The 5 Best Budget Soundbars Under $100

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For viewers who have made a significant investment in a smart TV or in a broader home theater setup, a soundbar may already be a part of the way you watch. Many of the best soundbars make a great pairing with a quality smart TV. But if there's room for improvement when it comes to your setup's audio playback, you may have little budget left to expand things. This may also be the case for TV viewers who simply don't want to invest heavily in their watching habits for one reason or another. The good news is that adding peripheral equipment such as a soundbar doesn't have to break the bank.

In fact, purchasing a soundbar can be one of the cheapest ways to upgrade your TV setup. We've previously taken a look at a number of soundbars that are less than $200, but here we've decided to see what's available for even less. We've given ourselves a budget of just $100 and have scoured the shelves of major retailers to narrow things down. We have hands-on experience with numerous soundbars and have applied that knowledge to the options within our price range in order to select some soundbars that offer quality features despite such attractive price points.

One of the first things to do with a smart TV is to ensure you're getting quality audio out of it. Pairing one with the Insignia 2.0-channel soundbar is an opportunity to add a dedicated audio playback device at very little cost. Best Buy sells this soundbar for just $60, and it's one of the best balances of affordability and sound quality we came across when researching for this article. It has numerous connectivity options, including ARC and digital optical audio in addition to Bluetooth.

Overall, the Insignia 2.0-channel soundbar has received a review score of 4.5 out of 5 stars at Best Buy, and a number of reviewers rave about its sound quality. It comes with four different audio modes that tailor audio playback to different kinds of content, as well as adjustable treble and bass levels through a built-in equalizer. It even includes wall mounts for those who want to deeply integrate it into a viewing setup.

While this soundbar does include wireless connectivity with your TV, it's not able to connect to other peripheral audio equipment in such a way. It's meant mostly to handle audio playback on its own, so it's likely best for those who simply want to improve their TV's audio quality rather than implement an entire home theater setup.

Philips has been a recognizable name in the home audio space for decades, and with the Philips B4208 2.0-channel soundbar the brand offers some quality features for just $89. This soundbar has a 60 W max output, a built-in equalizer, and multiple audio modes that can be adjusted to suit what you're watching. It also can connect to your TV over HDMI ARC, which gives you control of the soundbar with your TV's remote control.

The soundbar does come with a remote control of its own; however, should you prefer to pair it with a phone for music playback, or with any other mobile device, it connects wirelessly over Bluetooth 5.3. It's designed to be unobtrusive, so it can be placed in a number of different locations rather than simply beneath a television. Setup is meant to be simple, and Philips has even made this soundbar fully compatible with Roku TVs.

While the B4208 does offer some quality features for its price, it has only received an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars at Amazon. The overwhelming majority of customers speak highly about it, with 85% of them giving it a favorable review, but there are some who've found this soundbar underwhelming in terms of its sound quality.

TCL has become known for making a number of budget-friendly devices, and while the TCL S45H 2.0-channel soundbar isn't necessarily among the best cheap soundbars, it does have a lot to offer. At its regular price of $130, it does exceed our budget, but it remains a worthy consideration because it's a soundbar that sees hefty discounts at Amazon regularly. Rarely is it ever sold at its regular price at Amazon, and according to the website's price history tool, it hasn't sold for over $100 at any point during the last year.

When it comes to audio quality, TCL has loaded the soundbar with up to 100 W of total output, as well as features like Dolby Atmos and DTS Virtual:X Sound. Spatial Audio is also included, which can make watching movies and sports incredibly immersive. This is one of the more feature-packed soundbars we could find in this price range. It even has AI integrations that can evaluate the physical space the soundbar is in and adjust audio output accordingly.

While you may have to plan your purchase timing in order to pick up the TCL S45H for less than $100, it comes incredibly well-regarded by Amazon customers. An impressive 71% of reviewers give it a perfect 5-star rating, and overall, 92% of reviewers give it a favorable rating.

Most budget soundbars don't offer much more than an upgrade to your TV's audio quality. Things like creating a vibe for karaoke night are among the cool stuff a soundbar can do, and with its built-in LED lighting, the Onn 2.1-channel soundbar is certainly made to enhance atmosphere. Along with its two internal speakers and a built-in subwoofer, it offers six different light modes and the ability to do more than simply blend in with your viewing setup.

In addition to the unique lighting feature and 2.1-channel audio, this is one of the most affordable soundbars on the market. It's available at Walmart for just $40, and the low price point doesn't eliminate any of the typical features soundbars in this price range come with. The Onn 2.1-channel soundbar provides optical and USB connectivity along with Bluetooth wireless.

This soundbar has amassed more than 7,500 ratings at Walmart, and just 11% of customers there think poorly of it. Some reviewers note that the lighting may appeal more to younger users, and others are unhappy with the soundbar's audio quality. But at just $40, it's not much of a risk, and several other reviewers make note specifically of the value this soundbar offers with such a low price point.

Coming in right at the $100 mark is the Westinghouse 2.0-channel soundbar. Its feature set compares well with the other budget soundbars we've looked at, as it has plenty of connection ports, including HDMI ARC to control the soundbar with your TV remote. But it also has Dolby Atmos and Dolby Digital Plus, which provide better sound direction and create a spatial listening environment that makes watching everything a little more immersive.

For those looking to pair the soundbar wirelessly, it includes Bluetooth connectivity — and for those who own a Roku TV, Westinghouse has made it Roku-ready. While it only utilizes two speakers, the soundbar does have a max output of 120 W spread equally across each of them. As is the case with the other soundbars we've looked at here, the Westinghouse 2.0-channel soundbar is capable of pairing with mobile devices and computers for use with music and even online media you may be browsing.

Any soundbar priced at under $100 is going to have its limitations somewhere, and while nothing immediately stands out about the Westinghouse 2.0-channel soundbar, next to more expensive options, it isn't likely to hold up in terms of audio quality. But most purchasers at Amazon have great things to say about it, including several that mention their expectations were exceeded. The soundbar has a total overall rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars, and 87% of reviewers give it a favorable rating.

Since our focus here was strictly on soundbars priced under $100, that ceiling came first in narrowing down options. We applied our own knowledge of what's beneficial in a soundbar to the options within that price range, and started picking out the soundbars with the best available features. Because we don't have direct hands-on experience with the specific selections we were left with, we leaned on customer reviews for that kind of input. Our selections are meant to be a solid combination of brand recognition, feature sets, and audio improvement over the speakers that come built into TVs on the more affordable end of the spectrum.