Today's high-end tablets can reach £1000 with ease. That's not exactly budget-friendly...

Thankfully, there's also a decent selection of entry-level and mid-range tablets designed to give you taste of the tablet experience without breaking the bank.

With options from £50 to £400 and everything in between, we've got you covered with the best budget tablets available.

NOTE: The CoVID-19 pandemic has impacted industries around the globe. Online marketplaces and mobile phone makers are no exception. While we're doing our best to provide the latest information regarding pricing, prices listed below are subject to change as phone prices are fluctuating often based on supply, shipping costs, and demand.

Editor’s Note: This post has been updated for 2022


Best Tablets Under £100

You're probably thinking, "Can I really get a tablet for under £50?"

Yes, you can. Some budget options are shockingly good even.

At least for the price...

But before you drop your hard-earned money, we wanted to talk just a second about expectations.

While there are reliable picks at this price point, you will not want to use them to edit video or play the latest high-end games.

They’re mostly designed for streaming video, checking email, or surfing the web.

But if that’s all you’re looking for in a tablet, why spend more?

Amazon Fire 7 (2019)

Costing less than dinner and a movie with friends, the Fire 7 (2019) is one of the cheapest tablets available in 2020. But it makes a few compromises to hit that ultra-low price.

Reviewers all note that the tablet is sluggish. From long boot times to delays while installing or launching apps, the tablet isn’t for anyone in a hurry. That said, once things load, it runs along smoothly enough -- even when browsing media-heavy websites or playing basic games.

With 16GB or 32GB of storage, you’ll have plenty of room for a nice collection of your favourite apps and media. You can also add a microSD card to increase storage by up to 512GB.

With the smaller 7-inch display, the 1024-by-600 fares okay but it’s not exactly eye-popping. Reviewers found detail slightly lacking but did not complain of obvious pixelation or colour issues.

Like all Amazon tablets, you’re limited to the Amazon App Store. So, this means no official Google App support. If you were hoping to use the tablet to check your Gmail accounts or watch YouTube videos, you must stick to the browser. Otherwise, most popular apps are just a few taps away.

Learn More: Our Fire 7 (2019) Review
Price: Starting at £49.99 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon 

Lenovo Tab E7

Squeaking in just under the £50 mark, the Lenovo Tab E7 offers a budget-friendly option for those that want a more up-to-date software experience.

Unlike most budget tablets, you’ll find Android Oreo Go already installed instead of a version two or three versions old. This means fewer worries about app compatibility or security. This version of Android is also optimized for low-power tablets.

However, like most of the other budget picks, the tablet isn’t exactly speedy. Reviewers had issues with playing the latest games at full settings and apps take a few extra seconds to load up. Still, most found performance tolerable for the basic tasks such as checking email, streaming video, or surfing the web.

The tablet includes 8GB of storage with support for microSD cards up to 128GB if need more. There’s also full support for the Google Play Store. So you can use Google’s official apps such as Gmail and YouTube.

The weakest points of the tablet are the cameras and screen. While the cameras will take basic snapshots okay in bright lighting and serve well enough for video chats, that’s about it. The 1024-by-600 resolution is the lowest in this list of picks. There’s a good chance that if you have a mobile, it will have a much sharper screen.

Learn More: Our Tab E7 Review
Price: £59.99
Get it from: Amazon, Lenovo

Amazon Fire HD 8 (2020)

The Fire HD 8 (2020) is an ideal option if you’re looking for an affordable option to watch video or something you can hand the kids without worrying too much about replacement costs.

It’s not the fastest tablet in this line up -- or the largest. But for the quality on offer, the price is unmatched by anything else on the market. A new 2.0Ghz quad-core processor and increased 2GB of RAM also bring a bit more pep to this popular budget model than previous generations.

You get an 8-inch display running at 1280-by-800 pixels and 16GB of storage space for all your favourite apps, games, and media. You can even expand storage by up to 1TB with a microSD card. They even switched to USB Type-C, so you can probably charge it with the same cable you use for your phone.

Drawbacks are few for the price. The Amazon App Store lacks the massive selection you’ll find on Google Play or the iTunes App Store. Finally, while the tablet will do for video chat, the cameras are not ideal for anything else.

