5 Of The Best Cheap Soundbars, According To Consumer Reports

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Trying to find a soundbar that best suits your living space and TV-watching needs is a bit harder than you might think. First of all, there are dozens of soundbars to choose from, and no one system is the same as another. This is also a shared space where both TV manufacturers and dedicated audio brands compete to deliver the best products.

Soundbars aren't the cheapest home theater add-ons, either — on average, you can expect to spend $300 to $500 for a midrange system with good sound quality and a handful of connections. However, if you're okay with skipping out on more advanced features (e.g., Dolby Atmos spatial audio, or Wi-Fi connectivity), there are a number of lower-cost soundbars that punch above their weight class, as indicated by expert reviewers at Consumer Reports (CR).

Using CR's ratings as a starting point, we cross-referenced additional reviews and pulled out soundbars that retail for less than $350 and are worthy of consideration for one reason or another. That gave us this list of five relatively cheap soundbars that won't disappoint.

It's hard to talk about soundbars without mentioning Sonos. At one time, the audio manufacturer dealt exclusively in Wi-Fi music speakers, until that fateful day in 2013 when the Sonos Playbar hit shelves. Over a decade later, Sonos is still making soundbars, and the company's least expensive option is the $220 Sonos Ray. Consumer Reports singled out the Ray for its sound quality and versatility, and our friends at How-To Geek offered their own praise.

Reviewer Kris Wouk said the Sonos Ray had "great vocal and speech clarity" and that it "sounds much bigger than it looks." But the Sonos Ray is the company's smallest soundbar, and it's also one of the only models to ditch HDMI connectivity in favor of digital optical. That means it won't decode surround formats like Dolby Atmos or DTS:X, though it does support Dolby Digital 5.1, standard DTS surround sound, and stereo PCM.

You'll also be able to use the Sonos app to play music on the Ray, and you can group it with other Sonos products on your network. The app itself is actually required for setup, and the Ray can be connected via 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi or Ethernet.

Yamaha has always worn multiple hats, but as a soundbar manufacturer, we feel the brand doesn't get the attention it deserves. Consumer Reports apparently feels the same way, as the publication highlighted a few Yamaha bars in its ratings and reviews, and one of them is the $200 Yamaha SR-B20A. Delivering up to 120 watts at peak power, the SR-B20A has a sleek look and solid feel — at least according to What Hi-Fi.

This soundbar has been on the market since 2021, which is when WHF reviewed it. Connections include HDMI ARC, two digital optical, and Bluetooth. There's also an LFE output for hooking up a subwoofer, and an update-only USB port. The WHF team thought the SR-B20A brought great sound quality to the table and was surprised by how immersive the audio ended up being.

The SR-B20A can be wall-mounted, too, and WHF even suggested doing so, instead of placing the bar on a table. The reason? The main drivers all face toward the top of the system. The placement of the mounting hardware forces you to rotate the bar, which actually helps to improve its dynamics.

It's very common for TV manufacturers to make their own soundbars, and LG is no exception. Consumer Reports ranked and reviewed a couple of LG bars, and the one we'd like to focus on is the $349 LG S70TY. This is a 3.1.1 system, and that bump on the top of the bar is more than an aesthetic choice. It's actually a semi-recessed, up-firing speaker, which allows the S70TY to more accurately reproduce Dolby Atmos and DTS:X spatial audio.

PCMag was one of the lucky publications that got to test the LG S70TY, and it earned a rating of 4 out of 5 stars. Reviewer Will Greenwald was impressed by the system's balanced sound and hard-hitting subwoofer, and also liked that you can add LG's SPT8-S wireless rear speakers to make it a 5.1.1 soundbar. Connections for the S70TY include HDMI ARC, digital optical, USB, and Bluetooth. There's even an HDMI input if you want to use the bar for AV switching.

We appreciate customization whenever we can get it, and both LG's Soundbar and ThinQ apps unlock advanced settings for the S70TY, including eight unique audio presets and firmware updates when they're available. There's also a button on the soundbar remote for adjusting treble, mids, and bass levels.

Amazon is all in on home theater tech, offering everything from TVs and streaming devices to plug-and-play soundbars. As to the latter, Consumer Reports experts liked the $250 Amazon Fire TV Soundbar Plus and praised both its sound quality and ease of use. These compliments were mirrored by PCMag, with Will Greenwald claiming the system had "full, largely detailed sound."

One thing to keep in mind: This isn't a soundbar with built-in Fire TV capabilities, as the name may lead one to believe (if you're looking for a soundbar with built-in entertainment, check out the Roku Streambar SE). Classed as a 3.1 system, the Fire TV Soundbar Plus has an integrated woofer that dishes out decent low-end sound. And if you want more oomph, the Soundbar Plus can be purchased with a standalone subwoofer for $375.

The Soundbar Plus features standard connections like HDMI ARC, digital optical, and Bluetooth. While the bar is able to decode Dolby Atmos, it lacks up-firing drivers, which means you'll be relying on pure virtualization for height effects. Still, for $250, you could do a heck of a lot worse.

Cinematic sound doesn't always require an AV receiver and a bunch of speakers. There are plenty of soundbars that will virtualize a home theater system, without all the hassle of running speaker wire. One such product is the Onn 5.1.2 Surround Soundbar, another bar bundle that Consumer Reports recommends. We say "bundle" because the Onn 5.1.2 includes a wireless subwoofer and two wireless rear speakers — and the whole setup is only $200.

The Onn 5.1.2 isn't a slouch when it comes to connections either; it has HDMI eARC, an HDMI input, digital optical, 3.5 mm auxiliary, Bluetooth, and even USB for those who want to play audio from an external drive. Walmart shoppers came out in droves to share feedback on the Onn 5.1.2, and it earned a 4.4 rating out of 5 stars (based on over 1,400 reviews).

Rtings took the Onn 5.1.2 for a test drive and liked the fact that the system could decode Dolby Atmos (it also decodes DTS:X), even if its height effects aren't as convincing as other bars. Surround virtualization can get you pretty far, but considering the 5.1.2 footprint, it'd be cool if the actual soundbar had up-firing speakers.

Soundbars come in all shapes, sizes, and price points, and this roundup was all about honoring the latter. We selected soundbars from the Consumer Reports archive that we felt delivered great sound quality at a reasonable price, with bells and whistles as an afterthought. We also looked at professional, hands-on reviews for all the products featured, and made sure to highlight both pros and cons when applicable.