If you look at the list of best-selling telescopes on Amazon, you’ll see low-grade telescopes mostly reviewed by enthusiastic newbies who were excited to explore the night sky for the first time in their lives. Most of these beginners are content with seeing a few craters on the moon and spotting the four moons of Jupiter. Yet, unfortunately, they probably don’t know that any decent pair of astronomy binoculars that costs under £100 can show similar views.
Around 70% of knowledgeable telescope buyers spend between £150 and £700 on their first instrument. If you’re looking for a decent experience as a beginner, settle for something between £200 and £400. If you want to have a serious instrument that will last a lifetime with no corners cut, plan on spending £400-£1000 or more.
- Sky-Watcher Heritage 100P (£128 at First Light Optics): The Sky-Watcher Heritage 100P may not have all the bells and whistles that higher-priced telescopes have, but if you can’t afford something more powerful, this telescope will do the trick and provide sharp views of many of the most familiar night sky objects. (Review)
- Sky-Watcher Heritage 130P (£194 at First Light Optics): The Sky-Watcher Heritage 130P is another tabletop Dobsonian like the Heritage 100P, with even more aperture allowing for brighter and more expansive views of the night sky—and a collapsable tube to maximise portability. (Review)
- Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P (£249 at First Light Optics): The Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P provides even more capability than the Heritage 130P and smaller tabletop Dobsonians, but in a similarly compact and easy-to-use package. (Review)
- Sky-Watcher Virtuoso GTi 150P (£399 at First Light Optics): The Sky-Watcher Virtuoso GTi 150P, essentially an upgraded Heritage 150P, can be used manually or with its easy-to-use wireless GoTo system, and pushing the scope manually has no effect on its computerised operations either. (Review)
- StellaLyra 8” f/6 Dobsonian (£449 at First Light Optics): The StellaLyra 8” f/6 Dobsonian is an outstanding telescope with a high-quality design and accessory bundle worth a good chunk, as much as the telescope itself, making it easily one of our top telescope recommendations. (Review)
- StellaLyra 10” f/10 Dobsonian (£619 at First Light Optics): The StellaLyra 10″ f/5 Dobsonian possesses the same features, accessories, focal length, and, naturally, excellent value for money as the 8″ variant; the only distinction is the slightly broader tube, and it offers you 56% more light-gathering prowess and 25% more resolution than an 8″. (Review)
- Celestron StarSense Explorer 10” Dobsonian (£779 at First Light Optics): The Celestron StarSense Explorer 10” Dobsonian isn’t as good a deal as the Dobsonians from Bresser, Sky-Watcher and StellaLyra, but its unique StarSense Explorer technology is well worth the price. (Review)
- StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian (£879 at First Light Optics): The StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian is a monster, but it offers 44% more light-gathering power than a 10” Dobsonian and 125% more than an 8” – all with the same fantastic features and accessories as the smaller StellaLyra scopes. (Review)
- Sky-Watcher Skyliner 300P FlexTube (£1,089 at First Light Optics): While a bit large for a first telescope, the Skyliner 300P’s humongous aperture gives breathtaking views of almost every target, and its collapsable tube allows it to fit in most vehicles with relative ease. (Review)
- Celestron NexStar Evolution 8 (£2,195 at First Light Optics): While hardly delivering the most aperture for your money, the NexStar Evolution 8 is a premium telescope for those who desire a convenient and simple observing experience. It is packed with bonus features and extremely simple to set up and use, as well as being fairly lightweight and compact. (Review)
- Best Budget Schmidt-Cassegrain: Celestron NexStar 6SE
- Best Smart Telescope: ZWO SeeStar Smart Telescope
- Best Solar Telescope: Lunt 40mm f/10 B500 Dedicated H-alpha Solar Telescope
Do’s for Buying:
Consider a tabletop (5-6”) Dobsonian or a larger 8-12” Dobsonian as your first telescope choice.
If you want an especially portable telescope for close-up views of brighter targets and perhaps some day use, consider a 3-6” Maksutov-Cassegrain or Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope.
Our rankings detail plenty of price-sorted options beyond the popular choices.
Very high magnifications and the ability to see vivid colour views of galaxies and nebulae are the most common of these claims in manufacturer advertising or product pages.
However, so too are the ability to do “astrophotography” with telescopes that can barely be kept aimed at an object for any length of time, “enhanced vision” or “AI” and other such buzzwords in telescopes with built-in electronics.
And there is the age-old brag of how many objects are in a computerised telescope’s database (here’s a hint: Most of those 40,000-odd catalogued objects aren’t interesting; you can add more, or you can just connect a PC or smart device to the mount and control it with a third-party app like SkySafari).
Most filters, kits, and such marketed to beginners or included with telescopes are just tinted pieces of optically not-great glass that blur the image.
Colour filters are really only used by the most demanding of planetary observers for special purposes; most light pollution filters are either only meant for astrophotography or simply do not do what is promised.
You don’t need a “moon filter” – moonlight won’t hurt your eyes, and a cheap one just smudges the view anyway.
For larger telescopes, I would recommend you consider a good UHC and/or oxygen-III nebula filter and not worry about anything else for a long time.
Many beginner scopes have one of these finders as a standard, but many telescopes come with finder scopes – essentially mini telescopes with crosshairs – packaged.
These finder scopes can often be decent enough, but with even an optically decent finder scope, you will often be dealing with an uncomfortable position to look through it, be unable to see the crosshairs, or you might have a finder that has a right-angled eyepiece configuration – which is great but extremely hard to use on its own to aim most instruments.
A simple red dot sight works just fine on 6” and smaller telescopes; for larger ones, we recommend the Telrad or another reflex sight with a reticle.
Don’ts for Buying:
There are some educational/toy options that are okay, but if your goal is to actually view the night sky, a pair of 7×50 or 10×50 binoculars will get you a lot further for a lot less money.
If you are eyeing a £2000 8” Schmidt-Cassegrain that does it all because you haven’t decided whether your interests lie more in viewing or astrophotography, then perhaps consider starting with a smaller and cheaper telescope like a 6” or 8” Dobsonian.
If you are leaning towards viewing and a compact, easy-to-use astrophotography setup like the ZWO SeeStar or a star tracker for your DSLR, you are considering dipping your toes into astrophotography.
