While many high and low budget balance bikes have a similar wheelbase, other budget bikes have shorter, less-stable wheelbases, such as the Chillafish Charlie’s with a 19″ wheelbase. The REV 12 comes prebuilt, so parents will be overjoyed to find that all they need to do is adjust the seat height and the orientation of the handlebars with an Allen wrench.

With all kids, however, if riding on dirt or non-paved surfaces is anticipated, we would recommend going with the air tires on the GT over the LT or the LTF.

Easy to assemble: The Banana GT Balance Bike is very easy to put together and requires minimal assembly. Ideally, this height is around 7 to 8 inches off the ground on a 12-inch balance bike (the number denotes the wheel size), which is low enough for most 2-year-olds to stand over comfortably. He tried them on pavement, in dirt, and on gravel, in rain and sunshine, and quickly developed favorites. A lower stand-over height makes it easier for little kids to find their balance on the bike and to pick it up if it tips over between their legs. Over the last few years tons of horrible junk scooters have been produced flooding the market and ruining the experience of what scooters should be.

He has reviewed everything from a saddle with a shark fin through to a set of glasses with a HUD and everything in between. And the fact that the handlebar doesn’t extend could make this bike a poor fit for taller kids, who may prefer our runner-up pick, the REI Co-op Cycles REV 12, or our also-great pick, the Strider 14x Sport, because of the bigger height range those bikes provide. All in all, if you’re debating on whether or not to get a footrest, we tend to prefer bikes without them as it’s one less thing for kids to think about while riding. The frame is made with such thin aluminum that it felt like plastic to us, and the paint got scratched up almost immediately. At the end of the day, it’s a budget balance bike, with budget components, but a much nicer build than most budget balance bikes.But we found it annoying to build—you need your own screwdriver, and the parts don’t fit together easily—and its cheap, hard tires didn’t have enough give for kids to ride it comfortably. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. You’ll need a pump to fill up the 12-inch tires, which don’t come prefilled, whereas the tires on the Guardian and REI models do. Compared with our top pick, this balance bike can accommodate a slightly taller kid, which means it might get more use over time.