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Stream on the big screen wherever you go.
While we love the home cinema experience you can create with a new flat-screen TV or a 4K home projector, sometimes you don’t need much more than a projector under $500 that not only saves you money but doesn’t take up any precious wall space. Budget projectors can be useful for a number of occasions that require a larger screen, including outdoor movie nights, presentations at the office or events like weddings and karaoke parties. What's unique about them is that most compact and portable projectors feature the flexibility to either plug in a cable to connect it to your laptop or use Wi-Fi to stream content from a myriad of devices, including phones, laptops and tablets.
At the Good Housekeeping Institute, our tech analysts and engineers test home theater and audio equipment ranging from outdoor projectors to outdoor speakers and universal remotes. Over the years we’ve evaluated and tested dozens of projectors in our Media & Tech Lab and homes. To choose the best budget projectors, our pros reviewed top sellers as well as innovative products from brands we’ve tested and recommended in the past. We also evaluated criteria such as ease of setup and use, portability, image quality, size and other key factors. According to our experts, these are the best budget projectors to purchase in 2022.
After our selections, read further to learn how to choose the best budget projector for your space and how we selected our top picks.
Our pros love the sleek, modern design of the Anker Nebula, which features HD resolution so picture quality will look clear and defined in low-light settings. We like that with the Nebula Connect app streaming is easy; all you have to do is use your phone as a remote and decide which Netflix series to binge next. While we haven't tested this model in the Lab, our experts have vetted other variations of the Nebula and have been impressed with the projector's audio quality and ease of setup and operation. We also like that, unlike other more expensive models, this mini projector is small enough to fit into most backpacks and has 4 hours of rechargeable battery life so you can project on-the-go. It’s a top choice for outdoor movie nights or streaming anywhere in your home.
This small, compact projector from Vankyo is a great option for streaming videos, watching shows or gaming. It’s not only affordable, but it's easy to connect your phone to stream or you can use a streaming stick like a Roku via one of the multiple ports. While we haven’t tested it in the Lab, we like that the screen size can be projected up to 176”, though our pros warn that resolution won't be as high-quality as other projectors.
We love this budget projector for its compact size and ability to run off 2.5 hours of battery life, according to the brand, making it extremely convenient and easy to throw in a purse to share slideshows, presentations and more from anywhere you go. Unlike other budget projectors of this size, you can connect certain iOS, Android or Windows 10 devices wirelessly to project content via AirPlay or Miracast. Though you’ll have to make sacrifices when it comes to picture quality, the projector’s bells and whistles make it worthwhile.
While we haven’t tested this model in the Lab, our pros have been hands-on with Epson projectors in previous categorical tests and like the brand for its great value and solid performance. Though this projector won’t give you cinema-like quality, it’s perfect for projecting presentations at the office, Zoom calls and streaming TV shows via devices like Roku, Apple TV and more, which you can connect through the projector’s HDMI port. Our pros like its 3,600-lumen brightness so you should be able to get a clear picture even with some ambient light, and that it comes equipped with a built-in speaker for when you need audio. There’s even a skew sensor to help square your screen when you start projecting.
The pros at the Good Housekeeping Institute think this pick from Anker is a fantastic choice if you’re looking for an outdoor projector. Not only is the resolution impressive at full HD, but the brightness is higher than most other budget projectors featured on this list. Our testers liked the built-in projector stand, which is convenient when you want to set up your screen and don’t have a tripod handy. Watching movies and shows is easy via HDMI or directly with Android TV 9, which offers more than 5,000 streaming apps. While this model doesn’t have a built-in battery, for a slightly higher price you can opt for a model that will offer three hours of power cord-free.
We like that this super affordable projector comes with a built-in media player and speakers so you don’t need anything else to watch your favorite Netflix series indoors or outdoors. It even features an audio jack so you can connect headphones or external speakers should you need to fill a larger space with sound. Though our pros agree that the resolution could be better, we like that it’s lightweight at under 2 pounds and easy to move from room to room.
The experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute's Media & Tech lab evaluated each budget projector for key criteria such as ease of setup, ease of use and ease of streaming, as well as portability, size, image quality and connectivity. We considered each projector's overall value and omitted any projectors over $500. While our Lab pros weren't able to test each model on our list, the picks we feature are based on our years of experience testing consumer electronics, previous categorical tests of home and outdoor projectors and similar models or brands that have performed well in the past.
When shopping for a budget projector, it’s important to set expectations and understand that you won’t be able to achieve the same results as with a more expensive 4K projector or even most mid-range flat-screen TVs. However, there are important factors to keep an eye out for when selecting the best cheap projector for your home.
✔️ Portability: One of the key features to consider when it comes to cheap projectors is how portable they are. Do you want a projector that's small enough to throw in a backpack or one that's super lightweight so you can move it around from room to room or easily bring outdoors for a movie night? If opting for a portable projector, you should consider one with a rechargeable battery so you can use it without an outlet. A built-in projector stand is also a nice bonus to help adjust the angle of projection and eliminate the need for a tripod. ✔️ Brightness: A projector’s brightness is measured in lumens, which is important since there will likely always be some ambient light in the space you're in. While some brands list a projector’s brightness in lumens, others reference ANSI lumens. When possible, we recommend finding a budget projector with at least 1,500 lumens to ensure you'll get a clear picture, though our pros warn that you might have to make sacrifices for size and portability.
ANSI lumens are proportionally brighter than standard lumens. A key difference between lumens and ANSI lumens is ANSI lumens are based on a repeatable industry standard whereas others can use different approaches for how they measure and market lumens. We prefer when they are systematically measured and ANSI lumen measurements provide that standardized approach to compare brightness. Lumens in general help you determine the amount of light the projector can produce. Higher lumens means higher brightness, which is considered better for picture quality. You want at least 500 ANSI lumens.
✔️ Resolution: While 4K resolution is always preferred, our experts recommend full HD resolution (1920 x 1080) for budget projectors if you plan on streaming TV shows, movies or videos. If the resolution is lower, your screen's image won't be quite as sharp and defined though this may not be an issue if you're projecting office presentations or don't need as high of image quality. ✔️ Screen size: Our pros recommend looking for a max screen size that is at least 100" to ensure you can comfortably watch a movie. While some brands claim you can achieve an even larger screen size, keep in mind that the picture will decrease in quality. ✔️ Connectivity and ports: Check how many ports your cheap projector comes with and ensure that there's one for HDMI, which is one of the easiest ways to connect your laptop or a streaming stick like Roku. Some projectors may even be able to connect to Bluetooth or Wi-Fi to stream from your phone or directly access your favorite apps like Netflix, Hulu and more internally. ✔️ Audio: Most cheap projectors come with a built-in speaker, which is a nice feature to have when on-the-go. Nevertheless, keep in mind that you may need to connect another audio source for better sound quality, such as an outdoor speaker. If you want to be able to connect headphones to your projector, look for ones that offer an audio jack.
Media & Tech Reviews Analyst Olivia Lipski oversees product testing and covers everything from consumer electronics like smart home devices, audio equipment and more. She continues to stay on top of the industry’s latest innovations and helps readers make better buying decisions by testing and reviewing the best gadgets to hit the market. To select the picks featured, she worked closely with Rachel Rothman, Chief Technologist and head engineer at the Good Housekeeping Institute, who led previous categorical tests of home and outdoor projectors.