Telescopes are like tools. Surely you own more than one screwdriver.
If you have a big 10” or 12” Dobsonian, a smaller 4-6” tabletop unit or a similarly compact catadioptric telescope of the same aperture can be a good complement to it. If you’re worried about the size or commitment of a bigger and bulkier telescope, consider starting out with a telescope that will provide a quicker and more convenient alternative setup even once you’ve purchased the big one.
Likewise, you might want one telescope for viewing and one for astrophotography, which is also ideal since you can then look directly through the eyepiece at the cosmos while your other telescope captures hours-long photographic exposures.
Many telescopes only come with one or two eyepieces to start with, and these may or may not be of good quality. You need not spend much money; a decent set of 1.25” eyepieces, even if you are starting off with nothing, can be had for less than £100. For many telescopes, just upgrading or adding an eyepiece at the higher magnification end can be enough.
In most cases, we would recommend you purchase dedicated eyepieces for different magnifications, but a good-quality Barlow lens can be handy to have as well.
This is a standard sign of low-quality workmanship, and few decent 0.965” eyepieces are available aftermarket; even if the telescope itself is actually good, it can be a headache to find a way to use eyepieces that are up to par.
Why trust my recommendations?
My first telescope was a Celestron NexStar 4SE, which I got for a Christmas. I had wanted a telescope since seeing the lunar eclipse in September of that year.
The 4SE immediately disappointed me when I learnt that most deep-sky objects were little more than grey smudges, washed out from my light-polluted backyard, and hardly accommodated by this little Maksutov-Cassegrain’s small aperture and cramped field of view.
After a year of this, I upgraded to a 6” f/8 Newtonian and then to an old Meade 8” Schmidt-Cassegrain, which had some of the worst optics I have ever seen in a telescope.
Being a teenager and strapped for cash at the time, I ended up building my own telescopes of better quality, first a 6” f/4 and then a 16”, followed by a 20.5” and a 24”. After a while, I started buying, selling, fixing, and trading telescopes and building several more of them.
Today my largest telescope is a 14.7” f/2.9 Dobsonian, which I built and got a surprising amount of attention with 220K upvotes on the r/space subreddit. Now, I am working on 18” and 30” telescopes.
Since getting my first telescope, as of the time of writing, I have owned over 430 telescopes, which includes most of the commercially available scopes in the US. Of these, I have actually used about 400 or so (a few dozen were never actually functional, e.g., the C5.5 film Schmidt camera). Of these, about 20 were built entirely by me, and I’ve restored dozens from parts piles back to working order.
I have ground mirrors up to 16” for my own telescopes, and I am now working on even larger homemade optics.
Any product I recommend at TelescopicWatch, both on the US site and here in its UK edition, is going to do what it says and deliver on whatever our reviews promise—that’s it. No hyperbole, no exaggerated statements, no salesmanship. Just honest evaluations and reviews of quality telescopes.
Telescope Rules of Thumb:
- Dobsonian telescopes offer the biggest bang for your buck. If portability concerns you, tabletop Dobsonians and collapsable/truss tube Dobsonians can fit practically anywhere. PushTo Dobsonians offer computer assistance to find your target, while the more pricey GoTo Dobsonians automatically point at and track targets after a simple alignment procedure.
- While refractors are what many picture as the classic ideal of a telescope, they are by far the most expensive and usually the least practical of the more mainstream telescope types. The more affordable achromatic refractors can deliver nice views of bright objects but suffer from chromatic aberration that blurs close-up views of the Moon and planets, especially if the tube is shortened to a convenient length or as the aperture size increases.
- Apochromatic refractors—ED doublets and triplets—are great astrophotography telescopes but are rarely affordable, nor are they usually made for beginners. If you’re seriously considering doing long-exposure astrophotography, Schmidt-Cassegrains and properly mounted Newtonian reflectors are also decent choices for the job.
- Consider a catadioptric telescope if the portability or maintenance of a Dobsonian is a concern for you. Maksutov-Cassegrain telescopes offer extremely sharp images, are very compact, and don’t frequently need their optics aligned (collimated), while Schmidt-Cassegrains offer better astrophotography capabilities and typically go up to larger aperture sizes than commercial Maksutovs. These telescopes are often bundled with compact computerised mounts, too.
Summarizing Our Recommended Telescopes Individually
In £100-£150/ Best Cheapest Telescope: Sky-Watcher Heritage 100P
- Wide field of view
- High-quality 100mm primary mirror provides decent deep-sky and Solar System views
- Cheap
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 100mm (4 inches)
- Magnification: The Heritage 100P comes with two 1.25” eyepieces and a 2x Barlow lens for 4 different magnification options—25mm and 10mm “Super” Konigs yielding 16x and 40x magnification, which are just fine to start with.
- Mount: Tabletop Dobsonian
The Sky-Watcher Heritage 100P is a miniaturised tabletop Dobsonian telescope with 100 mm of aperture. It features a parabolic primary mirror for sharp views, unlike many cheap reflectors which use spherical primary mirrors that can only provide fuzzy images in most cases. 100mm of aperture means that the 100P isn’t nearly as capable as the larger telescopes on our list, but it’s vastly superior to the cheap tripod-mounted reflectors and refractors often sold to beginners in its optical performance, light-collecting power, ease of use, and provided accessories.
It comes with a tripod mounting bracket to attach to a sturdy third-party unit if you do not wish to set the scope on top of a table.
In £150-£200: Sky-Watcher Heritage 130P
- Wide field of view
- High-quality 130mm primary mirror provides decent deep-sky and Solar System views
- Collapsible tube for portability
- Excellent accessories included
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 130mm (5.1 inches)
- Magnification: The Heritage 130P comes with two 1.25” eyepieces—25mm and 10mm “Super” Konigs yielding 25x and 65x magnification, which are just fine to start with—though you may want more eyepieces such as a 6mm “goldline,” which would provide 108x, more appropriate for viewing planets and other small targets like globular star clusters.
- Mount: Tabletop Dobsonian
The Sky-Watcher Heritage 130P’s 130mm of aperture gives it much sharper and brighter views than the smaller 100mm and 114mm telescopes often marketed towards beginners, but without any additional bulk – it weighs just over 6 kg and will fit in a large backpack, passenger seat, or on a shelf when not in use.
