The 5 Best Budget Soundbars - Fall 2024

The best budget soundbar we've tested is the Vizio V Series V51-H6. It's one of the only setups available at this price point with discrete satellites designed to improve the quality of 5.1 surround sound formats like Dolby Digital and DTS. It provides an immersive, cinematic feel with surround sound content, making you feel like you've dropped your couch right into the middle of the action. The added subwoofer also brings plenty of rumble in the bass for action-packed scenes. You'll have to wire the satellites to the subwoofer to get them to work, though, which isn't ideal for all living spaces.

The bar offers a great price-to-performance ratio, whether you're listening to music, movies, or TV shows. Its sound quality is especially impressive for the price, so voices and lead instruments in your favorite tunes are reproduced with clarity right out of the box. Dialogue is easy to follow, and Bluetooth compatibility makes it easy to stream podcasts, audiobooks, and other content from your phone. While it doesn't support Dolby Atmos content, this is common with bars in this price range. Overall, it's a great pick that won't break the bank.

If you don't have space for satellite speakers in your living room, check out the Samsung HW-B650. This soundbar has a dedicated subwoofer to improve its bass reproduction, but it's optional to add on satellites, making it a much better fit for smaller rooms. This 3.1 bar has a simple design similar to other models like the Samsung HW-B550, though it comes with an added center channel to improve vocal clarity in your favorite movies and TV shows. It's well-built, and customization tools like a graphic EQ are on hand to switch up its sound.

There is one major tradeoff when it comes to soundbars without rear speakers, and it's most evident when you playback 5.1 surround sound formats like Dolby Digital. Since the bar lacks dedicated surrounds, it has to downmix this content into stereo to play it. The resulting sound is much less clear and real, as the bar can't replicate the feeling of sound effects in the space around your couch. It's not a huge deal if you don't watch much of this content in the first place, but more avid movie lovers will find a better experience with surround speakers.

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 we've tested in the budget range is the Vizio M Series M213ad-K8. It has a unique trapezoidal design, and its 2.1 setup means it's ideal for listening to stereo content, including most music and TV shows. You get a clear sound right out of the box, making dialogue clear and easy to understand. It also supports multichannel formats like Dolby Atmos and Dolby Digital, though it has to downmix them into stereo to play them back.

Compared to the Samsung HW-B650, this soundbar can't reproduce as much low-bass, which is normal for a bar without a dedicated subwoofer. It's less noticeable if you mostly listen to content with little bass mixed in, like dialogue-centric TV shows and sitcoms, but it's not ideal for those who love bass-heavy EDM and hip-hop. The bass adjustment tool can bring a little more punch to the mix, but it can't adjust lower bass frequencies due to the lack of a subwoofer. Still, it may be a fair trade-off if you're low on space.

The Samsung HW-S60B/S61B is another great option for smaller living rooms. It's a standalone soundbar smaller than the Vizio M Series M213ad-K8 and less than 27 inches wide. That means it can fit beneath your TV or PC without an issue. While it's a little pricier than some of the other picks on our list, it's often on sale, and you may find it worth it since it offers impressive sound quality for only a few extra bucks. Built-in Alexa offers hands-free control.

This soundbar has great sound quality and many enhancement features to make the most of its sound. For example, you can access a graphic EQ to customize its sound. It supports many common audio formats, including 5.1 surround sound. It also supports Atmos, though it has to downmix this content into surround sound to play it. Without satellites, its sound isn't quite as immersive as with products like the Vizio V Series V51-H6. It also has fewer connections than bars like the Vizio M Series M213ad-K8, so without an HDMI In port, it can't support video passthrough. Still, for the size, this small soundbar packs a punch.

The Hisense HS2100 is the best-value soundbar we've tested if you want to spend as little as possible. While found just above 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 comes with 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 help you make the most out of it.

Compared to pricier picks, this bar lacks a lot of bells and whistles. While the bar can get loud enough to fill up a living room, there are compression artifacts at regular and max volume, which affects the clarity of your mixes. It also lacks satellites, so its surround performance isn't very immersive or dimensional. 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 streaming content or watching Blu-rays. If you watch a lot of Dolby Atmos movies and TV shows, try the TCL S45H. Unlike the Hisense, it can play this content, though it has to downmix it to stereo. It can get louder with less compression at max volume. On the downside, it doesn't have a sub, so your audio lacks deep thump and rumble.

If you're interested in other similarly priced soundbars, check out our recommendations for the best soundbars under $100.