Skip to Content

How Many Calories Does Riding An E-Bike Burn?

People tend to assume that using an e-bike doesn’t help with fitness. But just like a regular bike, e-bikes have the same effects on the body, or even better. You can still burn lots of calories when riding an e-bike, but the amount of calories burned differs from person to person.

In a 30-min E-Bike ride, a rider will burn 100-150 calories on average. You burn less calories per hour with an E-Bike than you do with a normal bike, but since you can ride for longer and farther with an E-Bike, they can lead to much more calorie loss over time and are a great habit to get into.

The calories you’ll burn while riding an e-bike will also depend on your pedaling strength, the type of landscape you’re cycling on, and the level of bike assist you choose. Landscapes with hills tend to burn more calories because of the effort put into going uphill or pedaling downhill.

How Many Calories Can E-Biking Burn?

E-Mountainbiking

You can burn as many calories when you ride an electric bike as when riding a regular bike. Since you’re moving the e-bike by pedaling (even with pedal-assist), you’ll always get good physical activity from riding.

Riding an e-bike burns 24% fewer calories than riding a normal bike does, but since e-bikers ride for longer periods and distances, the difference can balance out.

Common E-Bikes like the Schwinn Coston (on Amazon) are also pretty hefty, which adds to the amount of weight you get to push around when you are pedaling, meaning you expend more calories riding an E-Bike than a traditional bike if you don’t use any power at all which you can technically do with an E-Bike.

BMI and Calculating Calories Burned on an E-Bike

Several factors affect how many calories get burned while riding, and they include time, body mass index (BMI) – which includes height and weight – pedal assist level, and terrain.

The BMI of a rider plays a major role in determining how many calories they burn in the sense that larger people burn more calories than smaller people. Note that your height determines your riding form and position on the bike; therefore, it also controls how you pedal, and how many calories you burn. 

An average individual burns 0.045 calories per mile per pound of body weight. That’s for a 10-12 mile-per-hour ride. So, riders who weigh 155 pounds and are riding for an hour burn at 596 calories per hour at 12-13.9 mph and 892 calories at 16-19 mph.

Looking at an increase in weight, say 185 pounds, at 12-13.9 mph, 710 calories are burned per hour. At 16-19 mph, 1,066 calories are burned per hour.

Furthermore, going at a faster rate while riding an e-bike burns more calories. Similarly, the amount of calories you burn depends on how long you ride for. This means that the more time you spend riding, the more calories you’re likely to burn.

Average Calories Burned while E-Biking

For example, an average man who rides an e-bike for 30 minutes will burn 225 calories, while a woman who cycles for the same duration will burn 202 calories. Increasing the ride time to an hour burns 450 calories in men and 404 calories in women.

As mentioned before, riding on rough landscapes and terrains filled with hills requires more effort, which leads to burning more calories, unlike cycling on level ground.

Also, in the case of pedal-assist e-bikes, these have different pedal assist levels, which have different power rates. So, if a rider pedals at a high power like level 5, that rider will still burn a fair amount of calories.

Below is an average summary of how many calories a 250lb male rider and a 155lb female rider burn per time;

For a 155lb female rider:

  • 30 minutes = 103 calories
  • 45 minutes = 155 calories
  • 60 minutes (1 hour) = 207 calories
  • 90 minutes (1.5 hours) = 310 calories
  • 120 minutes (2 hours) = 413 calories

For a 250lb male rider:

  • 30 minutes = 167 calories
  • 45 minutes = 250 calories
  • 60 minutes (1 hour) = 333 calories
  • 90 minutes (1.5 hours) = 500 calories
  • 120 minutes (2 hours) = 667 calories

Now you know that the amount of calories you burn while exercising depends on time spent and on weight. Make sure you read until the end of the article to determine how many calories you can burn when riding an e-bike.

How do Calories Burned While E-Biking Compare to Other Activities?

Biker riding uphill with a modern electric bicycle

Walking burns 64% more calories than e-biking, based on every mile covered. On the other hand, running burns about 2-3 times more calories than riding an e-bike, based on how fast you can go.

In the case of a rider who spends an hour riding his e-bike, he burns 240 calories. There are significant differences when comparing this to other outdoor activities done within the same time (60 minutes/1 hour).

Biking burns 772 calories, electric cycling burns 240 calories, bicycling around the city burns 411 calories, and hiking cross-country burns 411 calories too.

How To Calculate Your Own Calorie Burn

There are various ways by which you can calculate your calorie burn. Some e-bikes, like the FLYER e-bikes, have an LCD that enables you to monitor how many calories you burn while riding. Or you could use GPS gadgets, but don’t expect an accurate value from these devices.

An alternative is to use the Metabolic Equivalent of Task (MET) value to determine yours. The standard MET value of riding an e-bike is 2.8, so multiply that with your weight in kilograms. Whatever result you get, multiply it by 0.0175 and the number of minutes spent riding.

For example, for a person who weighs 250lbs, you’ll have to convert this to kg. That’s 250 divided by 2.20462, which equals about 113 kilograms.

So to determine the number of calories burned in a 30 minute ride, you’ll calculate 2.8 (MET value) x 113(kg) x 0.0175 x 30(minutes), which equals 167. This means 30 minutes of riding an e-bike burns 167 calories if you weigh 250lbs.

Are E-Bikes Good For Losing Weight?

Absolutely! With pedal assist, you are more likely to burn as many calories as a traditional bike. Based on research, a rider who used the pedal-assist mode burned over 400 calories in an hour, which was just 20% lower than a rider who used a regular bike.

And unlike other rigorous exercises and sports, this is super fun and doesn’t cause any form of pain.

Your pace and diet matter when using e-bikes to lose weight. Going at 16-19 miles per hour is a pretty fast pace, so you tend to burn more calories. Also, eating the right food while exercising with an e-bike provides balance when shedding off extra weight.

So, if you’re looking to lose weight, then riding an e-bike is a good choice as long as you’re consistent with it.

Is Pedaling Good Exercise?

Yes, it’s one of the best cardio exercises you can get because of its low impact on your body, unlike running, which increases your exposure to health risks. Plus, with the gears, you’re able to dial in the pace you’re capable of.

Pedaling burns calories and stimulates limb activities, thereby fostering positive health effects such as maintaining weight loss. With an e-bike, you can engage in pedaling on your way to work, when going shopping, or even when taking longer trips.

In addition, the circulation of blood in your body improves, and you get to enjoy an increase in energy as well as productivity.