With 130mm of aperture, you can start to see details in the brighter galaxies under dark skies and watch shadow transits of Jupiter’s moons. You’ll also be able to begin resolving the brighter globular clusters into individual stars and see details on Mars when it is close to Earth.
The Bresser Messier 5” Tabletop Dobsonian provides essentially the same performance and optics as the Heritage 130P in a solid tube, which adds weight but decreases complexity. Different accessories are provided too, though it’s still a decent scope.
Best Value Manual Tabletop Dobsonian
In £250-£350: Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P
- Wide field of view
- 150mm aperture allows for serious viewing of deep-sky objects
- Collapsible tube for portability
- Wide field of view for its size
- Excellent accessories included
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 150mm (6 inches); the 20mm of additional aperture compared to a 130mm telescope provides 33% more light-gathering power and and 15% more resolution
- Magnification: The Heritage 150P includes 1.25” diameter, interchangeable 25mm and 10mm focal length eyepieces providing 30x and 75x – and it can handle up to around 300x magnification, so some shorter focal length eyepieces for higher power on clear and steady nights would be appropriate. Aiming the 150P is accomplished with the provided red dot finder.
- Mount: Tabletop Dobsonian
The Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P borrows a lot from the smaller 130P, having essentially the same features but with 20 mm more aperture. That extra 20 mm may not seem like much, but it makes a significant difference when it comes to viewing galaxies and globular star clusters.
You will need to find a fairly steady surface to place this telescope on, however. Building a custom stand might not be a bad idea. A collimation tool is also included for the sharpest possible views.
The Bresser Messier 6” Tabletop Dobsonian offers similar performance to the 150P but with a 2” rack-and-pinion focuser and in a solid tube with rotating rings. However, it’s a bit heavier/bulkier, and the provided eyepieces are not quite as good as what’s included with the Heritage 150P.
There are 6” f/8 full-sized Dobsonians available at the same price range as the 150P and Messier 6” Tabletop if you must have one. These include the Ursa Major 6” f/8 Planetary Dobsonian, Bresser Messier 6″ Planetary Dobsonian, and Sky-Watcher Skyliner 150P Classic Dobsonian, which are easier to collimate and use at high magnifications on account of their longer focal ratio, as well as lacking the need for a table or stand. However, they are much bulkier, and their maximum field of view is more limited than a 6” f/5 tabletop Dobsonian.
Best Budget Computerised Telescope
In £400: Sky-Watcher Virtuoso GTi 150P
- 6” of aperture with fully motorized GoTo/tracking, all in an affordable and compact package for tabletop or tripod use
- Able to be used manually as well, even when powered on
- Smartphone/tablet app for mount rather than a hand controller makes for an easy-to-use system
- Otherwise same great features as Heritage 150P
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 150mm (6 inches)
- Magnification: As with the Heritage 150P, you get two 1.25” Super eyepieces (25mm/10mm providing 30x and 75x respectively) with a red dot finder.
- Mount: Computerised Tabletop Dobsonian. The scope is meant for tabletop use.
The Sky-Watcher Virtuoso GTi 150P uses the same tube, optics, and tabletop Dobsonian mount as the Heritage 150P but adds Sky-Watcher’s unique GTi GoTo system to the mix.
The Virtuoso GTi mount can be used as a manual Dobsonian exactly like the standard Heritage 150P or powered on for full automatic GoTo and motorised tracking controlled by your smartphone with either the free SynScan app or another app like SkySafari. You can even aim the scope manually while the mount is powered on with no ill effects on the tracking or pointing accuracy of the motorised GoTo features.
The Virtuoso GTi 150P is our top pick among affordable GoTo telescopes and offers some of the best value for money of any scope under £400. As such, it’s little surprise that it’s also our top pick among the category of GoTo reflectors.
The Sky-Watcher Star Discovery 150i uses the same optics, WiFi-controlled mount, FreedomFind encoders, and accessories as the GTi 150P, but with a solid tube design and mounted atop a tripod. However, its primary mirror is not easily adjusted for collimation, and the price is quite a bit higher.
Best Value Telescope Overall
In £450-£550 – StellaLyra 8” f/6 Dobsonian
- Large 8″ aperture and easy collimation
- No significant portability difference from 6” f/8 Dobsonians
- No table, stand, or tripod needed
- Included accessories provide excellent value
- Extremely good value for the money
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 200mm (8 inches). An 8” telescope shows far more celestial objects and detail than a 6”, while an 8” f/6 Dobsonian like the StellaLyra 8″ is negligibly heavier or bulkier compared to a standard 6” f/8 Dob. You get double the light-gathering power of a 6” scope and 33% more resolution.
- Magnification: It comes with three eyepieces: a 2” 30mm SuperView (40x), a 1.25” 9mm Plossl (133x) and 1.25″ 15mm Plossl. We would highly recommend an additional 6 mm “goldline” eyepiece to get the best planetary views the scope can offer.
- Mount: Dobsonian. It sits on the ground and pivots on smooth roller bearings with friction and balance adjustments.
The StellaLyra 8″ f/6 is the most exceptional value 8″ Dobsonian you can acquire and comes with all the necessary accessories. It is one of our top selections for a telescope for nearly any task.
The StellaLyra 8″ f/6 is the finest 8″ Dobsonian available, alongside our top overall choice for a beginner telescope in the UK, and nothing surpasses the sheer value in its price range. Some of the other 8″ Dobsonians from brands like Bresser or Sky-Watcher may cost marginally less, but just the dual-speed focuser is easily worth more than double the price increase of the StellaLyra 8″ f/6. The StellaLyra 8″ f/6 Dobsonian is the telescope we most frequently recommend to novices.
The average person can handle an 8” Dobsonian, and the gains over a 6” are certainly worth the price and inconvenience. An 8” telescope will last you a lifetime.
The Celestron StarSense Explorer 8” Dobsonian does not come equipped with nearly as many accessories as the StellaLyra 8” Dobsonian or even the cheaper Ursa Major and Bresser 8” scopes but has a lightweight Dobsonian base and features Celestron’s StarSense Explorer technology to help you locate deep-sky objects.
