There is a difference between a winter bike and a winter hack.

The former is a dedicated machine setup specifically for the task of winter riding, often a significant investment – although, crucially, a winter bike should never cost more than your best bike – while the latter is cobbled together from an array of parts found in the spares bin, based, perhaps, on an old frame found in a friend’s garage.

A winter hack is a machine you’d also happily ride to the pub on a cold, dark Sunday evening, and lock up outside in a manner which you’d never do with your pride and joy.

An old best bike can also be winterised to take up off-season riding duties in place of the machine with which it was once replaced. It is unlikely to have the necessary fittings for full mudguards, but clip-on ‘guards – read our mudguards buyer’s guide here – work to good effect.

For the purpose of this buyer’s guide we’ll focus on the dedicated winter bike – the machine, we think, best equipped to tackle the demands of the season and, importantly, to keep you riding.

Because that is another key attribute of a winter bike. While low weight is not high on the agenda – instead, all-weather reliability trumps all, and the added drag of heavier components can be considered resistance training – a winter bike will be a constant companion through the cold, dark months ahead, and it is, therefore, a machine which should at least encourage you to get out on the road when conditions tell you otherwise.

For that reason we think it’s important to strike a balance between affordability, performance and inspiration.

The British winter is too long to suffer a bike you don’t enjoy riding and, considering the vagaries of the British ‘summer’, a carefully chosen winter bike is also likely to receive plenty of use year-round, rather than being consigned to to the shed from spring to autumn.

A winter bike will also serve you well as a summer commuter or light tourer, if it has the necessary eyelets for a rear rack.