Are you looking for a hardtail MTB and have a £500 budget? Worried your budget is a bit lightweight? When spending under £500 are you better off buying new or used? I put this to the test recently and went looking for a hardtail mountain bike for our next review with a budget of £500. I looked at all new options and what was available used. Below are the bikes I considered and also what I bought with the £500. You don’t just need to settle for a Carrera from Halfords!
What to avoid when buying a used mountain bike
Using various online used forums I looked at stacks of MTBs. Word of warning, criminals & wrong ‘uns use this to shift stolen bikes. If a bike looks to be too good of a deal. Leave it and walk away. I found a lovely Boardman mountain bike listed for sale for £500 on Facebook marketplace. Lots of good photos and a local bike. From digging around though the bike was clearly stolen and I thanked them for their time and walked.
My Top Tips to avoid buying a stolen mountain bike:
- Check the serial number against the registers such as bikeregister
- Before any visit ask the seller questions on the history of the bike
- Research if possible the seller with any public profile information
- Sense check the asking price for the bike. If it is hundreds below any others for sale generally best to walk away.
- Ensure you look at the bike at the sellers home address
- If deciding to buy do a bank transfer to verify seller details rather than a cash transfer
- Ask for any proof of sale information such as a receipt
New £500 hardtail mountain bikes I considered
Deciding on what to buy I shortlisted the following hardtail mountain bikes. I have included why I considered each bike. This price point used to be full of quality mountain bikes but I have noted that the prices have pushed most real mountain bikes above this price. BUT there are still some worthwhile options. Below are my top 3 hardtail mountain bikes for under £500.
Scott Aspect 950
Full price the Scott Aspect 950 retails at £599 but is available discounted to £399 so in my budget for this review. I considered this as a potential £500 hardtail for a number of reasons.
Scott are a premium brand and their bikes have a deserved reputation. I am confident to recommend them and you won’t end up with a box of frogs Temu special. The Scott won’t be snapping at the first sight of a trail. The components are solid, not stand-out but at this price point what I would expect. A Suntour set of front forks, Shimano drivetrain and Tektro brakes.
Sobering points though the rear mech is an Altus derailleur which isn’t going to stand up to much of a beating. The rear cassette tops out at 36t that isn’t going to make serious ascents terribly easy but a double on the front compensates for this. But means more weight.
Frame is Scott through and through which is the foundation of this bike and a good basis for this. I like the bike and is reasonably specced but ultimately didn’t excite me hence not buying it.
Cannondale Trail 7
I have owned and ridden dozens of Cannondale bikes and they are my brand of choice normally when looking for a bike. The Cannondale Trail 7 retails at £550 but is available for £429 so able to be included in this list.
The Cannondale is specced pretty close to the Scott Aspect 950 expect trades Altus groupset for Tourney. Not a dedicated mountain bike spec that signals the heritage on this bike. A rear cassette with only a big ring of 34t again not making any mountains lose sleep.
The Tektro brakes I have found problematic on other Cannondale bikes so would advise keeping them serviced if buying this bike.
Lack of some proper mountain bike components lead me not to select the Cannondale for this post and look elsewhere.
Giant Talon 4
The Giant Talon 4 retails at £499 and have included the latest 2025 model for this review so a true £500 hardtail mountain bike. No discounts factored in for selection.
Following same pattern as the Scott Aspect 950 the Giant Talon 4 comes with a dual crankset and modest rear cassette. A quality and well design aluminium frame that comes from the Giant crew. Giant are one of the biggest manufacturers of bikes worldwide so have a huge wealth of knowledge to introduce to this price point.
I don’t have much bad to say about the Giant. The components are solid. Shimano Tourney. Ok. Nothing to shout about but ok. Not a real heavyweight mountain bike model but if using for trail rides will work well with limited servicing.
Decent looking but not enough to part me with the cash we had on the table for this post. So again I looked but decided against it.
So, what did I buy?
Kona Big Honzo
Resisting buying shiny new I viewed a number of used bikes until I stumbled upon the Kona Big Honzo. A 3 year old model that had been well looked after and was being sold by someone upgrading to an e-MTB.
I bought the Kona Big Honzo for £500 and spec wise it really impressed. See below for the full specification details but my highlights were:
- Shimano Deore groupset
- Whopping 11-51t 11spd rear cassette
- Chunky 2.8″ WTB Ranger tyres
The bike rides that a real mountain bike with a very low gearing giving confidence on extreme ascents. The tyres are uncompromising so create quality grip throughout.
The frame is a gem with integrated cabling that connects the dropper seatpost. Nothing at this price point new comes with a seat dropper and generally would be a £100 upgrade so an immediate saving.
Gearing flows well and supports changes while under heavy tension making it forgiving when on a climb and you misjudge the gearing.
Front fork from Suntour is fine, nothing stand out but works well enough with lock out.
Overall the bike felt like a completely different beast to the new hardtail mountain bikes I considered.
My recommendation is look carefully and at this price point buy a quality used hardtail.
Kona Big Honzo Specification
| Frame | 6061 Kona Aluminium Butted |
| Fork | Suntour XCR34 LOR DS Coil Spring 130mm |
| Cassette | Shimano Deore 11-51t 11spd |
| Seatpost | TranzX Dropper Internal 31.6mm |
| Shifters | Shimano Deore or Microshift Advent X |
| Crankarms | Shimano MT5100 or Prowheel Charm |
| Brakes | Shimano MT201 Hydraulic |
| Handlebar | Kona XC/BC |
| Tyres | WTB Ranger 27.5×2.8″ |
| Rims | WTB ST i35 TCS 2.0 |
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