handles of an elliptical, for example, and similar footpads. However, you’re sitting down like you would sit in a recumbent bike. Here are the two models available:
- Hybrid Trainer: $399
- Hybrid Trainer Pro: $599
The Pro model has a longer stride (17” stride compared to 15” stride) as well as a slightly heavier flywheel (15 pounds versus 13 pounds). Both are iFit Bluetooth-enabled machines.
iFit Pricing
You don’t need an iFit membership to use your Pro-Form Exercise Bikes. However, the company really encourages it for those who want to get maximum benefits from their bike. Here’s how pricing breaks down:
- iFit Coach: $9 per month (billed every 2 years) or $12 per month (billed annually)
- iFit Coach Plus: $29 per month (billed very 2 years) or $39 per month (billed annually)
The basic iFit Coach comes with the free iFit Wearable, personalized coaching, an expansive fitness library, workouts powered by Google Maps, video workouts, connected tracking, individualized nutrition advice, RockMyRun membership, customized sleep tracking and tips, and access to the online fitness community.
The Plus version comes with all of those features and access to HD video workouts, daily LiveCast classes, and a set of 2 x 3 pound dumbbells.
Both subscriptions come with support for up to 4 users. So you can split it with your partner or members of your family.
About Pro-Form
Pro-Form is a well-known exercise equipment manufacturer that has been a major player in the exercise equipment industry for over 30 years. The company has partnered with the Boston Marathon and the Tour de France, among other major exercise competitions. The company claims that it’s the #1 brand in the exercise industry based on units sold and dollars made. It also holds “100s of patents” and is “one of the most recognized fitness brands”.
The company’s products are available throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom.
You can contact the company at [email protected].
Pro-Form Exercise Bike Reviews: What Do Customers Have to Say About These Bikes?
Pro-Form sells its exercise bikes on Amazon, which means we have hundreds of customer reviews summing up their experience with the exercise bikes. Here are some of the pros and cons about these bikes according to the reviews:
Pros
- Great value exercise equipment
- Lower cost than most other exercise equipment brands on the market
- Good recumbent bikes
- Sturdy build, even on the cheaper models
- Doesn’t take long to build, and the instructions were clear and easy
Cons
- The bikes don’t have as many reviews as the Pro-Form treadmills, and the reviews we do see aren’t that positive: the Tour De France exercise bike has a dismal 1.5 star rating out of 5 with a total of 10 customer reviews to date
- Takes 1 to 3 hours to assemble, which is typical for exercise equipment sold online
- Larger people complain that the bike is difficult for them to use
- Seat backs are not always adjustable
- Some people claim the bikes start falling apart within months (the Tour De France bike has particularly bad reviews about the build quality)
- If there’s a problem with your order, like a broken or missing piece, it’s very annoying to repackage it all and send it back to the manufacturer (some reviewers recommended buying from a local store instead of Amazon for this reason)
Pro-Form Exercise Bikes Review Summary
If you’re looking for a cost-effective exercise bike that can easily be built and used at home, then Pro-Form appears to offer a decent level of quality.
However, professional bikers may be disappointed by the way in which the bike stands up to sturdy use. The Tour De France Indoor Cycling Training Bike sold on Amazon, for example, has more 1 star reviews than all other reviews combined, with many people claiming that it’s a $2,000 piece of junk.
That being said, most other Pro-Form Exercise Bikes – along with other Pro-Form exercise equipment like ellipticals and treadmills – are well-reviewed online and offline, and the company has a longstanding reputation in the world of fitness equipment.
