Welcome! In this guide, we’re going over the best self-balancing hoverboards for adults in the UK for 2022. There are a lot of these EV’s around today so hopefully, this guide will save you some time and money and help you pick up one that’s actually worth it.
We’ve got options for top hoverboards, as well as some choices if you’re on a budget, along with some more pricey ones if you just want the very best one and aren’t bothered about
Hop on and let’s get started.
What we look for in a decent UK hoverboard
Here are the criteria we use to judge what we class as a ‘good’ hoverboard that’s suitable for adults.
- Is it a flimsy toy? In all fairness, most hoverboards could be classes as adult-friendly as they’re generally pretty sturdy and the average upper weight allowance is 120kg.
- Strength and upper user weight – On the subject of the upper weight load each board can take, this is obviously something we looked into which each board we’ve included in the top list below. And, as we go into in more detail later, how much a person weighs can also affect performance. So a solid motor was also high up on our shopping list.
- How far you can you go on a charge – While this stat doesn’t vary wildly between boards, it is something that you can squeeze a bit more mileage out of (literally) by shopping around and it’s one of the things we pour over when picking the best ones.
- Safety checks – As we get further away from the disastrous launch of hoverboards not use in the UK but around the world, the initial problems are now a distant memory. But we still look carefully at each board and make sure it’s got the required safety standards. More on that in the buyer’s guide at the bottom of this guide.
- Colour schemes – While it’s totally subjective, there are a lot of boards that have clearly been designed with a much younger rider in mind. One thing we were mindful of picking this list of hoverboards was the overall aesthetic and we’ve tried to find a good range of mature colours, as well as some more adventurous ones (most boards come in at least a choice of three or four colours you can pick from anyway).
- What’s it do? To say any shopper will be greeted by some all-singing, all-dancing hoverboards, each vying for attention, is an understatement! From apps to flashing lights, to Bluetooth speakers. While these aren’t ‘essentials’ we’ve covered them for each board too. We have no idea if, as an adult, you want to play music through your hoverboard, but we’ll let you know about those extra capabilities too.
Top Adult Hoverboards for 2022
So here they are, all shiny and ready for a rider; the boards that topped our list this year.
[bestBox product_name=”GeekMe Hoverboard” asin=”B07L4D5352″ pic=”https://www.trendyride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/GeekMe-Hoverboard-product.jpg” chip_text=”Top Pick” sub_heading=”Best Hoverboard for Adults” text=”It’s tough, it’s got the extra power adults need and it’s a hell of a lot of fun. The smartphone connectivity is also well implemented.” link=”” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
GeekMe’s hoverboard shows exactly what a hoverboard for grown-ups should be. Solid, well-designed and with a good foundation in power that can handle any terrain.
The chunky solid 8.5″ tyres here are bigger and thicker than other scooters which means it’s not only good for on-road but can handle rougher terrain too and has a lot more grip on all surfaces compared to some of the more flimsy kids ones.
Another feature that is a lot of fun to use with this board is the smartphone app which connects to the board via Bluetooth. It has some handy smart features such as being able to turn off and on remotely and can also give you some stats on your journeys such as distance and speed. Best of all, there’s a great visual display of how much charge you’ve got left.
Design-wise, there’s a range of colours that should keep most adults happy, from, a very subdued black and grey palette up to a crazy comic book print that definitely stands out! The upper weight limit is the standard 120kg for these boards and the overall board design is extremely sturdy and solid.
Each motor puts out 350W and this is more than enough for adults as long as you’re not pushing up to the weight limit. And it’s driven with Samsung’s batteries, which have proven to be sturdy work-horses for adult Hoverboards.
In short, this is an absolutely top-notch hoverboard that’s ideal for adults. It’s very sturdy and gives a smooth ride and has a good upper weight limit. Robust, reliable and great value.
- Bigger tyres make less-smooth terrain easy work
- The motors can handle slopes and adult weight
- Fun smartphone app is a unique addition
- Some good ‘mature’ colours to pick from
- UL2272 certified
- One of the more expensive boards
[showAmazon asin=”B08LPZR1WJ” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
[bestBox product_name=”G2 Warrior Hoverboard” asin=”B08LPZR1WJ” pic=”https://www.trendyride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/G2-Warrior-Hoverboard-product.jpg” chip_text=”Best Luxury Pick” sub_heading=”Best quality board” text=”Although not the cheapest, G2’s board is tough, well put together and ideal for ‘bigger kids’.” link=”” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
If you’re looking for some off-road adventures and want a hoverboard that’s not going to grind to a halt at the first sight of a bit of grit, G2’s aptly named Warrior hoverboard might be the one to go for.
