The bikes are split into two categories: Trail covers those with 110-140mm of travel and Enduro refers to those with 150-175mm.
All sit between £2,600 and £3,400, so they're generally the more affordable models in the brands' ranges.
Each one has been through a rigorous testing process and subjected to a lot of miles in some pretty brutal UK winter conditions. From a starting shortlist of 20, we whittled things down to a top five in each category and took the top contenders out to San Remo in Italy for a final test. The fast, rocky conditions allowed us to hone in on the finer points of each and come to a definite conclusion about which ones we believe are worth your money.
The winners are revealed in issue 355 of the mag, in shops now!
Trail
Canyon Spectral CF 9.0 £3,246.98 (inc. shipping)
![Canyon Spectral CF 9.0](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/canyon-spectral-cf-9.0-804ca59.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Commencal Meta TR V4.2 Essential £2,650
![Commencal Meta TR V4.2 Essential](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/commencal-meta-tr-v4.2-essential-70a0fe6.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Cotic FlareMAX Silver 29 £3,399 (inc. shipping + fork, shock, wheel and tyre upgrades)
![Cotic Flaremax Silver 29](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/cotic-flaremax-silver-29-dfd0f8d.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Marin B17 3 £2,900
![Marin B17 3](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/marin-b17-3-bc4ba5c.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Norco Sight A2 29 £2,750
![Norco Sight A2 29](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/norco-sight-a2-29-4385c32.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Orbea Occam TR H10 £3,329 (inc. shipping + fork, shock & wheel upgrades)
![Orbea Occam TR H10](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/orbea-occam-tr-h10-4630c67.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Santa Cruz Tallboy R Aluminium 29 £3,299
![Santa Cruz Tallboy R Aluminium 29](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/santa-cruz-tallboy-r-aluminium-29-c8b2d93.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Transition Scout NX £2,999.95
![Transition Scout NX](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/transition-scout-nx-d7eeef1.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Trek Fuel EX 8 29 £2,700
![Trek Fuel Ex 8 29](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/trek-fuel-ex-8-29-9b3c646.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
YT Industries Jeffsy 29 CF £3,106 (approx. including shipping)
![YT Industries Jeffsy 29 CF](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/yt-industries-jeffsy-cf-29-4ff8d28.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Enduro
Bird AM9 GX £3,363.95 (inc. shipping)
![Bird AM9 GX](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/bird-am9-gx-feb0b4a.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Canyon Torque CF 8.0 £3,246.98 (inc. shipping)
![Canyon Torque CF 8.0](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/canyon-torque-cf-8.0-0dd52f4.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Giant Reign 2 £2,649
![Giant Reign 2](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/giant-reign-2-cb3c0a1.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Merida One-Sixty 800 £3,150
![Merida One-Sixty 800](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/merida-one-sixty-800-16c83c5.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Mondraker Dune £3,199
![Mondraker Dune](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/mondraker-dune-18bdda6.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Nukeproof Mega 275 Pro £3,349.99
![Nukeproof Mega 275 Pro](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/nukeproof-mega-275-pro-c9dafde.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Radon Swoop 170 9.0 £2,912 (approx. inc. shipping)
![Radon Swoop 170 9.0](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/radon-swoop-170-9.0-f359fac.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Specialized Enduro Comp 29 £2,999
![Specialized Enduro Comp 29](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/specialized-enduro-comp-29-6fff23a.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Transition Patrol NX £2,999.95
![Transition Patrol NX](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/transition-patrol-nx-8ea2632.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)
Whyte S-150 S £2,850
![Whyte S-150 S](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/44/2018/04/whyte-s-150-s-dd0d41e.jpg?webp=1&w=1200)