Best Standard Motorcycles To Commute On

Ahh, the morning commute. Hang that Haggar suit coat on its hook, toss the Thermos onto the seat, fire up that mighty Imperial, and then punch it—right? No, Mad Man! Instead of ruining your commute in a sled, ride it like you stole it aboard one of Motorcyclist’s favorite commuter motorcycles. In choosing this moto-decathlon (an annoying way of saying, 10 motorcycles), we prioritized standard seating (comfiest and easiest to ride) over cruiser and sportbike architecture, and generally avoided fairings and gewgaws (to keep weight, dimensions, and cost down). The details are below. Now get reading—and right after that, get commuting!

Replacing the F850, the new F 900 R furthers BMW’s parallel twin standard-bike entry point with aplomb. The 895cc twin uses a 270-degree crankshaft and twin counter-rotating balancers to provide satisfying power delivery and minimal vibration. Seating position—the “magic triangle” of handlebar, seat, and footpegs—is good, allowing short and long commutes to be accomplished comfortably enough. Power is rated at 105 hp—not crazy, but plenty for authoritative freeway merging, passing, and transit. Standard ABS, traction control, selectable power modes, and LED headlights are nice additions at the F 900 R’s $8,995 MSRP. After considerable miles spent on the bike, our only real complaints are its hard saddle—which hopefully will soften with time and use—and poor feel of the Brembo braking system.

The Sixty2 may seem like just a little “Scrambler Ducati” to some, but to us it’s more like a little jewel. That’s because nestled inside the steel trellis frame is Ducati’s smallest—and the world’s only, like ever, in history—399cc desmodromic V-twin engine. Ducati’s key signature technology, desmodromics, uses separate camshaft lobes to both open and close the valves, thereby eliminating the requirement for valve springs. In the 1950s, this emerging tech eliminated valve float and valve-spring breakage, while today it more likely helps improve power and efficiency. Bottom line here, even in choosing Ducati’s entry-level bike—$7,995 for the Scrambler Sixty2—buyers get a piece of history and technical allure unmatched by any other motorcycle maker. Cool deal.

Value oriented, modest in its aspirations, and logical to a fault, Honda’s $4,949 CB300R harkens to the 1960s and 1970s when hundreds of thousands of small Hondas were employed as “daily drivers.” This one isn’t some throwback to the funky 125cc, 160cc, or 200cc days though—with fuel injection, liquid-cooling, dual overhead camshafts, and four valves, this 286cc single is more freeway capable, lower maintenance, and easier to live with than any of its predecessors. It’s also thoroughly modern in appearance, with angular styling, a mass-centralized engine/gearbox combination, a longer swingarm, inverted fork, and thin-spoke 17-inch wheels. Maybe best of all for fledgling riders, the curb weight is a feathery 317 pounds. For 2020, antilock brakes (ABS) are standard.

For nearly a decade now, first Honda’s NC700X and now the NC750X have quietly gone about their business as visionaries of the motorcycle world. Why? Instead of making you wear a backpack or fitting a tank bag or luggage, the NC750X hides 22 liters of storage inside the faux gas tank. Just lift the lid, stuff in your swag, and go. The 745cc parallel twin mill is tuned to produce a flat torque curve and a low-rpm redline, making this a particularly unfussy bike to ride. And buyers get a choice of a traditional six-speed gearbox (for $8,099) or an ABS-equipped, dual-clutch (DCT) gearbox model (add $800) with automatic Drive, Sport, and paddle-shift modes that banishes clutch and shift levers forever.

Occupying approximately the middle of Kawasaki’s Z naked-bike (i.e., “standard”) range, the Z650 is a twin-cylinder sportbike minus the bodywork. This helps keep the weight, insurance premiums, and payments down. Power is courtesy of a 649cc parallel twin that has graced various other Kawasaki streetbikes—and even American Flat Track racebikes!—so it’s a well-proven choice for the street. The revised 2020 model arrives with rider-friendly features like LED headlights, crisp TFT instrumentation, and smartphone connectivity (via the free Rideology the App—check your phone’s app store) to go with the familiar assist and slipper clutch functions. The Z650’s actual pricing depends on paint and equipment: To the $7,249 base price, add $100 for trick paint and $400 for ABS.

