Tabletop’s are Dobsonian’s, but smaller. They solve the portability problem, but as a result, they are not as powerful. They are our recommended beginner category.

• 0$ ⟷ 80$
• 80$ ⟷ 140$
• 140$ ⟷ 200$
• 200$ ⟷ 350$
• 350$ ⟷ 500$

Orion FunScope 76mm TableTop Reflector Telescope Review: Great Value

Orion FunScope 76 is one of the best telescopes you can buy that is under 100$.

9

1

Celestron Cometron FirstScope Review: Compact and Useful

Celestron Cometron FirstScope is one of the lowest-power telescopes you can get. But it is so well-built and cheap, I strongly recommend it.

8.6

2

Celestron FirstScope Telescope Review: Righteously Popular

Celestron FirstScope is one of the most popular beginner scopes. It has a good build quality and its optics are powerful enough to amaze first-timers.

8.2

3

SkyWatcher Heritage 76 Mini Dobsonian Telescope Review: A Surprise

SkyWatcher Heritage 76 Mini is the smallest “serious” telescope model you can get. It is a great way for getting kids interested in astronomy.

7.9

4

Orion SkyScanner 100 Review: Style and Craftsmanship

Orion SkyScanner 100mm is one of the cheapest, well-made telescopes you can get.

8.8

1

Orion GoScope 80mm TableTop Refractor Review: Great Build, So So Optics

Orion GoScope is a well-built, portable refractor but is not worth the 150$ price tag. There are better choices at this price range, one of them being Zhumell Z114.

7.6

2

SkyWatcher Heritage 130P Review: Smart And Beautiful

SkyWatcher Heritage 130P still remains as one of the best starter telescopes because of its solid collapsible design and powerful optics.

9.5

1

Zhumell Z100 Review: Deep Space on a Budget

Zhumell is a company that excels at making small, compact and portable telescopes. Zhumell Z100 has decent optics for the price and has a surprisingly good build quality.

8.8

2

Orion StarBlast 4.5 Astro Review: Pure Optics

Orion StarBlast 4.5 Astro is a classic beginner's model. This is no surprise since it is well-built, convenient and easy-to-use.

8.6

3

Orion SkyScanner BL102 Review by Zane Landers

Orion’s SkyScanner BL102 takes advantage of brand and product line name confusion, poor availability of alternatives, and the assumption that most Dobsonians are good telescopes to sell a shoddy, generic telescope with low-quality optics, poor accessories, poor design, and a rather high price for what you get.

6

4

Zhumell Z114 Review: Just Perfect

Zhumell makes incredible budget telescopes for beginners and Z114 is no different. It has great build quality and optics. It is extremely portable.

9.6

1

Orion StarBlast 6 Astro Review: Expensive Portability

Orion StarBlast 6 is a delightful combination of power and portability.

9

2

SkyWatcher Heritage 150P Review: Larger and Smaller

The Sky-Watcher Heritage Heritage 150P is a stellar choice for both beginner and experienced astronomers.

8.9

3

Zhumell Z130 Review: Excellence

If you are a beginner or an intermediate astronomer who is looking for a portable, well-made telescope Zhumell Z130 Portable Altazimuth Reflector Telescope is a great choice.

9.2

1

Refractor’s are the most price efficient category. They are easy to set up and carry around. As for the image quality, they are considered modest for the price. But still, they may be a worthy choice for some.

Manual

Digital

• 0$ ⟷ 85$
• 85$ ⟷ 130$
• 130$ ⟷ 200$
• 200$ ⟷ 275$

Meade Infinity 70 Telescope Review: The Budget King

Meade Infinity 70 is one of the best budget telescopes you can buy.

9.2

1

Orion Observer 70 II AZ Refractor Review: Good Value

Orion Observer 70mm provides good value for the price. It is definitely a decent entry level telescope.

8.4

2

Meade Infinity 60 AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Not a Bad Choice

Meade 60 is one of the cheapest, buyable telescope models. If you can’t stretch your budget 20$ for Meade 70, it may be a reasonable choice.

7.2

3

Celestron ExploraScope 60AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Stylish Mediocrity

ExploraScope 60AZ İS not a great astronomy device. But we recommend this telescope because it delivers what it promises: a decent quality, budget telescope for multiple purposes.

7.1

4

Celestron PowerSeeker 60AZ Telescope Review: Good Value

Celestron PowerSeeker 60AZ is a decent telescope that provides a good amount of value for its price.

7

5

Celestron PowerSeeker 70AZ Telescope Review: Dreadful Accessories

Celestron PowerSeeker 70AZ, similar to its siblings, is a good refractor that comes with useless accessories. 

