The best cheap gaming keyboards

The best cheap gaming keyboard can offer a lot that the most expensive versions can without making you spend a ton of money. Budget keyboards can help you ease the cost of pricing out a brand new gaming PC, and they can be a good starting point before you get deeper into the clicky hole. If you want to pass on best gaming keyboards, look no further than the keyboards below.

When we say “cheap,” we're talking about pricing, not quality. Most budget keyboards in this guide are $50 or under and will be a stalwart companion to your gaming PC. Certain features will be omitted to keep the price down, though. Make sure you know which features really matter to you—be they media controls, LED displays, elaborate macro keys, or mechanical switches—and decide what you can live without.

Anyway, we've attempted to list as many of the best cheap gaming keyboards we've tested over the years, with a range of price points up to $50. We've even added a couple of quality keyboards that come bundled with other peripherals to take some of the stings out of the cost of a new setup. 

If you do find yourself with some money to burn, however, the best mechanical keyboards would always be our first recommendation.

There is a trend towards $200+ gaming keyboards in the market at the moment, but that doesn't mean there aren't quality mechanical switch boards available at a more reasonable price. Often you'll find these more budget-oriented options offering cheap switches from other manufacturers, but the G.Skill KM360 comes featuring the classic Cherry MX Red linear switch out of the gate.

If you can't cope with your gaming board not lit up like a rainbow then you may be disappointed with the single-color option, but damn, the white LEDs on this G.Skill board are the brightest I've ever seen. Normally I like to keep at max brightness all day long, but the KM360 would burn out my retina if I did.

This TKL board is basic, but what it does, it does very well. It's solid, well-built, reliable, and looks pretty decent too. There's no wrist rest, no passthrough, or media controls, but I'll happily give it a pass in favor of affordable functionality.

Best gaming keyboard | Best graphics cards| Best gaming chair
Best VR headset | Best wireless gaming mouse | Best wireless gaming keyboard 

The Z-88 from E-Element is available in either black or white and offers a variety of Outemu switches, meaning it's great for the cheap connoisseur who likes to pick and choose everything about their setup.

It's a cheaper board but you're grabbing mechanical for under $50 here. Plus it's often discounted for even less. We saw it go for $30 earlier this year, so keep an eye out for those sales.

The exposed hardware and aluminum backplate give this version of the Havit mechanical keyboard a sturdy, industrial look. While only available with clicky proprietary blue switches, this model does come packaged with a wired, optical gaming mouse. 

Besides the lack of exclusive customization software or dedicated media controls, this package of Havit peripherals leaves little to be desired. I mean you're getting two for the price of one here, and that's great if you need a keyboard and mouse in a pinch and for less.

This is exceptionally cheap for a wireless keyboard. Even more so for its high quality. It starts out at just $69, and for that you get a decent-sized gaming keyboard with great wireless functionality and genuinely mechanical Gateron switches.

Its build quality is decent overall, and the triple device connectivity definitely makes short work of switching devices or locations through the working day. With that said though, sometimes it can feel like a cheap keyboard—the switches aren't the best around, but they're pretty impressive nonetheless at this price.

All in all though, if you’re looking for an entry level mechanical keyboard, this is a good choice, especially if you’re working from home and using multiple devices. That's not even considering its wireless capability, which really feels like the icing on the cake of the already impressive Keychron K2.

Read our full Keychron K2 review.

HyperX is a trusted name among peripheral manufacturers. While it typically caters to a more premium brand, the Alloy Core RGB brings extensive features and reliable performance at an affordable price. The price does skirt the definition of a “budget” keyboard, but the dedicated media controls and customization software help justify the MSRP. 

HyperX has had to incorporate membrane switches for this particular model, but that has the added effect of making the Alloy Core spill-resistant. We'd prefer mechanical keys, but a quality membrane is still much better than some old office board.

The Roccat Magma reminds us you don't need mechanical key switches for a good gaming experience. You get tactile keypress feedback, 26-key rollover, and anti-ghosting bundled up in a gorgeous '80s retro neon aesthetic. 

There may not be per key-lighting, nor are the LEDs super accurate if you want a highly specific color, but the entire faceplate lights up to create this unique beacon of RGB goodness. And for a full-size, RGB-laden keyboard with function key media controls and a wrist rest, it's well worth the price tag.

Read our full Roccat Magma review.

Best cheap gaming keyboards FAQ

Jargon buster – keyboard terminology

Actuation Point
The height to which a key needs to be pressed before it actuates and sends an input signal to a device.

Clicky
A switch that delivers an audible click every time it's pressed, generally right around the point of actuation.

Debounce
A technique to ensure that only one input registers every time a key is pressed.

Housing
The shell that surrounds the internal components of a switch.

Hysteresis
The result of the actuation point and reset point in a switch being misaligned. This generally means a key needs to be lifted off of further than normal before it can be actuated again. 

Linear
A switch that moves directly up and down, generally delivering smooth keystrokes without noise or tactile feedback.

Mechanical Keyboard
A keyboard built around individual switches for each key rather than a membrane sheath mounted on a PCB.

Membrane Keyboard
A keyboard on which all the keycaps are mounted on a membrane sheath; when a key is pressed, a rubber dome depresses and pushes against the sheath and PCB beneath, actuating the key.

Stem
The component of a switch on which the keycaps are mounted on a mechanical keyboard.

Switch
The physical component of a mechanical keyboard beneath the keycaps on a mechanical keyboard. The switch determines how a key is actuated, whether or not it provides audible or tactile feedback with each press, and more.

Tactile
A switch that provides a 'bump' of feedback every time it's pushed.

Tenkeyless
A keyboard that lacks the right-hand number pad.