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One compromise, and you choose which

Best Cameras Under £1,000 (2026)

This is the budget where the market stops making compromises for you. A thousand pounds buys a body and a lens with no serious weakness, which makes the decision harder rather than easier, because nothing is obviously wrong with any of it.
See the shortlist
What to look for
Updated 30 July 2026
Six kits, all with a lens
Prices checked at UK sellers
Photo spaceWide lead image: six camera kits laid out on a plain table at the same scale, each with its kit lens fitted. Roughly 1600 by 700.
That is the received wisdom, and after checking every current camera we could find at UK sellers, it turns out to be about four fifths true. There are four things a camera can give you that this budget usually will not: a full frame sensor, stabilisation built into the body, a viewfinder, and a second card slot. Almost everything here gives you two of them. Exactly one new camera gives you all four, and it does it by giving up something else instead.
So this page is arranged around the compromise rather than around a ranking. Every price below includes a lens, because a body-only price at this budget is a different question and usually a worse deal. Where a camera is only under a thousand pounds because of a promotion, we say which promotion and when it ends, because three of the ones we found expire within the next five weeks.

Body only is a different question

Several cameras here look cheaper if you buy the body alone, and then cost more once you add glass. The cheapest sensible first prime we found ran from under two hundred pounds on one mount to around four hundred on another, which is enough to change which camera wins. Compare complete kits, not bodies.

Start here

Which compromise can you live with?

At this budget every camera takes something away. The only useful question is which absence you will notice.

You want the biggest sensor

Full frame at this money exists, but it is available from one maker and it costs you autofocus performance or a viewfinder, depending on which you pick.
What to prioritise
  • Check whether it has phase detection
  • Check whether it has a mechanical shutter
  • Check whether there is a finder at all

You want to hand hold in poor light

Stabilisation built into the body is the feature that most changes what you can shoot, and in this band it exists on two formats only.
What to prioritise
  • In-body stabilisation, not lens VR alone
  • It works with any lens you fit, including primes
  • Micro Four Thirds and L-mount only, here

You want one camera to cover everything

A wider zoom range or a second lens matters more than the sensor, because focal length is the thing you cannot fix later.
What to prioritise
  • A twin lens kit beats one lens plus regret
  • Look for a zoom past the equivalent of 75mm
  • Check the weight with the lens fitted

Your output is mostly video

Recording specifications at this price are better than they have any right to be, but the cameras that lead on video give up the viewfinder to do it.
What to prioritise
  • Check for a crop at 4K 60p
  • A single UHS-I slot limits sustained bitrate
  • Consider whether you need a finder at all

The shortlist

Six kits under a thousand pounds

Every one of these includes a lens and was purchasable in the UK at the price shown when we checked on 30 July 2026. They are arranged by what they refuse to give up rather than by score.

Best overall

Photo spacePanasonic Lumix S5D with the 18-40mm fitted, three quarter view on a plain background. Roughly 600 by 500.

Panasonic Lumix S5D with the 18-40mm

The only new camera under a thousand pounds with a full frame sensor, in-body stabilisation, a viewfinder and two card slots, and it comes with a lens.
Typical UK price
£799 to £1,080 with the lens
Check current price
Read the full write-up

Best value

Photo spacePanasonic Lumix G97 with the 12-60mm fitted, three quarter view on a plain background. Roughly 600 by 500.

Panasonic Lumix G97 with the 12-60mm

Stabilisation, a viewfinder and a genuinely useful zoom range for well under the budget, from the smaller sensor format.
Typical UK price
£649 to £749 with the lens
Check current price
Read the full write-up

Best small camera with stabilisation

Photo spaceOM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV in silver with the retracting 14-42mm fitted. Roughly 600 by 500.

OM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV with the 14-42mm EZ

Sensor-shift stabilisation and a retracting pancake zoom in a body that weighs less than four hundred grammes.
Typical UK price
£719 with the lens
Check current price
Read the full write-up

Best APS-C kit

Photo spaceNikon Z50II with the retracting 16-50mm fitted, three quarter view. Roughly 600 by 500.

