By D Figg

Feb. 18, 2026 7:30 pm EST

FernandoV/Shutterstock

Back in 2005, a Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R, which was top of the model range even back then, would run buyers the astronomical sum of $10,999. Cut to the present, and we see that a 2025 version of the same ZX-10R now costs $17,999 as a base msrp, and that’s before tacking on an $840 destination freight charge. It is a similar story with the Yamaha YZF-R1, which is undoubtedly one of the most legendary Yamaha motorcycles of all time. In 2005, it had exactly the same price as the Ninja ZX-10R, at $10,999, but in 2025, that msrp had climbed to $18,999, with a destination fee of $625. The point we’re trying to make is that everything has gotten pricier, and so have motorcycles, with very few true entry-level motorcycles left on the market. 

Everything seems to be priced above the $5,000 mark, which is not exactly what one would call “affordable,” even in today’s market. However, there is some good news: there are still a few motorcycles — many of which are actually from reputed brands — that can be had for under that price point. Now, there will be tradeoffs, such as lower displacement, missing quality-of-life features, and basically no tech other than basic safety systems — and in some cases, not even that. With all that said, here are 12 of the most pocket-friendly bikes on the market in 2026.

We start with the 300 series from Zhejiang Chunfeng Power Company, Limited, which is a Chinese company that markets its bikes under the pseudonym CFMOTO. Specifically, we begin with the 300SS, which is a sport-focused version of the company’s 300 series bike, as opposed to the slightly more pedestrian 300NK that we will cover later. The “SS” in the name stands for “super sport,” as is the case with many motorbikes from major manufacturers. 

The engine in the 300SS displaces 298cc across one cylinder with a bore of 78 millimeters and a stroke of 62 millimeters and has Bosch fuel injection. The transmission used in the SS model is a six-speed unit with a slipper clutch, and the powertrain comes together to output 29.5 hp at 9,500 rpm, along with 19.9 lb-ft of torque at 6,500 rpm. The styling is admittedly pretty good, but there are some very real concerns about the availability and lead times of replacement parts for all CFMOTO bikes. This is due to the company’s dealer network not being as strong as that of some legacy brands like Kawasaki or Honda.

However, buyers who can look past those factors will be rewarded with some extra cash left over in their pockets, thanks to the base msrp of $4,599 in 2026. That price is exclusive of a $400 destination freight charge. Nonetheless, this is a pretty decent deal for a brand-new sportbike in 2026, all things considered.

The 300NK is the naked version of the 300 SuperSport that we just looked at above. For those wondering, the main difference between the 300NK and the 300SS is that the latter has a lot of bodywork panels and a smaller fuel tank. For eschewing the body panels, buyers will save $400, as the 300NK has a base price of $4,199 in early 2026. Again, this does not include a destination fee, which is $400 on top of the msrp. Mechanically, the bikes are virtually the same, with the engine in the 300NK displacing 298cc across the same sole cylinder, with the same bore of 78 millimeters but a slightly different stroke of 61 millimeters. 

The transmission, too, remains unchanged, as the 300NK uses the six-speed from earlier. Power outputs are slightly lower than the SS, at 29 hp and 18.7 lb-ft of torque on the naked version. All in all, the general consensus among reviewers who flog both 300 series bikes around a bit is that it is a surprisingly refined product for a company that is barely two decades old, having been founded in late 2003. As time goes on, the offerings from CFMOTO should get more refined, and the dealer/parts situation should also improve. This is good, because as much of a pipe dream as it may be, good-quality, low-priced competition might force innovation from the legacy makers now.

We break the $4,000 ceiling, or rather, floor, with the Kawasaki Z125 Pro, which is a small-displacement hypernaked bike offered by the Japanese company. It’s not very well known, which is a shame, because the Z125 Pro is a surprisingly put-together package. It has a digi-LCD screen with an analog tachometer, brilliant styling, and cast wheels, among other things. The engine displaces 125cc across one cylinder via a bore of 56 millimeters and a stroke of 51 millimeters. Power figures for this bike sit at 10 hp and 7.1 lb-ft of torque, which might not sound like much until one considers that the entire bike weighs just 209 pounds when dry. 

The seat is 31.7 inches above the ground — or just about 2.5 feet for reference — so, in the hands of a capable rider, it should be rather agile, all in all. The brakes are both disc units, and the front suspension is a telescoping fork. And finally, we come to the price, which for 2026 sits at $3,799, though that is before a destination charge of $315 is tacked on top of everything. There could also be dealer markups, which would incur extra charges, as well as some optional extras on the particular bike you are looking at, which could raise the msrp. However, it’s becoming increasingly rare to get a brand-new bike from a legacy maker for this price point, so it’s a good deal, all in all.

