The right telescope mount can make a serious difference to your stargazing experience. You can have a powerhouse of a telescope, but if your mount isn't up to scratch, you are not making the most of it. That's why we have rounded up the best telescope mounts, to suit a range of budgets.
Now is a great time to level up your telescope mount, too, and get into some serious stargazing. Between now and May 27 you can catch the stunning Eta Aquarids meteor storm. Then, on April 27 there's a new moon, which will make the skies ever darker, perfect for constellation watching. Why not turn your scope towards Leo and see if you can spot the Leo triplet of M66, M65 and NGC 3628, a trio of distant galaxies? Or, for something closer to home, there's a full moon this May 12 which promises to be striking.
We have included motorized mounts in our guide which, with the touch of a button, can auto-home in on stars, nebula, planets and more. Or if you're starting entirely from scratch, we've also rounded up the best telescopes and best telescopes for beginners.
The Quick List
Best overall mount
A superb motorized go-to mount that punches above its weight, offering advanced features for the price.
Best heavy-duty mount
It may be on the expensive side, but this long-time classic remains a superb choice for heavy-duty use.
Best budget mount
This equatorial mount is a firm favorite among amateur astronomers. A true skywatching workhorse, it's available for a pleasingly low cost.
A fully motorized go-to mount, coupled with a massive database of objects, offering a great platform to start serious astrophotography.
Celestron's heavy-duty alt-azimuth tripod is an ideal entry-level mount for visual observers, and it won't break the bank.
A fully motorized go-to mount that can operate in both alt-az and equatorial modes, an excellent buy for more serious astronomers.
Best telescope mounts we recommend in 2025
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Best overall
Celestron's Advanced VX mount is a modern revision of their popular CG-5 mount and a direct competitor to the Sky-Watcher EQ-5. It offers an array of advanced features and a slightly increased payload capacity meaning larger optical tubes can be used. For example, Celestron offers this mount as part of a package with their popular C8 Schmidt Cassegrain for which it is well suited.
The slewing and tracking accuracy of the VX mount is also impressive and the control system is very user-friendly and easy to get to grips with. The polar alignment method available using the telescope software is easily accomplished and results in accurate alignment. Overall the VX mount is a great platform for most small telescopes and is one of the best available at its price point.
Best heavy-duty
The Losmandy G-11 mount is one of the most popular serious telescope mounts of the past few decades. Its superb build quality and great performance has garnered a loyal following over the years. The latest version offers dual-axis go-to slewing via the Gemini 2 system. It can also carry larger telescopes and is an ideal platform for serious astrophotographers.
Having been a long-time owner and user of the G-11 mount its flexibility, performance and build quality put it among the best serious mounts available. You can also order the mount with a high-quality polar alignment scope which allows fast and very accurate alignment for those who do not have a permanent observing site. Overall, a superb choice for the more serious or experienced observer.
Best budget
Sky-Watcher's EQ-5 mount has long been used by amateur astronomers worldwide. Its modest size, low cost and array of features have made it among the most popular small telescope mounts ever produced. It is one of the most popular entry-level equatorial mounts on the market. The EQ-5 also comes as part of many small telescope packages offering the option to purchase a complete telescope with a proper astronomical mounting.
Above is featured the manual version, but for an additional cost dual-axis motor drives can be added enabling a great platform with which to venture into trying astrophotography. An optional polar scope is also available for fast and accurate polar alignment. The EQ-5 is a highly capable portable mount and is easily capable of holding most small telescope tubes up to around 20cm aperture.
Best for features
The fully computerized version of Sky-Watcher's EQ5 mount represents a great mount to venture into the world of astrophotography with. Along with dual axis motor drives, it offers full go-to capability with a large object database. Multiple tracking rates are also available as is an autoguider port for long-exposure deep-sky imaging.
The EQ-5 performs best of all with small telescope tubes. Refractors below 5-inches (13cm) and reflectors below 8-inches (20cm) are the best fit for this mount. For example, it is perfectly capable of providing a solid platform for the highly popular 8-inch (20cm) Schmidt Cassegrain telescope. The EQ-5 is also highly portable and is an ideal choice for those without a permanent observing site.
Best for beginners
The Celestron Heavy Duty Alt-Azimuth tripod is an ideal entry-level mounting for binoculars or small telescopes. It offers manual slow-motion controls for fine adjustments and its standard camera tripod mounting bracket allows quick attachment of many small telescopes, binoculars or cameras.
Though the simplest entry of the six mounts we look at here, it's a sturdy and solid tripod that will nicely hold a small telescope in the 3-inch to 5-inch (7-13cm) aperture range. The addition of slow-motion controls is useful, especially for observing objects at higher magnifications. Overall, this is a nice low-cost mount for those just starting out, or anyone looking for a quick 'grab and go' mount for a small telescope or binoculars.
Best for serious astronomers
The AZ-EQ6GT mount is the latest incarnation of Skywatcher's much-used EQ6 mount. This mount has proven hugely popular over the past two decades, and this latest version offers some great features. The ability to operate in either equatorial or alt-azimuth works well and its decent payload capacity means many different telescopes can be mounted to it.
