I get asked weekly which cheap tablet someone should buy for their parent, their kid, or their kitchen counter. So I lived with five sub 350 dollar tablets for a month each. I used them for ebooks, video streaming, occasional Zoom calls, and light productivity. Here is what stood out.
Budget tablets have improved a lot, and most people do not need anything pricier than what is below.
Quick comparison
| Tablet | Display | RAM | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apple iPad 10th Gen | 10.9 in 2360x1640 | 4 GB | Best overall budget tablet |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ | 11 in 1920x1200 | 4 GB | Best Android pick |
| Amazon Fire HD 10 | 10.1 in 1920x1200 | 3 GB | Cheapest streaming tablet |
| Lenovo Tab P11 Gen 2 | 11.5 in 2000x1200 | 4 GB | Best display under 250 dollars |
| Microsoft Surface Go 3 | 10.5 in 1920x1280 | 4 GB | Windows for light work |
Apple iPad 10th Gen
Yes this technically starts at 349 dollars on sale and is the most expensive budget pick, but it is the one I would buy for almost anyone. The A14 chip outpaces every other tablet in this list by a wide margin. The 10.9 inch screen looks better than the spec sheet suggests. iPadOS gets years of updates so it stays useful for a long time. Trade off, the base 64 GB storage is small, pay attention to that when buying.
Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+
For around 220 dollars the Tab A9+ is the best Android tablet under 250. Snapdragon 695 chipset handles streaming, browsing, and split screen apps without stutter. The 11 inch 90 Hz LCD looks smooth scrolling through long articles. Quad speakers are tuned by AKG and they sound much better than I expected. Samsung promises 4 years of security updates, which is rare for a tablet at this price.
Amazon Fire HD 10
If you only need a tablet for Kindle, Prime Video, and Netflix, the Fire HD 10 is unbeatable on price, often under 100 dollars on Prime Day. The screen is fine for video, the speakers are weak but okay with headphones, and battery life hit 11 hours in my mixed use test. The catch is Amazon’s locked down Fire OS, which makes installing standard apps a chore. Buy it for streaming, not for general use.
Lenovo Tab P11 Gen 2
The P11 Gen 2 has the nicest display in this group under 250 dollars. The 2K 11.5 inch panel is sharp and the four JBL tuned speakers fill a kitchen with podcast audio without distortion. The MediaTek chip is slower than the Samsung but fine for everyday browsing and video. Lenovo has improved their software support but it is still not as long as Samsung. Good pick if screen quality matters most.
Microsoft Surface Go 3
If you need actual Windows on a tablet, the Surface Go 3 is the only sub 400 dollar option that does it. Real desktop Chrome, real Word, real Excel. The Pentium Gold version is slow, do not buy it, get the i3 model which actually keeps up with everyday work. Attach the keyboard cover and it becomes a usable mini laptop. Battery life is the weakest of this list at around 7 hours real world.
How to choose
For most people, the iPad 10th Gen is worth the slight stretch over Android options because of software support. If you are firmly in the Android camp, the Galaxy Tab A9+ is the best buy under 250 dollars. Pick the Fire HD 10 only if you live inside Amazon services. The Lenovo wins if screen quality matters and the Surface Go 3 i3 is the only choice for Windows on a budget tablet.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best budget tablet for reading?+
The Amazon Fire HD 10 and Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ are the best for reading because both have low blue light modes and decent screen sizes for ebooks and PDFs.
Can budget tablets run apps like Microsoft Office?+
Yes, the Office mobile apps run fine on tablets with 4 GB of RAM or more. Heavy editing of large spreadsheets feels slow on cheaper models with less memory.