Electric Bike Rules & Regulations Explained
Electric bikes themselves might be easy to use, but the laws around their usage, particularly in the United States can be tricky to comprehend.
We’ve put together some of the best-known electric bike laws in 2024 so you can make an informed decision on where to ride your bike and whether you need a license etc in order to ride legally in the United States.
Table of Contents
1. E-BIKE CLASSIFICATION
- Which states use the three-class system – Class 1, Class 2, Class 3?
- What is the legal minimum age requirement to ride an e-bike?
- Can I use an e-Bike in states that DON’T have the classification system?
2. LICENSE & REGISTRATION
- Do you need a license for an e-Bike?
- Which e-Bikes need to be registered as motor vehicles?
3. HELMET & ELECTRIC BIKE LAWS
- Which states REQUIRE you to wear a bicycle helmet whilst riding an eBike?
1. E-Bike Classes
In the US, electric bikes are categorized into three legal classes as on the type of electric bike motor they use:
- Class 1 eBike – Pedal-assist eBike (aka. Pedelec, Spedelec, Speed Pedelec)
Max. assisted speed limited to 20mph, motor power limited to 750W - Class 2 eBike – Throttle-assist eBike.
Max. assisted speed of 20mph. Motor power limited to 750W - Class 3 eBike – Pedal-assist (+optional throttle)
Speed limited to 28mph on pedal-assist, 20mph on throttle.
750W = 0.75kW = 1 horsepower
- Class 4 eBike – *An unofficial term of an electric bike with pedals that’s more powerful than Class 3 eBikes.
Motor power over 750W
Maximum assisted speed over 28mph
Class 4 eBike = 500W motor eBike, max assisted speed 29mph
Class 4 eBike = 751W motor, max assisted speed 28mph
Read also: A Guide to Electric Bike Classes: Class 1, 2 & 3 Explained
Which States use the three-class system – Class 1, Class 2, Class 3?
There are 36 states that use the eBike classification system:
Legal 3 Class System |
Own set of rules |
| Alabama | Alaska |
| Arizona | Delaware |
| Arkansas | Hawaii |
| California | Kansas |
| Colorado | Kentucky |
| Connecticut | Massachusetts |
| Florida | Montana |
| Georgia | Nebraska |
| Idaho | New Mexico |
| Illinois | North Carolina |
| Indiana | Oregon |
| Iowa | Pennsylvania |
| Louisiana | Rhode Island |
| Maine | South Carolina |
| Maryland | Washington DC |
| Michigan | |
| Minnesota | |
| Mississippi | |
| Missouri | |
| Nevada | |
| New Hampshire | |
| New Jersey | |
| New York | |
| North Dakota | |
| Ohio | |
| Oklahoma | |
| South Dakota | |
| Tennessee | |
| Texas | |
| Utah | |
| Vermont | |
| Virginia | |
| Washington | |
| West Virginia | |
| Wisconsin | |
| Wyoming |
Exceptions:
- New York – Speed for Class 3 eBikes must be limited to 25mph. Regular 28mph class 3 eBikes are not allowed on the streets of New York
- New Jersey – Class 3 eBikes are classified as motorized bicycles that don’t have the same rules as bicycles.
Legal Minimum Age Requirement to Ride an E-Bike
14 |
15 |
16 |
18 |
| Alaska | Minnesota | Massachusetts | Hawaii |
| New Mexico | North Carolina | ||
| South Carolina | Oregon | ||
| Pennsylvania | |||
| Washington DC |
In this table, there are mostly states that don’t use the e-bike classification. Only Minnesota uses e-bike classes and also has a minimum age limit for all kind of e-bikes.
The rest of the states don’t have a minimum age requirement at all or have an age requirement for just Class 3 e-bikes!
Class 3 E-Bike Minimum Age Requirement
In several states, there are separate minimum age requirements for Class 3 eBikes
14 |
15 |
16 |
18 |
| Michigan | Georgia | Alabama | North Dakota** |
| Tennessee | Indiana | Arkansas | |
| Virginia | Texas | California | |
| Colorado | |||
| Connecticut | |||
| Illinois | |||
| Iowa | |||
| Maine* | |||
| Maryland | |||
| Mississippi | |||
| Missouri | |||
| New Hampshire | |||
| New Jersey | |||
| New York | |||
| Oklahoma | |||
| South Dakota | |||
| Vermont | |||
| Washington | |||
| West Virginia | |||
| Wisconsin |
*In Maine the age limit of 16 years also applies for class 2 eBikes.
**In North Dakota, the minimum age requirement of 18 applies only if you don’t wear a helmet. If you ride with a helmet, there is no minimum age requirement to riding a Class 3 e-bike.
