Discover the best telescopes on Amazon and their discounts as we've rounded up several top savings on top models.
If you've ever looked for telescopes on Amazon, you'll know that there's a vast expanse of stock to trawl through. Fortunately, that means that the retailer is home to best telescopes and telescope deals and you'll even find some top budget telescopes under $500 there too. We've tried to include something suitable for everyone in this guide, regardless of budget and experience but the good news is, you don't have to break the bank in order to view the stars and beyond.
We've included some helpful buying advice at the bottom of this page but generally speaking, stick to manufacturers that you recognize or are market-leaders and if a deal seems too good to be true, it often is. We keep this page updated throughout the year so when new deals become available, we'll add them here. We'll also remove any expired discounts. If you're looking to inspire a budding astronomer, it could also be worth taking a look at our best telescopes for beginners guide.
While Amazon stocks a wide range of telescopes, if you want to look exclusively at top-end manufacturers, you should check out our specific guides to Celestron telescope deals, Sky-Watcher telescope deals, Meade telescope deals and Orion telescope deals. However, for the best deals on telescopes at Amazon, read on below.
Telescopes on Amazon: Today's best deals July 2024
Buying advice
When purchasing one of the telescopes on Amazon, or any telescope for that matter, you need to consider your budget and what you want to achieve from your stargazing experience. It can be worthwhile to wait for annual sales events like Amazon Prime Day or Black Friday, but you can still bag a bargain through the year. There are three main types of telescope and each has different advantages, so we've explained each one below - so you know what to look out for in your next scope. Alternatively, you can check out our best telescopes guide for more information.
Refractors
These telescopes are usually best for providing high-magnification views of targets like planets and the moon. They're also very easy to set up and maintain. Combine this with the fact that they usually retail for a lower price point and you can see why this is a popular option with beginners. They do tend to suffer from a visual problem called 'chromatic aberration', where bright objects in the sky appear to be surrounded by a halo. However, this shouldn't dampen the experience for any viewers.
Reflectors
With wider apertures, these types of telescopes are able to take in more light and therefore better suited for spotting fainter objects. They tend to be useful for views of low-magnification targets like galaxies and nebulas. Unfortunately, these types of telescopes can suffer from something called the 'coma' effect, where objects appear elongated instead of spherical/ circular. Again, though, this is a minor issue - and probably something you can get used to at this low price point.
Catadioptric
There are two main catadioptric designs: the Maksutov-Cassegrain and Schmidt-Cassegrain. Both types often come with a computerized GoTo system, which can work out your position and location - and align with night sky targets that you program into the device. They also usually fix the problems mentioned above (coma and chromatic aberration.) As such, they're also usually more expensive. Typically, you'll find that the Schmidt-Cassegrain designs have bigger apertures, and the Maksutov-Cassegrain sport smaller apertures, so the former is better for fainter deep sky targets and the latter will offer high magnification views.
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