It’s more expensive than some of the boards in our list but it’s a well-made board with really good-sized 8.5″ wheels which give it a bit more height and also roll over bumps, cracks and rocks without throwing you off.
[infoBox text=”Another thing this board does which we like is the fast charge feature, which means you spend less time waiting for your hoverboard and more time actually riding it.”]
It has a 120kg upper weight limit so it’s a good choice for adults under that weight and comes in 3 interesting designs. It’s fully UL2272 certified and can climb up to an impressive 30° (although how heavy you are will affect this).
A fantastic hoverboard for the big kids out there; good quality, sturdy and robust.
- Good brand
- Sturdy and reliable
- Fast charge feature
- Choice of 3 lively designs
- Large 8.5″ tyres
- More expensive than some other boards we’ve seen
[showAmazon asin=”B08LPZR1WJ” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
[bestBox product_name=”Sisgad Hoverboard” asin=”B08LPZR1WJ” pic=”https://www.trendyride.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Sisgad-Hoverboard.jpg” chip_text=”Budget Pick” sub_heading=”Best Hoverboard for Adults” text=”” link=”” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
If you’re shopping for a bargain hoverboard, one of the boards you might want to add to your shortlist is this one, from Sisgad. It’s stable, adult-friendly and offers a decent, sturdy EV for a low price.
This hoverboard comes in a choice of four more adult colour schemes without the crazy patterns camo or anything that’s going to strain your eyeballs like some of the other boards out there. Although it does come with a range of dazzling (admittedly impressive) lights, which can of course be turned off!
This board is actually available in 6.5″ wheels or the larger 8.5″. (If you’re not sure which you need, the standard 6.5″ ones are lower down and a bit easier to ride).
You can travel around 10 km on a full charge but this is the maximum, with a mid load and on flat, smooth surfaces. This will of course vary. The charging time isn’t too bad either. The 36v battery will be ready to go within 4-5 hours. It comes with its own charger.
- Cheap entry-level hoverboard
- Simple more mature colour schemes
- Impressive rainbow LED lights
- Lower time per charge of around 30 – 60 minutes
[showAmazon asin=”B08LPZR1WJ” tracking_id=”trendyride_1-21″]
UK Hoverboard Buyer’s Guide
How do I know this hoverboard is actually safe?
Back in 2016, you could get some smokin’ deals on hoverboards. Not, as in REALLY smokin’! To say early hoverboards were a little ‘dodgy’ doesn’t do the colossal screw up that was this products launch justice.
A complete lack of quality control along with design faults at many Chinese factories meant that these enticing new electric rides were sent out in a dangerous state.
The Internet was flooded with videos of smoke pouring out of hoverboards and the media went into a frenzy. You can read more about it in our guide: Can Hoverboards Explode or Catch Fire?
A lot has changed since then and, if you check any reviews of hoverboards on places like Amazon, they’re blissfully free from complaints about exploding boards, smoke flying out. The juiciest complaints you’ll read are normally down to delivery or just the regular boards that for one reason or another needed to be sent back.
To be sure you’re buying a safe board (and they’re all regulated now) look in the product description for something like:
[infoBox text=”Certified according to European standards”]
What this means is that the board has been rigorously tested and its parts meet the safety requirements for selling in the UK. Incidentally, the early adopter issues have been corrected and are no longer present in boards. The only smokin’ hoverboard you’ll get is in a Black Friday deal.
Why you should buy a hoverboard with UL2272 certification
One thing you’ll want to check with your new hoverboard is for something called UL2272. This is a certification that means the hoverboard has passed a range of stringent tests and meets current EU safety standards. Exactly what the early hoverboards didn’t have.
[infoBox text=”UL2272 is the safety standard for Personal Mobility Devices and is the law as of the second of Jan 2019.”]
This safety standard was brought about to ensure boards wouldn’t have the problems they did in the beginning, especially with regards to catching fire and the absolutely insane problems early hoverboards suffered from.
There’s a good article here on UL2272 if you’d like to really find out more about it.
What’s the difference between a kids hoverboard and an adult one?
If you’ve visited online stores such as Amazon, and typed in ‘adult hoverboard’, you might have noticed something strange. That they don’t specifically differentiate between ones for kids and grown-ups. So what exactly is the difference? Can an adult ride around on a child’s board safely?
