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A bicycle, cycle or bike, is a pedal-driven human-powered vehicle with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. First introduced in 19th-century Europe, bicycles evolved quickly into their familiar, current design. Numbering over 1,000,000,000 in the world today, bicycles provide the principal means of transportation in many regions and a popular form of recreational transport in others.

The bicycle is one of the most notable of human inventions. The basic shape and configuration of the frame, wheels, pedals, saddle and handlebars has hardly changed since the first chain-driven model was developed around 1885, although many important detail improvements have been made since, especially in recent years using modern materials and computer-aided design.

A remarkable aspect of the bicycle is its widespread adoption in many different fields of human activity, e.g. as a child's toy, in adult recreation and fitness, as a means of everyday transport, in cyclo-touring, for use in many cycle sports, and as a basis for static gymnasium or home fitness versions.

The bicycle has affected history considerably in both the cultural and industrial realms. In its early years, bicycle construction drew on pre-existing technologies; more recently, bicycle technology has contributed, in turn, to other, newer areas. Beyond recreation and transportation, bicycles have been adapted for use in many occupations, including the military, local policing, courier services, and sports. A recurrent theme in bicycling has been the tension between bicyclists and drivers of motor vehicles, each group arguing for its fair share of the world's roadways.

Englishman Frank Bowden started the Raleigh company in Nottingham in the 1890s, and soon was producing some 30,000 bicycles a year. Schwinn emigrated to the United States, where he founded his similarly successful company in Chicago in 1895. Schwinn bicycles soon featured widened tires and spring-cushioned, padded seats, sacrificing some efficiency for increased comfort. Facilitated by connections between European nations and their overseas colonies, European-style bicycles were soon available worldwide. By the mid-20th century bicycles had become the primary means of transportation for millions of people around the globe.

In many western countries the use of bicycles levelled off or declined, as motorized transportation became affordable and car-centred policies led to an increasingly hostile road environment for bicycles. In North America, bicycle sales declined markedly after 1905, to the point where by the 1940s, they had largely been relegated to the role of children's toys. In other parts of the world however, such as China, India, and European countries such as Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands, the traditional utility bicycle remained a mainstay of transportation, its design only gradually changing to incorporate hand-operated brakes and internal hub gears allowing up to seven speeds. In the Netherlands, such so-called 'granny bikes' have remained popular, and are again in production. Especially in Amsterdam they are often colourfully painted and/or otherwise decorated.

In North America, increasing consciousness of physical fitness and environmental preservation spawned a renaissance of bicycling in the late 1960s. Bicycle sales in the United States boomed, largely in the form of the racing bicycles long used in such events as the hugely popular Tour de France. Sales were also helped by a number of technical innovations that were new to the US market, including higher performance steel alloys and gearsets with an increasing number of gears. While 10-speeds were the rage in the 1970s, 12-speed designs were introduced in the 1980s, and today most bikes feature 18 or more speeds. By the 1980s these newer designs had driven the three-speed bicycle from the roads.