The Ultimate Electric Scooter Buying Guide

The Ultimate Electric Scooter Buying Guide

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Two things before we get started:

Not Smartphone Friendly: For now this guide is meant to be viewed on computer, not a smartphone

Our Research Process: You can read about who we are and our research process below.

PORTABILITY & AFFORDABILITY
VS
COMFORT & PERFORMANCE

Foldable scooters are awesome to own because they’re so portable. You can carry them easily down a flight of stairs, put them under your work desk or under your bus or subway seat, in the trunk of your car, etc.

Yet generally, the more portable a scooter is, the less comfortable and less capable it is.

So figuring out where your needs are along the portability & affordability vs comfort & performance spectrum is generally the biggest decision that needs to be made when deciding what model to buy. Here’s a visual guide to help out:

CHOOSE PORTABILITY
& AFFORDABILITY IF:

  • Short Trips: Your trips are under 1 mile
  • Great Road Conditions: Your road conditions are generally smooth, without bumps or cracks
  • No Hills: Your roads are generally flat
  • More Metro Transfers: You have 2 or more public transit stops where you have to stow and retrieve your scooter
  • Need To Carry: You will need to carry your scooter around for more than a few minutes
  • Less Maintenance: You do not wish to pump your tires semi-regularly or worry about flats

CHOOSE COMFORT
& PERFORMANCE IF:

  • Medium-Longer Trips: Your trips can be over one mile
  • Bad Road Conditions: Your road conditions are less than ideal, with bumps and cracks
  • Hills: You have some slopes or hills to deal with
  • 1 Metro Transfer: If you don’t have too many public transit transfers that require folding, stowing, unstowing, unfolding
  • Don’t Need To Carry: If you don’t need to carry your scooter around with you or if you’re ok rolling it around (as some models allow)

OUR RECOMMENDATIONS

BEST FOR

  • If your rides are short
  • If you don’t have significant hills
  • If your pavements are smooth
  • If weather isn’t a big issue

e-Joe

MOMAS Carbon

$399

BEST FOR

  • If your rides are short
  • If your pavements are smooth
  • If weather isn’t a big issue

Micro Kickboard

Micro Falcon

$999

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t need super portability

Xiaomi

Mi

$500

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t have significant hills

Glion

Dolly

$629

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t need to carry it for more than a few minutes or up several flights of stairs

Midway

Mini 4 Pro

$629

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t need to carry it for more than a few minutes or up several flights of stairs
  • If you don’t have significant hills
  • If you don’t have rough pavement to deal with

URB-E

Sport Series

$899-1999

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t need to carry it for more than a few minutes or up several flights of stairs

Speedway

III

$975

BEST FOR

  • If you don’t need a portable scooter
  • If your budget allows for $1K+

OjO

Series

$1499 – $2399

SSR Motorsports

SEEV-800

$1499

COOLEST FEATURES

Foldable & Seat

URB-E

Rollable Cart
(Optional Basket)

URB-E

Cupholder
(Optional)

URB-E

Removable Battery
And Charger Bank

URB-E Sport Series

Cool Deck Lights

Segway ES2

Strong Yet Light
Carbon Fiber Body

MOMAS Carbon

Built-In And
Retractable Charger

OjO

Bluetooth Speakers

OjO

Wireless Key Fob &
Motion Sensing Alarm

OjO

Unique Colors

OjO

Beefy Tires

SEEV-800

Quirky
Design

URB-E

Elegant
Design

OjO

Bold Design

SEEV-800

DETAILED SPECS

SCOOTER OVERVIEWS

Comfort

••6″ Foam Core Front

5″ Solid Tire

No Suspension

Weight

•••••17.5 lb

Power

••••500 watts

Range

5-9 miles

Speed

•••1 mph

e-Joe

MOMAS CARBON

$399

Currently Available: From e-Joe
Colors: Black, White

PROS

  • Lightest mass market e-scooter
  • Strong yet light carbon fiber frame
  • Super compact, great for storing quickly and in discrete locations
  • Incredible price
  • Flexible deck for slight road dampening
  • Bright LED headlight
  • Puncture proof tires, maintenance free tires

CONS

  • Bumpy due to small, rubber tires. Not recommended for rides longer than one mile
  • Not recommended for weather due to solid rubber tires

Comfort

•••8″ Air Tires
No Shocks

Weight

•••27.5 lb

Power

250 watts

Range

•••18 miles

Speed

•••15 mph

Xiaomi

MI

$499

Currently Out Of Stock: From Amazon
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Very affordable
  • Quality build with a solid, durable frame
  • Comfortable 8” air tires
  • Front/rear lights
  • Integrated bell
  • Good aesthetic design