Nikon Z50II with the 16-50mm VR

The most modern camera in the band, with 4K at 60p and a UHS-II card slot, at a price Nikon itself has cut.
Typical UK price
£799 to £920 with the lens
Check current price
Read the full write-up

Best two-lens start

Photo spaceCanon EOS R50 with both kit lenses laid out beside it on a plain background. Roughly 600 by 500.

Canon EOS R50 twin lens kit

Two lenses covering wide to telephoto, a 24.2 megapixel sensor and uncropped 4K, in a body weighing 375 grammes.
Typical UK price
£869 to £870 with both lenses
Check current price
Read the full write-up

Best for video

Photo spaceFUJIFILM X-M5 with the XC15-45mm fitted, three quarter view showing the film simulation dial. Roughly 600 by 500.

FUJIFILM X-M5 with the XC15-45mm

6.2K from a 26 megapixel APS-C sensor with no crop, in a body weighing 355 grammes. There is no viewfinder, and that is the trade.
Typical UK price
£849 to £900 with the lens
Check current price
Read the full write-up
Specifications are the manufacturers’ own published figures, checked in July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used this hardware, so nothing on this page is a measured result of ours. Prices are indicative UK bands seen in July 2026, not quotes. Pricing moves constantly, and cashback and trade-in promotions move it further, so the buttons take you to the seller for today’s figure. How we are funded.

At a glance

The six compared

Camera
Sensor
In-body stabilisation
Card slots
Typical UK price with lens
Panasonic Lumix S5D
Full frame, 24.2MP
5-axis, 5 stops
Two, UHS-II and UHS-I
£799 to £1,080
Panasonic Lumix G97
Four Thirds, 20.3MP
5-axis, 5 stops
One
£649 to £749
OM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV
Four Thirds, 20.3MP
5-axis, 4.5 EV
One, UHS-II
£719
Nikon Z50II
APS-C, 20.9MP
None, lens VR only
One, UHS-II
£799 to £920
Canon EOS R50 twin lens kit
APS-C, 24.2MP
None, lens and digital only
One, UHS-I
£869
FUJIFILM X-M5
APS-C, 26.1MP
None, digital in video only
One, UHS-I
£849 to £900
Specifications are the manufacturers’ own published figures, checked in July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used this hardware, so nothing on this page is a measured result of ours.

The picks in detail

What each kit includes, what it leaves out, and which promotion its price depends on. All specifications are the manufacturer own published figures.

Best overall

Panasonic Lumix S5D with the 18-40mm

Photo spacePanasonic Lumix S5D on a table beside its lens cap and a card, window light. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Work down the list of things a camera at this money normally gives up, and this one gives up almost none of them. Full frame sensor. Five axis stabilisation in the body. An electronic viewfinder. Two card slots, which nothing else new in this band offers at all. Video to 5.9K. And a lens included. Panasonic launched this kit at £1,399 in October 2024 and we found it between £799 and £1,078 for the identical package, which is the widest spread on any product on this page.
There is one deliberate omission and you should understand it before buying. Panasonic publishes the autofocus system as contrast detection with DFD, not the phase detection fitted to the dearer S5 II. In practice that means it is slower to acquire a moving subject and less certain about holding it, particularly in video. That is the difference between a £799 full frame kit and a £1,399 one. The other thing to know is that this is end of line stock: one seller was listing it as last few remaining against a £1,399 recommended price, and Panasonic discontinued the original S5 in April 2026.

Key specifications

Sensor
Full frame, 24.2MP effective, 35.6 x 23.8mm CMOS (Panasonic published)
Stabilisation
5-axis in body, 5.0 stops; 6.5 stops with Dual I.S. 2 (Panasonic published)
Cards
Two slots. Slot 1 UHS-I and UHS-II, slot 2 UHS-I (Panasonic published)
Autofocus and weight
Contrast AF with DFD, no phase detection; 714g with battery and one card (Panasonic published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • The only new camera here with full frame, IBIS, a finder and two slots
  • Comes with a lens at a price where most rivals are body only
  • Selling at roughly half its launch price

What to watch

  • Contrast detect autofocus rather than phase detection
  • End of line stock, so availability is going in one direction
  • The second card slot is UHS-I, so it is redundancy rather than speed

