Rich Owen
Our round-up of the best budget action cameras is designed to help you capture all your outdoor adventures, without burning a hole right through your pocket. All of the cams that appear here have been chosen because they offer excellent value for money.
And a lower price tag doesn't mean you have to sacrifice all the best features – trickledown technology means some of our line-up boast top-of-the-range features the likes of which used to be the preserve of the priciest models only – we're talking 4K60FPS video, in-camera image stabilisation, hyperlapse video modes, HDR photography, and more.
For the most advanced models, you'll need to consult our ranking of the best action cameras (currently topped by the outstanding, but admittedly expensive, GoPro HERO 11 Black). But if your budget won't stretch that far, or your needs don't warrant such an expense, the cheap action cameras you'll find here are also extremely impressive.
Market leader GoPro exceeds its own extremely high bar with each new release, but older GoPros are still massively capable, and more likely to attract a GoPro deal too. Even the brilliant GoPro HERO 10 Black can be found for a reduced price, now the HERO 11 is out. And that's not the only action camera line worth a look, though, and there are plenty of great GoPro alternatives in our ranking – one of the key brands to look out for is Akaso – many with unique USPs that might suit your needs even better.
If you need more guidance, head to the bottom for tips on what to look for in terms of specs and features. If not, read on for our pick of the best cheap action cameras to buy now.
The best cheap action camera to buy now
The best cheap action camera around right now is the GoPro HERO 7 White. This nifty cam was originally released in October 2018 as a budget companion to the then-flagship HERO 7 Black. While it's a far cry from the current best GoPro, the HERO 7 White still delivers some impressive action cam tech in a streamlined – and crucially very wallet-friendly – package.
The H7 White is compatible with most GoPro accessories, including the brand's extensive mount and housing range, although unlike the newer GoPros, there's no 'bunny ear' mounting system built in, so you'll need to pop your cam into a frame before you can mount it to anything. The camera is also shock- and waterproof to 10 metres. The responsive, sunlight-friendly two-inch touchscreen provides rapid access to playback and settings. A built-in (non-removable) battery dishes out around two hours of use per charge.
Considering the low price, voice control is is an impressive addition to the HERO 7 White. Filming is as easy as saying, "GoPro, start recording" and waiting for the beep. On the whole, voice recognition is incredibly responsive, although when we took the camera surfing we found that the Hero won’t always pick up commands over the cacophony of crashing waves.
Keeping things simple, the HERO 7 White offers just two filming resolutions: 1440 or 1080p at 30 or 60fps, as well as 10MP stills. From ’board to bike, footage is crisp and vibrant, and Video Stabilisation mode helps keep clips smooth when things get turbulent. Auto Low Light mode works incredibly well when shooting in darker situations, like under a tree canopy; switch these modes off and you’ll quickly realise the difference they make. In the past, entry level GoPro cameras dispensed with the slow-motion video option, so it’s great to see it make an appearance in the HERO 7 White.
If you live for cliff diving or base jumping and need to make banging edits to appease your sponsors, you’ll probably find the Hero’s lack of 4K resolution a tad limiting. However, if you’re a part-time adrenaline junkie needing a reliable, easy to operate HD camera to shoot YouTube-ready footage of your adventures, the GoPro HERO 7 White is the big-name cheap action camera to beat. For more info, head to our 'Is the GoPro HERO 7 White worth it?' article.
Next up in our best budget action camera ranking is the Akaso Brave 7 LE. This cam fits nicely in the palm of your hand. At 127g, it has a sturdy weight to it and its contoured metal and plastic body looks and feels like a camera with a far heftier price tag. While its headline feature is a front-facing screen, the Brave 7 LE also sports a number of features only usually found on fancier models, such as voice control, time-lapse facilities and six-axis image stabilisation. Factor in that it comes with two batteries, a remote, a wide range of mounts and a waterproof housing and this is a camera that gives fantastic value for money. If you're looking for a rugged and feature packed camera with a wallet-friendly price, the Akaso Brave 7 LE is seriously hard to beat. Check out our Akaso Brave 7 LE action camera review for more information.