For the most part, most hoverboards can be ridden by children or adults and there aren’t generally any differences in terms of size between the two. However, there are some things to consider if you’re buying for an adult, such as weight capacity, speed and the design you want.
Weight capacity
Although these boards can look like gadgets or toys, they’re generally extremely tough and resilient as far as weight goes. But the weight allowance is one of the main things you’ll want to look at if you’re buying for yourself or another adult.
Get the highest possible weight allowance as this affects how the board will perform, especially on rougher terrain or going up a slope. Frustratingly, the weight allowance is often not included in product descriptions. So never buy a board hoping it’s an adult one. Look for one with the max user weight clearly shown, or ask the seller before buying.
[infoBox text=”The majority of hoverboards have an upper weight allowance of around 120kg, which is fine for most adults, but it’s worth checking if it’s not listed.”]
Design
Depending on what you’re looking for in a hoverboard’s aesthetics, there’s generally a difference in the kinds of designs you’ll find in adult and kids hoverboards. The children’s ones are often packed with LED light strips and have some eye-popping patterns and colours.
Maybe this is your cup of tea, but don’t worry if you’re not looking to attract the attention of everyone in half a mile radius; there are some more subtle colours available in adult boards.
Top speed
Although hoverboards generally don’t have an insanely high upper-speed limit, there’s normally at least a bit of a difference between the children’s boards and the teen and adult ones, if only of a few km/h.
[infoBox text=”It’s worth noting that many hoverboards have a speed limiter or ‘top speed protection’ mode where you can add a slight limit to how fast the board can go.”]
Why are some hoverboards Bluetooth?
Why do some hoverboards have smartphones in the image? Can you control them with an app?
Sadly not.
While that would be cool, what they’re trying to show us is that the board has a built-in Bluetooth speaker. It’s questionable whether this is a feature an adult would want on their board, but it’s a bit of fun.
As with any Bluetooth speaker, you’ll add it as a device under your phone’s Bluetooth settings. From there, you can play music through the board. You know, if you really want to make a scene when you’re out and about.
Safety, and buying tips: everything you need to know about the world of adult hoverboards
For anyone buying one of these weird and wonderful personal transporters, it can be a little overwhelming with the sheer number of these things up for sale on places like Amazon, Argos and even eBay. Here are some of the things we think will be helpful to know before hitting that buy button.
Will it really take an adult just 2 minutes to learn!?
One product description for a hoverboard claimed you could learn to ride one of these boards in a couple of minutes. So is that likely?
In our experience, sadly not.
Hoverboards aren’t exactly hard to ride but they aren’t like full-blown Segways, where 100% of the balancing is done for you. Here, you’ll need to control your own balance much more (although these boards employ the same gyroscope system that the bigger personal transporters use).
So how long should it take? From what we’ve seen the max would be half an hour, but some people do pick it up faster than others. There are a lot of things you can do to get comfortable with the board such as practising stepping on and off while it’s switched off.
Getting on and off might sound like an easy task, but as you’re literally stepping onto the ‘buttons’ that control the board, it’s not as simple as it sounds.
So no, 2 minutes is likely not an option but we’re not exactly talking about rising a unicycle here. 30 mins and you should be at least comfortable.
How fast can adult hoverboards go?
While this might seem like a straightforward stat to look upon a hoverboard, there’s more to it than the speed quoted in the product description.
In general, most hoverboards have a very similar design, motor and price point. (They’re all made in China with factories having very similar designs and budgets to work towards). The average top speed is 10km/h, which is faster than it sounds when you’re riding it!
But that’s not the end of the story.
How fast you can go on your new board is hugely dependent on the following:
- Your weight – as mentioned above, most hoverboards have a pretty decent upper weight limit, but the closer you get to it, the slower your board will be.
- The surface you’re riding on
- The slope you’re riding up
How much does an adult hoverboard cost?
There are boards on the market in 2022 and that’s a good thing for buyers. The average price for a hoverboard is around £150 – £250 depending on the features and kind of board you’re looking for. The main things that affect the price are:
- Off-road or regular type – All-terrain ones are generally more expensive due to the larger tyres and more robust parts they have.
- Smart hoverboards – newer boards can be controlled and interact with your smartphone, and are generally more pricey.
- Whether you want a Kart kit or not – while it’s more expensive initially to get a board with a kit, it will save you money later on if you decide you want one.