Who should buy it

Anyone who wants full frame without giving up stabilisation or a viewfinder, and who photographs subjects that stay still enough for contrast autofocus. If you photograph sport or children, buy something else.
Typical UK price
£799 to £1,080 with the lens
Check current price

Best value

Panasonic Lumix G97 with the 12-60mm

Photo spacePanasonic Lumix G97 held in one hand at a viewpoint, overcast light. Roughly 1200 by 720.
The 12-60mm in this kit is the reason to look at it. Most kit zooms stop at the equivalent of about 75mm, which runs out exactly when you want to isolate something. This one reaches the equivalent of 120mm, so it covers a wide room and a portrait without changing lenses, and the smaller sensor is why that range fits in a lens this size and this cheap.
The compromise is the sensor. Four Thirds gathers less light in total than APS-C or full frame, so it works harder indoors and at dusk. What you get back is five stops of in-body stabilisation, a viewfinder, a usable zoom and change from seven hundred pounds. Note that some retailer listings for this camera still show a cashback badge from a Panasonic promotion whose purchase window closed on 10 May 2026, so check any claimed saving against Panasonic own terms rather than the badge.

Key specifications

Sensor
Four Thirds, 20.3MP approximate, 17.3 x 13.0mm CMOS (Panasonic published)
Stabilisation
5-axis in body, 5.0 stops (Panasonic published)
Viewfinder and cards
Approximately 2,360k dot finder; one SD slot (Panasonic published)
Video and weight
4K 3840 x 2160 at 30p, 100Mbps; 530g body with card and battery, 740g with the lens (Panasonic published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • Five stops of in-body stabilisation at the lowest price here
  • The kit zoom reaches the equivalent of 120mm, not 75mm
  • A viewfinder, which several dearer cameras here do without

What to watch

  • The smallest sensor on this page, so it works hardest in poor light
  • One card slot
  • Some listings still advertise an expired cashback

Who should buy it

Someone who wants one camera and one lens to cover a holiday, and who would rather have stabilisation and reach than a larger sensor.
Typical UK price
£649 to £749 with the lens
Check current price

Best small camera with stabilisation

OM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV with the 14-42mm EZ

Photo spaceOM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV in a coat pocket being lifted out, street background. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Three hundred and eighty three grammes with a battery and a card, and the kit lens retracts flat when it is off, which together make this the only camera here you might genuinely carry in a coat pocket. It is also the cheapest route to sensor-shift stabilisation with a lens included, and stabilisation is the feature that most changes what you can hand hold at dusk.
Understand what it is not. This is an older design at an entry price, so the sensor is the same size as the Lumix G97 and the video tops out at 4K 30p. What it does have is the shared Micro Four Thirds mount, which means the largest and often cheapest lens catalogue of any system here, from both OM System and Panasonic. If you later want a long telephoto without a mortgage, this is the mount that offers it.

Key specifications

Sensor
Four Thirds, 20.3 megapixels (OM System published)
Stabilisation
5-axis in body, up to 4.5 EV steps (OM System published)
Burst and focus
15fps, 121-point autofocus (OM System published)
Cards and weight
One SD UHS-II slot; 383g including battery and memory card (OM System published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • 383g with battery and card, and the kit lens retracts flat
  • The cheapest sensor-shift stabilisation with a lens included
  • A shared mount with a very large and often cheap lens catalogue

What to watch

  • An older design, so 4K stops at 30p
  • One card slot
  • The smallest sensor here, alongside the G97

Who should buy it

Anyone whose main complaint about a camera is that they left it at home. Also a good first camera for someone who wants to learn on dials rather than through a menu.
Typical UK price
£719 with the lens
Check current price

Best APS-C kit

Nikon Z50II with the 16-50mm VR

Photo spaceNikon Z50II being used at chest height with the screen tilted, outdoors. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Of the APS-C kits here this is the one with the fewest asterisks. 4K at 60 frames a second, a UHS-II card slot rather than the slower UHS-I fitted to most rivals at the price, a viewfinder, and a kit zoom with stabilisation built into the lens. Nikon has been selling it direct below its own former price, having ended its Summer Savings promotion on 27 July 2026, and we found it between £799 and £919 depending on seller.
The gap in the specification is the body: there is no in-body stabilisation, so if you take the VR kit lens off and fit a prime, you lose stabilisation entirely. Nikon publishes 4K at 60p without stating whether it is cropped, and we could not get a crop figure from any Nikon page, so treat that as unknown rather than as uncropped. On lenses, the Z 40mm f/2 was under two hundred pounds when we checked, which makes a body plus prime combination realistic inside this budget.