Best Value 10″ Dobsonian
In £600-£750: StellaLyra 10” f/5 Dobsonian
- More performance than an 8” in essentially the same-size package
- Excellent included features/accessories
- Still fairly portable
- Extremely good value
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 250mm (10 inches). The 10″ offers you 56% more light-gathering power and 25% more resolution compared to an 8″. The StellaLyra 10″ will easily reveal faint Solar System targets like the moons of Uranus under dark skies and can resolve the Encke Gap in Saturn’s rings or surface details on Jupiter’s moon Ganymede under good seeing conditions. You’ll be able to start resolving spiral arms in galaxies like M51 and M33, and most of the objects in the Messier catalogue are downright easy to see.
- Magnification: Comes with three eyepieces: a 2″ 30mm focal length “SuperView” (42x magnification), a 1.25″ 9mm Plossl (139x magnification) and a 1.25″ 15mm Plossl.
- Mount: Dobsonian
The StellaLyra 10″ f/5 Dobsonian possesses the same features, accessories, focal length, and, naturally, excellent value for money as the 8″ variant; the only distinction is the slightly broader tube, and it offers you 56% more light-gathering prowess and 25% more resolution than an 8″.
While it’s not much taller than the StellaLyra 8” Dobsonian, the mount is a little fatter, and thus transporting it by car might be a little more difficult—though nowhere near as much so as the StellaLyra 12″. It’s also a bit more challenging to collimate. But if you’re willing to accept these compromises, you’ll be rewarded with even brighter images than an 8” telescope and views that simply blow away a smaller instrument.
A 10” is a serious telescope and a size that many people choose to stop at. You’re unlikely to run out of intriguing things to see with it if you have access to clear skies.
The Bresser Messier 10” Dobsonian actually has a superiorly designed mount to the StellaLyra, but its provided eyepiece and finder scope are extremely cheap, while the price is actually higher. The Messier 10” also features a single-speed rather than a dual-speed 2” rack-and-pinion focuser, though it can easily be converted to a dual-speed unit in the future, and a solar filter is also included so you can view sunspots, as with the other telescopes in the Messier Dobsonian lineup.
Best Computer-Assisted 10″ Dobsonian
In £750-£850: Celestron StarSense Explorer 10” Dobsonian
- 10” aperture packed with performance
- StarSense Explorer technology makes it easy to locate deep-sky objects
- Weight-optimized Dobsonian mount is more portable than the competition
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 250 mm (10 inches)
- Magnification: Comes with just one eyepiece: a 25mm Plossl (48x)
- Mount: Dobsonian
The Celestron StarSense Explorer 10″ Dobsonian is a remarkably lightweight and portable option among 10″ Dobsonians.
Its standout feature is the incorporation of Celestron’s StarSense Explorer technology that collaborates with your smartphone to make targeting deep-sky objects an effortless task.
The provided accessories are not nearly as diverse as what comes with the 10” StellaLyra, but it’s easy enough to upgrade the StarSense Explorer 10” Dobsonian with more eyepieces and an aftermarket cooling fan if you want.
Best Value 12″ Dobsonian
Best £850-£1000: StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian
- Huge aperture
- Great accessories
- Simple to set up and use if you can accommodate its massive size
- Same features as smaller 10” and 8” StellaLyra models
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 300mm (12 inches). A 12” Dobsonian easily shows Pluto, resolves even fairly dim globular clusters, and shows incredible detail in many galaxies, even from the suburbs. Jupiter’s moon Ganymede may even show a slight dark marking called Galileo Regio. Uranus’ moons are fairly easy to spot.
- Magnification: Comes with two eyepieces: a 2” 30mm focal length “SuperView” (50x magnification) and a 1.25” 9mm Plossl ocular (167x magnification)
- Mount: Dobsonian
The StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian is a 12” (304 mm) Dobsonian with the same bearings and accessories as the 10” and 8” StellaLyra Dobsonians, along with features like a dual-speed Crayford focuser and, of course, excellent optics. It’s even more capable than these and similar options on account of its huge aperture, providing fantastic deep-space as well as lunar and planetary views. A generation ago, only a professional or very rich amateur could own a telescope this large!
At around 35 kilos in total, the StellaLyra 12” is not a lightweight telescope. Its wide tube is rather awkward to carry too, but don’t fret! You make life easier with homemade or aftermarket straps to easily grapple the tube. Or just put the whole scope on a hand truck or dolly. That being said, the StellaLyra 12″ will still fit in most sedans and SUVs, though compact car owners may be in trouble.
We’d recommend getting a smaller scope to complement the StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian, just to make sure you’re hooked before bringing this beast into your home. A smaller scope would help too, for nights when it isn’t worth hauling the big scope out. But if the StellaLyra 12” f/5 Dobsonian is in your budget, and if you can get this scope to where you want it, do it. There’s nothing quite like the power of a 12-inch Dobsonian
Best Value 12″-14″ Collapsible Dobsonians
In £1000-£2000: Sky-Watcher Skyline 300P/350P FlexTube Manuals & GoTos
- Collapsible tube makes for a fairly portable instrument without the complex assembly of a truss
- Monster aperture will show fabulous deep-sky views and breathtaking planetary images
- Operation is no different from a smaller telescope
- Acceptable provided accessories
- Type of telescope: Dobsonian Reflector
- Aperture: 300mm (12 inches).
- Magnification: Comes with two “Super” Plossl 1.25” eyepieces: a 25mm providing 60x magnification and a 10mm providing 150x.
- Mount: Dobsonian
The Skyliner 300P isn’t for everyone.
The 300P is a big telescope that requires a large vehicle to transport, and you’ll need to be in fairly good shape to easily lift and carry the 17 kg base and 21 kg tube around. However, the views through a telescope this size are amazing, especially if you’re fortunate enough to get it away from city lights.
With 4 times the light-gathering ability of a 6” telescope and 2 times the light-gathering of an 8”, you’ll be able to view thousands of interesting targets under good conditions. A decent pair of eyepieces is provided to get you started, though you’ll be sure to want more.
The provided 9×50 right-angle finder makes aiming the 300P FlexTube a breeze, though you might want to add a Telrad or red dot sight to the mix. The 300P’s collapsable tube makes storing and transporting it a fair bit easier than it would be with a solid-tubed telescope this size, though you’ll really need to make or buy a cloth shroud to go over the middle to prevent stray light, bugs, moisture, and curious hands from getting into the tube during operation.
