Distribution of new bicycle sales in the Netherlands 2008-2018, by category

As of 2018, 40 percent of all new bicycle sales in the Netherlands were electric bikes, whereas 34 and 11 percent of the bike sales were normal tour/city bicycles and children/youth bikes, respectively. Furthermore, in the same year considered, it is the first time that there were more new electric bicycles sold than normal tour or city bikes. In total, there were just over one million bicycles sold in the Netherlands in 2018. This is an increase compared to the previous year, when the sales volume amounted to 957,000.

Significant increase in sales volume e-bikes

Electric bicycles, or e-bikes, had grown in popularity in since 2014 and increased annually, despite a slight decrease in 2016. Approximately 25,000 new e-bikes were sold in 2014, whereas by 2017 it had increased to nearly 295,000 sold electric bicycles. Most of the electric bicycles were imported from non-EU countries. Roughly 170,000 e-bikes originated from countries outside of the European Union, whereas 45,400 electric bicycles came from countries within the EU.

Stromer most sold brand speed pedelec

A speed pedelec is, same with the normal e-bike, a bicycle assisted by a small electric motor. However, speed pedelecs can reach speeds of 45 km/h and therefore a special helmet as well as a license plate are required in the Netherlands. In 2017, Swiss company Stromer was the most sold speed pedelec brand with a sales volume of 1,864. Riese & Mueller sold roughly 790 speed pedelecs, whereas Dutch brand Gazelle had sold nearly 470 of these high-speed e-bikes.