6.9

6

Orion GoScope 70mm Refractor Travel Telescope Review: Cheap Portability

Orion GoScope III 70mm Refractor Travel Telescope is not the best telescope you can buy for the price. But it comes with a backpack and is incredibly easy to carry around. So it comes down to whether you are serious about astronomy or not, and it is OK to buy something that just works.

6.6

7

Meade Infinity 50mm AZ Refractor Telescope Review: A Wannabe

Meade Infinity 50 is the cheapest “real” telescope you can buy. It is OK to buy it but you should know that you will get a 40$ telescope after all.

6

8

Telmu 70mm Refracting Telescope Review: For Kids

Telmu 70mm Refractor is not a serious astronomy device. But it may be a nice gift for your kid.

5.8

9

Celestron PowerSeeker 50AZ Telescope Review: Depressing

Celestron PowerSeeker is one of the cheapest, "real" telescopes in the market. But unfortunately, this telescope is not buyable in any circumstance. 

5.8

10

Gskyer Travel Scope 70mm Review: Waste of Money

Gskyer Travel Scope is one of the worst telescope models in the market. This telescope would be expensive with a 70$ price tag, and it is being sold for almost 100$. 

4.3

11

Celestron Travel Scope 50 Review: No-Go

Celestron Travel Scope 50 lacks purpose and build quality. 

4.3

12

BARSKA StarWatcher 400x70mm Refractor Telescope Review: Thrash

BARSKA StarWatcher 400x70mm Refractor Telescope represents all things that are wrong with the Amazon algorithm. This is not a real telescope. It is a useless toy being sold at the price of a real telescope, and it shouldn't be bought in any case by anyone.

3.2

13

Meade StarPro 70AZ Telescope Review: No-Brainer

Meade StarPro 70 is a bold improvement over the already brilliant Infinity 70.

9.6

1

Celestron PowerSeeker 80AZ Telescope Review: Not Half Bad

Celestron PowerSeeker 80 is a surprisingly capable, well-priced telescope. 

8.1

2

Celestron ExploraScope 80AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Made for Planets and the Moon

Celestron ExploraScope 80 is a great refractor that comes at a good price. This is surprising considering how bad other beginner Celestron models are.

7.8

3

Meade Adventure Scope 80 Review: Metal

Meade Adventure Scope 80 is a great optical tube that comes with useless accessories and a frustrating mount. This is a telescope that you will use for years to come if you can deal with the mount and get a few new eyepieces.

7.7

4

Orion Observer 80ST Telescope Review: Lacks Harmony

Orion Observer 80ST is a well-made, entry-level telescope for deep space and planetary observations. Especially deep space with its wide aperture.

7.7

5

Meade Polaris 80 Telescope Review: In the Name of the Solar System

Planetary and Lunar images this telescope provides are enough to mesmerize any beginner. Especially for the ones who are living near big cities. But the mount is hard to use and wobbly.

7.3

6

Meade Polaris 70 Review: Why So Serious?

Meade Polaris 70mm EQ Refractor is a great beginner-level telescope that provides good value for its price. It has substantial advantages over its competitors at this price range.

7.2

7

Celestron PowerSeeker 70EQ Telescope Review: Nothing Impressive

Celestron PowerSeeker 70EQ is the only model in the PowerSeeker line that we actually recommend. It is a decent telescope that is almost worth its 100$ price tag.

7.1

8

Celestron ExploraScope 70AZ Refractor Telescope Review: High Price, Decent Optics

Celestron rarely sells beginner models at fair prices. Their line-ups are filled with overpriced junk. Thankfully, ExploraScope 70 is not one of those models. It is a decent refractor being sold at a fair price.

7

9

Celestron Travel Scope 80 Review: Could be Worse

Celestron Travel Scope 80 is a telescope that was manufactured to be as cheap as possible. This brings with it a lot of plastic parts and low-quality optics.

6.8

10

Celestron Travel Scope 70 Review: Not for Astronomy

Celestron Travel Scope 70 is an 80$ telescope that comes with a backpack. This statement only should give you an idea about the quality of the telescope

6

11

Celestron AstroMaster 70AZ Telescope Review: Overpriced

Celestron didn’t surprise us with this overpriced, average quality beginner telescope. You can get the same model from Meade (Infinity 70) for half the price and better accessories. 

5.2

12

Meade Infinity 90 AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Second to None

Meade Infinity 90 is one of the best refractors at this price range, if not the best. The combination of the long focal length and 90mm aperture simply provides great planetary and lunar performance.

9.4

1

Meade Infinity 80 Telescope Review: Less Than Ideal

Meade Infinity 80 provides great optical power and portability for its price. But it comes with its downsides such as a plastic mount and short optical tube. 

7.8

2

Meade StarPro 80AZ Refractor Review: Too Much

Meade StarPro 80AZ is better than most budget refractors, but it has its weaknesses.

