Equipping your home theater system with speakers can cost a fortune. Thankfully, you don't have to break the bank to find a decent soundbar that can make watching TV or movies more exciting. Even some of the cheapest soundbars perform well, especially if you watch a lot of dialogue-heavy content like TV dramas or listen to podcasts or audiobooks at home. Whether you're looking for a soundbar with a subwoofer for watching action movies or a small soundbar that'll fit under your TV, there's something for everyone in the budget range.
We've tested over 250 soundbars; below, you'll find the best soundbars in the budget tier. See our recommendations for the best soundbars, the best soundbars under $200, and the best soundbars under $300. You can also check out our picks for best budget TVs if you're looking to buy a set.
Our recommendations are built upon our thorough testing and rigorous reviews. Every soundbar we evaluate goes through multiple testing stages with different teams to ensure accurate, authentic results. No cherry-picked units or data.
Curious how we've tested over 200 soundbars (and counting)? Look at our How We Test Soundbars article for a behind-the-scenes look at our lab and process.
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Best Budget Soundbar
The Hisense AX5140Q is the best budget soundbar we've tested. This 5.1.4 setup offers excellent value for money, with a dedicated subwoofer, two discrete satellites, and four up-firing drivers: a combination that works well for movies, music, and TV shows. The bar's balanced sound helps bring out your favorite singer's voice in live concert films, while the satellites make 5.1 content sound more immersive. The bar also features extensive sound enhancement features you usually find in more expensive setups; there's a graphic EQ, independent channel-level adjustments, a night mode, and even dialogue enhancement. Still, you'll miss out on room correction unless you have a supported Hisense TV, though we didn't find the feature made too much difference in our testing room.
The bar supports formats from both Dolby and DTS families, including object-based Dolby Atmos. That said, if you're a fan of towering basslines and sub-bass rumbles, you might want to look at the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus with Sub + Speakers. It's a 5.1 setup that lacks up-firing drivers, though, so you won't get the same sense of verticality you get from the Hisense. It also fluctuates quite a bit in price, so it's worth looking at when it's on sale.
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Best Budget Soundbar Without Satellites
If you don't have space for satellite speakers in your listening room, check out the Samsung HW-B750F. This 5.1 setup drops the extra rears and up-firing drivers you get with the Hisense AX5140Q, but still delivers an engaging listening experience. Instead of relying on satellites, it uses side-firing drivers that bounce sound off your walls to create a 'phantom' speaker. Plus, the dedicated center driver and subwoofer ensure dialogue stays clear even during crowded scenes, and sound effects like explosions feel suitably rumbly, respectively.
Out of the box, this soundbar has a balanced sound with a touch of extra warmth and punch, making it versatile for music, movies, and TV shows. As is common among budget-tier soundbars, you won't find premium extras like room correction, so performance changes depending on your space, but adjustable bass, treble, and subwoofer levels let you make some adjustments. Unlike our top pick, this bar doesn't support object-based formats like Dolby Atmos. Still, the Samsung soundbar is a good all-around pick for most users who just want a straightforward, space-saving, budget-friendly option with a sub.
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Best Budget Standalone Soundbar
Living in a studio apartment? Low on space? A standalone soundbar is a good alternative since it packs sound into an all-in-one package. The best budget standalone soundbar we've tested is the Sonos Beam (Gen 2). Its 5.0 channel setup means it can playback immersive formats like Dolby Digital, and it even supports object-based audio formats like Dolby Atmos, though it has no height drivers. At under 25 inches wide, it fits easily beneath most TVs with bipedal stands, like those from Sony, and takes up even less space than a bar with a bundled subwoofer like the Samsung HW-B750F. Of course, the lack of a sub means it won't produce deep, room-shaking bass, but most other content is well reproduced. Vocals sound clear and present right out of the box, and the high bass has enough warmth to compensate for the lack of low bass.
Feature-wise, it shares much of what makes Sonos's premium models appealing. You can use the Sonos app to link it with other products in the ecosystem, and the TruePlay room correction tool automatically tunes audio to your space. Room correction is limited to iOS devices, but Android users can still access basic bass and treble adjustments. If you're an Android user looking for greater sound customizability or want a bar with Bluetooth and Chromecast support, the Samsung HW-S60D is a great alternative to the Sonos. It's similarly sized and often cheaper than our pick, but its soundstage isn't as wide.
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Best Cheap Soundbar
The Hisense HS2100 is the best-value soundbar we've tested if you want to spend as little as possible. At around the $100 price point, it's a solid choice if you're looking to upgrade from your TV speakers to something with a bit more punch and boom. Unlike other bars at this price point, it has a dedicated subwoofer, which helps add bass to action-packed scenes and energetic basslines. Dialogue and instruments are still reproduced naturally, although they lack a bit of sparkle. Luckily, if this sound isn't to your taste, there are a few EQ presets to try out.
While the bar can get loud enough to fill up a larger room, the bar overemphasizes the treble at higher volumes, which can render shattering glass as piercing or harsh. Unlike our top pick, the Hisense AX5140Q, it also lacks satellites, so its surround performance isn't very immersive. That said, it has ARC and Optical support, and you can even play Dolby Digital and DTS formats, the latter of which is handy if you're watching older Blu-rays.
If you're interested in other similarly priced models, check out our recommendations for the best soundbars under $100.
Notable Mentions
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Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 5:
The Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 5 is a soundbar-plus-subwoofer setup like the Samsung HW-B750F. It has a more limited channel 3.1-channel count compared to the Samsung's 5.1-channels, but it supports a wider range of audio formats via HDMI eARC and has a room correction feature.
See our review -
Roku Streambar:
The Roku Streambar is even smaller than the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) for small spaces, but it compromises more on sound than the Sonos. However, for dialogue-heavy content and stereo audio, it's a small standalone that works well and comes with a lower price.
See our review
Recent Updates
Jul 30, 2026:
We've made minor text changes to the article and streamlined the Notable Mentions to provide clearer purchasing guidance. Our picks remain the same as they're still in stock and relevant.
May 28, 2026:
We've added the Sony BRAVIA Theater Bar 5 to our Notable Mentions and added links to various TV articles. We verified that the other picks are still in stock and relevant.
Mar 20, 2026:
We've updated this article, replacing the Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus with Sub + Speakers with the Hisense AX5140Q as our top pick due to price fluctuations. Otherwise, we've made minor changes to the text throughout.
Jan 20, 2026:
The Hisense AX5140Q was added to the Notable Mentions. Otherwise, the article has been checked for accuracy, and no additional changes have been made.
Sep 26, 2025:
The Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus with Sub + Speakers is our new top pick for strong performance across the board at a budget price. If you want dedicated up-firing drivers, the Vizio Elevate SE SL512X-0806 is a good alternative to the Amazon. The Samsung HW-B750F is our new choice for top bar and sub without satellites, and the Sonos Beam (Gen 2) is our new budget standalone soundbar pick, with the Samsung HW-S60D an alternative for anyone prioritizing wireless connectivity. We also removed the 'Best Budget Small Soundbar' pick, as that's covered by the 'Best Budget Standalone Soundbar' pick. Finally, we removed the Sony HT-S100F and Vizio SV510X-0806 from our Notable Mentions.
All Reviews
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best budget soundbars for most people to buy. We factor in the price (a cheaper soundbar wins over a pricier one if the difference isn't worth it), feedback from our visitors, and availability (no soundbars that are difficult to find or almost out of stock everywhere).
If you'd like to choose for yourself, here's the list of the best value soundbars. Be careful not to get caught up in the details. No soundbar is perfect. Personal taste, preference, and listening habits will matter more in your selection.