Do you need a cargo bike when a trailer can be had for a fraction of the price?
A lot of the time, a trailer’s the right answer. It costs a few hundred dollars rather than several thousand, and it hitches to the bike you’ve already got, so there’s no new bike to buy or find room for. It comes off in a minute or two when you want your normal bike back, and for riding with the kids on weekends a good trailer does the job.
Where they differ is how often you’ll use them. You have to hook a trailer up, whereas you just get on a cargo bike, and that makes more difference than you’d think at 8:15 on a drizzly morning when you’re already running late. That’s usually when the trailer stays in the shed. Almost everyone who’s owned both tells us something like this, and it’s the most common reason people switch.
The other thing parents mention is where the kids sit. In a trailer they’re low down and behind you, in the spot a reversing driver checks last. On a cargo bike they’re either in front of you in the box or right behind you at shoulder height, where anyone who can see you can see them too. Nell in Sydney said that’s why she went with a box bike.
We picked Tribe Bikes because it felt like the safest bicycle option on the market for little kids.
Nell, Sydney
None of that’s a knock on trailers. Those two things just start to matter once you go from riding with the kids now and then to using the bike to get around.
As a rough rule, if you’ll ride with the kids less than once a week, get the trailer. If it’s more than twice a week, the cargo bike will pay its way.
Common questions
Can you tow a trailer with a cargo bike?
Yes, for cargo. It’s not common for carrying kids, mostly because a cargo bike already has a better spot for them.
What age can kids go in each?
Both depend on the specific seat or trailer rather than the law. The usual guide is that a child needs solid head and neck control first, which is around 12 months. Check the manufacturer’s rating for the one you’re buying.
Do trailers work behind an e-bike?
Yes. The motor makes a loaded trailer much easier to pull, which is why a lot of people start there.
