They are the simplest way to boost sound quality if you’re not planning on using headphones. There are countless on the market and while many cost hundreds, not everyone has that much to spend on a speaker. Luckily, there are loads out there that don’t cost the earth and still provide a decent amount of boom – and they’re not all unknown brands. We’ve featured Denon and Ultimate Ears (UE) here to name two. We’ve set a price limit of around £100 here but many of these Bluetooth speakers come in at under £50 if you have a tight budget. If you are looking for something a little more expensive and premium, head over to our best high-end Bluetooth speakers chart.
Best cheap Bluetooth speakers 2022
Your buying guide to the best cheap Bluetooth speakers
So, what should you look for when in the market for a portable Bluetooth speaker? See below for commonly asked questions and find out how we test audio.
Affordable Modern features 360 sound
No aptX or AAC codecs
For starters, it has an attractive and compact design with an IPX7 waterproof rating and easy to use buttons on the top. It’s slightly surprising to see both a USB-C port for charging and an aux input just in case you need it. There might not be aptX and AAC codecs but sound quality is good and like the UE Wonderboom 2, there’s a dedicated outdoor mode. It offers a 360-degree sound and really only lacks in the top-end due to there being no tweeters. The Uboom has Bluetooth 5 giving it good range and battery life is solid, too. Furthermore, latency is low making it suitable for video, there’s a microphone so for hands-free calls and you can create a stereo pair if you buy two.
Great sound quality Water-resistant Can pair two for stereo sound Affordable
Bass could be deeper Only comes in black
Punching well above its asking price, the Uboom L offers excellent sound quality over Bluetooth 5.0 thanks to two 55mm drivers and two passive bass radiators. The speaker comes in a compact form that’s IPX7 waterproof enough to immerse, too. Furthermore, you can pair two for stereo sound (though not for video usage), there’s a 3.5mm jack input and plenty of buttons for control. At 16 hours, better battery life can be found elsewhere but it’s still long enough that it shouldn’t make much of an impact on useage. The main shame is that no other colours are available.
Compact & durable design Solid battery life Excellent sound
No aux input
This is still very much pint-sized and now comes with two-tone fabric and new buttons. Namely, a playback button on the top which means you don’t need to fumble around for your phone when you want to pause or skip a track. Despite being tiny, the Wonderboom 2 has a lot of power and the battery life is even longer than before at 13 hours – that’s a 30% improvement. Being small, it’s not got the most bass around but that’s the nature of this kind of speaker and it’s still better than most rivals and its predecessor. You can pair two speakers together for a proper stereo pair if you like but the new Outdoor Boost mode is more interesting. This uses an equalizer to give you a sound profile more suited to outdoor spaces, where otherwise these speakers can struggle to cope and end up sounding muddy. There’s only really one thing that might put you off the Wonderboom 2 and that’s the lack of an aux input.
Portable & durable Integrated carabiner Powerful bass Affordable
No jack input No microphone No previous track
The palm-sized design has an integrated carabiner meaning you can clip it onto almost anything whether that’s a rucksack, bike or something else. The buttons are easy to use and the speaker now has an IP67 waterproof rating making it fully dunkable. The buttons are easy to use but it’s odd that you can’t go to the previous track with a triple-click. There’s also no microphone or aux input if that matters to your usage. However, solid sound quality is excellent and battery life is decent, too with USB-C now the port of choice. The affordable price makes this a worthwhile purchase.
Great connectivity Power bank feature Great sound
Slow charging
Not only is this rugged waterproof speaker capable of pumping out room-filling, 360-degree audio from its two 20W drivers, it can also function as a 6600mAh power bank for emergency recharging of your phone or devices, and let you connect to your phone’s voice assistant with a tap of its click wheel. For the money sound quality is outstanding, benefiting from Tronsmart’s own SoundPulse algorithm and a dual-passive radiator to deliver balanced and clearly defined audio, with no sign of distortion. And getting audio to the speaker couldn’t be easier, with support for microSD, USB flash drives and Bluetooth streaming. This upgraded model adds NFC connectivity, taking all the hassle out of pairing your smartphone. Battery life is also decent, offering up to 15 hours playback at 50% volume. Buy two and you can take advantage of wireless stereo pairing.
