The best bicycle depends on what kind of biking a person does. Different models are built for specific needs, and a few are made with versatility in mind. Some brands have perfected and innovated new technology, establishing themselves as the leaders in the industry. This list of the Top 25 Bike Brands is based on experts’ opinion and recent Best Bikes lists in different categories. New models may come and go, but these brands consistently lead the way.

This is a high-end bike that uses carbon fiber arranged in such a way to provide excellent ride characteristics, yet maintain a very lightweight performance bicycle, Larry Engay, who has been riding bikes for decades, says. The Italian brand is best known for its quality road bikes, although it also produces cyclocross, track, mountain and city bikes. Pinarello bikes have been ridden by a number of top pro teams, including Telekom, Banesto, Movistar and Team Sky. They're also British Cycling's bike of choice, according to Bike Radar. www.pinarello.com

The brand created and named after Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer and the most decorated cyclist of all time, Édouard Louis Joseph, baron Merckx, is best known for endurance road bikes. Eddy Merckx is undeniably one of the most prestigious brands in the industry. Baron Merckx himself is often involved with the design and testing of each bike, according to Road Bike Review. The company has launched a new line to expand in other bike categories. Last year the brand returned to its roots with steel racing bikes. www.eddymerckx.com

BMC is another performance bicycle brand Engay recommends, even though it’s more on the high-end, in terms or price. The Swiss company has its own carbon production facility aiming to create the “Porsche of race bikes.” This evolution also saw the founding of BMC's Impec Advanced R&D Lab, according to Bike Radar. BMC makes precision and has won many awards including the BMC GF01 Disc, which won Cycling Plus magazine’s coveted Bike of the Year award for 2015. www.bmc-switzerland.com

Trek is a major bicycle brand but is perhaps best known for its highly rated mountain and hybrid bikes. The brand leads the industry in all categories, including road bikes. The company landed on our Best Bikes in 2016 list with several models. Trek is all about the perfect combination of value and performance, Mark Vautour from Landry’s Bicycle says. They are very reliable. The Trek 7.3FX has been an incredibly popular model this season, due to its relatively light weight and versatility of both fit and riding capacity. www.trekbikes.com 

Specialized is the brand of innovation. Since 1981 it has sought to make riding better by developing new technologies. The company has a good and comfortable sports bike for women, Eddie Nemirovski, an avid cyclist who has been selling and repairing bikes for 20 years, says. The frame is Specialized A1 Premium Aluminum, which is light and durable and is engineered with Women's Fitness Geometry. Specialized also has outstanding entry-level and mountain bikes that can fit anyone’s budget. www.specialized.com

This is one of the best budget bike brands, Engay says. It gets high ratings in both the mountain and hybrid bikes categories because of the bikes’ design and features. Cyclists who want a comfortable and confident ride, both on and off the road, consider Giant first. The ATX Lite, for example, is designed as a cyclocross bike, which is stronger than a road bike but not as stable as a mountain bike, and you can use it on various terrains, Nemirovski says. “And it’s also a good entry-level bike.” www.giant-bicycles.com

Raleigh has an iconic place in cycling history. It made high quality commuter bikes that fit a modest budget. Bikes range in price from $275 to $690 for comfort bikes, $520 to $1,550 for fitness bikes, $275 to $1,325 for mountain bikes, and $520 to $2,725 for road bikes, according to Consumer Reports. They say that Furley has been popular this year. The frame is made of steel, the seat is a Raleigh Classic Road and the headset has FSA Integrated Cartridge Bearings. www.raleighusa.com 

GT is one of the most famous and respected American bike brands. It’s known for its high class and expensive mountain, BMX and road bikes. A lot of people like GT’s bikes because they are designed with cool style and colors. Some users say that riding a GT bike is like flying because of the super smooth suspensions in the back and front, reviews on The Top Tens say. People who ride for 20 miles a day say they have never changed anything on the bike in years and it’s still reliable and strong. www.gtbicycles.com

Focus makes high end mountain and road bikes with excellent quality. They are German-engineered for amateur athletes and professionals. They ride nice, have different geometries for the road line and have well thought out cable routing and the like. Focus is especially liked on the U.K. The brand is very well known in the cross scene. The company has a reputation of being innovative while making stylish bikes that sell for a reasonable price. www.focus-bikes.com

Founded in 1982, Salsa's goal is to inspire adventure by bike. They make some of the best mountain bikes in the industry. The company is also respected for its road bikes. Salsa, which was one of the first brands to make a carbon fat bike, which is very visually appealing as well. Designers pay attention to details such as colors and logos. salsacycles.com  

Bikers who ride on pavement, dirt, and gravel, like cross-country style, and are looking for a smooth ride, high quality build and comfort won’t make a mistake getting a Cannondale, Keith Trepl from Roy's Sheepshead Cycle says. They also make good fitness mountain and commuter bikes. Cannondale started in 1971 with cycle apparel and accessories and introduced its first touring bike in 1983. Since then it has won five Giro d'Italia Maglia Rosas. www.cannondale.com 

Felt’s goal is to build the best bikes in the world, according to Campus Wheel Works. They say the bikes feel as if the brand puts the same effort into every one whether it’s a bike for cruising around town, crushing local single track, or setting your personal best at a triathlon. Felt develops every part of every bike down to the littlest details with in-house engineers, making the bikes as good as they can possibly be. www.feltbicycles.com

