Apollo City 2022 vs Apollo Explore 2.0 - Which "Goldilocks" Scooter Actually Gets It Right?

Fast Answer for Busy Riders ⚡ (TL;DR)

The Apollo Explore 2.0 edges out the Apollo City 2022 overall as the more convincing package for most riders: it undercuts the City on price while still delivering serious comfort, strong real-world performance and excellent weather protection. The City 2022 fights back with slicker integration, a more premium feel and, in Pro form, noticeably higher performance - but you pay dearly for that polish, and its advantages are narrower than the price gap suggests. Choose the Explore 2.0 if you want maximum day-to-day usability and value; choose the City 2022 (ideally the Pro) if design, dual-motor punch and that "refined gadget" feel matter more than your wallet.

Keep reading if you want the full, battle-scarred verdict from someone who has spent too many rainy mornings and bumpy bike paths on both of these.

There's no shortage of scooters promising to be the "perfect" commuter, but the Apollo City 2022 and the Apollo Explore 2.0 are two of the few that at least take the question seriously. Both are mid-weight, mid-to-upper-price machines aimed at people who actually ride every day, not just on sunny Sundays.

The City 2022 is Apollo's design-showpiece commuter - a sleek, highly integrated scooter that tries very hard to look and feel like a finished vehicle rather than a parts bin project. The Explore 2.0 is the "work boots" sibling: less about looking futuristic in the lobby, more about getting you across town reliably without moaning about the weather or the road surface.

They sit close enough in performance that many riders will bounce between the two when shopping - same brand, similar weight, similar range class, very different approach. Let's dig into where each one shines, and where the marketing gloss starts to smudge.

Who Are These For, and Why Compare Them?

Both scooters live in that sweet-spot category between flimsy rental clones and hulking 40-kg monsters. They're aimed at riders doing serious daily kilometres - think regular commutes rather than occasional errands - who want something noticeably faster and plusher than entry-level toys, but still just about manageable to fold and stash indoors.

The Apollo City 2022 targets the "design-conscious power commuter": someone upgrading from a Xiaomi or Ninebot, happy to pay extra for integrated looks, app tricks and, in Pro form, dual-motor shove. The Explore 2.0 is pitched as the "super commuter": single motor, but tuned hard; more pragmatic pricing; and a spec sheet that screams "use me every day, in any weather, and stop worrying about me."

Why compare them? Same brand, similar size, overlapping use-cases - and, in practice, they'll sit on the same shortlist for riders who want one scooter to do almost everything in the city. On paper, the City 2022 looks more premium; on the road, the gap is smaller and a lot more nuanced.

Design & Build Quality

In the flesh, the City 2022 is the one that makes people say "wait, that's a scooter?" Its frame flows in continuous curves, cabling disappears into the stem, and the rubber deck looks like it came off a designer's mood board rather than a factory shelf. Park it in an office and it blends in with the fancy bikes and espresso machines. The folding latch, borrowed from the Phantom, locks with a reassuring clunk, and nothing rattles unless something's actually broken.

The Explore 2.0 takes a different path. Its tubular steel frame wraps visibly around the deck, looking more industrial than sculpted. It's less "consumer electronics" and more "urban utility vehicle". The welds feel solid, the stem is stout, and that big folding latch looks like it was copied off a small bridge. Not pretty, but it does shut down stem wobble impressively. The cabling is mostly tucked away, though not as obsessively hidden as on the City.

In hand, the City's build feels more cohesive and polished - right down to the integrated display and tidy fenders. The Explore 2.0 feels more like a rugged tool: overbuilt where it counts, slightly less fussed about looking Instagram-ready. If your heart goes weak for clean lines and integration, the City wins. If you look at scooters like you look at power tools, the Explore's honest, beefy construction will make more sense.

Ride Comfort & Handling

Both scooters lean heavily on suspension to justify their weight, and both actually deliver. The City 2022's triple spring setup - single front, dual rear - gives it a distinctly "floating" character. On broken tarmac and city patchwork, it irons out the harsh edges nicely. Paired with ten-inch tubeless pneumatics, it feels plush without being a pogo stick. After a few kilometres on typical European cobbles, your knees will still be on speaking terms with you.

The Explore 2.0 also runs a triple spring arrangement, but tuned a touch more towards the "sofa" side of the spectrum. On long stretches of rough pavement, it soaks up chatter almost embarrassingly well for a single-motor scooter at its price. The self-healing tubeless tyres do their bit too, adding a soft, cushioned feel. On genuinely bad surfaces - cracked bike paths, coarse gravel shortcuts through parks - the Explore feels slightly less fussy than the City, more willing to ignore small sins in the road.