For the same price as the Kawasaki Z125 Pro, buyers could also get their hands on a brand-new Yamaha Zuma. Now, strictly speaking, the Zuma is technically a scooter, or “scooty” as these vehicles are known in some parts of the world. The engine is a 125cc, single-cylinder unit that has a bore of 52 millimeters along with a stroke of 59 millimeters and delivers power to the rear wheel via a belt transmission. Like most scooters, there is under-seat storage for a helmet, accessories, or emergency tools. There’s also a USB charging port in the storage bin. 

For those riders who are used to carrying shopping bags between their legs on scooters, the Zuma will disappoint as it does not have a cargo hook near the knee area, like many other scooters. The msrp, as we alluded to earlier, is $3,799 with a $460 freight charge as of early 2026. Some people will (rightly) wonder why one would choose a scooter over a Kawasaki bike, but there are genuine subsets of riders who would find a scooter more to their taste. The fuel tank on the Zuma is 1.6 gallons, and it gets a claimed 101 miles to the gallon, meaning that riders would get approximately 160 miles of range between fill-ups.

The CRF125F from Honda is from the same legendary line of motocrosser bikes as the CRF450 and CR450R from late last century, albeit a bit toned down. But its motocross roots are quite evident, with the 17-inch front tire, 14-inch rear tire, forked front suspension that can travel 5.9 inches, and Pro-Link monoshock rear suspension with 5.5 inches of total travel. There is also a “big wheel” version of the bike that has 19- and 16-inch tires at the front and back, respectively. The brakes in front are disc units, along with drum units at the rear, so there should be plenty of stopping power off the beaten track for riders. 

The engine, as the name suggests, displaces 125cc across a lone cylinder, and it achieves this displacement via a stroke of 52 millimeters and a bore of 58 millimeters. The power output on the CRF125F is 9 hp and 7.5 lb-ft of torque for the 2026 model, and the seat height for the model year is 29.1 inches, unchanged from the previous year. The bike has a fuel tank with a capacity of 1 gallon and only comes in red. It is priced rather attractively in 2026, coming in with a base msrp of $3,599, alongside a destination charge of $300, bringing the total take-home price for one of these brand-new bikes to $3,899. This price is for the regular variant, while big-wheel versions have an msrp of $3,999.

The CRF125F from above gets stiff competition from the Yamaha TT-R125LE, which is the next bike on our list. With the clue being in the name, the TT-R125LE has an engine that displaces 124cc across a single cylinder, which features a bore of 54 millimeters and a stroke of 54 millimeters. The transmission is a five-speed unit, and the powertrain as a whole makes about 9.8 hp and 7 lb-ft of torque, which is adequate for the 198-pound wet weight of the R125LE. 

The bike rides on 19-inch wheels at the front and 16-inch ones at the back, which is the same as the big-wheel version of the CRF125F, and it also has a telescoping fork suspension at the front. We mention the big wheel CRF125F because the “L” in R125LE stand for long travel, or, in other words, it’s a big wheel version too. In terms of range, the TT-R125LE has a fuel tank that can hold 1.6 gallons of gas, and since most 125cc bikes can get around 60 mpg (or higher), it means riders should get close to 100 miles of range per full tank. In early 2026, new units are being listed for $3,599 — so, the same price as the 125-er from Honda that we looked at above — on top of which a freight charge of $340 is tacked on.

The Honda XR150L dates back to 2003, which is when it was first released, and the 2026 model is still going strong, having changed very little from that original DNA. For starters, it has a 149cc single-cylinder engine that has a stroke of 57 millimeters and a bore of 58 millimeters, along with a five-speed transmission that drives the rear wheel via chain final drive. While we couldn’t verify power figures for the 2026 models, in 2023, dyno tests showed that it made 10.8 hp along with 8.3 lb-ft of torque, which is actually pretty decent, considering the displacement is so small. 

It has 19-inch tires at the front and 17-inch tires at the back, featuring 7.1 inches of suspension travel at the front and 5.9 at the back. The front suspension is a fork type, while the rear is a monoshock. The entire package weighs just 282 pounds in running order and has a 2.8-gallon fuel tank, which, courtesy of its (estimated) 79 mpg fuel economy, gives the XR150L a range of about 220 miles. In terms of pricing, the larger-displacement XR150L actually undercuts the 125-er one-bangers from above on pricing, coming in with a base msrp before options and markups of $3,399 in early 2026. The destination charge on this model is currently standing at $300.

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Next up, we have the CFMOTO Papio line of bikes, which comes in two main variants; which are the Papio SS and CL, respectively. For those wondering, the main difference in the Papio CL versus the Papio SS is probably the styling, with the SS looking more like a cafe racer than a naked. The other minor difference is the color option: the SS for the 2026 model year has a choice between beige/orange and white/neon, while the 2026 Papio CL can only be had in red on white. 