Learn More: Our Fire 8 HD (2020) Review
Price: Starting at £89.99 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon


Best Tablets Under £200

Amazon Fire HD 8 Plus

The Fire HD 8 Plus (2020) is probably one of the best deals out there for a budget-friendly media consumption tablet. 

It’s not the fastest tablet in this line up -- or the largest. But for the quality on offer, the price is unmatched by anything else on the market. A 2.0Ghz quad-core processor and 3GB of RAM give the tablet some of the best multi-tasking ability of the Fire series to date. 

You get an 8-inch display running at 1280-by-800 pixels and 16GB of storage space for all your favourite apps, games, and media. You can even expand storage by up to 1TB with a microSD card.

The tablet also supports wireless charging -- a feature you just don't see at this price. You'll need to buy a compatible wireless charger though as the tablet ships with a basic USB Type-C wall charger.

Drawbacks are few for the price. The Amazon App Store lacks the massive selection you’ll find on Google Play or the iTunes App Store. Finally, while the tablet will do for video chat, the cameras are not ideal for anything else.

Learn More: Our Fire 8 HD Plus (2020) Review
Price: Starting at £109.99 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon

Amazon Fire HD 10 (2019)

Featuring a higher 1080p resolution and larger display than the rest of the Fire line, the Fire HD 10 (2019) strikes a great balance between price and performance for those looking for an affordable yet capable tablet for watching video, playing casual games, checking emails, and other basic tasks.

The tablet offers 32 or 64GB of storage depending on the model you choose. You can further expand this by up to 512GB using a microSD card should you need more space.

As with the rest of the Amazon Fire line-up, the cameras are only so-so and suited more for video calls than actual photography.

However, in terms of performance, this tablet it near the top of the line-up, only potentially bested by the Fire HD 8 Plus. While it’s still not going to compete with an iPad, reviews indicate the tablet has no problems with light multitasking and the interface itself is snappy.

You’re still limited to the apps in the Amazon App Store. But for many, this won’t be a deal-breaker as most apps people use daily are already there. The glaring omissions are Google’s suite of apps -- including YouTube and Gmail. However, you can always use those services in the web browser instead.

Learn More: Our Fire HD 10 (2019) review
Price: Starting at £149 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0 (2019)

Samsung's Tab A 8.0 (2019) tablet offers terrific value for anyone looking for an affordable, basic Android tablet experience without all the changes Amazon makes on their Fire tablets. 

The screens on these tablets are TFT panels -- so don't expect the same screen quality you'd find on Samsung's popular Galaxy S phones. Otherwise, the specs are respectable for a budget-friendly tablet.

A quad-core processor offers enough power for everyday tasks and light gaming while the 8.0MP rear camera is there for quick snapshots if needed. The tablet even includes an aluminium chassis -- something you don't typically find at this price point.

Top things off with 32GB of storage for your apps and media, microSD card support, and a 3.5mm headphone jack, and you have a flexible option that won't blow your budget. There are even GSM models for use away from Wi-Fi. 

Learn More: Our Galaxy Tab A 8.0 (2019) Review
Price: Starting at £139 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon, CurrysSamsung

Lenovo Tab M8 FHD

With an octa-core processor, 8-inch full HD display, 32GB of storage, and a mostly stock version of Android 9.0, the Lenovo Tab M8 FHD is an excellent option for anyone looking for more performance than the average media-focused tablet and full access to Android without going for one of the top-tier models.

Reviews found it snappy enough for everyday use and even capable of some respectable gaming. The screen is large enough to enjoy your favourite media while still being small enough to slip in a bag or hold for long hours while reading.

In all, it's an excellent balance of affordability, performance, portability, and price for the average buyer.

Learn More: Our Tab M8 FHD Review
Price: £179.99 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Lenovo

Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2019)

Samsung's Tab A 10.1 (2019) tablet offers terrific value for anyone looking for an affordable, basic Android tablet experience without all the changes Amazon makes on their Fire tablets. 

The screens on these tablets are TFT panels -- so don't expect the same screen quality you'd find on Samsung's popular Galaxy S phones. Otherwise, the specs are respectable for a budget-friendly tablet.

