Choosing The Right Type Of Motorcycle For You

Do you know the difference between a sportbike, a cruiser, and a naked bike? If you don’t, no need to worry. We’ve got you covered with a visual guide to the eight most common types of motorcycles available on the market today.

Sportbikes are one of the two archetypal motorcycles that everyone thinks of. Ask a kid to draw a fast motorcycle and they attempt to draw a CBR or a GSX-R. Sportbikes are focused on performance, acceleration, cornering, and braking. They're as light and powerful as possible, and typically not as comfortable as other types of motorcycles.

Many modern standards—also called naked motorcycles—offer nearly all the performance of full-on sportbikes but with more comfortable riding positions and a bit more overall utility. This is a rapidly growing segment showing huge promise in the electric motorcycle segment.

Part road, part dirt, so-called dual sport motorcycles are street legal and capable of highway travel as well as urban/suburban commuting. But they can also tackle off-road trails on the weekends. If you want a more street-oriented dual sport motorcycle, look for a supermoto, which is a dual sport with 17-inch wheels and street tires.

Stemming from the styling themes laid down by Harley-Davidson, most cruiser motorcycles are low, long, and somewhat mean looking. Their main benefit is a low seat height along with a certain visual swagger. Harley-Davidson may be the originator of the cruiser motorcycle style, but other popular manufacturers—including some Italian ones—have created their own.

Today's touring and sport touring motorcycles are built for the long haul and include full weather protection, waterproof luggage, and other amenities like heated handgrips, stereos, and comfortable seats. As the name suggests a sport touring motorcycle is built for riders who want to sacrifice some comfort for the ability to lean the bike over.

Another fast-growing genre is called adventure motorcycles, or ADV bikes. These bikes are patterned after the long-popular BMW R-GS bikes, which are basically large street machines that also offer off-road capability.

Often for city dwellers, there's nothing more functional than a scooter. Bigger scooters are comfortable for larger riders, have locking luggage space, and get phenomenal gas mileage.

With styling that recalls motorcycling’s roots mated to modern technology like antilock brakes and fuel injection, today’s retro bikes are both mechanically simple and utterly reliable.