7.4

3

Celestron Inspire 80AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Maybe?

Inspire 80AZ is another, overpriced beginner telescope from Celestron. Don't get me wrong, it is a decent refractor that would please most beginners, but its price should have been slightly lower. 

7

4

Celestron AstroMaster 80AZS Telescope Review: Just "OK"

Celestron is a company famous for its overpriced beginner telescopes. Thankfully, AstroMaster 80 AZS is not one of them. It is a decent refractor worth its 140$ price tag. 

6.9

5

Celestron Inspire 70AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Too Expensive

Celestron Inspire 70AZ is not a bad telescope by any means, but its price tag is too high. The "extra" accessories that come with it are useful, but they are not worth spending twice as much for a 70mm refractor.

6.8

6

Meade Model S102 Telescope Review: The Curse of the Mount

Meade Model S102 comes with a terrible mount that pulls the whole package down.

6.6

7

Celestron PowerSeeker 80EQ Telescope Review: Better Than Most

Celestron PowerSeeker 80 is a decent refractor, but it is not worth the 200$ price tag. For the same price, you can get the Polaris 80 or 90, which come with better accessories.

6.6

8

Gskyer Telescope 600x90mm AZ Review: Terrible Mount

The holy Amazon algorithm is at work again with awful product recommendations.

4.2

9

Celestron AstroMaster 70EQ Telescope Review: Overpriced Plastic

It seems like Celestron tried to make the most frustrating telescope model possible and sell it to people so that they can discourage them from becoming astronomers. 

2.8

10

Meade StarPro 90AZ Refractor Review: Close to Perfection

Meade StarPro 90AZ is what a starter telescope should be.

9.2

1

Meade StarPro 102AZ Refractor Review: Almost Genius

StarPro 102AZ could have been genius if not for its minor issues.

9

2

Meade Infinity 102 AZ Review: Good at Everything

Meade Infinity 102 is a great telescope for beginners. It is easy-to-use, portable and its optics are surprisingly good.

8.4

3

Celestron Inspire 100AZ Refractor Telescope Review: Not Perfect

Although Celestron Inspire 100AZ is a fine telescope that will please most beginners. The wobbly, plastic focuser is not an easy problem to fix. This puts Inspire 100AZ on the B level quality of telescopes instead of A.

8

4

Meade Polaris 90 EQ Review: Stay Inside the Solar System

Meade Polaris 90mm is a pretty good telescope for the price, but the equatorial mount is not ideal.

7.9

5

Celestron AstroMaster 102AZ Telescope Review: Powerful and Overpriced

Celestron AstroMaster 102AZ is a great refractor with a slightly unstable mount. The only major downside is the price. 

7.4

6

Celestron AstroMaster 90AZ Review: Decent But Expensive

AstroMaster 90AZ is a decent telescope, but it is highly overpriced.

7.3

7

Celestron AstroMaster 90EQ Telescope Review: Usable

AstroMaster 90EQ is the only telescope in the AstroMaster line that we actually recommend. It still has a wobbly, plastic mount. But its accessories and optics are vastly better than the other AstroMaster’s.

6.8

8

• 140$ ⟷ 260$
• 260$ ⟷ 380$
• 380$ ⟷ 500$
• 500$ ⟷ 650$

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 80AZ Review: Lots of Tech, and Plastic

The StarSense Explorer App is what saves LT 80AZ from the abyss of Celestron's useless, overpriced beginner models.

7.2

1

Meade ETX 80 Review: Deep Space, Automized.

Meade ETX 80 is tempting due to its low-price.

8.1

1

Meade StarNavigator NG 90 Refractor Review: Shake That-!

StarNavigator NG 90 Refractor has a major problem; the tripod.

7.5

2

Celestron StarSense Explorer DX 102AZ Review: Incredible Tech, Cheap Build

Although the build quality feels cheap, StarSense technology is groundbreaking.

8.2

1

Celestron NexStar 102 SLT Review: Sorry Not Sorry

Celestron NexStar 102 SLT is too expensive to have significant flaws.

8

1

Catadioptric’s are mostly for advanced astronomers, consequently costly. They are mostly automated, which is convenient for tracking planets in the night sky.

Manual

Digital

• 160$ ⟷ 260$

Orion StarMax 90 Review: Masterful Engineering

Orion StarMax 90 is an excellent telescope for viewing the Moon and major planets such as Saturn and Jupiter. Its optics are perfect for high magnifications. But unfortunately, it comes with a downside.

8.7

1

Celestron ExploraScope 114AZ Reflector Telescope Review: Flawed Optics

Celestron ExploraScope 114AZ seems like a cheap, high-powered telescope. The problem is this is achieved with a flawed optical design.