Both share the same engine, which displaces 126cc, across a solo cylinder with a bore of 57 millimeters and a stroke of 49 millimeters. The transmission is a six-speed with a wet multiplate clutch, and the entire powertrain comes together to output the princely sum of 9.4 hp and 6.8 lb-ft of torque. Both of those figures, as can be expected, come at the rpm of 8,250 and 6,500 for the hp and torque, respectively. 

The tires on both are 120 millimeters wide in the front and 130 at the rear, and are 12 inches tall all around. As far as price goes, we’re very close to the $3,000 mark, as the base msrp on both of these models is $3,299 at the start of 2026. Destination fees are unclear in the U.S., but in Canada it is $350, so expect something in the $300 range stateside.

We’re back to the TT series from Yamaha with the TT-R110E, and for those who are curious, the “E” suffix in the model name indicates that the bike comes with an electric starter. The engine is a one-cylinder unit that displaces 110cc via a bore of 51 millimeters and a stroke of 54 millimeters, and the transmission is a four-speed unit that turns the rear wheel through a chain final drive. In terms of power, everything works together to provide the R110E with 6.9 hp and 5.9 lb-ft of torque (the exact model year for these figures is unclear, but the data is from Yamaha itself). This is a tad bit underpowered when the bike’s 159-pound wet weight and the weight of the average rider are added to it. 

However, for younger riders, it will definitely be a good starting point to the world of trail motorcycling. The front wheel is 14 inches tall, while the rear wheel comes in at 12 inches, and the suspension setup is bog standard, with a fork unit at the front and a single shock bringing up the back. With respect to the price, the R110E is the first sub-$3,000 bike on this list, as it has a base msrp of $2,499 in early 2026. The destination charge for this model year R110E is $300, which pushes the total take-home number to $2,749.

Another very unique vehicle on this list is the Honda Navi, which is one of the many Honda mini motorcycles that can currently be bought new. Arguably, Honda invented (or at least popularized) the category of minibikes with the launch of the Honda Z100, known colloquially as the Honda Monkey, back in 1961. As such, it’s no surprise that the company has managed to mostly perfect the design of its minimoto bikes — it’s had over half a century of iteration and learning. 

Coming to the Navi, the seat height on this thing is a mere 30 inches above the ground, and the wheel sizes mirror this shrinkage, at 12 inches in the front and 10 inches at the back. The engine is a 109cc single-cylinder unit that has a bore of 55 millimeters and a stroke of 56 millimeters. Power figures are purportedly 7.9 hp and 6.6 lb-ft of torque, sent to the rear wheel via a belt transmission. In terms of price, the 2026 Navi is the first bike on our list to come in under the $2,000 price point, though not by much since its msrp is $1,999. There’s also a destination fee of $300 that buyers should be made aware of.

One of the most affordable motorcycles that can be bought brand new is the RST 150 Ultra from a company called Sharmax. It is available in 2026 with an as-new msrp of about $1,350 (converted from 4,990 UAE Dirhams to U.S. Dollars in early 2026), which is quite mind-boggling. Readers should note that at the time, this price took ongoing incentives into account, and the actual price would be a little higher without them, closer to the $1,650 (AED 5,990) mark, which is still amazing. 

The engine in this thing is a single-cylinder one-banger that displaces 150cc, through a bore and stroke of 62 millimeters and 43 millimeters, respectively. The transmission drives the rear wheel via chain final drive, and the power output for the bike is 13 hp along with 7.3 hp of torque. There’s really not much more to be said about the RST 150 Ultra; it’s the bare minimum offering that a road-legal bike can be, and it’s a pity that we don’t really have an equivalent over here in the States.

This next one is the cheapest bike that we’re featuring on our list, and it comes in under the $1,000 threshold, which probably explains why it’s out of stock everywhere at the moment. After all, it’s not often that we get to see a bike that costs less than some mobile phones these days. The msrp on the X-Pro MC-N025 is supposed to be $759.95, but no matter how hard we looked, we couldn’t find any retailer or distributor that seemed to have it in stock. 

Nonetheless, its talking points are the fact that it has zero extras – it’s literally just a chassis, seat, engine, and frame; and not much else. The engine powering the X-Pro MC-N025 is a 125cc single-cylinder that makes 8.3 hp and 6.3 lb-ft of torque; which we suppose is fine, given that the bike weighs just 190 pounds. However, if you do get the chance to buy one, we’re not entirely sure it’s a sound purchase, given that it will (probably) lack the refinement that a fully production-oriented model would give buyers. Maybe that iPhone will turn out to be a better overall purchase than whatever this is.