Multiple gear hub for bicycles with two transmission stages (I, II) connected in series, each with a planetary gear mechanism: with a driver rotatably mounted on the hub shaft; with a hub sleeve rotatably mounted on the hub shaft; wherein one of the transmission stages is an overdrive transmission stage with a higher rotation speed at the transmission stage output than at the transmission stage input; and wherein the other of the stages is an underdrive transmission stage with a lower rotation speed at the transmission stage output than at the transmission stage input; wherein both the overdrive and the underdrive transmission stages each comprise at least one sun wheel (71, 72, 73; 74, 75) which can be connected rotationally fixedly to a hub shaft, a sun wheel coupling (81, 82, 83; 84, 85) by means of which the sun wheel and the hub shaft can be connected rotationally fixedly, planet wheels (51, 52, 53; 64, 65) which are mounted rotatably in a planet wheel carrier (2a; 2b), and a crown wheel (3; 4); wherein the two transmission stages (I, II) comprise a transmission stage which can be coupled to the driver and a transmission stage which can be coupled to the hub sleeve; wherein one of the two transmission stages provides several finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios; and wherein the other of the two transmission stages provides several widely stepped transmission stage translation ratios; and wherein the multiple gear hub provides a plurality of gear stages of different translation ratios transmitting torque from the driver to the hub sleeve on the basis of the finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios of the one transmission stage and the widely stepped transmission stage translation ratios of the other transmission stage; characterised in that in a first of the two transmission stages (I, II), none of the transmission stage translation ratios provided, which serve to provide the plurality of gear stages transmitting torque from the driver to the hub sleeve, is a direct gear transmission translation ratio with a translation ratio of 1:1, and the first transmission stage is the transmission stage with several finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios. with a driver rotatably mounted on the hub shaft; with a hub sleeve rotatably mounted on the hub shaft; wherein one of the transmission stages is an overdrive transmission stage with a higher rotation speed at the transmission stage output than at the transmission stage input; and wherein the other of the stages is an underdrive transmission stage with a lower rotation speed at the transmission stage output than at the transmission stage input; wherein both the overdrive and the underdrive transmission stages each comprise at least one sun wheel (71, 72, 73; 74, 75) which can be connected rotationally fixedly to a hub shaft, a sun wheel coupling (81, 82, 83; 84, 85) by means of which the sun wheel and the hub shaft can be connected rotationally fixedly, planet wheels (51, 52, 53; 64, 65) which are mounted rotatably in a planet wheel carrier (2a; 2b), and a crown wheel (3; 4); wherein the two transmission stages (I, II) comprise a transmission stage which can be coupled to the driver and a transmission stage which can be coupled to the hub sleeve; wherein one of the two transmission stages provides several finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios; and wherein the other of the two transmission stages provides several widely stepped transmission stage translation ratios; and wherein the multiple gear hub provides a plurality of gear stages of different translation ratios transmitting torque from the driver to the hub sleeve on the basis of the finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios of the one transmission stage and the widely stepped transmission stage translation ratios of the other transmission stage; characterised in that in a first of the two transmission stages (I, II), none of the transmission stage translation ratios provided, which serve to provide the plurality of gear stages transmitting torque from the driver to the hub sleeve, is a direct gear transmission translation ratio with a translation ratio of 1:1, and the first transmission stage is the transmission stage with several finely stepped transmission stage translation ratios.