Key specifications

Sensor
APS-C, 20.9 megapixels effective, 23.5 x 15.7mm DX (Nikon published)
Stabilisation
Lens shift only, available with VR lenses. No in-body system (Nikon published)
Video
4K UHD 60p, 4K UHD 30p, Full HD 120p (Nikon published)
Cards and weight
One SD UHS-II slot; approximately 495g (Nikon published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • 4K at 60p and a UHS-II slot, both unusual at this price
  • Nikon has cut its own direct price below the ended promotion
  • A cheap and well regarded prime is available inside the budget

What to watch

  • No in-body stabilisation, so a prime is unstabilised
  • Nikon does not publish whether 4K 60p is cropped
  • One card slot

Who should buy it

The buyer who wants the most current camera rather than the most complete one, and who will keep the stabilised kit lens on it most of the time.
Typical UK price
£799 to £920 with the lens
Check current price

Best two-lens start

Canon EOS R50 twin lens kit

Photo spaceCanon EOS R50 with the telephoto zoom fitted, being used at a sports field. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Two lenses is the argument. The pair in this kit covers roughly 29mm to 336mm in full frame terms, which is most of what a new photographer will point a camera at, and buying that range later as two separate purchases costs considerably more. The body is also the lightest here at 375 grammes, and Canon publishes its 4K as oversampled from 6K with no crop, which is better than several dearer cameras manage.
The compromises are consistent with the price: no stabilisation in the body, and a single UHS-I card slot, which is the slowest storage on this page. Be careful with pricing on this one. Canon UK ran a store promotion to midnight on 29 July 2026 and started a replacement the same day stated to run to 2 September, and while we were checking, Canon own campaign page and its individual product pages were quoting different figures and different end dates for the same kits. Check the price in the basket rather than on the page.

Key specifications

Sensor
APS-C, 24.2MP, approximately 22.3 x 14.9mm CMOS (Canon published)
Stabilisation
Lens and digital only. No in-body system (Canon published)
Video
4K UHD to 29.97fps oversampled from 6K with no crop; Full HD 119.88fps (Canon published)
Cards and weight
One SD UHS-I slot; 375g with card and battery (Canon published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • Two lenses covering roughly 29mm to 336mm equivalent
  • The lightest body here at 375g
  • 4K oversampled from 6K with no crop

What to watch

  • No in-body stabilisation
  • A single UHS-I card slot, the slowest here
  • Canon own pages were quoting conflicting prices and end dates

Who should buy it

A first camera for someone who does not yet know what they want to photograph, and who would rather have the range now than choose a second lens later.
Typical UK price
£869 to £870 with both lenses
Check current price

Best for video

FUJIFILM X-M5 with the XC15-45mm

Photo spaceFUJIFILM X-M5 on a small tripod with the screen flipped to face the front. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Nothing else at this price records 6.2K off the full width of an APS-C sensor, and the film simulation dial on the top plate means the look is set before you record rather than fixed afterwards. At 355 grammes with a battery it is also the second lightest camera here, and the small retracting kit zoom keeps it that way.
What you give up is stated plainly by Fujifilm: no viewfinder at all, no stabilisation in the body, and a single UHS-I card slot writing those 6.2K files. Composing a still photograph on a screen in bright sun is the part people underestimate. Two pricing notes. Fujifilm ended every UK camera cashback on 30 June 2026 and has announced nothing since. And a leaked German retailer notice, reported in late July, points to Fujifilm raising prices from 1 August, with the increase fully in place by 1 September. The leak covers Germany, Fujifilm has said nothing about the UK, and we would not buy on that basis, but it is worth knowing before you wait.

Key specifications

Sensor
APS-C, 26.1 megapixels, 23.5 x 15.6mm X-Trans CMOS 4 (Fujifilm published)
Stabilisation
Digital, in movie mode only. No in-body system (Fujifilm published)
Video
6.2K 6240 x 4160 to 29.97p with no crop (Fujifilm published)
Viewfinder, cards, weight
No viewfinder, 1.04M-dot touchscreen; one SD UHS-I slot; approximately 355g with battery and card (Fujifilm published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.

