Lime vs Forest vs Voi: which UK e-bike and e-scooter referral code is best in 2026?
Forest pays the biggest bonus — £10 of free riding to both sides — but only works in London and the credit lapses after 7 days. Lime pays £4 each side with the broadest reach (e-bikes and e-scooters across London plus Manchester, Oxford, Nottingham, Milton Keynes and the West Midlands) and a 60-day window to use it. Voi gives a new rider £2.50 on sign-up and the inviter £5, and is the operator you are most likely to find outside London, where it runs most of England's rental e-scooter trials. Ride central London often? Forest. Want the longest claim window and the most cities? Lime. In a regional town? Voi is frequently the only option.
| Lime | Forest | Voi | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headline bonus | £4 each side | £10 each side | £2.50 join + £5 inviter |
| Who gets paid | Both sides — £4 each | Both sides — £10 each | New rider £2.50, inviter £5 |
| Vehicles | E-bikes + e-scooters | E-bikes only | E-scooters + e-bikes |
| UK coverage | London + Manchester, Oxford, Nottingham, Milton Keynes, West Midlands | London only (18+ boroughs) | ~20+ towns/cities; most of England's e-scooter trials |
| Credit window | 60 days | 7 days | No universal expiry published |
| Covers unlock fee? | Yes — £4 covers a whole short ride | No — £1 unlock + service fee still apply | Ride money at pay-as-you-go rate |
| Qualifying action | New rider's first paid ride | New rider's first ride | New rider's first paid trip |
| Sustainability | — | B Corp + Verra CO2 offsets | Climate-neutral since 2020 (self-reported) |
How the three referral bonuses compare
Lime runs a flat, two-sided £4: the new rider gets a £4 coupon that auto-applies to their first ride, and the person who invited them earns a matching £4 once that ride completes. Both coupons last 60 days, each existing rider can earn up to 40, and the £4 covers a whole short ride including the unlock fee. Lime is the only one of the three that runs both e-bikes and rental e-scooters across multiple UK cities.
Forest pays the most: £10 of free riding time to each side — roughly 30 minutes at its 29p-per-minute pay-as-you-go rate — released once the new rider takes their first trip. Two catches: the credit expires after just 7 days, and it covers riding time only, so the £1 unlock fee and any daily service fee still apply. Forest is London-only, but it is a certified B Corp and the only operator here with Verra-validated carbon offsets.
Voi splits its reward: the new rider receives £2.50 in ride credit on sign-up, and the inviter earns £5 once that rider completes their first paid trip. The credit is ride money spent at your city's pay-as-you-go rate. Voi publishes no universal expiry, and it has by far the widest footprint outside London — it runs roughly two-thirds of England's rental e-scooter trials, often as the only operator in a town.
Which e-mobility referral should you actually use?
If you ride in central London regularly, Forest is the value pick — £10 of free riding dwarfs the others, and London is the one place all three compete. Just plan to spend the credit within a week before it expires.
If you want flexibility — both e-bikes and e-scooters, the most cities, and two months to use the credit — Lime is the most forgiving, and its £4 covers a complete short ride rather than just the per-minute charge.
If you live outside London, Voi is often the only rental operator in your town, so the £2.50 joining credit is the one you can actually use. It is also the pick when a friend is referring you, since the inviter's £5 is the largest referrer reward of the three.
There is no reason to pick only one. They are separate apps with separate new-customer eligibility, so a London rider can hold all three and use whichever has a vehicle nearest.
Coverage and the UK e-scooter law you need to know
Lime covers London plus Greater Manchester, Oxford, Nottingham, Milton Keynes and, from 1 April 2026, seven West Midlands cities. Forest operates only in London, across more than 18 boroughs. Voi runs across roughly 20-plus UK towns and cities, spanning Department for Transport e-scooter trial areas and e-bike schemes — including several London boroughs and the Glasgow cycle-hire scheme it took over in November 2025.
One legal point applies to every rental e-scooter: it is only legal to ride one in public through an approved operator on the DfT trial, which runs to May 2028. You must be 18 or over with at least a provisional UK driving licence carrying a category Q entitlement. Rental e-bikes need no licence — they are treated as ordinary pedal cycles — though Voi sets its own 16-or-over minimum for its rental e-bikes. Privately owned e-scooters remain illegal on public roads and pavements.
Frequently asked questions
Which UK e-bike or e-scooter referral pays the most in 2026?
Forest, at £10 of free riding time to each side — but only in London, and the credit expires after 7 days. Lime pays £4 each side and Voi pays the new rider £2.50 plus £5 to the inviter. For pure bonus size Forest wins; for reach and a longer claim window Lime is stronger; outside London, Voi is often the only operator available.
Can I use Lime, Forest and Voi referral codes at the same time?
Yes. They are three separate companies with separate apps and separate new-customer eligibility, so claiming all three is the value-maximising move for a London rider. Each bonus only applies to a brand-new account on that specific app.
Do these referral credits cover the unlock fee?
It varies. Lime's £4 covers the whole ride including the unlock fee — if your first ride costs under £4 it is free. Forest's £10 covers riding time only, so the £1 unlock fee and any daily service fee still apply. Voi's credit is ride money drawn down at your city's pay-as-you-go rate.
Which operator covers the most of the UK?
Lime has the broadest multi-city e-bike and e-scooter network; Voi runs the most rental e-scooter trials — about two-thirds of England's — frequently as the sole operator in a town; Forest is London-only but the densest e-bike fleet in several boroughs.
Do I need a driving licence to ride any of them?
For a rental e-scooter (Lime or Voi), yes — you must be 18 or over with at least a provisional UK driving licence carrying a category Q entitlement, under the DfT trial. For an e-bike (any of the three), no licence is required, though Voi sets a 16-or-over minimum on its rental e-bikes.
Verified against each brand's own terms · 30 May 2026