By Paul Kendrick, Cardio & Endurance Editor · Updated 30 August 2026
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MERACH sell more cheap exercise bikes in the UK than almost anyone, and the MR-S26UK is the one that keeps turning up on the front page: £189.99, down from a £239.99 list price, with over 2,400 ratings behind it. It is a magnetic upright bike with a cast iron flywheel, a knob for resistance, a basic LED console and a free app that does the clever bits the console cannot. Nothing about the formula is new. What MERACH have got right is the execution, and at this money that is most of the battle.
The frame is the part that surprised me. MERACH stamp the main triangle in one piece with fewer than five weld points, and they rate the bike to 136kg. Cheap bikes usually give themselves away by flexing when you stand up out of the saddle; this one does not do much of that.
How we review
This review is based on MERACH's published specifications for the MR-S26UK, the recurring themes in verified UK owner reviews, and our experience of what separates good and bad bikes in the sub-£250 bracket. We have not stripped this exact unit down over a year of use, so durability comments reflect repeated owner reports rather than our own long-term data. Where a manufacturer claim cannot be verified, we say so.
This is a bike for steady indoor cardio at home: 30 to 45 minute sessions in front of a screen, a few times a week, at an effort where you can still hold a conversation. It works particularly well for anyone returning to exercise, anyone whose knees have given up on running, and households where one bike has to fit riders of very different heights.
It is the wrong bike for structured interval training against a power target, and the wrong bike for anyone who wants to race in Zwift. There is no power meter, so every watt figure you see is an estimate. If controlled virtual resistance is the point, our best smart exercise bike UK guide covers the machines that actually do it.
Check the MERACH exercise bike price on Amazon£189.99Magnetic resistance works by moving magnets closer to a spinning flywheel, so nothing rubs and nothing wears out. That is why this bike will still be quiet in three years while a friction-pad spin bike is squealing for a new felt. The knob gives a wide sweep of load, and MERACH label it 0 to 100, which sounds precise and is not. There are no detents and no numbers on a console that mean anything, so "my usual setting" is a mark on the knob rather than a repeatable number. Every bike at this price does the same thing; it is worth knowing before you plan interval sessions around it.
The pedalling feel is smooth and slightly light at the top end. Strong riders will run out of resistance before they run out of legs, especially standing. For the steady endurance riding this bike is built for, the range is plenty.
Fit is a real strength. The four-way seat post and the adjustable handlebar mean a 5ft rider and a 6ft 3in rider can share it without either of them being uncomfortable, which is rare at any price and unheard of at £190. The saddle, like nearly every stock saddle in this bracket, is firmer than you would choose. Padded shorts or a gel cover solve it for a tenner.
| Model | MR-S26UK |
|---|---|
| Resistance | Magnetic, manual knob, 0 to 100 scale |
| Flywheel | Cast iron (weight not published) |
| Maximum user weight | 136 kg |
| Rider height range | 1.5 m to 1.95 m |
| Adjustment | 4-way seat, 2-way handlebar |
| Console | LED: time, distance, calories, speed |
| Connectivity | MERACH app, free, syncs to third-party apps |
| Quoted noise | Under 30 dB |
| Assembly | Approx 70 percent pre-assembled, 20 to 30 minutes |
| Warranty | 12 months |
MERACH's app is better than a £190 bike deserves. It pairs over Bluetooth, records duration, distance, estimated calories and heart rate from a chest strap, pushes data out to other fitness apps, and gives you a library of trainer-led rides at no cost. For someone who would otherwise stare at a wall, that structure is the difference between a bike that gets used and a bike that becomes a clothes rail.
The listing also claims the app increases fat burning by 30 percent. It does not, and no app can. What guided sessions genuinely do is keep you pedalling harder for longer than you would on your own, and the extra work is where any result comes from. On the estimates, remember the bike has no power meter, so calorie numbers are a formula applied to speed and resistance position. Treat them as a rough consistency check between sessions, not as truth.
For the underlying dose, the NHS physical activity guidelines ask for 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, which is five half-hour rides. The British Heart Foundation's guide to staying active is a sensible read if you are starting from nothing, and their advice on heart rate during exercise explains why a chest strap tells you more than the console will.
See today's MERACH exercise bike priceAt £189.99 the competition is fierce and mostly worse. Bikes at £120 to £150 typically cut the flywheel to sand-filled, drop the user limit to 100kg or 120kg, and give you a narrower seat adjustment range that quietly excludes shorter and taller riders. Paying the extra £40 to £70 here buys a bike more people in a household can actually ride.
Spend upward instead and the next real step is a bike with a proper console and heavier flywheel around £350 to £450, or a full smart bike with controllable resistance for £700 and up. Nothing in between is worth the money. See the full field in our best exercise bike UK roundup, the best spin bike guide if you want a more aggressive riding position, and MERACH's own recumbent model if sitting upright hurts your back. If weight loss is the goal, our guide on whether an exercise bike is good for losing weight sets sensible expectations.
Magnetic resistance means nothing touches the flywheel, so the only sounds are the drive belt and your own breathing. MERACH quote under 30 dB, which is optimistic for a bike with a rider on it, but the practical answer is yes: you can hold a conversation over it and watch television at normal volume.
MERACH do not publish a weight for it, which is a fair criticism of the listing. They confirm it is cast iron rather than the sand-filled or iron-shot flywheels used on the cheapest bikes, and that is the more important detail, because a cast flywheel keeps its balance and does not develop a wobble.
No. The app is free for life once the bike is paired, and it tracks time, distance, calories and heart rate if you wear a monitor. It also syncs to third-party fitness apps. The free trainer-led sessions are the main reason to bother with it.
MERACH rate it for riders from 1.5m to 1.95m and up to 136kg, which is generous for a £190 bike. The seat adjusts four ways and the handlebar two, so most people find a workable position. Riders near the top of that height range should expect the reach to feel slightly short.
The frame ships around 70 percent built, so you are attaching pedals, seat, handlebar, console and the stabiliser bars. Tools are in the box. Twenty to thirty minutes is realistic if you follow the video rather than the printed sheet.
Not properly. There is no power meter and no ANT+ FE-C broadcast, so the bike cannot report real watts to a training platform. You can ride along to a Peloton or YouTube class and match cadence by feel, but do not buy this expecting controlled virtual resistance.
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