CONS

  • A bit underpowered for inclines or hills
  • Too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes
  • Hard to comfortably/quickly stow in discrete places like under bus/subways seats or at a cafe

Comfort

•••8″ Airless Tires
No Shocks

Weight

•••28 lb

Power

250 watts

Range

••11 miles

Speed

•••15 mph

Glion

DOLLY

$629

Currently Available: From Glion Dolly
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Quality scooter with 100+ Amazon user ratings with a 4.5 star average
  • US based company with great customer support
  • Fold-and-roll with built in dolly wheels and handle
  • Quick release-and-fold handles
  • Place anywhere with the self standing design
  • Slim foldable profile makes it easy to stow
  • Front lighting, rear reflector
  • Responsive half-grip twist throttle
  • Never-flat honeycombed tires that aren’t as rigid as solid rubber tires, giving a bit more cushion over bumps yet don’t need regular air pumping like an air tire and do not puncture
  • Strong regenerative braking

CONS

  • Weak front light
  • Braking is all-or-none
  • Display only shows battery level, which isn’t very accurate
  • It’s too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes, but is rollable
  • A bit underpowered for inclines or hills

Comfort

••8″ Solid Tires
Front/Rear Shocks

Weight

•••27.6 lb

Power

••300 watts

Range

••11 miles

Speed

•••15 mph

Ninebot

SEGWAY ES2

$555

Available For Pre-Order For $555 From E-Wheels
Or Available For $649.99 From Amazon
Colors: Black/Silver

PROS

  • Very affordable
  • Quality build with a solid, durable frame
  • Front/rear shocks
  • Puncture proof tires, maintenance free tires
  • Upgradable with an optional battery that doubles the range and add 3 mph
  • Front and rear lighting
  • Cruise control
  • Clean aesthetic design
  • Ambient deck lights

CONS

  • The suspension isn’t enough to compensate for the solid rubber tires, making rough roads bumpy
  • Too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes
  • Hard to comfortably/quickly stow in discrete places like under bus/subways seats or at a cafe

Comfort

••8″ Honeycomb Tires
No Shocks

Weight

••••23.5 lb

Power

••350 watts

Range

•••16 miles

Speed

•••16 mph

UScooters

ECO

$669

Currently Available: From UScooters
Colors: Black, White, Green, Grey

PROS

  • Never-flat honeycombed tires that aren’t as rigid as solid rubber tires, giving a bit more cushion over bumps yet don’t need regular air pumping like an air tire and do not puncture
  • Foldable handlebars give this scooter a very slim folded width of only 5.3” for easy stowing
  • High-mounted visible front lighting
  • Small rear lights
  • Regenerative braking with thumb lever AND rear heal skid brake
  • Cruise control
  • Comfortable rear suspension
  • Horn
  • Fairly lightweight

CONS

  • Braking feels all-or-none
  • Front suspension is quite stiff
  • Charge port isn’t easily accessible when folded
  • Folding mechanism takes getting used to, requiring both hands, which isn’t great for repeat stowing
  • Loose-feeling handlebars, require both hands to fold
  • Handlebars feel a bit too narrow
  • No kickstand

Comfort

••8″ Solid Front, Air Rear Tires,
No Suspension

Weight

••••26 lb

Power

250 watts

Range

•••19 miles

Speed

•••18 mph

InMotion

L8F

$697

Currently Available: From E-Wheels
Colors: Black

PROS

  • iF 2018 Design Award
  • Fold-and-roll with built in dolly wheels and handle
  • High-mounted, visible front headlamp
  • Bright rear lights
  • Unique LED light strip
  • Front thumb lever regenerative brake
  • Rear heal friction brake
  • Quick folding handlebars give this scooter a very slim folded width of only 6.5” for easy stowing

CONS

  • A bit heavy to carry for more than 5 minutes, but is rollable
  • A bit underpowered for inclines or hills

Comfort

••8″ Honeycomb Tires
Front/Rear Shocks

Weight

••••24 lb

Power

••••500 watts

Range

•••21 miles

Speed

•••18 mph

UScooters

BOOSTER PLUS

$999

Currently Available: From UScooters
Colors: Green, Grey/Black

PROS

  • Never-flat honeycombed tires that aren’t as rigid as solid rubber tires, giving a bit more cushion over bumps yet don’t need regular air pumping like an air tire and do not puncture
  • Foldable handlebars give this scooter a very slim folded width of only 5.3” for easy stowing
  • A light scooter, yet with a powerful 500 W motor
  • High-mounted visible front lighting
  • Small rear lights
  • Regenerative braking with thumb lever AND rear heal skid brake
  • Cruise control
  • Comfortable rear suspension
  • Horn
  • Fairly lightweight