Just starting its third iteration, the 1290 Super Duke R continues as one of our all-time favorite streetbikes. The fact that the chassis is a standard configuration, with an upright seating position and lack of bulky bodywork, just makes it that much better for commuting. But what really snaps our necks back is the performance—when KTM says its products are “Ready to Race,” they basically are not joking. The 1,301cc, 75-degree V-twin packs a claimed 177 hp and is also quite narrow, aiding rider comfort, and is happy at just about any rpm that your daily commute might require using—right up to its 9,500-rpm power peak. Helping to tame the commute, selectable ride modes include Rain, Street, and Sport.

The new 2020 Katana stylistically honors Suzuki’s original Katana superbike of 1982. Except for its low, frame-mounted fairing (like the original’s), the newest Katana is otherwise a standard bike with a unique style, which is a pretty delicate balance to achieve. Advantages to this approach include the $13,499 Katana’s innate heritage and recognizability, melded with a practical seating position, centrally mounted footpegs, and a well-padded, 32.5-inch-high seat. Further making this Katana ripe for commuting is a “long-stroke” 999cc inline-four based on the 2005–’08 GSX-R1000 superbike, three-mode traction control that covers conditions from rainy days to trackdays, and adjustable suspension. Also favoring workday use is a tapered aluminum handlebar to quell vibration, a fuel-range readout on the IP, and an LED headlight.

Remember that kid in high school who was just…naturally chill? That’s the Triumph Street Twin. Contrary to its old-time, air-cooled appearance, though, the Street Twin actually sports a liquid-cooled parallel twin 900cc engine, whose 270-degree firing sequence delivers a super-pleasant power delivery, sound, and vibration signature. The 65-hp motor is so laid-back that the bike doesn’t even come with a tachometer—just an old-school speedometer. Besides its sterling engine, the Street Twin offers commuters a friendly seating position, including a low-rise handlebar, logically amidships foot controls, and a slim, pocketed seat. Shorter riders will like this latter feature; taller riders may want an inch or so thicker saddle, but that relatively easy mod will make the Street Twin right nice.

Like inline-sixes and V-12s, three-cylinder motorcycles make the most glorious sounds. They’re also (usually) nicely torquey in the middle of the rev range and can run hard on the top-end, making them an ideal hybrid of twins and fours. This character helps make Yamaha’s XSR900 a delight. Descending from three-cylinder models dating back to 1976’s XS750—but functionally based on the recent FZ/MT-09—the 2020 XSR900 is a Thoroughly Modern Millie. The crossplane-crankshaft 847cc inline-triple is wrapped in an aluminum frame that wears an adjustable inverted fork and a single shock out back, and boasts sensible ergonomics. High-tech stuff includes ride-by-wire throttle with adjustable response rate, adjustable traction control, and ABS. The $9,499 XSR900 also returns an estimated 44 mpg.

Although not inexpensive at a $19,495 base MSRP, Zero’s range-leading SR/F naked bike gives back with nearly silent operation, a claimed 161-mile city range from its 14.4kWh lithium-ion battery pack (expanded to 200 miles with the Power Tank for $3,395 more), and a claimed 124-mph top speed—impressive swagger for an electric bike. A rapid charge system is also available for $2,000 to $2,300 (depending on model). The steel trellis frame, inverted fork, and single-shock rear suspension connote sharp handling, and the seating position is ideal for commuting. While in use and when parked, the SR/F connects to your smartphone via the cloud, cellularly streaming bike and charging status, ride data, and system info. Internal-combustion stalwarts, meet the millennial machine.