The 10 Best Telescopes Under $300
Similar to our list of the best telescopes for beginners under $500, we have created another budget-friendly telescope gift guide! If you're not sure or ready to own a higher-end telescope, any of these telescopes make a great start into astronomy.
Choosing the Right Beginner Telescope
With such a large variety of telescopes, cameras, and accessories, beginning astronomers might have difficulty making the right decision on first-time purchases. Each of the descriptions below come with the telescope's features and technical specifications to help you make a better decision. Scroll below to see our top 10 best telescopes under 300!
MEADE STARPRO AZ 102 MM PACKAGE
Observe details of the Moon or deep space objects like nebulae with the Meade StarPro AZ! This 102 mm telescope comes with an array of accessories to help you get started in your night sky journey, an exclusive deal at OPT! Capture the universe with the smartphone adapter that allows you to easily share the beauty of the universe.
Celestron AstroMaster 130 EQ w/ Motor Drive
The Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ MD comes complete with a pre-assembled mount and tripod. The Celestron CG-3 equatorial mount is quite stable, with setting circles and slow-motion controls on both axes for easy, smooth tracking and now a clock drive that continually tracks objects in right ascension, making it a great choice for novice astronomers! This telescope not only performs well but remains durable after years and years of use.
CELESTRON STARSENSE EXPLORER LT 114AZ
Tour the night sky with your smartphone and the StarSense Explorer DX 114AZ telescope—no experience required! The StarSense Explorer app calculates your position in real time and guides you with a list of currently visible objects. See planets, brighter nebulae and galaxies, star clusters, and double stars from the city. See faint, deep sky objects from darker skies. Dual-axis slow-motion controls on a manual alt-azimuth mount make it easy to follow arrows in-app to your target. Eyepiece viewing is ready when the app’s bullseye turns green.
Meade Polaris 114 mm German EQ Reflector
The Meade Polaris 114 mm Newtonian Reflecting Telescope is an excellent beginner's telescope, allowing you to see bright galaxies, planets, stars and more. The Polaris comes complete with everything you need to view the wonders of the night sky the first time out. The featured stable equatorial mount with slow-motion controls makes it easy to track celestial objects as they move across the night sky. The 3 included eyepieces provide low, medium and high powered magnification for viewing a wide range of objects (Moon, planets, or land) delivering bright and detailed images
Celestron PowerSeeker 127 EQ
The Celestron PowerSeeker 127EQ is a 127 mm (5-inch) aperture Newtonian Reflector Telescope equipped with an Equatorial Mount and Tripod. This is a great telescope to open up the wonders of the Universe to beginner and aspiring astronomers. PowerSeekers are designed and manufactured using all fully coated glass optical components with high transmission coatings for enhanced image brightness and clarity. Enjoy the perfect combination of quality, value, features, and power as a first-time telescope user!
Celestron Inspire 70AZ f/10 Doublet Refractor
The Celestron Inspire 70AZ Refractor is a perfect entry-level very portable scope for anyone interested in astronomy. A 70 mm (2.75-inch) aperture achromatic refractor telescope with an Alt-Azimuth mount on a sturdy tripod. Not only does it offer easy transport due to its lightweight design, but it is also packed with features rarely if ever seen on entry-level scopes; these increase the Inspire telescopes' flexibility and other key traits greatly!
Meade 114 mm LightBridge Mini
The Celestron Cometron FirstScope 76 Telescope is a 76 mm (2.99-inch) aperture Newtonian Reflector attached to an Alt-Azimuth one-arm mount and a Dobsonian-style table-top base.
The lightweight, extremely-portable table-top Dobsonian-style base makes this telescope easy to point and navigate. Weighing in at a mere 4.3 pounds the Cometron FirstScope makes an easy travel companion and is stylish and compact enough to sit on a desk or bookcase!
Celestron PortableTravel Scope 70
The Celestron Travel Scope 70 was designed with traveling in mind while offering exceptional value. The Celestron Travel Scope is made of the highest quality materials to ensure stability and durability and comes with two full-size eyepieces and a 5X24 finderscope. All this adds up to a portable telescope that gives you a lifetime of pleasure with a minimal amount of maintenance. Featuring a compact and portable design with ample optical performance, the Celestron Travel Scope 70 is ideal for terrestrial as well as casual astronomical observation
Looking for more beginner telescope inspiration check out our best telescopes for kids for more choices! Clear skies!