Best High-End Computerised Compact GoTo
In £2000 – £2500: Celestron NexStar Evolution 8
- Compact Schmidt-Cassegrain optical tube, along with built-in battery and WiFi, makes for a convenient setup
- High-quality tracking and some imaging capabilities too
- Sufficient aperture for good views
- Type of telescope: Schmidt-Cassegrain
- Aperture: 200mm (8 inches)
- Magnification: The Evolution 8 comes with two eyepieces: a 40mm plossl (51x) and a 13mm Plossl (156x). While these will be fine to start out with, we’d highly recommend obtaining a 2” diagonal and low-power 2” eyepiece as well as a high-power ocular to get the widest vistas and the highest powers usable with NexStar Evolution telescopes.
- Mount: Altitude-Azimuth
The NexStar Evolution 8 is incredibly easy to operate with its provided hand controller or over WiFi, features fully motorised GoTo and tracking, and even has its own built-in rechargeable battery for plug-and-play use.
The 8” model is our favourite, offering better performance than the 6” with a minimal increase in bulk; the 9.25” has some issues that make it less than ideal, especially for beginners.
Being a Schmidt-Cassegrain catadioptric design, the Evolution’s main drawback is the somewhat narrow maximum field of view compared to a similarly sized reflecting telescope. However, the computer functions more than make up for this.
In addition to the smaller/cheaper 6” and more well-accessorised 8” EdgeHD/StarSense models of the NexStar Evolution, there are a wide variety of other options to consider in this price range, including computerised 12” and 14” Sky-Watcher Skyline Dobsonians, and if you’re interested in astrophotography, an a la carte OTA and mount are also worth considering.
Some Other Good Telescope Choices
Best Budget Schmidt-Cassegrain: Celestron NexStar 6SE
The Celestron NexStar 6SE isn’t perfect, but it’s a capable and compact GoTo telescope. It’s a 6” (150 mm) Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a motorised, tracking GoTo mount.
The 6SE doesn’t have built-in WiFi by default, but you can purchase a dongle to operate it wirelessly if you wish.
The compact design of the 6SE and its tripod make it ideal for travel or fitting into tight spaces, but this scope cannot be aimed manually, and its 1500mm focal length somewhat limits the field of view. For more information, check out our dedicated review of the 6SE.
Best Smart Telescope: ZWO SeeStar Smart Telescope
In the evolving world of telescopes, the rise of “smart” telescopes has bridged the gap between traditional stargazing and technology.
Our top pick in this category is the ZWO SeeStar, but before you dive into the world of smart telescopes, there are some nuances to consider.
Using a smart telescope is not the same as looking through the eyepiece of a traditional telescope. The digital screen displays processed images of celestial objects, which might not give the raw, immersive feel of peering into the vastness of space directly.
And conversely, while the ZWO SeeStar and similar devices provide impressive visuals, they do not match the image quality of dedicated astrophotography setups. The images produced by these instruments are generally meant for quick, real-time viewing rather than high-resolution captures that can be enhanced and edited.
Being relatively new to the market, smart telescopes, including the SeeStar, often come with their share of teething issues. Users might encounter software bugs, limitations in celestial object databases, or occasional hardware glitches. Over time, as manufacturers receive feedback and release updates, many of these issues are likely to be resolved, and better products will likely come out. But for now, we would not particularly recommend any of these devices.
Best Solar Telescope: Lunt 40mm f/10 B500 Dedicated H-alpha Solar Telescope
Lunt’s 40mm hydrogen-alpha solar telescope replaces the former LS35 as the smallest unit in Lunt’s lineup. This telescope, like any dedicated hydrogen-alpha solar telescope, will show you not only sunspots but also flares, prominences, and other features in the upper atmosphere of our nearest star.
However, it should be noted that this telescope will need a suitable mount, tripod, and eyepieces, which must be purchased separately.
Our Best Solar Telescopes article and guide to viewing the Sun and eclipses contain further information on what’s needed to view the Sun close-up and what’s right for you.
How did I pick the telescopes?
I have worked with, collectively, thousands of telescopes and hundreds of brands/models, including all of the top gear available on the market today. My selections are based on the following:
- Manufacturer reputation and service
- Performance for the money
- Overall mechanical/build quality
- Optical quality
- Included accessories
- Available competitors with similar specs
Telescope Buying Advice: The Knowledge Hub
The first thing you want to do is figure out what you really want out of your telescope. Consider:
- Where will you use it?
- Where will you store it?
- How much weight can you carry comfortably?
- How will you find the things you want to see?
- Is this for home use, or will you frequently put it in your car?
- Will you want to take it on an aeroplane?
You don’t have to be a technical engineer to buy an awesome telescope, but if you understand a few concepts and terms like the ones below, you’ll be fine.
- Optical Tube Assembly: This is the light-gathering part of the telescope. Common forms are refractor, reflector, Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope (SCT), and Maksutov-Cassegrain (MCT).
- Aperture – This is the diameter of the front lens or rear mirror of the optical tube. This is usually stated in millimetres, mm, or inches and may be noted as 150 mm or 6” in the specifications. This is the key specification for judging the telescope’s ability to show you dim and distant planets and deep-sky objects. In general, the larger the aperture, the better.
- Focal Length: This is a measure of the optical path within the optical tube. Using this, you can determine the magnification that will be provided by any given eyepiece.
- FL scope/FL eyepiece = magnification.
- Focal Ratio: This is simply the focal length divided by the aperture. It tells you about the physical size of the scope. A low-focal-ratio optical tube will be shorter than a high-focal-ratio optical tube with the same aperture and the same design.
- Focuser – This moves the eyepiece in or out along the light path to bring the image into focus. Common sizes are 1.25 inch and 2 inch, which determine the size of the diagonal or eyepiece that can be accepted. Some are single-speed, and some are dual-speed, with a quick focus and a slow focus knob that allow much finer adjustments, which can be helpful when using high magnification.
- Diagonal – These are placed into the focuser and receive the eyepiece in refractors, SCTs, and MCTs. Common sizes are 1.25 inch and 2 inch, which determine the diameter of the eyepiece that can be accepted. The diagonal turns the direction of the eyepiece either 45 degrees or 90 degrees to provide a more comfortable viewing angle. The 45-degree models are usually for daytime use when the optical tube is fairly level for use as a spotting scope. The 90-degree diagonals, also called star diagonals, are better for astronomy, as the optical tube is usually pointed high in the sky.