CONS

  • Braking feels all-or-none
  • Front suspension is quite stiff
  • Charge port isn’t easily accessible when folded
  • Folding mechanism takes getting used to, requiring both hands, which isn’t great for repeat stowing
  • Loose-feeling handlebars, require both hands to fold
  • Handlebars feel a bit too narrow
  • No kickstand

Comfort

••8″ Solid Front, Air Rear Tires,
No Suspension

Weight

••••26 lb

Power

••••250 watts

Range

19 miles

Speed

•••18 mph

Micro Kickboard

MICRO FALCON

$999

Currently Available: From Micro Kickboard
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Best weight to power ratio with an impressive 500 W motor on a 17 pound scooter
  • Great for short commutes with hills or inclines
  • Swiss design
  • Movement sensor activated automatic on/off
  • Soft EVA foam on front wheel to help with shock absorption
  • Slim foldable profile makes it easy to stow
  • Cruise control
  • Rear light

CONS

  • Can get bumpy due to small tires. Not recommended for rides over 1 mile
  • Not recommended for weather due to small tires
  • No kickstand
  • Short range

Comfort

••7.8″ Foam Core Front, Solid Rear Tires, No Suspension

Weight

••••24 lb

Power

••••500 watts

Range

••

11-15 miles

Speed

•••15 mph

Micro Kickboard

MICRO CONDOR

$1199

Currently Available: From Micro Kickboard
Colors: Black

PROS

  • A light scooter, yet with a powerful 500 W motor
  • Great for 1-2 mile commutes with hills or inclines
  • Swiss design
  • Movement sensor activated automatic on/off
  • Soft EVA foam on front wheel to help with shock absorption
  • Slim foldable profile makes it easy to stow
  • Cruise control
  • Removable front light
  • Rear light

CONS

  • Not recommended for bumpy roads
  • Not recommended for weather due to rear rubber tire

Comfort

•••8″ Air Front, Airless Rear, Front Suspension

Weight

•••33 lb

Power

••350 watts

Range

••

10-15 miles

Speed

•••18 mph

Magnum Bikes

I-MAX T3

$999

Currently Available: From Magnum Bikes
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Stow discretely with very compact folding width of 5.3”
  • Great suspension, very comfortable
  • Ergonomic grips
  • Slim foldable profile makes it easy to stow

CONS

  • Mediocre folding mechanism
  • Rear airless tire makes the ride bumpier
  • A bit too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes
  • A bit underpowered for inclines or hills
  • Too expensive for what you get. You could spend $300 less and get the much lighter UScooters Booster Plus with the same motor power of 350 W

Comfort

•••10″ Air Tires, No Suspension

Weight

••40 lb

Power

••••500 watts

Range

••

15-20 miles

Speed

•••20 mph

Magnum Bikes

I-MAX S1+

$1299

Currently Available: From Magnum Bikes
Colors: Black

PROS

  • 2015 Red Dot design award
  • Beautiful aesthetic design with the choice of a wood or green deck
  • USB port for charging your phone
  • Ergonomic grips

CONS

  • At 42 pounds, it’s definitely too heavy to carry for more than a minutes, maybe up one flight of stairs
  • Confusing folding mechanism that takes learning

Comfort

••••8″ Air Front, Solid Rubber Rear, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

•••36 lb

Power

••••500 watts

Range

••••

28-34 miles

Speed

••••28 mph

Speedway

MINI 4 PRO

$850

Currently On Backorder (Available End of July): From E-Wheels
Colors: Black, White

PROS

  • Fantastic price to performance
  • Comfortable ride with 8” front air tire and front/rear shocks
  • Fold-and-roll with built in dolly wheels and handle
  • Powerful motor
  • Great range and speed
  • Cruise control
  • Front/rear lighting
  • Optional seat
  • Folding handlebars

CONS

  • At 36 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes, but you can fold-and-roll
  • Rear drum brake only, longer stopping distance
  • Fold-and-roll wheels included, but self-installed