- Lots of AKASO cameras are discounted in the Prime Day sales today (13 July) – browse all the offers here
Next up in our best cheap action camera ranking is the Akaso Brave 7, a budget cam that boasts a stack of attractive features we think it's well worth splashing the RRP on. It'll record 4K video at 30fps (the image stabilisation isn't up to much, however) and take stills at up to 20MP, including an up to 12MP burst mode up to 15 shots per second. It's waterproof to 10m without the case, it has a 2" rear touchscreen for relatively easy controls, and it also comes with a remote as well as supporting voice controls. For the price it's a lot of camera; just don't expect it to feel quite as lovely as a GoPro. To find out more, take a look at our Akaso Brave 7 review.
This second generation Olfi one.five Black gives you a big, bulging bag of bangs for a relatively small number of bucks. It can shoot in 4K, can take 15 megapixel photos, is waterproof to 30 meters, can record slow motion at 120fps and has a wealth of other features you’d expect to find on a camera costing a whole lot more. The package also includes a carry case, an array of mounts and accessories, an ultra-fast 64GB MicroSD memory card and even free accidental damage cover. The in-built image stabilisation might not match GoPro's Hypersmooth, but it does a decent job of smoothing out the roughest aspects of our footage. You may expect Olfi to have cut some corners to hit such a competitive price point with the One.Five Black, but the camera is solidly built and the Sony branded sensor is excellent. Our only real niggle is that the rear touchscreen, although very responsive, is annoyingly small. Head to our Olfi one.five Black action camera review to find out more.
There's not many cameras around costing less than £100 that can boast fully-fledged 4K video at 60FPS, never mind at the Crosstour CT9900's current sub-£80 price bracket. But as well as it's mightily impressive video resolution, the camera also has in-built image stabilisation, a 2-inch rear touchscreen, is waterproof to 40 metres and can take 20MP stills.
As well as the camera, waterproof housing and a wide range of mounts, the CT9900's standard package pretty much includes every accessory you'll ever need, with two removable batteries, a shutter remote and a clip-on external USB microphone. A couple of minor corners have been cut to hit the CT9900's extremely wallet-friendly price though – recorded sound is almost inaudible during in-camera playback and you don't get a plug for the charging cable.
At full price, the OCLU wouldn't fall into the category of 'cheap' but for its more usual cost of around the US$200 mark (this one's only currently available in the US), you get a lot of camera for your cash. The USP is an usual, top-mounted screen, which will work better for some than others – it's great for capturing action on a skateboard or bike, though. While it can't compete with GoPro on shooting modes and features, this action camera is well-made and easy to operate, and the ability to get rid of unwanted footage on the fly is a useful feature. It's shame that video stabilisation is only available in HD mode, but there's plenty to like about the OCLU nonetheless. Head to our OCLU action camera review to find out more.
While it may look remarkably similar to aging GoPro models, Akaso’s V50 X camera is bang up to date. Top billing goes to its ability to shoot 4K video at 30fps, which is mightily impressive for a camera costing less than a £100/$100, but its list of well-appointed features doesn’t end there. While you don't get the front-facing camera included in the slightly pricier Akasko Brave 7 LE, the V50 X can take 12MP stills, has in-built image stabilisation software and comes with an adjustable wide-angle lens that has a maximum field of view of 170 degrees. It also boasts slow-motion video at 1080P90 or 720P120, time-lapse video, a stills timer and a host of metering and exposure options.
The camera comes complete with a host of accessories, including an underwater housing, spare battery, remote shutter and a selection of GoPro-compatible mounts. A smartphone app is also available allowing you to remotely operate the camera, view your content and share it directly on social media. All in all, this is a hugely competitive package that is outstanding value for its price.
Next up in our best budget action camera ranking is something a bit different: the Akaso Keychain is a tiny, 36g, 4K camera that can go everywhere with you. While GoPro might love wide-angle footage, the Keychain has a narrow field of view, which is actually much more helpful if you want to film something specific. Not only is this cheap action cam dinky, it's also magnetic, which means you can attach it to anything from your bike to your gym weights (and you can stash it on your fridge door when not in use).
The Keychain stands out by encouraging you to get creative and capture new perspectives, and it's got an excellent app to back that up. Use it to endlessly edit its portrait or landscape videos and photos with fades, wipes, subtitles and special effects. The six-axis image stabilisation system helps produce smooth-looking video, and features such as time-lapse, loop record and 20-megapixel photo options open the door to new possibilities. Read our full Akaso Keychain review for more of what we thought.