A quad-core processor offers enough power for everyday tasks and light gaming while the 8.0MP rear camera is there for quick snapshots if needed. The tablet even includes an aluminium chassis -- something you don't typically find at this price point.

Top things off with 32GB of storage for your apps and media, microSD card support, and a 3.5mm headphone jack, and you have a flexible option that won't blow your budget. There are even GSM models for use away from Wi-Fi. 

Learn More: Our Galaxy Tab A 10.1 (2019) Review
Price: Starting at £199.99 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon, Currys, Samsung


Best Tablet Under £400

iPad 10.2 (iPad 7th Generation)

Reviewers consider the iPad 10.2 one of the best tablet deals available in 2020 hands down. The only tablet that can compete with it in terms of performance is the iPad Air (2019). And the rest aren't even close.

You'll also get a premium metal chassis, Apple's well-received Retina displays, Touch ID, and access to the massive selection of apps on iTunes. Throw in support for the first-generation Apple Pencil and Apple's Smart Keyboard and you have a tablet that can adapt to nearly any use. All of it for the lowest price iPads have ever seen.

If you don't mind Apple and have room in your budget, the iPad 10.2 is an excellent option for work, play, or entertainment.

Learn More: Our iPad 10.2 Review
Price: Starting at £349 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon, Apple, Currys

Galaxy Tab S5e

The Galaxy Tab S5e is an excellent option for anyone looking for a tablet ideal for enjoying movies, TV shows, or magazines with a nice size screen but also wants respectable performance when zipping between apps or playing the occasional game.

While the Galaxy Tab S5e isn't the most powerful option in the lineup, but it offers good enough performance for most users. It's also one of the only tablets in this lineup with an AMOLED display. This means you'll enjoy rich colours and excellent contrast when watching movies, viewing images, or playing games.

The included 64GB of storage is plenty for many users but support for microSD gives it one tiny edge over Apple in this price bracket, allowing for affordable, easy storage expansion.

Learn More: Our Galaxy Tab S5e Review
Price: Starting at £379 (At time of publishing)
Get it from: Amazon, Currys, Samsung


How We Picked

The picks in this roundup are what we think are the best budget tablets in 2020 based on prices.

We selected these models based on analysis of expert reviews from around the web, user feedback on sites like Amazon and other retail outlets as well as forum comments on our site, social media discussions, and more.

When answering the question, “What's the Best Tablet at this price range?”, we considered the following primary criteria:

 

Dependable Quality
A low-priced tablet doesn't help you save money if you have to constantly replace it. We picked tablets with a track record of dependability to help you save money upfront and over the longer term.

 

Respectable Performance
Budget tablets won't win any races compared to their higher-priced siblings. However, all of the tablets in this round-up are near the top of the benchmark charts for their respective price bracket.

 

Affordability
You can't have a roundup based on prices without considering them. We sorted popular models into common groups based on what we think the average person is looking for when shopping for tablets on the cheap.

 

Great Feedback
The way to find out what to expect from a tablet is from the people using them every day. If there's a problem, reviewers will usually let you know in a hurry.

All of our picks feature a range of positive reviews across multiple sites to ensure that information is as accurate as possible.

We compared the things most people consider when choosing a budget-friendly tablet.

In short, we did the research—so you don’t have to.


Recap: Best Budget Tablets


Still Not Sure?

While there's not a single budget-friendly tablet perfect for everyone, this roundup proves you don’t need to spend a fortune to get a reliable tablet.

However, you need to understand the limitations of budget-friendly tablets and temper your expectations accordingly.

Tablets at £100 or £200 won't truly compete with an iPad or offer a flawless experience. There will always be compromises. However, by using this guide as a reference, you can find an affordable tablet that makes the right compromises to keep you happy without breaking the bank.

You can also compare these picks and more side-by-side using our tablet comparison tool to help limit your options further and find the perfect pick for you.

Disclosure: You should know that in some cases, we may receive a referral fee (at no additional cost to you) for products purchased through the links on our site. These links help support our work but they do not influence our content. Our editorial recommendations are always genuine and we try to feature only the best products and services. Why trust us?