4.8

2

Meade Polaris 127 EQ Reflector Telescope: Not Recommended

Although Meade Polaris 127 seems promising, it is not nearly as good as you might think. Just get its older brother, Polaris 130.

1.2

3

• 150$ ⟷ 250$
• 250$ ⟷ 350$
• 350$ ⟷ 500$
• 500$ ⟷ 800$
• 800$ ⟷ 1300$
• 1300$ ⟷ 1800$
• 1800$ ⟷ 2400$
• 2400$ ⟷ 3000$
• 3000$ ⟷ 3600$
• 3600$ ⟷ 4200$

Celestron StarSense Explorer LT 114AZ Review: Don't Fall Into The Trap.

StarSense Explorer LT 114AZ has one of the worst quality optics that is in the astro-tech industry.

2.1

1

Meade StarNavigator NG 90 Maksutov Review: "Budget" Motors

Meade StarNavigator NG 90 is a great planetary performer...but it has its flaws.

7.5

1

SkyWatcher Virtuoso Review: A Mess

SkyWatcher Virtuoso provides a set of barely useful features for a high price. 

6.7

2

Meade StarNavigator 114 NG Review: It's a Trap!

The optical tube of StarNavigator NG 114 is an awfully made Bird-Jones. 

3.4

3

Celestron 114 LCM Computerized Telescope Review: A Hoax

Celestron 114 LCM is an attempt to make higher profits with cheap parts.

1.2

4

Meade StarNavigator NG 125 Maksutov Review: Much Better

Meade StarNavigator NG 125 is the most powerful of the StarNavigator line, and the best one. 

8.3

1

Meade ETX 90 Review: Small and Plastic

Meade ETX 90 has a great optical tube attached to a poorly executed, plastic motor mount.

7

2

Meade ETX 125 Review: The Solar System, for 700$?

Meade ETX 125 is a major improvement over ETX 80 and ETX 90, but the improvement is costly.

8

1

Celestron NexStar 4SE Review: Getting Closer

Celestron NexStar 4SE is an admirable attempt to create a Solar System performer.

7.9

2

Celestron NexStar 90 SLT Review: The Solar System Without The Battery

Celestron NexStar 90 SLT has a significant problem; there is no battery.

7.8

3

Celestron NexStar 127 SLT Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron NexStar 127SLT isn’t a terrible scope, but is limited for deep-sky viewing and fairly expensive.

7

4

Meade LX65 5" Review: Strong but Archaic

Meade LX65 5" is delightfully sturdy and has faultless optics, but it is equipped with 30-year-old, unreliable tech.

6.1

5

Celestron NexStar 6SE Review: Timeless

NexStar 6SE is a classic, and rightfully so.

9.1

1

Celestron NexStar Evolution 6 Review: More Tech, Less Optics

Celestron NexStar Evolution 6 is packed with the latest tech but comes with rather modest optical power.

8.8

2

Celestron NexStar 5SE Review: Incomplete Perfection

Celestron NexStar 5SE is delightful, but it is not perfect. The high price tag doesn't help.

8.2

3

Meade LX65 6" ACF Review: Amazing and Tedious at the Same Time

Meade LX65 6" promises unrivaled optical quality and a tedious mount.

7.1

4

Meade LX65 6" Review: Faulty Mount

LX65 6” is a sad story.

6.5

5

Celestron NexStar 8SE Review: Legendary

Celestron NexStar 8SE has a phenomenal optical tube that makes you overlook its issues.

9

1

Celestron Advanced VX 6" SCT Review: Master of None

The Advanced VX 6” Schmidt-Cassegrain is arguably overkill for a visual setup.

8

2

Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron NexStar Evolution 8” is quite expensive, but gives you a plethora of visual and astrophotography capabilities in a convenient and compact package.

9.5

1

Celestron NexStar Evolution 8" EdgeHD Review: Mission Astronomy, Completed.

Celestron NexStar Evolution 8" EdgeHD delivers; and, goes beyond what is expected.

9.5

1

Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25 Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron NexStar Evolution 9.25” is a great scope bundled with a great mount and tripod - though it’s less portable than it may appear at first.

9

2

Celestron CPC 800 GPS Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron CPC 800 GPS is a rather bulky telescope for its aperture, but it’s packed with performance and versatility.

9

3

Celestron Advanced VX 9.25″ SCT Review: Light Bucket From the Future

Celestron Advanced VX 9.25 is an excellent choice for more adept amateur astronomers.

8.6

4

Celestron CPC 925 GPS Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron CPC 925 GPS is a fairly versatile scope and is great if you don’t plan on doing much imaging.

9

1

Celestron CPC 1100 GPS Review by Zane Landers

The Celestron CPC 1100 GPS is an absolute monster of a telescope, and probably isn’t best as a beginner or “only” instrument - but boy, does it deliver.

9

1