Comfort

••••10″ Air Tires, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

••42 lb

Power

•••••600 watts

Range

•••••30+ miles

Speed

•••••28+ mph

Speedway

III

$975

Currently On Backorder (Available Mid-July): From E-Wheels
Colors: Black, White

PROS

  • Rugged build quality
  • Large, comfortable 10” air tires
  • Front/rear suspension
  • Powerful motor
  • Great range and speed
  • Cruise control
  • Folding handlebar arms
  • Front/rear disc-brakes
  • Front/rear lighting
  • Turn signals
  • Horn
  • Optional seat

CONS

  • At 42 pounds, it’s definitely too heavy to carry for more than a minutes, maybe up one flight of stairs

Comfort

••••10″ Air Tires, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

••42 lb

Power

•••••600 watts

Range

•••••30+ miles

Speed

•••••28+ mph

Speedway

IV PRO

$1560

Currently On Backorder (Available Mid-July): From E-Wheels
Colors: Black, White

PROS

  • Rugged build quality
  • Large, comfortable 10” air tires
  • Front/rear suspension
  • Powerful motor
  • Superb range
  • Insane speed
  • Cruise control
  • Folding handlebar arms
  • Front/rear disc-brakes
  • Front/rear lighting
  • Turn signals
  • Horn
  • Optional seat

CONS

  • At 52 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry for more than a few seconds

Comfort

••••10″ Air Tires, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

61 lb

Power

•••••2x 800 watts

Range

•••••50+ miles

Speed

•••••40+ mph

Dualtron

II EX

$1994

Currently Available (Limited Quantity): From E-Wheels
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Rugged build quality
  • Large, comfortable 10” air tires
  • Front/rear suspension
  • Powerful dual motors
  • Superb range
  • Insane speed
  • Cruise control
  • Front/rear disc-brakes
  • Front/rear lighting
  • Optional seat
  • Long deck

CONS

  • At 61 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry for more than a few seconds
  • No horn for such a fast scooter
  • Pricey

Comfort

••••11″ Air Tires, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

81 lb

Power

•••••2x 1200 watts

Range

•••••80+ miles

Speed

•••••50+ mph

Dualtron

ULTRA

$2997

Currently Available (Limited Quantity): From E-Wheels
Colors: Black

PROS

  • Rugged build quality
  • Large, wide, comfortable 11” offroad air tires
  • Front/rear suspension
  • Powerful dual motors
  • Superb range
  • Ludicrous speed
  • Cruise control
  • Front/rear disc-brakes
  • Front/rear lighting
  • Optional seat
  • Long deck

CONS

  • At 81 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry period
  • Ludicrous speed
  • No horn for such a fast scooter
  • Very pricey

Comfort

•••8″ Airless Tires, Pushrod Suspension

Weight

•••30 lb

Power

••250 watts

Range

•••14 miles

Speed

•••16 mph

URB-E

SPORT AND SPORT GT

$899 – $1099

Currently Available From URB-E: URB-E SportURB-E Sport GT
Colors for Sport model: White, Grey
Colors for Sport GT model: Black, Red

PROS

  • High quality build, aircraft grade aluminum
  • A folding scooter with a seat
  • Fold-and-roll
  • Removable battery with handle that has four USB 2.0 and a USB C charging ports
  • Dampener (Sport) or Pushrod (Sport GT) suspension
  • Self-standing kickstand
  • Leather carrying straps
  • Collapsible handlebars
  • Optional basket
  • Rolling basket for light grocery shopping
  • Optional cupholder
  • Optional phone holder
  • Optional foldable trailer (currently sold out)
  • Fun interchangeable color sleeves
  • Quirky, distinctive design
  • Sport GT:
    • Slightly better suspension than the base Sport model
    • Faster acceleration than the base Sport model

CONS

  • At 30 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes, but you can fold and roll
  • Can get a bit bumpy on many less-than-ideal roads
  • Spare tires are not available online. Unit must be shipped to Pasadena to for new tires. Hopefully this is just growing pains for the company.
  • If you run out of juice, you can’t really manually scoot
  • Only 3 levels on battery indicator
  • Weak motor

Comfort

••••10″ Air Tires, Coilover Suspension

Weight

•••35 lb

Power

•••350 watts

Range

•••20 miles

Speed

•••18 mph

URB-E

PRO AND PRO GT

$1699 – $1999

Currently available from URB-E: URB-E ProURB-E Pro GT
Colors for Pro model: White, Grey
Colors for Pro GT model: Black, Red

