Daughter is 10 and will be riding her bike every day once she's in middle school. Need a 24" bike and I am not educated enough on bike brands, so not sure where to begin. Want to spend under $500. Have always gotten neighbor's hand me down Trek bikes and they've been great but over the budget. Want new as she's got 2 younger sisters that will take over once she outgrows. Help me out!

We got my daughter a guardian bike for Christmas. I was skeptical of buying a bike online but no regrets. Their policy is if you don't like it, donate it and you'll get your refund. Was a good purchase!

https://guardianbikes.com/

2nd guardian. Kids had typical Walmart training wheels bikes they couldn't figure out. 10 min gliding on the guardian bike and they were riding without training wheels.

We've been a big fan of Woom bikes. They're built with quality parts and are light compared to most mass market kids bikes. Not the cheapest but we'll pass down the current one as our oldest outgrows his current one.

Yeah, that doesn't fall in my range but appreciate it.

Try to find a used Woom. They really are the best children's bikes, especially if riding every day. I know used aren't in the price range and you want a new bike, but a kids bike program in our area went with Woom after lots of research. We are on our 4th Woom size and ride regularly.

Will 3rd guardian, but not sure how much they are worth it once the kid knows how to ride. It was an absolute game changer for both our girls learning to ride, but now they can ride any bike.

just buy a huffy or whatever from walmart

I started mine off on micro minis then moved them to minis running skinny 20" wheels and eventually to 24" wheeled mountain bikes. The micro mini and mini bmx bikes are through and through race bikes but are light and fast. My boys didn't race but the size and weight made them ideal for them to keep up on the street or trail. And because they're race bikes have little rolling resistance.

At 10 she could feasibly get on a used 24" size wheel kids mountain bike. Look for Felt, Specialized, GT, etc. I also have a buddy that swears by Woom. Looked for a used Woom as well.