Handling wise, the City 2022 feels a bit more precise and planted at higher speeds, especially in Pro dual-motor trim. The wide bars and firm stem give it a confident, "carvy" feel when you lean into corners. The Explore 2.0 is stable, but its extra weight over a single motor and the big frame make it feel more like a small moped: composed and relaxed rather than eager to dance. Both are fine for tight city manoeuvres; the City just has that little extra sharpness when you start pushing.

Performance

This is where the story splits into two paths for the City 2022. In single-motor form, it's a decent step up from entry-level commuters: it pulls away from lights cleanly, holds urban speeds without complaint and will do most city hills at a sensible pace, provided you're not near the weight limit. It feels predictable and controlled, but not exactly thrilling; think "warm hatchback" rather than "hot hatch".

The Pro dual-motor version, however, wakes things up. The second motor turns the City into a genuinely brisk machine. Launches from standstill in top mode have a satisfying shove, and hill climbs stop being something you plan for and become something you just do. The scooter stays reassuringly stable when you're seeing the top of its speed range on a clear stretch - the chassis feels like it was designed to handle that power, not surprised by it.

The Explore 2.0 sticks to a single rear motor, but it's not the anaemic kind you may be used to. With its beefy controller, it punches harder than the spec sheet suggests. Up to typical city speeds, it sprints confidently; getting to the limit of its speed feels quick enough for daily commuting, even if it never quite has that "hyper scooter" surge. On hills, it grinds on with surprising determination - you don't get the snap of dual motors, but you also don't feel like you're dragging a reluctant rental scooter up a ski slope.

Braking performance is where both scooters take a similar, sensible route: sealed drum brakes paired with a dedicated regenerative thumb throttle. On the City 2022, the dual drums plus regen stop you with impressive consistency and almost no noise. You quickly learn to ride mostly on regen, using the mechanical drums only for real emergency grabs. The Explore's setup is very similar in practice: regen for most speed control, a front drum to haul you down when needed. Coming from hydraulic discs, both will feel a little less sharp, but for commuting they're more than adequate and far easier to live with.

Battery & Range

On the battery front, both live in the same general energy class, and both quote optimistic headline range figures that only happen in flat cities with feather-light riders in Eco mode. In the real world - moderate rider weight, mixed speeds, a few hills, and little interest in babying the throttle - they both settle into a similar, "comfortable daily commute and back" envelope.

The City 2022 Pro carries a slightly larger pack than the Explore 2.0, and you do feel that advantage if you regularly run long, fast rides. Push both hard in their sportiest modes, and the City Pro tends to limp home with a bit more charge left where the Explore is starting to flash battery warnings. Ride them sensibly in slower modes and they both cover impressive distances; you're more likely to run out of patience than out of electrons.

Charging is where the gap opens in the other direction. The City 2022 refuels remarkably quickly for its battery size - a long lunch or half a workday is enough for a substantial top-up. The Explore 2.0's stock charger is more of an overnight proposition; you can pay extra for a faster brick, but that's another cost on top of the sticker price. If you're the sort who forgets to plug in until the last moment, the City is more forgiving. If you're organised and charge overnight anyway, the Explore's slower sip isn't a deal-breaker.

Portability & Practicality

Let's be brutally honest: neither of these is "light". If you're used to tossing a 12-kg rental clone around, both will feel like you've suddenly started lifting e-bikes. The City 2022, especially in Pro form, is firmly in the "you can carry it up stairs... once" category. Do a couple of flights daily and you'll start questioning your life choices. The Explore 2.0 is in the same ballpark - a shade lighter than a City Pro on paper, but still chunky in the real world.

Folded practicality is where the differences bite. The City's stem folds and hooks onto the deck, making it a reasonably compact, single piece to drag or lift - assuming its sometimes-finicky hook doesn't slip when you grab it at the wrong angle. The bars don't fold, but the package is still fairly manageable under a desk or in a boot. The Explore 2.0, on the other hand, keeps its wide handlebars fixed. Great for stability, less great for squeezing between car seats or into narrow storage spaces. It folds in length, but it remains quite a wide lump of metal to wrestle with.

Day-to-day practicality otherwise is strong on both. The City's high water-resistance rating, low-maintenance tyres and drums, and app-based locking make it a reliable partner in unpredictable weather. The Explore pushes that weather angle even further with an even higher rating, self-healing tyres, and the same "ride it, don't wrench it" brake setup. If your scooter lives at ground level and you mostly roll it rather than carry it, both are perfectly viable daily drivers; the Explore just demands slightly fewer apologies for its bulk once parked.

Safety

Safety is a rare area where both scooters are genuinely well thought-out rather than box-ticking. Starting with visibility, the Explore 2.0 takes a clear lead for night riders. Its high-mounted stem light - that "Apollo Beam" - sits right in drivers' eyelines, and the 360-degree lighting package makes it hard to miss from any angle. If you commute in dark winter evenings, this matters more than you might think.