What we like

  • 6.2K off the full sensor width with no crop
  • 355g with battery and card
  • The film simulation dial sets the look before you record

What to watch

  • No viewfinder at all
  • No in-body stabilisation and a single UHS-I slot
  • A price rise from 1 August is rumoured, though only for Germany

Who should buy it

Someone whose output is mostly video, who works from the rear screen anyway, and who values the Fujifilm colour more than a viewfinder.
Typical UK price
£849 to £900 with the lens
Check current price

On this page

The shortlistCompared side by sidePanasonic Lumix S5D with the 18-40mmPanasonic Lumix G97 with the 12-60mmOM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV with the 14-42mm EZNikon Z50II with the 16-50mm VRCanon EOS R50 twin lens kitFUJIFILM X-M5 with the XC15-45mmWhat to look forWhat else you will needCommon questionsThe shortlist in one place

Working with less?

The band below this one is a different market with a much blunter answer, and it is worth reading before you stretch.
Best cameras under £500Best cameras for beginners
Ask the editors

Before you buy

What to look for under a thousand pounds

Six things that decide whether the money is well spent, in the order they bite.

At this budget you choose the compromise, you do not avoid it

Four things separate a cheap camera from an expensive one: a full frame sensor, stabilisation in the body, a viewfinder, and a second card slot. Of every current camera we could find under a thousand pounds with a lens, exactly one has all four, and it pays for them with contrast detect autofocus instead of phase detection. Everything else here is missing at least two. Decide which two you can live without before you compare anything else.

In-body stabilisation exists here on two formats only

Stabilisation built into the body works with every lens you fit, including cheap primes, which is why it matters more than the equivalent built into a kit zoom. Under a thousand pounds with a lens, we found it only on Micro Four Thirds and on L-mount. Canon publishes lens and digital only for the R50, R10, R50 V and R100. Nikon publishes lens shift only for the Z50II. Fujifilm publishes digital stabilisation in movie mode only for the X-M5. Those are the makers own words, not our assessment.

One card slot is the norm, and it matters in one specific way

Only one new camera in this band has two slots, so redundancy is essentially unavailable here. If a photograph cannot be taken again, that is a real consideration. The more common problem is speed rather than backup: four of these six write to a single UHS-I slot, which is the slowest storage standard in current use, and that is what limits sustained recording at the high bitrates these cameras advertise.

Three of these prices expire within five weeks

Promotions move this band more than any other. When we checked on 30 July 2026, Panasonic had instant savings running to 17 August, OM System had cashback running to 16 August, and Canon UK had started a new store promotion the previous day stated to run to 2 September. Nikon Summer Savings had ended on 27 July, and every Fujifilm UK camera cashback had ended on 30 June. A price that only clears a thousand pounds because of a cashback is not really a price under a thousand pounds, so we say which is which in each write-up.

The used route beats new here more clearly than at any other budget

For roughly the price of the cheapest new kit on this page, the specialist used dealers were listing full frame bodies with in-body stabilisation and two card slots, graded for condition, with the shutter count published and a twelve month warranty included. One manufacturer refurbished programme was listing a full frame body under nine hundred pounds with a two year warranty. You lose the lens and the latest autofocus. You gain a class of camera this budget cannot otherwise reach.

Read the shutter and viewfinder lines before the sensor size

The most tempting specification in this band is full frame for under eight hundred pounds, and one camera offers exactly that. Its maker also publishes, on the same page, that it has an electronic shutter with no mechanical option and no viewfinder at all. That means rolling shutter distortion on fast movement, no conventional flash sync, and composing in bright sun on a screen. None of that is hidden. It is simply further down the specification sheet than the sensor size.

The rest of the kit

What the kit price does not include

Every camera here arrives with one battery and no card. Budget for both before you decide which body you can afford.

Memory cards

Four of these six write to a single UHS-I slot, which is the real limit on sustained recording.

Batteries and power

One battery is never enough. Spares are the cheapest upgrade any of these cameras can take.

