Even a cheap GPS cycling computer can record where you've been on your ride, logging your speed and other data every second or so, and providing you with a rich and complete log of each bike trip.

The best cheap GPS cycling computers are easy to use, reliable and can even provide you with maps and navigation help.

The functions of a cheap GPS cycling computer are useful whether you're training and want to track effort and hills against speed, or whether you're exploring and want to know where you've been. There are probably as many ways of using GPS on a bike as there are cyclists.

Even a basic cheap GPS cycling computer can record your rides in far more detail than a standard computer

Many cheap GPS cycling computers have a 'back to start' function that'll help get you home if you get lost

You don't get maps and full car-satnav style directions with many cheap GPS cycling computers, but some have rudimentary breadcrumb navigation that can help you find new routes

If you also want fitness data, pick up a cheap GPS cycling computer that can read heart rate or even power from ANT+ or Bluetooth sensors

Updated July 14, 2020 Welcome to the latest edition of road.cc’s buyer's guide to cheap GPS cycle computers in which you’ll find everything you need to know to find the right cheap GPS unit for you, plus our pick of 11 of the best GPSes that don't cost a fortune. More about road.cc buyer's guides.

11 of the best cheap GPS cycle computers for 2020

GPS-enabled bike computers work by picking up signals from a network of satellites that orbit the earth at an altitude of about 20,000km. These Global Positioning System satellites use atomic clocks to transmit time and position very accurately. A GPS receiver uses the signals from several satellites to work out its position to within five metres.

US-based company Garmin dominates the field of GPS-enabled cycling computers, partly because it has a wide range of good quality products, partly because it was first to market with the Edge 205 and 305 models in 2006.

As GPS receiver chips have become more widely available in the last few years, more manufacturers have entered the market. GPS-enabled computers are available from traditional bike computer makers such as CatEye and Sigma, as well as new players like Lezyne, Bryton, and Mio.

If you have multiple bikes, a big advantage of GPS computers is that you can swap them from one to another without faffing changing set-up.

There are two types of GPS bike computer. Less expensive units use GPS to replace the sensors of a traditional bike computer and display data such as speed, trip distance and time, as well as recording your ride for later analysis.

More expensive GPS units have full satellite navigation functions, with map display and turn-by-turn navigation of a preset route, or one the computer generates on the fly.

Some GPS units are able to pick up signals from heart rate monitor straps and on-bike sensors to log additional data such as heart rate and cadence.

You can get started with on-bike GPS logging for as little as £25 if you shop around. Mapping GPS units start around £200 because of the larger screen and battery and more sophisticated electronics.

Currently on special at Halfords at a price that brings it right into the category of cheap cycling GPS, Garmin's Edge 130 offers a lot of performance in a small package, with ANT+ and Bluetooth sensor and smartphone connectivity, decent battery life, an easy-to-use button-controlled layout and, perhaps best of all, an absolutely pin-sharp display. You don't get fully fledged navigation like the pricier Garmin models but the basic setup is usable if that's not your top priority.

Garmin's GPS computers have been getting bigger and more feature-packed over the years, but the new Edge 130 harks back to the iconic 500. It's not only compact, but the stripped-back features focus on offering the core functions and fewer superfluous ones that, in my opinion, have been bloating some of the bigger and pricier Garmins at the expense of solid reliability.

Read our review of the Garmin Edge 130

Find a Garmin dealer

Despite its very modest price, this new base model from Bryton picks up signals from just about every constellation of navigation satellites up there: GPS, Galileo, GLONASS, BDS and QZSS. It has a built-in barometric altimeter and works with Bluetooth LE sensors for speed, cadence and heart rate.

This GPS unit with ANT+ for your heart rate and cadence sensors, Bluetooth to talk to your phone and an altimeter looks a bit of a bargain, and reviewers on Amazon seem to be generally happy with it.

If you want a bigger screen that displays more data at any given time, this inexpensive unit could be just what you're looking for.

The Memory Map 270 has a barometric altimeter for an accurate indication of how much climbing your rides include. It's ANT+ compatible too, so you can add a heart rate sensor or speed/cadence sensors. This isn't a bad price, but shop around: Amazon has previously listed it for as little as £50.

Another good-value base model from one of Garmin's competitors, the Rider 100E has a decent-sized, customisable screen, and works with Bluetooth and ANT+ sensors so you can add heart rate and speed/cadence measurement. There's also a version — the 410T — with a heart rate strap and cadence sensor for about £125.

If you just want to log your rides then this GPS watch from French sport store giant Decathlon provides a basic set of GPS functions, has a built-in heart rate monitor (and works with a Bluetooth Smart heart rate strap), communicates with your Android or iOS phone and outputs GPX files so you can upload to Strava or your other favourite activity website.

If you're one of those strange multi-sport types, you can use it for running too.

The now-discontinued base model in Garmin's GPS range seemed decent but a bit expensive at £110 when it was first launched, but you can now find it for quite a bit less on eBay.

The Edge 20 logs your route and standard bike computer speed and distance data, and lets you race yourself against previous rides on the same route.

It's otherwise fairly basic. It can't connect with a heart rate or wheel sensor, unlike more expensive units with ANT+ or Bluetooth connectivity. But it's easy to set up and use and works with Garmin's excellent Garmin Connect website, with which you can set goals, plan rides and track your training.

The Lezyne Mini GPS computer is an easy-to-use option that gives you basic ride information on your handlebar along with the ability to upload, store and analyse your rides on Lezyne's GPS Root website.

If you're a bit of a technophobe or you just aren't interested in masses of ride measurements, the Lezyne Mini GPS might be a good choice for you because it's very simple to use.

The 2017 version added turn-by-turn directions and some mapping functions.

If you want a bigger screen you can get the Lezyne Macro GPS for just £75.98.

Read our review of the Lezyne Mini GPS

Find a Lezyne dealer

The Edge 25 is Garmin's smallest ever GPS computer, and along with its diminutive size, Garmin has nailed the user interface, which is a dream to use.

If you don't need route mapping and navigation and just want to track all the important metrics like speed, distance and elevation, the Edge 25 does everything you need.

It's light, just 25g, and takes up very little space on the stem using the supplied quarter-turn mount that Garmin has been using for years. The 128x160 pixel display is small and grayscale, but it's pin sharp and the new lighter font makes it easy to see at a glance how fast you're riding.

Read our review of the Garmin Edge 25

Find a Garmin dealer

As far as we know this is still the cheapest bike-specific GPS with map display, and it works with heart rate and other sensors and some power meters. It has a touchscreen too.

It uses Open Street Map files for its mapping, which helps keep the cost down. This open source mapping effort has improved in leaps and bounds in the last few years, but it's still not quite as good as Ordnance Survey maps. For this price, though, you really can't grumble.

Since its launch, which was greeted with favourable but not gushing reviews, the V650 has acquired lots of functions via firmware updates. Riders who've had recent versions are generally very happy with the ease of use, bright screen and features.

One downside is that the V650 uses Bluetooth Smart to communicate with sensors rather than the more common ANT+. That means you don't have quite the range of options as with an ANT+ device like a Garmin, but there are still plenty of options. The only power meters that will work with the V650 are those made by PowerTap, Stages and the Wahoo Kickr.

Oddly, the V650 doesn't work with the cheapest power meter we're aware of, the £225 4iii Precision, but its cheaper kid brother, the M450 does (£124.50). That means the cost of entry of training with power is now well under £400.

Explore the complete archive of reviews of GPS cycle computers on road.cc