5 Of The Best Modern Cassette Players You Can Buy

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While most people rely on streaming for their music nowadays, there's a growing interest in older audio forms like iPods, CDs, and even cassette tapes are making a comeback. These formats aren't just nostalgic. They can provide an escape from the modern world, allowing you to enjoy music on devices that can't disrupt your listening experiences with message notifications and the latest breaking news alerts. There are even companies offering new cassette players that combine old-school charm with modern tech.

When looking for a modern cassette player, it's important to remember that other formats like CDs have better audio quality than cassettes, at least in technical terms. Additionally, new devices will sometimes eat your tape, requiring you to gently remove it from the player and wind the ribbon back in with a pencil. For many users, though, the quirks and inferior sound quality are a plus; even the best portable cassette players audiophiles should know about are more about charm than fidelity. Plus, if you want to make your own mixtape the old-fashioned way, most tape players can also record audio. The five devices listed here range from portable budget players to feature-rich, multiformat home stereos, with options that fit different budgets and styles.

If you want a basic, budget cassette player, go with the TOMASHI Portable Cassette Player, available on Amazon for just $19.99. It has 4 stars based on over 2,000 ratings, as well as the Amazon's Choice label given to low-price, high-quality, and readily available products. The player runs on two AA batteries and has a built-in speaker and a 3.5mm headphone jack, so you can use your favorite (wired) headset. It also has a built-in microphone and a port to plug in your own.

The TOMASHI Portable Cassette Player isn't anything fancy, but it is incredibly portable. It's not much larger than a tape and weighs under half a pound (without a tape in it), making it smaller than and similar in weight to most smartphones. However, given its low price, it's certainly not a top-of-the-line cassette player. For one, it's mono (single channel) rather than stereo (multidirectional), so you're getting a less dynamic sound off the bat. Unsurprisingly, some Amazon reviews say the device isn't super durable, either.

Still, plenty of others say they're satisfied with their TOMASHI, praising its portability and simplicity. If you're looking for a budget cassette player or want to see if you're going to use it before investing in a pricier one, this is a good starting point.

If you're willing to spend a little more on a portable tape deck but still want something simple, the FiiO CP13 Cassette Player comes highly recommended by Reddit users and Forbes. At $87.99 on Amazon, it's a good amount more than TOMASHI's device, but it justifies that in quality. The CP13 has a reproduced JRC5532 op-amp, an amplifier favored by audiophiles for its low distortion and high output power, and a rechargeable 1800mAh lithium battery that can last for 13 hours of continuous play and 268 days of standby time.

The FiiO CP13 also has a cool aesthetic with its clear front that allows you to watch your cassette as it spins. A lot of old tapes have a basic (but nostalgic) look, but because modern cassettes are more niche and often special edition, plenty have nice designs that you wouldn't be able to enjoy in a more opaque player. The cassette player has 4.2 stars on Amazon, with 79% of customers rating it 4 stars or higher. Users like the CP13's overall appearance and battery life, earning several comparisons to a classic Walkman. With its transparent front and little hissing, the FiiO CP13 is a good option for anyone who wants a cassette player that's stylish and sounds great.

Another popular portable option comes from We Are Rewind, which offers a sleek and sturdy cassette player on its own website and Amazon. It comes in four colors — orange, black and yellow, gray, and blue — all of which cost $159.99. That may sound pricey considering that you can get a nice player like the FiiO CP13 for almost half the price, but the French company has received high praise for its cassette player's audio quality and battery life.

Unlike the previously mentioned devices, We Are Rewind's cassette player has Bluetooth support, so you can connect it to headphones and external speakers. The added flexibility is nice, especially if you want to take it out with you, though several reviews say the Bluetooth is difficult to connect and lowers the volume compared to wired headphones. It's also worth noting that, at 5.54 x 3.5 x 1.2 inches and nearly one pound, it's heavy and bulky compared to a smartphone.

Those flaws aside, users are generally satisfied with We Are Rewind's player. Though it comes with a mini pencil for twisting your tapes back into place, Wired says the player went an entire year without eating a tape. Though it's not cheap, We Are Rewind Portable's portable cassette player is a durable, high-quality way to listen to tapes that's worth the investment.

If you want a music player that can really do it all, you can try the Victrola Navigator 8-in-1 Wood Record Player, available on Amazon for between $149.99 and 249.99 depending on color. The music center can play cassettes, CDs, vinyl records (33 ⅓, 45, and 78 RPM), and radio, as well as stream music through Bluetooth, USB, and AUX, making it great for anyone who'd rather have one machine for all of their music formats rather than having individual players.

I've had my Victrola Navigator for around a decade now, and though I'm not an audiophile, I've been very happy with it. It looks lovely on a table, and it's allowed me to amass a physical music collection of new and old cassettes, CDs, and records. With the player's Bluetooth functionality, I don't need any other music player, saving space in my small apartment.

That said, this is a jack-of-all-trades but master-of-none scenario. If you're not too picky about sound quality, the convenience is worthwhile, but if that's your priority, you should get a dedicated cassette or CD/cassette player instead. Some users say the player will ruin your vinyl, but I've never had that happen despite using it quite a bit. With 4.4 stars on Amazon based on nearly 20,000 reviews, I'm not alone in loving the Victrola Navigator for what it is, even if it may not hold up to intense scrutiny.

Dual tape decks are harder to find than portable and multiformat players, but they're the most efficient way to make mixtapes. That's because these have independent mechanisms that let them play one tape while recording the audio to a blank one. The TEAC W-1200 Double Cassette Deck Player, available on Amazon, is a great way to add a tape deck to your home audio setup.

The TEAC W-1200 is pricey at $599.99, but it's a worthwhile investment if you want high-quality audio and modern features that vintage players lack. In addition to its play and record options, the cassette deck has a USB output so you can digitize audio from your tapes. It also gives you more ways to control your listening experience with a noise reduction system (that you can turn on and off) and a pitch control knob that changes playback speed.

The TEAC W-1200 Double Cassette Deck Player is an Amazon's Choice product with 4.5 stars, though that's only based on around 150 user ratings. Still, reviews indicate that buyers are happy with the machine. Several reviews praise the sound quality, with even audiophiles saying it's the best cassette player you can get nowadays. The main drawback here is that $600 price tag, but the TEAC W-1200 is ideal for anyone who's serious about cassette tapes and high-quality audio.

Since there are various kinds of cassette players out there these days, from dedicated tape players to multifunction stereos capable of several audio formats, we started by considering what people may be looking for out of a new device. We also considered what makes a cassette player one of the best and breaking that down into a couple of categories.

As for specific products, we looked for ones with good reviews on Amazon and from trusted outlets. Sound quality was, of course, an important consideration. However, given the nature of cassette tapes, it wasn't as high a priority as it would be for something like hi-fi gadgets for audiophiles. After all, the inferior sound can be part of the charm. Finally, we made sure to find products in different price ranges so there's something for every budget.