The Best Telescopes Under $500

Just like the previous best telescope listed above, the StarSense Explorer DX 130AZ Newtonian reflector telescope will help you tour the night sky with your smartphone, no experience is 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. Out in the country? See faint, deep sky objects from darker skies.

The portable NexStar 4SE is easy to set-up and includes built-in computerized alignment and tracking technologies that allow you to locate celestial objects and navigate the night sky with ease, making it a great choice for the best telescope under $500. Versatile enough to be used for both Deep Space and Planetary Astrophotography, it's perfect for beginner astronomers!

The Celestron 130SLT comes with a fully equipped NexStar computerized hand control, and pre-assembled tripod to be up and ready to use in minutes! Automatically locate and track 4,000+ objects, including over 600 galaxies, 300 clusters and dozens of beautiful binary stars. View the details of the lunar surface, Saturn's rings, the polar ice caps on Mars, the cloud belts on Jupiter or many other Messier Objects with this best telescope pick.

The Sky-Watcher Classic 200 P Dobsonian telescope has a "paraboloidal" primary mirror to eliminate spherical aberration and a four-arm, secondary- mirror bracket with fine supports (0.5mm thick), to reduce diffraction spikes and light loss. In addition, a 2-inch focuser with a 1.25-inch adapter is included, allowing the use of either eyepiece size. The Tension Control Handle provides user-friendly tension adjustment that can quickly and easily increase or decrease tension between the telescope tube and where it sits on the Dobsonian mount.

The Star Navigator Next Generation 90 mm (3.54-inch) provides everything a beginner needs to start observing in one place. Those new to astronomy can enjoy an easy pathway to access Go-To capable instruments at an affordable price for years.

With the assistance of Meade's AudioStar computerized controller and easy to operate robotic mount, the Next Generation 90 mm can be used to view a wide range of celestial objects. Toggle between the two eyepiece sizes included with this telescope to hone in on specific targets and goals, and use the AudioStar to take a guided tour of the night sky.

The Celestron AstroMaster 130EQ MD comes complete with a pre-assembled mount and tripod. The Celestron CG-3 equatorial mount is stable, with setting circles and slow-motion controls on both axes for easy, smooth tracking and now a clock drive which continually tracks objects in right ascension. Strict adherence to Celestron's tough quality standards for; manufacturing, assembly, and testing ensures that each optic not only performs well but remains durable after years and years of use.

The Meade StarPro AZ 102 mm Refractor Telescope is the perfect mid-range choice for this best telescopes list. It's an extremely capable visual telescope that is easily used for smartphone astrophotography with the included smartphone adapter. Beginners in the hobby will be stunned by the incredible sights available through this telescope and more seasoned astronomers are sure to be impressed by this little system's abilities. Some telescopes will be better for strictly visual use, some will be better for strictly astrophotography use, but this is OPT's choice for the happy medium that will satisfy everyone.

The Celestron Travel Scope 70 was designed with traveling in mind while also offering an 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 finder scope. All this adds up to a portable package 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.

The Meade ETX90, 90 mm Maksutov-Cassegrain telescope provides close-up views of the solar system and celestial objects anytime, anywhere. The ETX90 Observer is a sophisticated, heavily automated, and highly portable telescope setup that is ideal for a beginner or anyone else that is on the move frequently and wants to engage in visual astronomy. It includes exceptional features like AudioStar, GoTo technology, and a large 30,000 object database. Exploring and night-sky stargazing is made fun, easy, and educational with the ETX90. See planets, stars, galaxies, and nebulae at the push of a button! This is definitely one of the best telescopes for sale today.