Strapped for cash but need an affordable gaming mouse? In this guide, we’ve rated six cheap gaming mice to help you find a solid option for your budget and needs.
If you’re a serious gamer and you can afford to spend more than $30 on a gaming mouse, you probably should. While, for the most part, the skill you have in a game will be the biggest determining factor of your success in that game, for ultra-competitive gamers that are looking for every advantage possible, choosing a quality gaming mouse and appropriate grip style can mean the difference between victory and defeat.
However, not everyone can afford a high-end gaming mouse and so, if you are in need of a new mouse and you want an option that won’t have a significant negative impact on your gaming (if any at all), then one of the budget gaming mice below should work for you. Again, these aren’t ideal options (especially the options under $20), but some of them are decent enough to provide you with solid all-around performance.
Table of Contents
1. Quick-Look: The Best Affordable Gaming Mice
2. Top Pick: SteelSeries Rival 110
A Quick Look at the Best Cheap Gaming Mice
As a quick-look view at our picks for the best cheap gaming mice under $30, we’ve chosen the best option overall, the best cheap MMO mouse, the best cheap wireless gaming mouse, and the best option under $10.
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|
NAME | SPECS | RATING | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
TOP PICK
|
 |
SteelSeries Rival 110 |
|
/10 | |
|
FOR MMO
|
 |
Logitech G300s |
|
/10 | |
|
WIRELESS
|
 |
E-Blue Mazer II |
|
/10 | |
|
SUB-$10
|
 |
Lenrue Laser |
|
/10 |
*For more information on the mice above, click the “Read Review »” link to skip to our overview of that mouse. You can also see our Honorable Mention picks by scrolling down.
Best Cheap Gaming Mouse:
SteelSeries Rival 110
For our pick for the best gaming mouse under $30, we chose the SteelSeries Rival 110. Technically, we cheated a little bit as the Rival 110 comes in at just slightly over $30. However, we felt that its price was close enough to the $30 threshold to warrant inclusion on this list.
The Rival 110 uses SteelSeries’ new TrueMove1 optical sensor for 1 to 1 tracking. It’s a lightweight mouse (weighing in at ~90 grams) with a smaller design and will work best for gamers with smaller hands (or gamers who just prefer a lighter mouse.)
For DPI levels (or, in the case of the Rival 110, SteelSeries uses ‘CPI’) on the Rival 110, you can adjust the mouse in 100 CPI increments from 100 CPI all the way up to 7,200 CPI. And, the Rival 110 comes with mechanical switches that have a 30-million click lifespan.
Overall, if there are any mice under $30 that will offer you a high-end experience, the SteelSeries Rival 110 is probably the most likely one to do so.
Cheap MMO Mouse:
Logitech G300s
Most MMO gamers benefit more by having mouses with more programmable buttons on them that they can use to set up macros on. And, for that reason, the Logitech G300s and its nine programmable buttons are well-suited for MMO-style games.
The Logitech G300s doesn’t come with as high of DPI settings as the Corsair Harpoon, but it is a lightweight mouse that comes with an ambidextrous design. So, if you’re a left-handed PC gamer, this is an option that will work well for you, too.
It also comes in at nearly ~$10 cheaper than the Harpoon, so even if you are more into first-person shooters and/or MOBAs, the lower price that the G300s comes in at might make it a better option for your budget.
Ultimately, the low price and the extra programmable buttons on the G300s help it stand out as one of the better options in the sub-$30 price range.
Best Cheap Wireless Option:
E-Blue Mazer II
If you need a cheap wireless gaming mouse, you might want to check out the E-Blue Mazer II. The Mazer II is easily one of the cheapest options for anyone looking for a wireless mouse. (Although, there are even cheaper wireless options out there.)
You can hit up to 2,500 DPI on the Mazer II with options to switch to 500, 1,200, and 1,800 as well. The Mazer II also comes with six buttons and blue LED lights and it weighs 140 grams as well. So, it isn’t quite as light as the two options listed above. It is also designed to be used by right-handed gamers.
The Omron switches on the Mazer II come with a lifespan of up to five million clicks and for battery life, you can expect about ~30 hours out of a single charge.
Overall, the Mazer II is a decent gaming mouse and will be one of the better options for gamers who want an affordable wireless mouse instead of a traditional wired mouse.
Sub-$10 Gaming Mouse:
Lenrue Laser
If you just need a temporary solution to hold you over until you are able to afford a higher-end option, the Lenrue Laser gaming mouse is about as cheap of a “gaming” mouse as you’ll find. The Lenrue Laser comes in at just under $8 and it sports a fairly gaming-oriented design.
You can adjust the mouse’s DPI to four different levels, including 1,200 DPI, 1,600 DPI, 2,400 DPI, and 3,200 DPI. The mouse also comes with LED lights that go through a four-color breathing cycle and it weighs a total of 120 grams.
Ultimately, if you can’t afford to spend over $10 on a mouse, the Lenrue Laser will be an option for you. But, you probably shouldn’t expect the world out of this mouse and you should really only be using it as a temporary solution.
Honorable Mention #1:
Corsair Harpoon
As a nice alternative option to our top pick (the SteelSeries Rival 110), we like Corsair’s Harpoon RGB mouse. The mouse comes with six programmable buttons, RGB lighting, and weighs just 85 grams.
It is an optical mouse and it can hit up to 6,000 DPI through the on-the-fly DPI control. The Harpoon comes with Omron switches that are rated for 20 million clicks. The Harpoon does have a lightweight and smaller design, so it will work better for gamers who have smaller hands (but probably not for gamers who have larger hands or who prefer larger mice.)
Overall, if you’re looking for a budget-friendly RGB gaming mouse that is lightweight and will work well for most gamers (especially those playing first-person shooters or MOBAs), this Corsair gaming mouse is a worthy option. If you’re looking for a mouse that is better suited for MMOs, though, you might want to check out the Logitech G300s listed above as it comes with more programmable buttons.
Honorable Mention #2:
Redragon M601
Another cheap gaming mouse option you have is Redragon’s M601. At right about ~$12, the Redragon M601 is the second cheapest option on this list. The mouse weighs ~140 grams, but it does come with a set of eight additional weights that each weigh 2.4 grams to help you tune the weight of the mouse to your liking.
The M601 also comes with six total buttons, five of which are programmable. And, it has red LED lights as well. For DPI settings, you can adjust the DPI on the fly to four different levels: 800 DPI, 1,600 DPI, 2,400 DPI, and 3,200 DPI.
In the end, though, the Redragon M601, like the Lenrue Laser, is not going to be an option that serious gamers will want to consider—or, at least, it’s not an option that serious gamers will want to consider as a long-term solution. Instead, the M601 would be best served for gamers that need a decent temporary solution until they can afford a higher-end option.
If You’ve Got A Tight Budget, These Cheap Gaming Mice Should Work for You
As we mentioned above, a cheap gaming mouse won’t be an ideal option for hardcore competitive gamers. However, our top picks will be decent enough options for the majority of gamers and, at the very least, the mice mentioned above can work well as temporary solutions until you can afford a higher-end gaming mouse
If you’re looking for a nice cheap mechanical keyboard to pair with one of these affordable gaming mice, check out our guide on the Best Budget Mechanical Keyboards Under $50.
mice are animals its called computer mouses
yes
the SteelSeries Rival 110 pictuire is a corsair mice in the review of mice under 30$.. xD so what is it ?
I love my G300s mouse! It has been great compared to everything else I have used.