You don't need to spend thousands of pounds to get a good mountain bike ripe for razzing the trails, under £1,000 will get you a capable hardtail and even a good full susser or two from some budget brands. We've spent hundreds of hours sessioning the trails and exploring the wilds to find the best mountain bikes under £1,000. Here they are.

• Carrera Fury — Buy Now for £650 from Halfords | Find out more
• Forme Curbar 1 — Buy Now for £684.99 from Paul's Cycles | Find out more
• Marin Bobcat Trail 3 — Buy Now for £695.00 from Winstanleys Bikes | Find out more
• Voodoo Bizango — Buy Now for £750 from Halfords | Find out more
• Carrera Titan X — Buy Now for £925 from Halfords | Find out more
• Whyte 605 v4 — Buy Now for £950 from Balfe's Bikes | Find out more
• Boardman MHT 8.9 — Buy Now for £1,000 from Halfords | Find out more
• Vitus Sentier 29 VR — Buy Now for £1,199 from Chain Reaction Cycles | Find out more

Carrera Fury — Buy Now for £650 from Halfords

Carrera's Fury offers such amazing value for a £650 mountain bike that it's fair to wonder how they make any money on them, with the 10-speed single ring drivetrain, air-sprung fork with through-axle and dropper post fitted usually only being seen on substantially more expensive machines. The only flaw is the tall seat tube relative to the reach. Nevertheless it's excellent fun, with the well-sorted kit allowing you to focus on your riding, rather than being filled with fear about plasticky tyres or a twangy fork trying to kill you. The impressively low weight of 14.2kg means that it'll skip along the flat or up climbs quite merrily, though you'll need to perch forward to keep the front end down.

The Carrera Fury is absolutely stunning value and all the kit is frankly exceptional for the cash. It's not quite perfect but it still knocks the socks off most of its competition at this price.

• Read the full review of the Carrera Fury here

Forme Curbar 1 — Buy Now for £684.99 from Paul's Cycles

Forme's Curbar 1 offers a load of fun for not a lot of money, with respectably modern handling and kit that does the trick largely without issue. Serious off-roaders will need some more aggressive rubber in the short term to make the most of the trail geometry and long term upgrades should include the fork and brakes, but it's a solid platform to start with.

While the Curbar 1 has some stiff competition - Voodoo's £725 Bizango being the particular elephant in this room, along with Calibre's budget offerings - the bike acquits itself well on handling and performance, meaning it's a worthy option if you want to have a lot of mountain fun without spending a whole lot of money.

• Read the full review of the Forme Curbar 1 here

• Buyer's guide to mountain bikes - get the best MTB for you

Marin Bobcat Trail 3 — Buy Now for £695.00 from Winstanleys Bikes

Marin's Bobcat Trail 3 manages to both look and ride like a much more expensive bike than it is, with a quality frame and geometry that comes from the 'proper trail bike' book to deliver a really capable ride. Compromises in the drivetrain and suspension to get it on budget are apparent, but it's still a solid machine that delivers a lot of fun for not much cash.

• Read the full review of the Marin Bobcat Trail 3 here

Voodoo Bizango — Buy Now for £750 from Halfords

The Voodoo Bizango is the totally sorted hardtail that’s ruled the roost for a few seasons at this price point. Over the years, Voodoo has added a smaller 16” size to fit shorter riders, lowered the top tube for more room to move and changed the aluminium frame’s blend for a smoother ride. One thing they’ve never done though is mess with the excellent value and impressive ride quality.

For the money, you'll be hard pushed to find something as confidence-inspiring as the Voodoo Bizango. Its excellently balanced geometry makes for a quick, easy, and pleasurable ride up a hill and an impressively capable blast back down. Its componentry is well sorted from the get-go but thanks to a few forward-thinking choices, it's futureproofed if you end up looking to upgrade the bike as your riding progresses. For 2022, it remains the bike to beat at this price.

• Read the full review of the Voodoo Bizango here

Carrera Titan X — Buy Now for £925 from Halfords

The Titan X from Halfords brand Carrera offers the benefits of a full-suspension mountain bike for a very modest sum. It boasts all the mod cons with the spec of bikes twice its price, but while its suspension platform is a shining aspect, its geometry could be tweaked to cater to a wider audience.

As a bike new riders may be eyeing up as their first, the Titan X is great. On flatter trails its short wheelbase makes for an agile ride, and the short reach means it's easy to weight the front wheel in the corners. The handling is welcoming and easy to get on with overall, and it's well prepared to take on much of what the UK's trail centres can offer. It’s quick in the corners too, thanks to its short wheelbase and 650b hoops, and the impressive rear suspension keeps it reasonably composed at speed.

• Read the full review of the Carrera Titan X here

• Five mountain bike myths that just aren't true

Whyte 605 v4 — Buy Now for £950 from Balfe's Bikes

Whyte’s 605 hardtail might not break the bank, but when it comes to on-trail performance it blows most rivals out of the water thanks to a frame sporting bang-up-to-date geometry and well-chosen components. All in all the Whyte 605 is hugely impressive for the money. Yes, you can buy bikes at this price point that come with much better bits bolted to them but if you’re looking at as the bike as a complete package then it’s bloody hard to beat. If you want a bike that’s going to allow you to push your riding onwards, boost your confidence both uphill and down and you aren’t fussed about what’s written on the components then the Whyte is a superb machine - and not just by the standards of ‘budget’ bikes.

• Read the full review of the Whyte 605 here

Boardman MHT 8.9 — Buy Now for £1,000 from Halfords

Boardman's MHT 8.9 offers a lot of bike for the money in a good looking package that'll appeal to cross-country riders and others who value speed and efficiency over getting rad. More play-focused riders are likely to find the tyres a touch sketchy and the shape a bit short and steep, however. Boardman has managed to deliver pretty impressive value for money, with a 12-speed SRAM SX Eagle single-ring drivetrain offering a huge 11-50T spread at the back with a 32T ring up front, meaning you should be able to get up pretty much any hill without spinning out too often on flat sections.

The MHT 8.9 is a good looking bike that offers good value to anyone that's after a dependable cross-country machine. It's ready and willing to demolish big distances and flowing trail centre singletracks all day long. All the kit is functional and it's a smart-looking, aspirational bike, even down to those smooth welds and the neat rim decals. There's plenty of upgrade potential - dropper post and front tyre being foremost for anyone that wants to hit techy trails - but even as it is, there's a lot to like, despite the odd detail letting it down.

• Read the full review of the Boardman MHT 8.9 here

• Best mountain bikes for under £3,000 - capable trail bikes that won't break the bank

Vitus Sentier 29 VR — Buy Now for £1,199 from Chain Reaction Cycles

If you’re after a do-it-all hardtail ready for rough and tumble riding, then the Vitus Sentier 29 VR hits the spot with a solid and well-thought-out spec for the cash and confidence inspiring handling paired to the big wheels. While the aluminium frame isn’t the most comfortable thing out there, the welcome addition of a dropper post makes for a superb ride. It's a little out of scope, but worth a look if you can find the extra cash.

• Read the full review of the Vitus Sentier 29 VR here

You might also like:

• The best mountain bikes you can buy for under £1,500 - full sus and hardtails
• Buying your first mountain bike: the complete guide