The easy way is to ask for one. You send one message to ツamsterdam saying what kind of bike you are looking for, and you get one name back: someone in the city who wants theirs gone. You agree on the price together and pay each other directly. Asking costs nothing.
One honest note before the rest. Bikes are new in ツamsterdam. We have no numbers on them yet: not how many were asked for, not what anyone paid. So this is a practical guide, not a data story. The data stories are about cleaners and massage, where we do have numbers.
Which bike do you actually need?
Most newcomers want too much bike. Amsterdam is flat, the trips are short and the bike lives outside in the rain. A plain second hand city bike does the job.
A few Dutch words help when you ask.
| Word | What it is |
|---|---|
| Omafiets | The upright "granny bike", curved frame, easy to step through |
| Opafiets | The same idea with a straight top bar |
| Terugtraprem | Back pedal brake: you brake by pedalling backwards |
| Bakfiets | Cargo bike, for children or a lot of groceries |
If you have never used a back pedal brake, say so. Hand brakes exist and nobody will judge you. Not out loud, anyway.
What do you put in the message?
The more you say, the less goes back and forth.
- What kind of bike. Omafiets, city bike with gears, a child's bike.
- Your height. Frame size matters more than colour. A bike that is too big is no fun on a bridge.
- Your budget, if you have one. Then the other person knows where they stand.
- Your neighbourhood. Picking up a bike in Noord when you live in Zuid means a ferry and a long ride home. That can also be a nice first trip.
- Extras you care about. Hand brakes, gears, a child seat, a crate on the front.
A message that works: "Hi ツamsterdam, I am looking for a second hand omafiets, I am tall, hand brakes if possible, somewhere around Oost."
What do you check when you see it?
You do not need to be a mechanic. Five minutes is enough.
Ride it around the block. Brake hard once. Listen for anything that clicks with every turn of the pedals.
Look at the tyres and the chain. A rusty chain is normal here. A chain that hangs like a necklace is not.
Check the lights. Riding without them after dark gets you fined, and it gets dark early for half the year.
Ask where the bike comes from. Bike theft is a real thing in this city. A seller who has had the bike for years can tell you about it, has the keys to the lock and does not mind you looking at the frame number. If the story is vague, walk away.
What about the lock?
From our ad: "Dutch bike. The lock cost more."
That line is invented, but the idea is not far off. In Amsterdam the lock is the serious purchase. Many people use a ring lock on the back wheel plus a chain to fix the bike to something that does not move. Ask whether the lock and both keys come with the bike. If they do, that is worth saying yes to.
How does it go with ツamsterdam?
You send your message in the chat app you already have. There is no account and nothing to download.
ツamsterdam names one person. Not a list of forty bikes to scroll through.
You say yes or no. If it is no, you say so and ask again.
Then the two of you arrange the rest: when to look, where to meet, how much. You pay the seller directly. ツamsterdam adds nothing on top, and who gets named is not for sale.
What does ツamsterdam not know?
What a fair price is. We do not see what people pay each other, and for bikes we have no counts at all yet. Anyone who gives you an average price for a second hand bike in Amsterdam is guessing. So are we, which is why we do not.
In short
Say what bike you need, your height and your neighbourhood. Get one name back. Ride it, check the lights, ask about the lock, agree on a price together.
Read on: Bike in Amsterdam and, for when you leave and the bike has to go again, Selling your stuff in Amsterdam: put it in the market group.