Camera bags

Sized on published internal dimensions rather than on how it looks in the photograph.

Tripods

Bought on maximum height, folded length and load capacity, which rarely appear together.

Questions buyers ask at this budget

Starting with the one everybody asks about full frame.
Yes, and from one maker. Two Panasonic kits clear the bar: one at around eight hundred pounds with a lens that has stabilisation, a viewfinder and two card slots but contrast detect autofocus, and one at around a thousand with a lens that has stabilisation but no viewfinder and no mechanical shutter. Both are genuinely full frame and both are genuinely compromised. Whether either is the right buy depends entirely on whether the compromise touches what you photograph.
It depends on light more than on subject. Stabilisation lets you hand hold at slower shutter speeds, so it earns its keep indoors, at dusk, and with longer lenses. It does nothing for a moving subject, which needs a fast shutter regardless. If you shoot mostly in daylight and mostly with a stabilised kit zoom, you will rarely miss it. If you plan to buy a fast prime, an unstabilised body means an unstabilised lens.
For almost everyone, no. It becomes a problem in one situation: a paid job where the pictures cannot be taken again. Cards do fail, rarely, and the only defence is a second one written simultaneously. Since only one new camera in this band has two slots, anyone who needs redundancy at this budget should look at the used full frame bodies instead, several of which have two slots and cost less.
At this budget the kit lens is usually the better buy, because focal length range is what a new photographer needs most and a single prime does not provide it. The exception is if you already know you want shallow depth of field or work in poor light. Cheap primes vary enormously by mount: the ones we priced ranged from under two hundred pounds on one mount to around four hundred on another for the equivalent lens, which is a difference worth checking before you choose a body.
More clearly than at any other budget. New money at a thousand pounds buys an entry level body with a kit lens. Used money at the same figure buys a camera from a tier above, with stabilisation and two card slots, graded for condition and carrying a twelve month warranty. The trade is that you buy a body without a lens, and that you inherit whatever autofocus generation it shipped with. Buy on the grade and the warranty rather than on the listing photographs.
The cheapest interchangeable lens kits from the big brands, which look like the same camera for less. One we looked at publishes a fixed screen with touch listed as not supported, 4K recorded only at 24 or 25 frames a second and with a centre crop applied, and a maximum burst of about 3.5 frames a second with continuous autofocus. None of that is concealed and all of it is on the maker own specification page. Read that page before the price.

The verdict

The six in one place

One line each, if you want the short version.
01
Best overall

Panasonic Lumix S5D with the 18-40mm

The only camera in this band with no structural compromise, and the autofocus is the price of that.
02
Best value

Panasonic Lumix G97 with the 12-60mm

The most complete kit here for the money, as long as you accept the sensor size.
03
Best small camera with stabilisation

OM System OM-D E-M10 Mark IV with the 14-42mm EZ

The one you actually carry, which on a page about compromises counts for a lot.
04
Best APS-C kit

Nikon Z50II with the 16-50mm VR

The best APS-C package here, provided you do not need stabilisation with a prime fitted.
05
Best two-lens start

Canon EOS R50 twin lens kit

The most focal length per pound, in the lightest body on the page.
06
Best for video

FUJIFILM X-M5 with the XC15-45mm

The best video specification in the band, bought at the cost of the thing you look through.

Where this fits

This page sits under the camera buying guide, which explains sensor sizes, stabilisation and mounts without naming a single camera.

Camera Buying Guide

Sensors, stabilisation, autofocus and mounts, explained in the order you meet them.

Best Cameras Under £500

The band below, where the answer is much blunter.

Best Cameras for Beginners

If this is a first camera and the jargon is the obstacle.

Best Mirrorless Cameras

The same market arranged by lens mount, which outlives the body.

Best Cameras for Photography

If you are buying for stills and want to know what more money buys.

How Creator Gear works

Why we publish dated price bands rather than a figure.

Stuck between two of these?

Tell us what you photograph, whether you already own any lenses, and whether you shoot more stills or more video. We will tell you which compromise will annoy you least.
Read the camera buying guide
Ask the editors a question
Creator Gear is reader-funded and independent. This is a Researched guide. We have not used this hardware, we do not accept payment for placement, and every specification on this page comes from the manufacturer.