The mount also has a neat feature of the user being able to move the telescope around manually without the mount losing its positional information meaning it can be slewed using the motors or pushed by hand. The quote payload capacity is impressive and well above the entry-level mounts such as the EQ-5. The EQ-6, in any form, is a great choice for the more serious amateur astronomer and this latest version is a great addition.
Best telescope mounts FAQ
Damian A. Peach FRAS is a British amateur astronomer, astrophotographer, lecturer and author, best known for his photographs of a wide variety of astronomical objects.His images have been featured in Astronomy Magazine, Sky & Telescope, Astronomy Now & The Sky at Night. He has also authored articles on astrophotography for these magazines, and has also been a co-author on several professional scientific papers on planetary astronomy.
What type of mount should I buy?
There are different mounts to account for different types of skywatching and stargazing techniques, each with their own unique uses. The most common types are: Alt-azimuth, German equatorial, Fork mounted equatorial and Dobsonian. All of these types can be offered in manual, motorized, or computerized formats. The best choice depends upon your own observing requirements. For example, a manual mount such as a low-cost Dobsonian would be ideal for visual observing. For astrophotography, a motorized or computerized equatorial mount is desirable.
What is an alt-azimuth mount?
Alt-azimuth mounts are the most basic, offering a design whereby the telescope is moved in a horizontal or vertical motion to locate objects. These mounts can come in either manual or computerized formats. Typically most Dobsonian's are manual alt-azimuth mounts with fork-mounted Schmidt Cassegrains being computerized alt-azimuth.
What is a Dobsonian mount?
A Dobsonian mount is a type of mounting that is a variation on the alt-azimuth designed specifically for Newtonian reflecting telescopes. These are available in a simple manual push-pull design or fully computerized with object tracking and go-to.
What is an equatorial mount?
The German equatorial mount is probably the most popular telescope mount design for amateur size telescopes. The equatorial mount compensates for Earth's rotation by having one axis aligned to the celestial pole allowing a motor drive to move the telescope in sync with the apparent motion of the night sky. This allows the telescope to keep track of any celestial target for long periods, allowing astrophotography to be attempted.
What is a fork-mounted equatorial?
The fork-mounted equatorial is often found these days as an option for computerized Schmidt Cassegrain whereby the fork-mounted telescope will sit on a wedge allowing it to be aligned to the celestial pole.
What should you consider when buying a telescope mount?
Firstly, you need to make sure your telescope mount isn't massively under-sized as unstable mounts can be criminally frustrating. You also shouldn't go for anything that's considerably above your knowledge and experience level as, again, you could be left frustrated. Since a good mount that matches the size and weight of your telescope is vital, it's also important you don't blow your budget on the telescope. Investing in the mount itself can give you the stable and reliable stargazing experience you want, regardless of the money you've spent on the telescope.
Best telescope mounts: Comparison
Product | Rating | Mount type | Drive type | Best suited for | Maximum payload capacity | Mount head fit | What's included |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sky-Watcher EQ-5 Deluxe Mount and Tripod | ★★★★ | German Equatorial | None. Manual slow motion controls on both axes (motor drive optional) | Binoculars or small telescopes below 8-inches (20cm) aperture | 7kg | CG-5/Vixen dovetail | Mount head, tripod, and eyepiece accessory tray |
Sky-Watcher EQ-5 Pro GOTO Mount & Tripod | ★★★★ | German Equatorial | Dual-axis drives with full go-to capability | Small telescopes below 8-inches (20cm) aperture | 7kg | CG-5/Vixen dovetail fit | Mount head, tripod, and eyepiece accessory tray, computer drive handset |
Celestron Advanced VX GOTO Equatorial Mount | ★★★★★ | German Equatorial | Dual axis drives with full go-to capability | Small telescopes below 9-inches (23cm) aperture | 9kg | CG-5/CGE dual fit | Mount head, tripod, and eyepiece accessory tray, computer drive handset |
Celestron Heavy Duty Alt-Azimuth Tripod | ★★★ | Alt-azimuth | None. Manual slow motion controls on both axes | Binoculars or small telescopes below 5-inches (13cm) aperture | 6kg | Tripod fit 1/4-inch to 20 thread mounting bolt retained in the plate | Tripod, accessory tray and tripod head |
Sky-Watcher AZ-EQ6GT GOTO Dual Mount | ★★★★½ | Dual option Alt-Azimuth/German Equatorial | Dual-axis drives with full go-to capability | Small telescopes below 12-inches (30cm) aperture | 25kg | Dual fit 45mm and 75mm dovetail plates | Tripod, accessory tray and tripod head |
Losmandy G-11 Equatorial Mount | ★★★★★ | German Equatorial | Dual-axis drives with full go-to capability | Telescopes up to 14-inches (36cm) aperture | 28kg | Losmandy large dovetail fit | Mount head, heavy-duty tripod, computer drive and handset |
Summary
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Recent updates
Editor's note: Updated 4/22/25 to add details of April and May's meteor storm and the upcoming full moon.
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