Maintenance Costs for an Electric Bike

Back in 2013 one of our colleagues was working on developing the software and testing one of the first Bosch e-bikes on the market. At the office, we had many discussions on the feasibility of e-bikes and traded off taking turns riding the in-house prototype. Now almost 10 years later, we see e-bikes all around the world.

Ok, but how much does eBike maintenance cost?

The average maintenance costs for an eBike are anywhere between $250 and $550 per year.
This is also depending on the class-type e-bike you have. Presuming you don’t get a faulty e-bike, maintenance costs are made up mostly by yearly maintenance and the cost of replacing the battery every 3 to 5 years.

Yearly E-Bike Maintenance Costs 💵

An e-bike is just a bike with some added muscles in a form of an electric motor, a Lithium-Ion battery, and a controller.

1. Charging the battery on a daily basis will cost you on average between 5-15 cents per day ($36 / year) depending on your local utility.
2. Mechanical maintenance is $50 – $150 per year in a bike shop, or much cheaper if you’re a DIY person.
3. Tire replacement: Tires are one of the most commonly replaced parts on an e-bike. They can wear out quickly, especially if you ride on rough terrain. Replacing tires can range from $50 to $100 per tire.
4. Optional E-Bike Insurance starts from $100 per year. And I definitely encourage you to have one, especially if you live in a city.
5. Battery replacement $500-$100 (every 4 years). Check with your manufacturer and don’t buy a used battery. Ebike Battery fires are a growing problem so get a NEW battery from your bike manufacturer as the risk is not worth it.

Based on the results mentioned above, the average annual maintenance cost adds up to approximately $450.

Ebike Lifespan and Replacement parts

Ebike Lithium-Ion Battery 🪫

The lifespan of a Lithium-Ion battery depends on its quality, the number of charge cycles, and charging habits.
This being said, a good quality Lithium-Ion battery charged on a daily basis but not completely depleted will last for a good 4+ years. Usually, this type of battery will last for 800 to 1500 charge cycles, and it will be usable even after that, but it will provide a lot less range.

Few tips for keeping the battery in good shape:

• Try not to completely deplete the battery on a regular basis.
• If you’re not using the bike for a longer time, store it with the battery charged at 50%-80% full or as your manufacture recommends.
• Never store your bike with the battery completely depleted. 
• Keep it happy by not storing your battery in a too cold or hot environment.

When it comes to understanding the characteristics of the battery you have, there are a lot of numbers that are intimidating for a non-technical person. Voltage (V), Amperage-hours (Ah), Watt-hours (Wh), etc.

There is a simple way to understand this and how those numbers affect you.

1. The voltage (V) is directly responsible for how powerful the electrical motor can be. In other words how strong and fast your e-Bike is going to be.
2. The Amp-hours (Ah) alone can help you to calculate the Watt-hours by simply multiplying it with the voltage E.g.: Ah x V = Wh
3. The Amperage hours (Ah) and Watt-hours (Wh) are mainly telling you how much electrical power you can store in the battery and release in one hour. This directly affects the distance you can ride. More Watt-hours means more miles to enjoy the ride.

eBike Electric Motor or Drive Unit ⚡

The electric motor is also called the Drive Unit by some and it is the core of your e-bike.

Usually, the electric motor does require little to no maintenance at all, just make sure you follow the instructions that come with the e-Bike and that’s it.
The viability on the other side is a hot topic as the electric motor is packed with electronics and gears, sometimes made of plastic.
Those electronics and gears are required to mix your pedaling power with electrical power. This is the reason why I would always go with known brands to get higher-quality components. 

If your riding conditions are involving a lot of rain and mud, you should take into consideration checking and replacing bearings and seals, as there are kits of various types already available.

Maintenance cost examples 🛠️

An example of battery cost is this Bosch PowerTube 400 that is currently available for $629 at REI and according to our testing, you can ride an average of 45-60 miles with this battery.

An Aventon battery runs $499 and they have been in and out of stock in 2023 depending on the bike model.

Purchasing a quality e-Bike can be a significant investment, but it has numerous advantages. Once you own one, maintenance is minimal.

Happy (less) pedaling 🙂

eBike Maintenance FAQs: