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Best record players and turntables: tested by Which? experts
There's little point curating the perfect vinyl collection if your record player isn't good enough to make your LPs and singles truly sing.
We have an expert panel of five seasoned audiophiles who test the sound quality of every record player we review. That way, you can be confident that buying one of our Best Buy models really will make the most of your vinyl.
We'll tell you how easy they are to set up and use, plus what additional features they have. We'll also show which models are record players – standalone devices that include built-in amplifiers and speakers – and which are turntables, which use a separate amp and speakers to produce sound.
Our tests have found options for every budget, including Best Buys and decent Great Value record players and turntables that you can buy for less than £150.
The best record players and turntables from our tests
Only logged-in Which? members can view the record player and turntable test results below.
Join Which? to get instant access to our test results and Best Buy recommendations below.
| Record player/turntable | Price | Score | Sound quality | Ease of use | Manual or automatic* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sign up to reveal Get instant access to this and all our scores and recommendations Unlock tableDigital Access for £8.99 a month, cancel at any time. Already a member? Log in | 77% | Manual | |||
| 74% | Manual | ||||
| 73% | Fully automatic | ||||
| 72% | Manual | ||||
| 67% | Manual | ||||
| 66% | Manual | ||||
| 66% | Manual | ||||
| 65% | Manual | ||||
| 65% | Semi-automatic | ||||
| 65% | Semi-automatic | ||||
| 64% | Semi-automatic | ||||
| 64% | Manual | ||||
| 63% | Semi-automatic | ||||
| 62% | Fully automatic | ||||
| 62% | Fully automatic | ||||
| 61% | Manual | ||||
| 59% | Manual | ||||
| 59% | Manual | ||||
| 43% | Manual | ||||
| 42% | Semi-automatic |
Sign up to reveal
Get instant access to this and all our scores and recommendations
Unlock tableDigital Access for £8.99 a month, cancel at any time.
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Dates tested: February 2024, June 2023, April 2023, January 2023, August 2022, April 2022, March 2020, September 2019, June 2019, May 2019, October 2018, July 2018, November 2017, February 2016. Page last checked: January 2025. We're not able to show every retailer and cheaper prices may be available. We've tested in 36 record players and turntables in total, but the table displays our top picks and Don't Buys only.
*Manual or automatic: Manual means you have to move the tonearm on/off the record yourself to play/stop the music. Automatic record players will start spontaneously, usually when you press a start button.
The record players and turntables we tested
All the record players and turntables we tested are listed in alphabetical order below.
Only logged-in Which? members can view the best record players and turntables from our tests.
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1 By One OUK00-0750
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Most recently tested August 2022
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Semi-automatic operation, Bluetooth connectivity, 3.5mm headphone socket, no USB output
Audio-Technica AT-LP3XBT
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Most recently tested February 2024
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Fully automatic, Bluetooth connectivity, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LP5X (Digital)
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Most recently tested March 2020
Belt or drive Direct drive
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm / 78rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LPW50BTRW
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Most recently tested February 2024
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, Bluetooth connectivity, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB
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Most recently tested May 2019
Belt or drive Direct drive
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm / 78rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LP60XBT
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Most recently tested May 2019
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Fully automatic, Bluetooth connectivity, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LP60XUSB
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Most recently tested May 2019
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Fully automatic, Bluetooth connectivity, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Audio-Technica AT-LPW30TK
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Most recently tested June 2019
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Ion Max LP
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Most recently tested February 2016
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm / 78rpm
Need to know Manual operation, Bluetooth connectivity, 3.5mm headphone socket, has a USB output, ceramic cartridge
Lenco LS-440
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Most recently tested April 2022
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, Bluetooth connectivity, 3.5mm headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Looking for the top-notch sound from your favourite DAB radio stations? Check out our guide to the best radios
Marley Stir It Up (EM-JT000-SB)
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Most recently tested November 2017
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Semi-automatic operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
ProJect E1
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Most recently tested January 2023
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
ProJect Primary E
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Most recently tested October 2018
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
ProJect RPM3 Carbon
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Most recently tested July 2018
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
ProJect T1
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Most recently tested September 2019
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Rega Planar 3 with Elys 2
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Most recently tested July 2018
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Roberts Stylus
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Most recently tested April 2023
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Semi-automatic operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Roberts Stylus Luxe
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Most recently tested June 2023
Belt or drive Direct drive
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Semi-automatic operation, no Bluetooth, no headphone socket, has a USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Sony PS-LX310BT
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Most recently tested May 2019
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm
Need to know Manual operation, Bluetooth connectivity, no headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
Victrola Eastwood
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Most recently tested August 2022
Belt or drive Belt
Revolutions per minute 33rpm / 45rpm / 78rpm
Need to know Semi-automatic operation, Bluetooth connectivity, 3.5mm headphone socket, no USB output, moving magnet cartridge
How we test record players and turntables
Sound quality makes up most of a record player's total test score, but we also consider how easy it is to set up and use, and what genuinely useful additional features it includes, before delivering our verdict.
Sound quality
- A panel of five audio experts listens to each record player and gives it their scores. Our experts have years of audio experience and are tough to impress.
- They listen to a selection of tracks, from jazz to pop to classical, in order to find out which is the best overall record player and which models are best suited to different genres.
- We connect every turntable to the same lab reference speakers via a preamp, so all are tested under an identical setup. For turntables that have built-in speakers, we test them both in this setup and then separately with their own speakers.
Ease of use
- Our testers rate each turntable on how easy it is to get up and running, as well as how easy it is to set up the speakers and preamp if needed.
- They score each turntable on the ease of putting on a record, adjusting speed and tracking force, and aligning the cartridge.
- We also look at maintenance, giving a rating for how easy the turntable is to clean and how easy it is to install replacement parts.
Additional features
- We look for additional audio outputs, giving you more options for how to connect your record player.
- If a product has a USB connection to connect to a computer and make digital recordings of records, we test the quality of those recordings.
- We're also interested in other features that make the record player much easier to use, such as automatic tonearm operation.
We regularly revisit the record players and turntables on sale to see if there are any more popular models that need testing, and when we find them, we do so.
Find out more about how Which? is not influenced by product manufacturers or retailers and how your support helps us to stay editorially independent
Which? Don’t Buy turntables
Our tests uncover the best and the worst. If a product performs so poorly that we think you should avoid it, we call it a Don't Buy. We've tested two record players that we've named Don't Buys.
The worst record players and turntables on test had terrible sound, shoddy build quality and can potential damage your vinyl.
Log in or join Which? to reveal those record players and turntables we've named Don't Buys.
Expert tips for buying a record player or turntable
Despite most record players looking similar, there's a multitude of jargon to learn and features to consider before making your purchase.
- Amplifier This is where the distinction between turntables and record players is important. If you buy a turntable, you'll need an amplifier if you're not plugging it in via a hi-fi system that already has one, or if you're using self-powered speakers. Record players have amplifiers already built in.
- Auto operation Some models fully automate the moving of the tonearm (the moveable part of the record player that houses the needle and follows the grooves on the record). This makes playing records easy and reduces the risk of damaging your vinyl. Other record players are semi-automatic, so you'll need to move the tonearm yourself but the platter spinner is automated when you pick up the tonearm. Others are fully manual, where you do everything yourself.
- Belt drive A belt-drive turntable uses an elastic belt to connect the motor to the platter where the record sits. Some turntables are direct-drive, where the platter is spun directly by gears from the motor, but these are only really used by DJs who want their records to start spinning immediately.
- Built-in speakers vs separate speakers Some record players include built-in speakers, which means you don’t need to buy additional speakers or plug in existing ones. Sound quality from built-in speakers will be inferior to playing records through hi-fi speakers, so they're more a handy extra than a brilliant feature.
- Preamp Many traditional-style turntables do not have a preamp built in. A preamp amplifies the small sound signal from a turntable to a level that can drive your speakers (via an amplifier). Be careful to check whether the turntable you're looking to buy has a preamp built in. If it does not, you will also need to purchase a separate preamp. Good models cost anything from £50 to several hundred pounds.
- 78rpm speed records Some record players and turntables can play the rarer 78rpm-speed records in addition to the usual 33rpm and 45rpm ones. These 78rpm records were generally only used before the 1950s, so you're unlikely to need a record player or turntable that can play these.
What you need to know about setting up a record player or turntable
How complex your record player or turntable is to set up will depend on what type you buy. The best record players and turntables will come with an instruction manual that guides you clearly through how to set it up. The general principles are outlines below.
Record players (with a built-in preamp and amplifier)
These require you to simply plug a traditional pair of stereo speakers into your record player (usually via a cable with red and white RCA 'phono' sockets), or to connect to a wireless speaker. Many Bluetooth and wireless speakers have an aux-in socket that you can use to connect them to your record player; you'll need to buy an inexpensive RCA to 3.5mm cable to do this.
Alternatively, some record players have Bluetooth built in, allowing you to connect to your Bluetooth speaker wirelessly. After you've connected your record player to your speakers, you then need to connect these to the mains.
Turntables without a built-in preamp
These are the most complicated to set up. If you have a traditional hi-fi system at home, it should be easy to connect the turntable into your existing setup (via a cable with red and white RCA 'phono' sockets). If you don't have a hi-fi system, you'll need to connect your turntable to a separate preamp and amplifier before you can connect it to your speakers.
The preamp and amplifier increase the amplitude of the signals from your turntable so it can drive your speakers. You can then connect the amplifier to a traditional pair of stereo speakers (also usually via RCA cables), or plug in a wireless speaker – the same way as explained above for record players with a preamp and amplifier built in.
Turntables with built-in speakers
These simply require you to plug them into the mains and you're good to go. However, their sound quality is generally no match for turntables with separate speakers.