Still, you can get a high quality spotting scope for a great price if you are willing to sacrifice a few features. An affordable spotting scope should still provide a crystal clear picture and should be tough enough to work in the outdoors. The lenses should have some kind of coating and should of course provide a bright picture for the user. A spotting scope you can’t see well through isn’t exactly useful.
Below are our recommendations for the 4 best budget spotting scopes on the market. They’re affordable, well-build, and cheap only in price not quality.
Celestron Landscout
The Celestron Landscout is an affordable and powerful option that offers an all around excellent spotting scope. The Celestron Landscout is a variable scouting scope that offers a lot of power. If you are looking to see across the field, or across the state, this thing is for you. I may be exaggerating a bit, but the Celestron Landscout has a twelve to thirty-six power magnification. At 12 power you already looking through a pretty powerful lens, bumping up to 36 power and you’re approaching some serious power.
The Celestron Landscout also has a massive 60mm objective lens and is capable of providing enough light to see sufficiently across vast distances. The 60mm objective lens also works well to provide a wide field of view, even when maximized at 60 power. The optics are fully coated to provide a bright and clear picture, with little to no glare. Although this isn’t the smallest spotting scope, it is one of the lighter models—something hardcore outdoor enthusiasts will appreciate.
The Celestron Landscout is priced quite affordably, and comes with a rotating tripod mount that makes it easier steer the lens with. The Landscout has a large focus wheel, with a nice rubber grip that makes it easy to refocus after zooming in and out,. Looking through your scope gives you a bright, clear picture that gives you the ability to spot deer, birds, and enjoy a high definition view of the world around you. It’s one of the best budget spotting scopes period.
Emarth GOMU
The Emarth GOMU, or Gomu, is a versatile spotting scope that’s affordable and easy to use. The Gomu is plenty powerful for those who need a powerful optic for spotting large object far away, or small objects close up. The optic has a variable magnification that provides the user with a minimum 20 power of magnification, and a maximum of 60 power. This is a large range of magnification, and it takes a large spotting scope to provide that high level of power.
The Gomu (see full specs) does weigh nearly a pound and a half, and is rather long. This spotting scope is not friendly to the hunter who needs something quick and fast to use. The Gomu does, however, provide bird watchers, landscape enthusiasts, and naturalists a massive amount of power to see their environment. Shooters using this weapon in a stationary manner would be pleased with its ultra powerful magnification as well.
The Gomu uses a 45-degree eyepiece for comfortable viewing during an extended period of time. The optic has a 60mm objective lens that provides a large field of view at extended magnification. The optic itself is both water and fog proof, and is designed for heavy outdoors use. The Gomu is extremely powerful and a perfectly capable spotting scope.
Barska Colorado
You see that? That deer, way over there. You see it yet? Oh, you don’t? Well if you stepped behind the Barska Colorado, you’d have no issues seeing it. In fact, you’d be seeing that deer in high definition like it was right in front of you. The Barska Colorado’s 20 to 60 power magnification range gives you a wide magnification range and puts what’s out there right in front of you. The Barska Colorado gives you a clear picture of its target due to its fully multi-coated lens and its wide 60mm objective lens.
The Barska Colorado is also designed to last and last and last. Its rugged external housing makes the spotting scope waterproof, tough, and ideal for hunting, bird-watching, and target shooting. The Colorado has a nice rubber armor around it that’s a nice surprise with an optic that’s this affordable.
The Colorado also comes with a tripod and convenient carrying case so it’s ready to go out of the box. Once attached, the straight lens layout gives you a comfortable means to view the landscape. The Barska Colorado is a fantastic spotting scope that’s priced affordably low. Hands down, it’s one of the the best budget spotting scopes period.
Simmons Pro Sport
The Simmons Pro Sport comes from the same company that produces a wide variety of different Simmons optics. Simmons put a lot of their quality in their riflescopes and by extension their spotting scope. The Simmons Pro Sport offers a powerful level of magnification and is a variable spotting scope. The minimum magnification is 20 power with a max of 60 power. The objective lens is 60mms, which provides a wide field of view, and transmits a lot of light throughout it.
Looking through the optic gives you a bright and crystal clear picture—one that gives a stunning high definition picture. This optic is powerful enough for shooters to measure the bullet holes left in targets and gauge the necessary corrections they need to dial in on their scopes. The Pro Sport uses fully multi-coated optics that allows for clear light transmission.
The Simmons Pro Sport spotting scope functions well, and is easy to use. The controls are spot on, easy enough to move, but they won’t drift if bumped a bit. The pro Sport is 100 percent water and fog proof, and resists glare with an optional sunshade. The spotting scope comes with a small, but stout tripod, and carrying case, making you ready to go out of the box. This should be on anyone’s list of the best budget spotting scopes.
Spot On
Spotting scopes are simple devices that do a lot for the user and are commonly used by shooters to see their targets at extended ranges, and provide the necessary power to make corrections. Cheap spotting scopes nowadays are cheap in price only and are indeed high-quality optics that can be used by anyone from bird watchers to target shooters. And we hope you’ve found the best affordable spotting scope for your needs here. Good luck!