The City 2022 has integrated lighting with a decent headlamp, tail light and rear indicators, and it does an acceptable job of making you seen in urban environments. Where it falls a bit short is pure throw: on unlit paths at higher speeds, the headlight quickly feels out of its depth, and you'll find yourself wishing for an extra bar-mounted lamp. The rear turn signals are neat, but their low deck position isn't exactly eye-level for SUVs.

Braking safety is strong on both, for the simple reason that sealed drums plus regen are consistent in all the places that matter: wet, salted, dirty city roads. You trade some initial bite compared with discs, but the ability to stop confidently in the rain without wondering when you last aligned a calliper is worth it. Chassis stability is also good on both; the City feels slightly more planted at the very top of its performance envelope, especially the Pro, while the Explore feels utterly composed up to its lower speed ceiling.

Community Feedback

Price & Value

Here's the uncomfortable bit for the City 2022: it asks noticeably more money than the Explore 2.0. In return, you get higher-end integration, nicer aesthetics, a more premium feel in the cockpit and, if you go for the Pro, a clear performance bump. But if you strip away the visual gloss, the gap in real-world utility is not as wide as its price tag suggests.

The Explore 2.0, meanwhile, undercuts the City significantly while still delivering strong power, excellent suspension, very solid build and class-leading water resistance. It's not "cheap" in absolute terms, but its cost lines up more comfortably with what you actually get as a commuter: a robust workhorse that doesn't demand constant attention. If you measure value in smiles per euro and kilometres per headache, the Explore quietly makes a very strong argument.

Service & Parts Availability

Both scooters come from the same brand, and Apollo has built a decent reputation in Europe for parts availability and documentation. You get access to spares, online support, and a reasonably engaged community. They're not perfect - during peak season response times can stretch - but this is a world apart from the anonymous white-label scooters that vanish from the internet the moment you need a new controller.

Because both models use a lot of proprietary design, you're somewhat tied to Apollo for key frame and electronic components. That's the trade-off for integration. On the upside, the drum brakes and tubeless tyres mean you're less likely to need specialist parts often. In practice, the Explore 2.0's slightly simpler single-motor drivetrain gives it a small edge for long-term serviceability: fewer complex bits to go wrong, and easier diagnosis when they do.

Pros & Cons Summary

Parameters Comparison

Final Verdict - Which Should You Choose?

If you strip away the marketing gloss and just look at how these scooters behave in daily abuse, the Explore 2.0 comes out as the more rational choice for most riders. It's cheaper, almost as capable in real-world performance, more visible at night and even better protected against foul weather. You get that classic Apollo comfort, a sturdy frame and a feature set that feels aimed squarely at people who simply need a reliable, low-drama way to cross a city every day.

The City 2022, on the other hand, is the scooter you buy when your head says "sensible commuter" but your heart wants a bit of tech theatre. In Pro guise it's properly quick, it looks and feels more premium, and the fast charging plus sharp chassis make it more satisfying if you regularly ride at the edge of what's reasonable for a commuter. The problem is that you pay quite a lot for those niceties, and what you get back is refinement rather than clear-cut practicality.

So, if you're a daily rider who values comfort, weather-proofing and value, and you don't care about dual-motor bravado, the Explore 2.0 is the smarter buy. If you want your scooter to double as a design object and occasional thrill machine - and you're willing to pay for that - the City 2022 Pro still earns its place in the bike room. Just be honest with yourself about how much of your commute is about commuting, and how much is about grinning.

Numbers Freaks Corner

These metrics put numbers to things you feel on the road. Price-per-Wh and price-per-km/h show how far your money goes in battery and speed; efficiency (Wh/km) and weight-related ratios reflect how effectively each scooter uses energy and mass. Power-to-speed and weight-to-power sketch out how muscular they are for their top speed, while average charging speed tells you how forgiving each one is when you forget to plug in until it's almost time to leave.

Author's Category Battle

Overall Winner Declaration

In the Numbers Freaks Corner, the APOLLO City 2022 scores 5 points against the APOLLO Explore 20's 5. In the Author's Category Battle, the APOLLO City 2022 gets 19 ✅ versus 10 ✅ for APOLLO Explore 20.

Totals: APOLLO City 2022 scores 24, APOLLO Explore 20 scores 15.

Based on the scoring, the APOLLO City 2022 is our overall winner. Between these two, the Explore 2.0 simply feels like the scooter that "gets it" for everyday riders: it may not shout the loudest on paper, but on grim Tuesday mornings and wet Friday nights it quietly does the job with minimum fuss and maximum comfort. The City 2022 Pro is the one that flatters your inner gadget lover - faster, flashier, more polished - but also more demanding on your wallet and a touch less honest about what you actually need day to day. If you want a scooter to live with, not just to admire, the Explore is the one you'll end up reaching for more often.

That's our verdict when we try to stay objective – but hey, riding is mostly about emotions anyway, so pick the one that will make you look forward to your commute every single day.