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Best telescope for the money

What is the best telescope for the money?

The honest answer is: 

Good telescopes are expensive regardless of the type

However, you can still find great deals on telescopes and binoculars if you have the right information. We have the best information on telescopes and the best telescope for the money.

How to buy a telescope, what telescope to buy and buying the best telescope for the money needs some careful consideration.

1. Best telescope for the money. Are you certain that you actually want to buy a telescope?

This may be a strange question coming from a website advertising telescopes but if you are not certain about buying a telescope or what is the best telescope to buy then why not consider buying some good binoculars. 

You will be amazed at just how much there is to see through a good pair of binoculars. Astronomical binoculars are a great introduction to the stars. Binoculars also have the advantage of being a great tool for all outside activities such as bird watching, ocean gazing and for stadium sports events. 

A good pair of binoculars will cost anything from $100 or above. Read why binoculars may be a good introduction for you to astronomy:

Binocular astronomy 

We have a great selection of the most popular binoculars made by the following companies:

Click Here for reviews of Celestron Binoculars

Click Here for reviews of Orion Binoculars

Click Here for reviews of Canon Binoculars (Incredible Image Stabilizing Binoculars).

If you are sure that buying a telescope is what you want then read on.

This is important information on telescopes and how to buy a telescope. 

2.  Who are you buying a telescope for? 

The main thing that you need to consider when researching what is the best telescope for the money, is how serious you are about astronomy. If you are buying a telescope for yourself, then our advice is please DON’T buy the cheapest telescope you can find. If you want to have a long-time hobby then buying a cheap telescope may disappoint you to the point of losing interest in astronomy quickly. In our experience, the best telescope for the money is the telescope that gives you years of satisfaction. 

Those first few sightings of the stars may be the thing that turns you onto astronomy in a big way. If your telescope gives good results then there may be no turning back.

If your telescope is a disappointment then it may feel like a firework display but without the fireworks. In short – a complete let down.

Buying the best telescope for the money actually means ‘buying the best telescope’ you can afford.  

$50 - $100 Telescopes

In reality, you are not going to buy the best telescope experience for less than $100. Sorry but that is the truth. However, you can still buy a telescope that will give you an insight into space. If you are not too worried about taking astronomy seriously then sure, you can have a decent fun telescope set up in your garden. But as we advise later in this article, even for kids, it is worth spending that bit more to get a great astronomical experience. In short, if you can’t afford the best telescope for the money you have now then you may want to wait a bit longer until you can.

$200 and above

If you can afford it now then try to purchase the best telescope you can afford from $200 or above. You can buy telescopes of great quality in this price bracket. Some examples of the best telescope in this range would be dobsonians sold by Orion and some of the smaller Meade ETX models. Check out these models for example? 

U.S / Canadian availability

Celestron’s AstroMaster 114 EQ 

Orion StarBlast 4.5 EQ

Orion SkyQuest XT6 Classic Dobsonian Telescope

Orion XT8 Classic Dobsonian Telescope & Beginner Barlow Kit

UK availability

Celestron Nexstar 102 SLT Computerised Telescope

Meade ETX80 Telescope Package

SkyWatcher Skyliner-200P/1200 Classic Telescope

$400 - $800

For a really great introduction to the stars then you should consider something in the $400 - $800 price bracket. There are many choices in this range and you really can find the best telescope for the money if you’re willing to spend enough.

Medium sized Dobsonians (8" - 12") can be found in this price-range as well as some of the more advanced Meade ETX models. Also the Meade LXD75 series of telescopes have impressed many people with the amount of scope you get for the money. The C elestron nexstar 130 slt computerized range are also turning heads these days. The computerized telescopes make astronomy very simple and you can also download images to your pc etc.

We have listed and reviewed what we consider to be the best brands of astronomical telescopes for beginners and binoculars on these web pages. These include:

Celestron telescopes and Celestron binoculars 

Orion telescopes and Orion binoculars 

Meade telescopes

Skywatcher telescopes (UK only)

Canon binoculars

3. What is the best telescope for the money for kids? To pay or not to pay. That is the question.

Of course, a slightly cheaper telescope can sometimes be good if you want to gauge the interest of your kids with astronomy.

The best telescope for kids is one that they can get good results from but won’t cost a year’s salary in case they grow out of the hobby quickly.  

It’s a difficult call! You don’t want to buy a telescope that will bore them because of the poor quality. But you also don’t want to the world’s best telescope before you know they have the astronomy ‘bug’.

The best telescope for the money for kids is the best telescope to show them the wonders of the universe clearly. You don’t want their first experience to be a let down. So buying a telescope model in the lower / mid-range price is our advice.

If you are not certain that your kids will stick with astronomy then buy a telescope in the $120 – 200 region. If they appear to enjoy the hobby then you can always invest in a more expensive model later. A dobsonion model perhaps, of which we have great deals on this website.

 Click Here for our recommended telescopes for kids

Summary

In general, a good telescope will likely cost more then you want to spend. The rewards of spending a bit more cash will more than make up for it. You need to have the best telescope experience you can in the early days of discovering astronomy.

Buying a telescope is an investment in discovering more about who we are as a species. Looking at the skies really puts our own lives into perspective. Unfortunately, seeing the wonders of the universe comes at a certain price. Buying a telescope should be seen as a long-term investment. Years of wonder will be taken from evenings under the stars. The best telescope for the money you can afford will give you that investment back in terms of memories.

You really want to aspire to buying a telescope that you will continue to use and enjoy and not one that will frustrate you to the point of never wanting to use it again. Spend what you can afford on the best telescope you can but try to afford more than you can!

Please explore our other pages further for lots of great information on telescopes.

Happy telescope buying star watchers!