- Mount – This is what holds the optical tube and allows you to point it effectively. Common types are Equatorial, and AltAz which work similarly to a camera tripod. The mount is a critical part of the telescope system. If the mount is wobbly, the image will shake every time you try to focus or when there is a breeze. If the mount is wobbly, it may be difficult to track your target as you move the optical tube to account for the rotation of the earth. A good optical tube on a poor mount provides a frustrating experience.
- PushTo or DSC Mount: There are sensors in the computer control system—or inside your smartphone—that track the position of the mount. An initial alignment procedure is done so the software knows the location of some reference stars. After that, you put your target into the computer or app, and it tells you where to point the scope to see that target.
- GoTo Mount: Similar to the PushTo mount, there are sensors that know the position of the mount. However, the GoTo mount has motors that are controlled by the computer, usually a handset. After a quick initial alignment, so the mount knows the date, time, and location, you put your target choice into the computer, and the computer uses the motors to turn the mount so that the target can be seen in the eyepiece. As the GoTo mounts are motorised, the computer uses the motors to track the target as the Earth rotates, whereas the other mounts require you to move the optical tube to track the target yourself.
- Eyepiece: This is an optical device that goes into the focuser or diagonal. The optical tube gathers light, but it is the eyepiece that provides the magnification. Eyepieces come in various focal lengths, each providing a different magnification according to the focal length of the optical tube according to the formula:Focal Length Optical Tube/Focal Length Eyepiece = Magnification. Therefore, a 10 mm eyepiece will provide different magnifications depending on the focal length of the telescope. Eyepieces are standardised on 1.25” and 2” diameters. Which size you can use is determined by the focuser and diagonal.
There are several different types of telescopes, with the most common being refractor, reflector, and catadioptric telescopes.
- Refracting telescopes usually provide the best image for their apertures but are usually pricey. They’re seldom available with large apertures. Inexpensive ones do have a fair amount of chromatic aberration, though, thanks to the achromatic lens design they use. Refractors seldom require maintenance and do not usually need to cool down before use.
- Reflector telescopes provide the most bang for your buck in terms of light-gathering power and resolution, but they require frequent alignment of mirrors and may need to cool down before being used. Unintentionally, most of the recommended scopes in this guide are reflectors.
- Catadioptric telescopes are moderately expensive but are much more compact than most equivalent-sized refractors or reflectors. They do require periodic maintenance and need to cool down as well, but not as much as most reflectors.
While some telescopes come equipped with computerised assistance for tracking celestial bodies, we often advocate for manual scopes. Though computerised options might offer convenience, they typically need a power supply and can have longer setup times. Being proficient with a star chart can be more advantageous.
Some computerised telescopes are referred to as “PushTo”, which means that they have passive encoders or utilise your smartphone to keep track of your location in the sky and provide assistance but do not have motor drives. The more common “GoTo” telescopes use motors to track objects and automatically point at them. This may sound great, but the electronics of these telescopes are heavy, require lots of power, and, of course, necessitate levelling the telescope and going through an alignment procedure.
Many GoTo telescopes also run on technology that has not changed much since the 1990s, using antiquated hand controllers that are slow to respond and hard to navigate. This can make setting them up quite a time-consuming and frustrating process. A lot of GoTo telescopes also use simple, cheap encoders to keep track of their position. This means that they will not be able to accurately point at or track objects if they are bumped or manually aimed around the sky. Newer GoTo telescopes use slip clutches, which allow you to seamlessly switch between manual and electronic pointing or just avoid powering the mount on altogether. Many can also connect to your smartphone or tablet for operation via an app. We do not typically recommend GoTo telescopes or mounts that lack slip clutches and/or WiFi compatibility.
Nonetheless, the prime disadvantage of a computerised telescope is its cost. Simply put, you are putting money into electronics that could otherwise go towards a better telescope, eyepieces, filters, gasoline to get to a dark sky site, or a myriad of other practical expenditures to boost your observing experience.
The money you’re spending on a telescope should go as much towards the aperture (size of the objective lens or mirror) as possible. When you’re spending only a few hundred dollars on a computerised telescope, half your money is going to go to the drive systems and controller, and as a result, you get rather little actual “telescope” for your money. If you live in the city, you’ll definitely want to prioritise aperture. A small telescope will show little under severe light pollution, but in general, you’re going to want to get as far away from cities as you can when you skywatch anyway. Weigh these carefully against the additional expenditure that you’d spend on a computerised instrument.
There’s no right or wrong answer when it comes to the level of technology that you’re comfortable with, though, and both kinds of scopes (tech-included or not) have their own pros and cons, so make sure to really think about what you want out of your scope before making any kind of purchase.
When you’re in the market for a telescope, it’s important to know what you’re getting for your money. The price of a telescope can be indicative of its features, build quality, and the clarity of the images it produces. Here’s a breakdown of what you can expect in various price ranges:
£100 Range
- Quality: Most of the telescopes in this price range are little more than cheap toys, with a few exceptions (small, usually tabletop Dobsonian-mounted Newtonian reflectors).
- Expect: No more than 102mm (4”) of aperture; some compromises on accessories; and possibly on optical quality. Anything on a tripod at this price is going to be tiny, wobbly, or both.
£200 Range
- Quality: About the minimum you can spend and get a telescope with decent optics, mechanics, and accessories from the start without any aftermarket purchase or modifications.
- Expect: 4-5” aperture at most. Good tripod-mounted options do exist in this price range, but they are not exactly our first choice.
£300 Range
- Quality: Any good telescope in this price range usually comes with reasonably good accessories and less plastic, and you might actually be able to find an acceptable tripod-mounted instrument around this price. Still mostly manual telescopes.
- Expect: 4-6” aperture reflectors, small (<4”) refractors, and Maksutov-Cassegrain telescopes of acceptable quality.
£500 Range:
- Quality: Pretty much no more plastic, some ED refractors, 8” Dobsonians, and 5-6” catadioptrics.
- Expect: Decent GoTo/PushTo mounts/telescopes
£800 Range:
- Quality: No plastic, decent included accessories, if any
- Expect: 10-12” Dobsonians, computerized German EQ mounts, 6” Maksutovs and achromats, 8” SCTs, 4” ED refractors and even some triplets
£1,500 Range:
- Quality: It’s hard to find a product at this price range that we don’t recommend.
