$200 treadmill vs $200 bike

Neither is running, so maybe save your money and just get some extra miles in.

Cheap treadmills are rubbish. A cheap bike will serve reasonably well for a few years of light use.

You might consider looking on a local marketplace app for a "vintage" Nordic Track Ski machine which which is low impact, more running specific, more durable/repairable than a low end elliptical or treadmill, and typically well within your price ceiling.

$200 can get you a gym-grade used treadmill. There are thousands being used as clothes racks that pop up every month on Craigslist.

If cheap avoid electronics. Bike can be used for other purposes. Can find free bikes if you look online or post up a wanted ad. If you are looking at a $200 bike these could possibly be better quality. Maybe do that then if you want get the treadmill and have both for $200.

I’d spend the $200 on a planet fitness membership (approximately 200 a year all in). Access to treadmills, ellipticals, bikes and weights.

You must have a gargantuan one.

You can't get good quality of either for $200. Someone might sell a used junky one for that. A $200 used bike might be useful for riding around town. You're better off with a gym membership than a $200 used treadmill but check to see if someone is selling one for a "I just want it gone" price anyways.

I bought a new $250 exercise bike on Amazon (Sunny brand) 3 years ago and it was well worth the money. It's held up great.

I would've shelled out a little more for a real bike but $200 is going to get you some pretty janky stuff, and decent indoor trainers are not cheap if you can't ride outside. On top of that, there have been wayyy too cyclists hit in our area recently, and there really aren't any great stretches of road near my house to get a decent continuous ride in.

Don't even think about a $200 treadmill, used or new. People keep saying you can get a brand new Precor for $100, but I've spent hours looking and having seen any gym-quality treadmills cheaper than $1000 in our area.

If you're only going to be using it lightly, I'd recommend a new Horizon T101 ($600ish new but can get discounts at Dick's if you look often). Used treadmills are hit or miss and it can often take a long time to find something worth the "cheap" price.

The bike will take you a lot further in life, with the treadmill you'll still be in your basement

Pringles can, helps in the winter.

bike. non weight baring activity.

You can absolutely get a decent used bike for $200 for exercise purposes if you know anything about bikes. Otherwise you can easy spend $200 replacing worn out drivetrain parts. The mtbr forum (I'm a regular there) peeps would say my 32-year-old hardtail (that I've had since new, though 100% maintained well, fit well, etc.) isn't worth that much because they deride anything not "modern" geometry, pre-disc brakes, 26" wheels, etc. but a well-maintained old bike is still as good and can be better (with some parts that weren't popularized yet then like wider bars) than it was back in 1993 for the trails that I ride on. It was enjoyable back then, and more so now, so as long as you aren't gravity focused, an old, well-maintained mountain bike or old road bike (really nice older ones are also cheap since no one wants rim brakes anymore can be great.

The question needs more context for an accurate answer. why are you seeking these 2 options? Are you injured? Prone to injury? Looking to just change the routine? I’m assuming it’s not weather related, for you say bike, but don’t specify indoor bike.

If none of the above, why not just do a couple more easy runs outside?

If you are simply wondering which piece of equipment gets you more bang for your $200 buck….then it’s really about shopping around and being patient to find the right buy. You could find a steal for either at that price, or you could buy a hunk of junk for either at that price.

This is my suggestion. Not only will you be able to use a much better treadmill but you can also do some weight training which is a must if you want to be a good runner.

I got a planet fitness membership for the weights but also I got the one gym membership close to work so I could run at lunch and then use their shower.

You can get a decent used road or tri bike for $400-800. You can get a new treadmill for ~$500 from a sporting goods store that at least has a top speed of 10mph. Should be able to find that used pretty close to your price point. Who knows what threads are & aren't legitimate these days. If you're looking to get an extra stimulus idk why you would run on a treadmill. That's still running. If you want to supplement training, buy a bike & get an indoor trainer you can put it on. But are you tapped out on mileage? Are you injury prone? Just looking for something different? Answer those things & figure out what you want.

Why a treadmill when the extra stimulus could be had with the extra miles outside? Unless you’re springing for an alter g or whatever.

That’s what I said, and they made jokes about my huge peen.

I volunteer with a local organization that refurbishes donated bicycles and gives them away to our community.

We have a significant inventory of high quality early 80s vintage road bikes, Fuji, Bianchi, and the like that we literally can't give away. This is the sort of equipment we did long distance touring and raced on back in the day and it works the same now as it did then.

Most of our clientele gravitate toward the "modern looking" mountain bike or cross style bikes even though they're mostly lower quality department store stuff. The issue, I think, is that your more serious riders are willing to shell out big bucks for high quality new tech and people looking for freebies can't distinguish between style and substance and/or aren't going to do serious road riding.

There's no way a gym grade (i.e. $6000 machine like a LifeFitness club model) is going for $200. Someone's previous $1000 machine that folds up and made of styrofoam maybe.