Is the Forest referral code worth it in 2026?
Yes, if you ride in London. Forest pays 30 free minutes of riding — worth up to £9.90, more than double any other UK e-bike or scooter referral — credited as soon as your first trip is done. Two conditions decide it for you: Forest only operates in London, and the minutes are valid for just seven days. Claim it in a week when you will actually ride.
Key takeaways
- 30 free minutes of riding (worth up to £9.90 at 33p a minute), credited once your first Forest trip is done — the largest micromobility referral reward in the UK.
- London-only: around 20,000 e-bikes across 18+ boroughs, and the free minutes are unusable outside that area.
- The free minutes are valid for 7 days and cover riding time only — the £1 unlock is still charged per ride.
- The code must be entered during sign-up. Forest cannot attach it to an account that already exists.
Our pick here: Forest pays 30 free minutes, verified against its own terms.
Short answer: yes, if you ride in London — and it is not close. Forest pays more than double what any other UK ride-share operator gives a new rider. The reasoning, and the two conditions that decide it for you.
30 free minutes is an outlier in this category
Micromobility referrals are usually token amounts. Lime gives a new rider £4. Voi gives £2.50. Forest gives 30 free minutes of riding — worth up to £9.90 at its 33p-a-minute rate — enough for several real journeys rather than a single token trip, because the minutes cover riding time and central London hops tend to be short.
Put in context, a fifteen-minute Forest ride costs £4.95 in riding time plus the £1 unlock, so 30 free minutes cover the riding on two of those journeys rather than a discount on one. That is why we rate it the strongest e-bike offer in the country.
The reward arrives faster than almost anything we list
There is no waiting period and no confirmation lag. You sign up with the code, take your first ride, and the 30 free minutes land in Account → My Minutes as soon as that trip is done. Compare that with cashback offers that hold a bonus for 180 days, or bank referrals that need multiple card purchases, and the speed alone makes it worth claiming.
The two conditions that actually decide it
It is London-focused. Forest runs around 20,000 e-bikes across 18 or more London boroughs, so the 30 free minutes are riding time to spend on that network. Riding elsewhere in the UK? Lime covers the major cities and Voi reaches the widest set of towns — one of those two will be the offer built for your area.
The minutes are valid for seven days. This is the part people miss. Forest's Help Centre puts it plainly: "Referral credits are only valid for 7 days." The minutes are not banked indefinitely; they land after your first ride and run out a week later. So do not claim the code in a quiet fortnight and hope to use it on holiday. Claim it in a week when you are commuting, meeting friends across town, or otherwise moving around London on a bike.
What the free minutes do not cover
Forest charges a £1 unlock per ride on top of per-minute time. In Forest's own words: "While the free minutes cover the cost of riding, unlock fees are not covered by the free minutes." So a handful of very short rides will burn through unlock fees the free minutes do not touch. Longer single journeys extract more value from it than lots of tiny ones.
No licence, which widens who can use it
Because Forest runs e-bikes rather than e-scooters, riders need no driving licence at all — standard UK pedal-cycle rules apply. Rental e-scooters are different: those need a rider aged 18 or over holding a provisional UK licence with category Q entitlement, under the Department for Transport trial. If you have no licence, Forest is the ride-share offer open to you and the scooter ones are not.
Enter the code at sign-up or lose it
Forest will not attach a code to an account that already exists. It has to go in during registration. If you have previously downloaded the app and made an account without a code, that account cannot claim the 30 free minutes — and creating a second account to get around this breaches Forest's terms.
Who it suits best
London riders with a new Forest account, claiming it in a week they will be out on a bike. Time it that way and all 30 free minutes are yours inside the seven-day window. Riding elsewhere in the UK? Lime and Voi are the two built for your area.
The verdict
The Forest referral code is worth it for London riders — the largest reward in its category, credited as soon as your first ride is done, with no licence requirement and no spending threshold. Time it for a week you will actually be on a bike, enter the code during sign-up, and treat the seven-day expiry as the real deadline it is.
To claim it, use the Forest code z0e699xY or join through topreferrals.co.uk/go/forest (you get 30 free minutes).
How it compares
| Forest | UK ride-share norm | |
|---|---|---|
| Reward to you | 30 free minutes (up to £9.90) | £2.50–£4 |
| Qualifying step | One first ride | One first ride |
| Speed | As soon as the first ride is done | Sign-up to a few days |
| Credit window | 7 days | 60 days (Lime) |
| Coverage | London only | Multiple cities |
| Licence needed | None (e-bike) | Provisional for scooters |
Frequently asked questions
How much is the Forest referral code worth?
30 free minutes of riding — worth up to £9.90 at Forest's 33p-a-minute rate — credited to your Forest account once your first trip is done. That is the biggest joining reward of any UK e-bike or e-scooter operator — Lime pays £4 and Voi £2.50.
Do the Forest free minutes expire?
Yes. The 30 free minutes land in the app menu → Account → My Minutes after your first ride, and Forest's Help Centre is clear: 'Referral credits are only valid for 7 days.' It is the single thing that catches people out, so claim it in a week when you will be riding rather than saving it.
Can I use a Forest promo code outside London?
No. Forest operates only in London — roughly 20,000 e-bikes across 18 or more boroughs — so the free minutes have nowhere to be spent elsewhere. If you ride outside the capital, Lime or Voi will serve you better.
Do I need a driving licence to ride a Forest e-bike?
No. Forest runs rental e-bikes, which follow standard UK pedal-cycle rules and need no licence. A provisional licence is only required for rental e-scooters, which Forest does not operate.
Can I add the code after signing up?
No. The code has to be entered during sign-up — Forest cannot apply it to an existing account afterwards. If you have already registered without it, the reward is gone for that account.
Claim the Forest reward
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Last checked 6 November 2026 by Bez, Editor-in-Chief. Figures verified against each brand's own terms. How we check.