No Legal Minimum Age Requirement to Ride an E-Bike
These 13 states don’t have any minimum age requirement for riding an eBike:
- Arizona
- Delaware
- Florida
- Idaho
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- Ohio
- Rhode Island
- Utah
- Wyoming
Can I use an eBike in states that DON’T use the classification system?
As it turns out, the popular electric family tricycle Bunch is not classed as an eBike in Pennsylvania because it exceeds the 100lbs weight limit. Therefore, it needs to be registered as a moped and requires a license to ride.
You can, but only if the electric bike that you purchase meets the following requirements in the specified state:
Ebike = Motorized Bicycle, if |
Motor Power |
Speed Limit |
Have Pedals |
Weight Limit |
| Delaware | < 750W | 20mph | Yes | – |
| Kansas | < 1,000W | 20mph | Yes | – |
| Kentucky | – | – | Yes | – |
| Massachusetts | – | 25mph | – | – |
| Montana | – | 20mph | – | – |
| Nebraska | < 750W | 20mph | Yes | – |
| North Carolina | < 750W | 20mph | – | – |
| Oregon | < 1,000W | 20mph | Yes | – |
| Pennsylvania | < 750W | 20mph | Yes | 100 lbs |
| Rhode Island | < 1,491W | 25mph | yes | – |
| Washington DC | – | 20mph | yes | – |
Although this Onyx RCR e-bike has a 3,000W motor, it is perfectly fine to qualify as an e-bike in Kentucky as long as it has pedals.
E-Bike = Moped in:
- Alaska
- Hawaii
- New Mexico
E-Bike = Considered a motor vehicle in:
- South Carolina – With one exception: if the motor output of an e-Bike is less than 750W, there’s no registration required.
2. LICENSE & REGISTRATION
Do you need a license for eBike?
There are three states where a license is required to ride an eBike. In addition, there are three states where you have to register your eBike.
New Mexico is the only state where your eBike must be insured.
License |
Registration |
Insurance |
|
| Alaska | Yes | No | No |
| Hawaii | No | Yes | No |
| Massachusetts | Yes | Yes | No |
| New Mexico | Yes | Yes | Yes |
For riding an e-bike in the other states:
- You don’t need a license
- Your eBike doesn’t need to be registered
- Your eBike doesn’t need to be insured
3. HELMET & ELECTRIC BIKE LAWS
Which states REQUIRE a bicycle helmet to be worn while riding an eBike?
A helmet is compulsory in:
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
23 states with different minimum age requirements that request helmet usage while riding (with a couple of exceptions for class 3):
12 |
14 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
18 |
21 |
| Louisiana* | New York | Rhode Island | Alabama* | New Jersey | California* | South Carolina |
| Pennsylvania | Virginia* | West Virginia | Florida | Indiana** | Delaware | |
| Georgia* | Idaho | |||||
| Hawaii | New Mexico | |||||
| Maine | ||||||
| Maryland | ||||||
| North Carolina | ||||||
| Oregon | ||||||
| Tennessee | ||||||
| Washington DC |
* for a Class 3 eBike, everyone must wear a helmet
** for a Class 3 eBike, riders under 18-year-old must wear a helmet
States that DON’T require a helmet to be worn
26 states where wearing a helmet is not compulsory:
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas*
Under 21 must wear a helmet while riding a Class 3 eBike - Colorado*
Under 21 must wear a helmet while riding a Class 3 eBike - Illinois
- Iowa – It is not required but strongly recommended
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Michigan*
Under 18-year-olds must wear a helmet when riding a Class 3 eBike - Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire*
Under 18 must wear a helmet when riding a Class 3 eBike - North Dakota
- Ohio*
Everyone must wear a helmet when riding a Class 3 eBike - Oklahoma
- South Dakota
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Washington
Not required by the state but many cities still require it - Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Final Takeaways
As you can see from our overview, the laws around eBikes differ depending on which state you’re in.
Many now choose to use the three Class system, which does help to simplify matters, but in others, it’s still a bit of a free for all. Hopefully, this has helped you to understand a little bit more about what is legal in your state, but if there’s anything else you wish to know do let us know in the comments.
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Class 3 doesn’t have a throttle and there is no class 4.
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-43/subtitle-B/chapter-II/subchapter-H/part-8340/subpart-8340/section-8340.0-5#p-8340.0-5(j)
Thanks for the comment! You are right, though a lot of manufacturers sell their bikes as class 3 even though they have a throttle because you can typically disable it to conform to the regulations.
As for the class 4 that we mention, we are simply referring to uncategorized electric bicycles that can do more than 28 mph. Officially, class 4 does not exist, but these e-bikes are often referred to as class 4.
Georgia allows up to 1000 watts. Must be for all those hills.
Thanks for the reminder that it’s important to know about the regulations about helmets when planning to take up biking. I’d like to buy an electric bike soon because I’m still recovering from a leg injury. As such, having a bike that’s easier to pedal might be ideal for me.