- Expect: 5” triplet or high-end doublet refractors; 9.25-10” SCTs; 7” Maksutov-Cassegrains; 12-14” Dobsonians. Full-sized GoTo equatorial mounts that are actually good for deep-sky astrophotography with telescopes.
£2,500 Range:
- Quality: High-quality optics across all types
- Expect: 14-16” Dobsonians, 11-12” SCTs, some nice 6” and smaller apochromatic refractors, and nice heavy-duty GoTo equatorial mounts.
£5,000 Range:
- Quality: Usually, a custom order kit at this price
- Expect: 16-20” Dobsonians, 11-14” SCTs, 6” and even 7” high-end refractors, and 7-8” Maksutovs. High-end GoTo mounts of all sorts
As with many products, you generally get what you pay for with telescopes. However, even at lower price points, you can have a satisfying stargazing experience. It’s essential to balance your budget with your astronomical goals and consider the features most important to you. Remember, the best telescope is the one you use the most, regardless of its price!
However, you should always avoid going for exceptionally cheap telescopes priced under £100 or so new, as these are across-the-board low-quality products that are either scams or toys. For those priced below £300, manufacturers tend to compromise on certain aspects. Remember, a quality telescope is an investment meant to last a lifetime, so if possible, be prepared to invest a bit more for an enjoyable experience.
One aspect that often gets aggressively marketed by manufacturers to beginner astronomers is high magnification. It’s common to come across telescopes that promise staggering magnification levels, sometimes even exceeding 500x or 1000x. To the uninitiated, these numbers might seem incredibly appealing. After all, who wouldn’t want to see celestial objects up close? However, there’s more to magnification than meets the eye.
Our article “Telescope Magnification Limits: How Much Is Too Much?” goes into more detail, but the summary below should steer you far away from the shysters offering these products and give you an understanding of why most observations are done at fairly low power. Here are some magnification-related myths.
- High Magnification ≠ Better Views: One might assume that higher magnification always translates to better views. In reality, while magnification does make objects appear larger, it also spreads out their light, which can result in a dimmer, less detailed view.
- Atmospheric Limitations: Earth’s atmosphere isn’t always stable. Air turbulence can distort telescopic views, and this distortion is magnified as you increase the magnification. On most “good” nights, atmospheric conditions will limit the usable magnification to around 200–300x, regardless of the telescope. On a bad night, even 100x may be somewhat fuzzy. Nights with conditions allowing a stable image at powers above 500–600x are rare, and you need quite a big telescope to provide enough resolution to support these powers.
- Optical Quality: As magnification increases, any imperfections in a telescope’s optics, or their alignment, become more pronounced. In many low-quality telescopes that tout high magnification, the resultant image is often blurry or distorted. High magnifications above 40x per inch of aperture also tend to expose the errors in your own eyeball’s optics, revealing “floaters” that seem to get in the way along with your eyelashes; this is particularly problematic with smaller telescopes.
- Scams to Watch Out For: Beware of cheap telescopes that heavily promote their high magnification as their main selling point. This emphasis is often a clear indicator of an inferior product. Reliable telescope manufacturers and sellers understand the limitations and realities of magnification and focus on other essential aspects, such as aperture size and optical quality.
Practical Magnification Usage
For most observational purposes, astronomers seldom use very high magnifications. Many celestial wonders, like galaxies, star clusters, and nebulae, are best appreciated at lower magnifications, which offer wider fields of view so you can take in the whole object at once. Furthermore, lower magnifications provide brighter images by condensing the light from these distant objects into a smaller area. This brightness is crucial when observing faint objects, ensuring they are visible against the dark backdrop of the night sky.
While the Moon, planets, and other small/bright targets like double stars and planetary nebulae can benefit from higher magnifications, there’s a sweet spot where detail is maximised without sacrificing image clarity or losing too much brightness. This balance usually doesn’t require the highest possible magnification.
If you are fortunate enough to observe from home or otherwise store your telescope at a fixed location, you are lucky. Most astronomers tend to stargaze at locations further away from city lights whenever possible or otherwise have physical obstructions or human factors (such as neighbours with bright “security” lights) to contend with when observing at home. This latter category includes myself, despite the fact that I am fortunate enough to be able to see the Milky Way’s faint glow over my backyard.
If the telescope in question is heavy and has to be taken out of a garage or shed to be used, we recommend a dolly that stays under the telescope when it is in use. Larger Dobsonians can be strapped to a simple hand truck or have wheelbarrow handles simply bolted onto the side and rolled upright in one piece, then removed. For other telescope types, it’s extremely unlikely that you can just dismantle them into lightweight constituent components. A dolly should only be used as a last resort, as they are expensive, reduce stability during operation, add to the height of your telescope, and could easily get caught on an obstacle and tip your telescope over while rolling it around.
Contrary to what many believe, most telescopes don’t actually require dedicated carry cases. While they might seem like a good protective measure, they are often only available as custom builds, especially for larger instruments. Many smaller telescopes will take up dramatically more space inside a case, hindering portability, while the cases themselves cost quite a bit of money. And a cheap case is little more than decoration, offering little added protection during transport and lacking the advantages of being airtight when stored for long periods of time.
For those who often transport their telescopes in vehicles, wrapping the optical tube assembly (OTA), mounts, and tripods in a thick towel or blanket provides sufficient protection against minor bumps and scratches. If your telescope has a fairly stubby tube, you can put it upright in a car seat and buckle it in, but otherwise, just stopping your telescope/mount and other hardware from rolling around or going flying at a sharp turn or sudden stop is really all you need to do.
If you feel the need for an extra layer of protection during storage or transport, a generic wheeled case from a big-box store or a sturdy plastic bin can serve the purpose. These are often more cost-effective and can be padded with foam or bubble wrap for added safety.
Eyepieces, being smaller and more delicate, benefit from a more secure storage solution. High-quality Pelican-type cases, which are watertight and rugged, are excellent for this purpose. The hard shell protects against physical damage, while the foam inserts can be customised to snugly fit each eyepiece, preventing movement. If you can’t afford a Pelican case, the padded cases from Seahorse, as well as the Apache line offered by Harbor Freight, are some good picks; almost any quality pluck-foam case for cameras, firearms, or other precision hardware will do.
