Looking for a good concert uke but want to save some money? In this article, I’ll be taking a look at the best cheap concert ukuleles on the market.
Best Cheap Concert Ukulele: My Picks
These suggestions are based on the fact that I personally own a ukulele from each of these three manufacturers. You can find reviews for all three models on my ukulele reviews page.
While they aren’t the absolute cheapest concert ukuleles for sale online (I get into that below), I think they strike a nice balance between affordability and quality.
About These Models
I feel like these models are all good, relatively cheap concert ukes that would make excellent beginner instruments.
While they each have their own unique look, they’re surprisingly similar when it comes to build quality, playability, and tone.
There’s not really one I can point to as the “best” cheap concert ukulele since they’re all pretty nice for the money.
Budget Ukulele Quality?
As somebody who has been in the music business for a while now, I’ve been genuinely impressed with the quality of most beginner ukuleles for sale online.
How can they sell them for so cheap? My guess is that many of these companies are selling direct through Amazon, and not through a traditional brick-and-mortar music store.
By cutting out the middle man, these companies can offer cheap (but good quality) concert ukuleles at prices that were unheard of 10 years ago when I started out in the music business.
Cheap Ukulele Packages
The Donner and Aklot models include accessories like a tuner, strap, and extra strings. The Hricane doesn’t come with these extras, but the gig bag (padded case) is a little more heavy-duty than the others.
The Aklot AKC23 is the only solid top ukulele of the three. As I’ve mentioned in other articles, acoustic instruments with solid tops (as opposed to laminated tops) usually have a warmer, richer tone.
Other Good Cheap Concert Ukuleles
I don’t have personal experience with these models, but they have mostly positive customer reviews and seem to be reasonably well made.
While I can’t offer a strong endorsement without having a chance to inspect and play them first, these affordable concert ukes appear to be fairly safe choices.
With a current price of under $50, the Kmise jumps out as the best value of the three. I might have to pick one up someday and do a full review.
For the money, these ukes seem to offer a pretty solid value. They each include a handful of useful accessories, like a gig bag, tuner, strings, and a strap.
Customer reviews seem to be mostly positive for these ukes, which is surprising considering the low price point.
Of all the brands in the table above, Kmise seems to have been around the longest. I’ve seen their products floating around for quite a while, and they seem to have a decent reputation.
While I’d still recommend trying to budget for one of the first three models I mentioned at the beginning, these look like safe choices as well.
The Cheapest Concert Ukuleles
These models are the least expensive concert ukes I could find that didn’t appear to be complete junk.
I haven’t played them personally so I can’t say for sure, but based off what I could tell they are better than most other concert ukes in this price range.
I’m highlighting these models for the sake of being thorough, but to be honest, the low price tags have me a little leery of their quality. The Huawind and Strong Wind look like they might be OK, but I’m skeptical of the Vorson.
How Price Affects Quality
I’ve worked in the music retail business for a long time, and in my experience, as price goes down, so does quality and consistency.
I still haven’t come across a super-cheap ukulele that I’d feel comfortable recommending to a beginning player. Of course, I haven’t had a chance to play these ukes so I could be wrong. If you have any feedback onaboutthis let me know.
I honestly can’t figure out how companies can sell a concert uke for so cheap with accessories (and free Prime shipping) and still make a profit.
Save Up (If You Can)
My advice is to try to save up an extra $25 or $30 for one of the models I mentioned at the beginning of the article. It’s really amazing how much of a difference you’ll see just by bumping up a couple of price tiers.
Of course, I can understand that some people are working on a very limited budget. If you’re simply looking for the most affordable concert uke on the market, the three cheaper models above are probably your best bet.
However, it’s difficult to know what to expect from a concert ukulele at this price point, so buyer beware.