PROS

  • High quality build, aircraft grade aluminum and carbon fiber
  • A folding scooter with a seat
  • Fold-and-roll
  • Advanced coilover suspension
  • Self-standing kickstand
  • Leather carrying straps
  • Optional basket
  • Rolling basket for light grocery shopping
  • Optional cupholder
  • Optional phone holder
  • Optional foldable trailer (currently sold out)
  • Cool interchangeable color sleeves
  • Quirky, distinctive design
  • Pro GT has faster acceleration than the base Pro model

CONS

  • At 30 pounds, it’s too heavy to carry for more than a few minutes, but you can fold and roll
  • Spare tires are not available online. Unit must be shipped to Pasadena to for new tires. Hopefully this is just growing pains for the company.
  • Does not have the awesome removable battery bank of the Sport models 🙁
  • If you run out of juice, you can’t really manually scoot
  • Only 3 levels on battery indicator

Comfort

•••••11.5″ Air Tires, Front/Rear Suspension

Weight

65 lb

Power

•••••500 watts

Range

••••25 miles

Speed

•••20 mph

OjO

CLASSIC, FORD, VINTAGE MODELS

$1499 – $2399

Currently available from OjO: Classic OjOFord OjOVintage OjO
Colors for Classic model: Black
Colors for Ford model: Grey, Black, Silver, Blue, Orange, Red
Colors for Vintage model: Orange/Wood, Red w/ White Stripe, Grey w/ Black Stripe, Aqua/Wood, Dark Wood/Light Wood

PROS

  • High quality unibody aluminum frame
  • Very comfortable with large air tires and mono front shock and dual rear shocks
  • Sit or stand design
  • Wireless key fob that activates a motion sensing alarm
  • Bluetooth speakers
  • Brilliant retractable built-in charger
  • Waterproof components
  • All-weather tires
  • Optional basket
  • Side mirrors
  • Headlight
  • Big touch screen display
  • Clean, sleek design, throwback (picnic basket not included)
  • Cool colors
  • Ford and Vintage models have a bit more power and uphill ability than the Classic

CONS

  • Not portable or foldable

Comfort

•••••18″x19.5″ Air Tires, No Suspension

Weight

121 lb

Power

•••••800 watts

Range

•••••40 miles

Speed

•••20 mph

SSR Motorsports

SEEV-800

$1499

Currently Available: From Amazon
Colors: Black, Red, White, White/Red

PROS

  • Rugged build
  • Comfortable ride giant 18” tires that are extra wide at 9.5”
  • Beefy hydraulic disc brakes with excellent stopping power
  • Can handle any rough road conditions
  • Bold, iconic design (Batcape not included)

CONS

  • Not portable or foldable
  • Quite heavy
  • Only 3 levels for the battery indicator
  • No lights for a scooter that can definitely ride in the dark
  • Rides a bit differently than any other scooter due to the large tires, so it has a slight learning curve, but not a deal-breaker in the least

OUR RESEARCH PROCESS

 

We are Have A Go. Our mission is to help transition the world away from expensive, dangerous, and unsustainable modes of transportation to greener, more fun, safer, and healthier alternatives. We do this by helping people find the best electric scooter, electric bike, and any other e-wheel that fit their needs and lifestyle. Last year we built the prototype of Have A Go (this website). Since then, we have done a lot more research, interviews, and data collection to build Have A Go 2.0 (coming in a few weeks).

Using all that we’ve learned, we decided to also put together an electric scooter guide to help the thousands of people now looking to get a scooter of their own!

We combed over 100 models and dozens of portable electric scooter manufacturers. Then we narrowed down the choices to the most reliable brands. We aggregated reviews from all across the web, from YouTube reviews, to Amazon customer reviews, to top 10 review sites. Then we test rode many of them to corroborate the information we gathered.

Here is our selection criteria:

  • Great engineering
  • Solid build/manufacturing
  • Good industrial design
  • 2nd/3rd generation products and/or ones with proof of real-world durability
  • Reputable manufacturer
  • Ride comfort, range, portability, etc.

Then we threw in two of the most cool/capable non-folding scooters on the market today (the OjO and the SEEV-800) for the sake of fun and variety!

We hope you find this guide useful 🙂

WANT MORE ELECTRIC RIDE REVIEWS?

 

Like what you see?? Wait till you see what we’re building next!

A comprehensive electric wheel discovery site with dozens of electric bikes, electric scooters, e-skateboards, e-unicycles, and e-bike/car hybrids! You’ll be able to filter and do side by side comparisons of all the best electric wheels on the market today.

We’re launching in a few weeks. Sign up below to be the first to check it out!!

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