Inside these cases, it’s advisable to store at least one or two small silica gel desiccant packs. You can shove them under the foam at the bottom or top of the case. These small packets absorb excess moisture, ensuring the eyepieces remain dry and free from potential fungal growth. Remember to replace or recharge desiccants periodically, especially in humid climates.
Avoid touching the optical surface of any telescope’s lens or mirror directly. Fingerprints contain oils that can damage the optical coatings. Directly touching the sides of the glass of a lens or mirror to grab hold of one, or any holder/housing, is fine, of course.
Proper cleaning of telescope lenses and mirrors is essential for optimal performance. While some may be hesitant, fearing damage or preferring professional servicing, cleaning can be straightforward and cost-effective if done correctly. Our guide to cleaning telescope optics, as well as our article on recoating and caring for telescope mirrors, goes into more detail, but we’ll go over some tips here in brief too.
For telescope objectives or front corrector plates that have accumulated fingerprints, pollen, or dew residue, immediate cleaning is essential. These substances can degrade optical coatings or chemically etch the glass of some lenses, causing permanent and irreversible damage to the optical surface. Eyepieces, frequently exposed to eyelash oils, makeup, and accidental smudges, also benefit from periodic cleaning to maintain clarity.
However, it’s essential to remember that, except for potentially harmful residues or excessive dust and dirt, frequent cleaning isn’t always necessary. Dust is mostly harmless to optical performance, unless in significant amounts. If you’re dealing with mere dust, a bulb blower is ideal for cleaning without touching the lens. Compressed air can be too forceful and may deposit residues, making bulb- or squeeze-type blowers a safer choice.
For stubborn residues like fingerprints or eyelash oils, a liquid solvent solution is necessary. Using disposable wipes, like pre-moistened Zeiss wipes, in gentle circular motions ensures effective cleaning without scratching. For smaller, harder-to-reach optics, Q-tips dipped in lens cleaner or LensPens can be handy.
Mirrors, however, have their own set of guidelines. Light dust layers on mirrors are best left undisturbed, as cleaning may cause more harm than the dust itself. But if the mirror becomes significantly dirty or encounters harmful substances like pollen or insect waste, a cleaning process involving tap water, mild dish soap, and a distilled water rinse will suffice.
If your telescope has electronic components, regularly check the batteries to ensure they aren’t leaking, which can damage the internal circuitry. For computerised telescopes, ensure that the firmware is regularly updated to have the latest features and bug fixes.
If you’re taking your telescope outside from a warm room in cold weather, give it time to acclimatise to allow the optics to cool to ambient temperature and provide sharp images. Avoid leaving your telescope under direct sunlight for extended periods, as this can heat and potentially damage the optics—or worse, with some open-tubed designs or without a lens cap, a ray of sunlight could actually strike the optics and be focused inside the telescope, potentially setting it or nearby objects ablaze.
If your observing location requires walking up or down stairs, or you can’t handle carrying something too heavy, or if you just decide you want to travel a lot with your scope, choosing a smaller one might be a better idea. 8″ Dobsonians are what we consider to be perfect in terms of the balance between portability and viewability.
While it’s amazing to peer through a large scope, it’s useless if it isn’t used. This goes for kids too. If you’re shopping for a telescope for a child, remember to choose something they can manage on their own.
A Few Frequently Asked Questions
Where should I buy telescopes from?
FirstLightOptics, 365Astronomy, Harrison Telescopes, Rother Valley Optics, and AstroShop are all trustworthy retailers of telescopes with excellent customer service.
Which telescope brand is better – Meade, Celestron or Orion?
Almost all of the major telescope brands make great products—and unfortunately, they all market irredeemable garbage at low price points, using their good reputations to fool newcomers. Brand loyalty or image should never be a factor in choosing a telescope or accessories.
How much is a decent telescope?
A decent telescope can cost as little as £100, but we recommend spending at least £200 for something good with no compromises. You get what you pay for.
Can you see galaxies with a telescope?
Any telescope can at least show you the Andromeda Galaxy, but the quality of your views and the number of galaxies depends on your telescope’s aperture, your light pollution and sky conditions, and your skill as an observer.
Are telescopes easy to maintain and service?
The most complicated things you’ll generally need to do to your telescope are collimate it (at least check every time you take it out) and clean the optics every few months or years. Collimation requires nothing more than a star and/or a collimation tool and is explained in our guide, while cleaning is generally little more than a rinse with distilled water (for mirrors) or cleaning with optical tissue and coating-safe lens cleaner or lens wipes (for lenses).
Why are Dobsonian telescopes considered the best?
Dobsonian telescopes have smooth and simple motions—up and down, left and right with no complicated equatorial coordinates or locks or levers. Their simple construction means they’re also relatively lightweight, cheap, and easy to assemble, meaning you can put your money and focus on the telescope tube itself. The Dobsonian’s Newtonian reflector optical design also provides you the most aperture for your buck, allowing you to see more of the Universe – and without the pesky chromatic aberration of a refractor.
Small, medium & large telescopes – what’s the difference?
Usually, when astronomers refer to amateur-sized telescopes, they lump them into several classes.
“Small” used to refer to telescopes of 6 inches of aperture or less, but the trend of larger and larger telescopes means that most astronomers today term “small” as being 8 inches of aperture or less.
“Medium” usually refers to telescopes with an aperture of between 8 and 13.1 inches. Larger amateur telescopes (almost all of which are Dobsonians) pretty much require truss tubes to be managed by one person and fit in an automobile.
“Large” is a confusing term because there is no set definition as to where it ends. Some people would call a 30” Dob a “large telescope”. However, we would term it to be anything between 14” and 22” in aperture. A 22” is about the largest one-person scope you can buy.
“Very large” usually refers to telescopes above 22” of aperture. Telescopes above 22” (with the exception of some very exotic and groundbreaking ATM builds) are simply not manageable by one person and seldom fit in a regular car or truck. They also typically cost over £10,000, so few tend to own them. The largest amateur-owned telescopes you typically see are 36” to 42” in aperture, but there are some 50-inch, 60-inch, and even two 72-inch amateur telescopes that either exist or are in development.