Very cheap Waterproof Easy to use
Lacks bass Not as powerful as rivals
We like the compact design which means the Play is super portable and is even IPX7 waterproof, which isn’t a given at this price point – the mesh just takes a while to dry out. It’s got easy to use buttons and the 360 design, like many others, means you can pretty much plonk the speaker down anywhere and it will still sound good. It’s got a 3.5mm aux connection but you’re better off making use of Bluetooth 5.0 which provides a decent wireless connection. You can also join two Muvo Play speakers together to create a stereo pair if you like. Creative offers decent punchy sound for not much money here thanks to a pair of full-range drivers and a couple of passive bass radiators. Although the speaker is suited well to a lot of music and podcasts, it does struggle a little bit at the bass end, only able to reach down to 70Hz – when human hearing goes to 20Hz. That’s really the only downside to this otherwise excellent speaker.
Extremely compact Waterproof Good bass
Slow charging Limited battery life Stap not adjustable
Its portable design means that it can fit in the palm of your hand with ease, and the fixed strap is also handy for attaching it to your bike should you wish. Plus with an IP67 waterproof & dustproof rating, you’ll be able to take it out and about in all weathers. You do however only get a Bluetooth 5.0 connection. The USB-C port is for charging only, and there’s no aux port. However, with an eight-hour battery life, a Bluetooth-only connection should suffice for most occasions. The sound quality is loud enough to fill a room, though if you’re hosting a large gathering we’d recommend purchasing two of these to use in stereo mode. Otherwise, this speaker is perfect for those who are on a budget and want a travel-sized speaker that doesn’t compromise on crisp audio.
Stylish Various input options Physical dials
No auto Bluetooth switching
Its wooden ends provide style and acoustic benefit and the three physical dials on top are useful. And you don’t only have to use Bluetooth as the D12 has other inputs making it ideal as a dual-purpose for those with something like a turntable. Sound quality is good but there’s no stereo field and the speaker can’t automatically switch between different paired Bluetooth devices.
Epic battery life Power bank feature Built-in light
Only splash proof Limited audio power
Roughly three quarters of the IPX4-rated rectangular speaker is taken up by the light, housed in plastic. The brightness is adjustable, providing everything from a soft glow to bright white light, although there’s no option to change the colour of the light. If Bluetooth isn’t for you, the rear of the speaker is where you’ll find ports for auxiliary connections, along with a charging port and a full-size USB port for charging smartphones and other mobile accessories while on-the-go. With a lithium-ion battery inside, the Lava BrightSounds 2 Bluetooth speaker and smart lamp can offer a whopping 36 hours of music playback. Despite the budget price tag, we had the Lava BrightSounds 2’s 5W ultra-wide stereo speaker on full-blast and didn’t hear a hint of distortion. It’s loud enough to fill a room with sound, and for a budget Bluetooth speaker, audio quality is more than acceptable with decent bass and a clear mid-range, although there’s a slight compromise at the top-end.
Compact, waterproof design Decent battery life Strong bass levels
Audio not as strong as rivals Micro-USB charging No aptX or AAC codecs
Its pocketable size (depending on the pocket) comes in different colours and benefits from a handy strap and IP67 dust/waterproofing, too. The simple trio of buttons can do more than you think, too. Bass is decent, especially considering the size of the GX-BT60 and you should get all-day battery (up to 13 hours). The low price does mean things like the older Micro-USB port and no modern codects like aptX. It’s definitely a nice feature to have, and one we actively look out for when buying new speakers. It was once exclusive to high-end speakers, but we’ve since seen it appear on a number of budget speakers. Also, it’s worth keeping an eye out for speakers that double up as portable battery chargers, as it’ll probably come in handy when using your smartphone to play music. Some speakers offer a wider range though, so it’s worth taking a look at the specifications of the speaker you’re interested in. Wi-Fi has a much wider reach, and could allow you to play music from anywhere in the house. With this being said, the Wi-Fi setup process can be quite stressful and require users to install a specific app on their smartphone in order to do so, whereas Bluetooth setup takes 30 seconds, even less if it supports NFC setup. This is especially true if you intend to play music from your smartphone via Bluetooth, as you’ll already have the media controls you need in your hand. While it doesn’t need an IPX7 rating to be used outside, it’s always a good idea to have some kind of protection against spills, rain, and general damage or you’ll quickly find yourself buying another! Tech Advisor’s Reviews Editor, Chris has been reviewing all kinds of tech for over 10 years and specialises in audio. He also covers a range of topics including home entertainment, phones, laptops, tablets and more.
