Elizabeth Hodgson

When we talk about electric vehicles, we're usually thinking about cars, but the electric motorbike market is also growing.

For the last decade, it's been dominated by high-volume, low-cost Chinese and Indian models, but now some of the most famous names in biking are getting involved.

Honda is one of them.

Later this year, its first high-powered electric motorbike, the WN7, is being rolled out globally.

Andrew Mineko is head of motorcycles for the company's UK division.

According to research firm Motorcycle Data, global sales of electric motorbikes were up 7% in the first half of 2025.

At the recent Motorcycle Live show in the UK city of Birmingham, Tony Campbell, CEO of the UK's Motorcycle Industry Association, told me that as batteries improve, Honda could be followed by other global manufacturers.

But as the market stands in 2026, Tony says that newer riders could be the key to success for bikes like Honda's WN7.

At the show, I met Munir Qazi, who is testing out an electric motorbike from US company Xero.

Munir has been riding for around a year.

But Minea's uncle, Mohamed Sheikh, who's been riding all his adult life, says he could maybe be persuaded too.

What would it take, Mohamed, for you to go electric?

And price is something that Andrew Mineko from Honda is very aware of, with the WN7 costing around $17,000, which places it at the mid to high end of its petrol equivalent.

Another major entrant into the electric motorcycle market is the premium Indian brand Royal Enfield.

Its flying flea bikes are coming later this year and Matt Cardenas heads up the company's electrification strategy.

Matt says that companies like his can't have a one-size-fits-all strategy and they have to focus, at least for now, on where and how the bikes will be used.

Whilst electric motorbikes are a long way from replacing petrol power, as more big-name manufacturers roll out shiny new models, 2026 could be a pivotal year in them becoming mainstream.

I'm the BBC's Elizabeth Hodgson for Marketplace.