Cervelo likes to say that it builds “the world’s fastest and lightest pro bikes for road, tri and track.” Some users say their climbing bikes are the market “hands down.” Cervelo is a racing bicycle frame manufacturer created in 1995 by two engineers who worked to develop faster time-trial bicycles. The bikes are popular for road races and triathlons. The company currently makes three series of road bikes, the R series, S series and P series, all with carbon-fiber frames. www.cervelo.com

Bianchi, created in 1885, is the world’s oldest extant bicycle manufacturing company. The Italian brand is also among the most recognizable. Bianchi celeste has the most distinct color pattern in cycling. The company created technologies such as Countervail, which is an integrated vibration canceling system for cycling. Its road bikes are popular among cyclists and the Bianchi Infinito CV was voted Bike of the Year by Road.cc. www.bianchiusa.com

Family owned and operated out of New Jersey, Jamis first introduced its Earth Cruiser in 1979. Since then it has put out products that fly off the racks. One example is the Jamis Coda, which is a favorite of multiple bike shops. The Jamis Xenith Comp Femme made our list of best bikes this year. It is a great road bike with large carbon frame tubes, a huge bottom bracket shell, and asymmetric chain stays for a stable and reactive frame. www.jamisbikes.com

Surly is relatively new to the cycling scene, established in 1998. It is well known for its single-speed and fixie bikes. It builds its bikes from steel to offer a good balance. They challenge the vacuum left by the gaps in touring, fat bikes, cargo and off-road touring. They also make steel bikes and build them for purposes that are not really offered by any other brand. surlybikes.com

Soma takes pride in straying away from the other companies that emulate the racing world. Instead it aims to create products for the “everyday cyclist.” The brand’s personality and love of great bicycles comes across on its site: “Fun is not complicated. Why should our frames be? No weird geometries, just what we ourselves would like to ride.” Soma is not mass production. While others may make 5,000-15,000 units of a single model in a year, they will make only 200-300. www.somafab.com

Diamondback made our Best Bikes in 2016 with several models. All experts mention the brand as one of the best in the world. The Insight, for example, is an inexpensive hybrid bike that “will do the job on a budget,” Nemirovski says. It’s comfortable, light and easy to control. The lightweight aluminum frame keeps it efficient and quick, and great for longer rides. It’s also a good choice for commuting from home to work in a city. The Edgewood is a commuter bike you will get if you value comfort more than anything else, Nemirovski says. www.diamondback.com

Merida, a Taiwan-based company, is a very well-known mountain bikes brand but its own line of bikes spans virtually all genres of bicycles that are very stylish, too. The quality and performance you get for your money is incomparable, some users write on The Top Tens.  Merida bikes are durable, lightweight, reliable, and made of quality components. Merida currently claims the distinction of being the manufacturer of the lightest frame, with its 680g Scultura 9000, according to Bike Radar. www.merida-bikes.com

Kona, based in the Pacific Northwest, made our list of best commuter bikes. The Coco model takes the essence of a cruiser and makes it more functional. From the aluminum step-through frame down to the built-in bell, the well thought out bike is big on style and functionality. Throw in disc brakes, full fenders and a comfortable handlebar and the Coco is set for the city. The brand is known for some bikes that are superb for dealing with extreme downhill terrain. konaworld.com

Founded in 1899, Fuji is one of the world's oldest bicycle brands. That means they have a lot of experience. Some of their models ranked in our best bikes lists. The Traverse 1.8 Sport Hybrid Bike is a 2016 limited addition Sport Hybrid Bike. It is great for transitioning between surfaces like pavement and dirt. Take it around town and exercising through trails. The award-winning FUJI Denny is a stable commuter bike. fujibikes.com

Dahon is the world's largest manufacturer of folding bicycles. The bikes all feature aluminum frame. Several alternative models are available. The bikes are ideal for city conditions and hurdles. The quick-release handlebars and the light weight are what a lot of bikers love. Dahon was founded on a vision of “green” mobility with the idea of preserving the environment for the next generation, according to Campus Wheel Works. dahon.com

The Swiss company is known for its sports bicycles. The Scott Foil Premium is on our Best Bikes for 2016 ranking. It’s perfect for avid bikers who love adventures. It has great all-weather braking and catches awesome speed. It has a completely redesigned HMX carbon fiber frame to help provide less drag. Users say the bikes are detailed at their finest and are extremely reliable. There is a huge range to choose from – road, to kids, women’s, all mountain, trail, and more. Scott-sports.com

The Californian company makes high-class and affordable mountain bicycles. They have aluminum or carbon frame options and have many nice build kits to choose. “Santa Cruz Bicycles is not your traditional bike maker, and their passion and design approach are transforming the industry and influencing others,” according to Forbes. www.santacruzbicycles.com

The California-based bicycle company has been building mountain (their most famous models), commuter, road, and cyclocross bikes since 1986. Marin has carved out a niche with relatively affordable bikes, ranging from the $430 alloy Sky Trail hardtail up to top-end $5,099 Rift Zone 29er XC Pro, according to Bike Radar. www.marinbikes.com