If size is the key consideration for you, you should also check out the (smaller) Insta360 GO, further down this list, and the Insta360 GO 2 (an excellent, but not particularly cheap, option).
The Xiaomi action camera could earn its place on this list for the stylish design alone, but thankfully there’s plenty happening under the hood to justify its inclusion in our best cheap action camera buyer’s guide. The 7-glass lens and Sony IMX317 sensor work in perfect harmony, whether you’re shooting under blue skies or grey clouds. Footage is electronically stabilised across 6-axes of movement, and 3D noise reduction technology helps smooth out your shots. Settings can be tweaked on the 2.4-inch touchscreen. In its standalone state, the Mijia Camera mini is best used as a lightweight, portable camera to documents your travels, but pair it with the array of mounts or 45m waterproof housing and it will be ready tackle anything.
While it may look more like a desktop webcam, the Insta360 Go is a fully functioning action camera that punches well above its gossamer 18.3g weight (it has since been replaced by the equally diminutive Insta360 GO 2, which improves on the GO considerably, but costs a fair whack more too.) At 5cm in length, the Go makes an ideal wearable camera and comes with a back clip and pendant as well as a selection of conventional base attachments. It also has a magnetic rear so it can be quickly fixed to any metal surface.
The Insta360 Go can record 1080p HD quality video at 25fps and is designed for shooting short video clips of up to 60 seconds at a time. In addition to conventional video, it can also record timelapse, moving hyperlapse sequences and slow motion video at 100fps. Incredibly for a camera of this size, the Go comes with in-built image stabilisation, which Insta360 has dubbed FlowState. While not fully waterproof, the tiny camera shrugs off wet conditions and is rugged enough to survive being fully submerged in water for up to 10 seconds at a time.
At its top resolution, AKASO’s budget shooter can deliver crisp footage at 4K25. Drop to 1080p and the EK7000 is capable of 60fps for those epic slow mo clips. There’s also a 16 megapixel sensor if stills are your bag. Built-in electronic image stabilisation takes care of smoothing your footage if the action gets a little unruly or your subject is moving fast, while the adjustable viewing angle enables power users to switch between narrow and super wide.
If most of your adventures take place in water, the EK7000 is definitely aimed at you; add the supplied waterproof case to enable shooting to a depth of 40 metres, while a dedicated Diving Mode compensates for the lack of red light underwater, ensuring that your sub-aquatic shots are just as good as those taken on dry land. The EK7000 also functions as a dash cam with Loop and Upside Down recording functionality, while control of settings, shooting modes and playback is handled smoothly via the 2-inch touchscreen.
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Testing
How we test the best budget action cameras
At T3 we place a high value on the authenticity of the product advice we offer, and each of the budget action cameras featured here has been extensively tested by our outdoor-expert reviewers. The cameras have been taken out and tested on various outdoor adventures and subjected to a range of conditions to assess how easy they are to carry and operate, and to review the image and video quality of the material captured. Each has also been tested against a set of criteria, including design, functionality, features, material quality and robustness.
Buying advice
How to choose the best budget action camera
When choosing best budget action camera, there are certain details you need to keep an eye out for. Video quality is the most important. The highest quality currently available is 5K, but much more common is 4K. To really close in on the back spray from your snowboard as you carve across the slopes, you shouldn’t be looking for an action cam that shoots any lower than 1080p at 60fps.
Also look at the size, shape and weight of the camera. If you’re planning on attaching it to your helmet or equipment, you don’t want a hefty action cam throwing you off balance. You’ll also need to ensure you can get your hands on appropriate mounts for your chosen pursuit. On top of that, keep in mind whether you would rather view raw footage via your camera's companion app (if it has one), or whether you’d like to view it on an LCD screen for instant feedback.
While the best cheap action cameras are waterproof, that's not true of all the models in our list. However, there’s always the option to purchase a case to make them safe in torrential downpours or if you’re taking one surfing or SUPing. Other than that, consider photo resolution (especially if you’re looking to take the occasional selfie) and battery life as the essentials. Ready to discover the best cheap action camera for you? Read on...
