Telescopes / Altazimuth mounts
This group

Altazimuth Telescopes

Checked 2026-10-24

Simple up-down and left-right movement for intuitive tracking 40 telescopes · 20 brands

For adults For beginners For kids Refractor For moon viewing Portable Tripod included For travel Budget With phone adapter Altazimuth mounts 90mm aperture 80mm aperture Equatorial mounts Reflector 70mm aperture Professional For bird watching For deep sky For astrophotography 600mm focal length Black Smart Digital Dobsonian 800mm focal length Monocular 400mm focal length White 50mm aperture STEM learning Tabletop mounts Maksutov-Cassegrain 130mm aperture 60mm aperture 900mm focal length 114mm aperture 300mm focal length Blue Waterproof 700mm focal length Red Green

Best Altazimuth Telescopes

# Item Level House Notes See listing
1 Long focal length 80mm refractor with AZ mount 9.0 SOLOMARK Long focal length 80mm refractor with AZ mount $69.99 SOLOMARK For adults · For beginners · 80mm aperture
$69.99 See listing
2 Portable travel refractor with 900mm focal length 9.1 Celticbird Portable travel refractor with 900mm focal length $140 Celticbird For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$140 See listing
3 Refractor telescope for moon and planet viewing 8.9 Celestron Refractor telescope for moon and planet viewing $170 Celestron For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$170 See listing
4 Compact 80mm refractor telescope for kids 8.7 Gskyer Compact 80mm refractor telescope for kids $143 Gskyer Refractor · For kids · Tripod included
$143 See listing
5 Professional 90mm aperture refractor with 900mm focal length 8.5 Hawkko Professional 90mm aperture refractor with 900mm focal length $240 Hawkko For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$240 See listing
6 Black 90mm refractor telescope for deep sky 9.1 Koolpte Black 90mm refractor telescope for deep sky $250 Koolpte Black · For adults · Refractor
$250 See listing
7 80mm Refractor with Altazimuth Mount Tripod 8.5 HUGERSTAR 80mm Refractor with Altazimuth Mount Tripod $89.99 HUGERSTAR For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$89.99 See listing
8 Silver 70mm portable refractor 400mm length 7.4 EACONN Silver 70mm portable refractor 400mm length $49.99 EACONN For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$49.99 See listing
9 90mm refractor telescope with mount SVBONY 90mm refractor telescope with mount $330 SVBONY For adults · For beginners · Refractor
$330 See listing
10 Explore One 50mm alt-azimuth refractor 7.9 Explore Scientific - Toys Explore One 50mm alt-azimuth refractor $48.14 Explore Scientific - Toys For beginners · For kids · For moon viewing
$48.14 See listing
Before you buy

Altazimuth telescope questions

Do I need to align an altazimuth telescope before using it?

No polar alignment is required. You set the tripod level, point the tube at a bright object, and adjust the two slow-motion controls or pan by hand. Some samples add a smartphone app that helps you find targets, but the mount itself works without electronics.

Can I take pictures through an altazimuth telescope?

Yes, for short exposures of the Moon and planets. The samples include a smartphone adapter that holds a phone over the eyepiece. Deep-sky photography with long exposures is harder because the mount does not track the stars automatically.

What is the difference between an altazimuth and an equatorial mount?

An equatorial mount has one axis tilted to match your latitude so it can follow stars with a single motion. An altazimuth mount moves straight up-down and left-right, which is simpler to set up but requires you to nudge both axes as objects drift.

Are altazimuth telescopes good for beginners?

They are often chosen for first scopes because the motion is intuitive and the setup is quick. The samples include refractors and Newtonians on AZ mounts with tripods, plus a phone adapter for capturing views. You spend less time aligning and more time looking.

What an altazimuth telescope is like to use

An altazimuth telescope moves in two simple directions: up and down for altitude, and left and right for azimuth. That motion feels natural if you have ever panned a camera on a tripod head, and it makes the scope easy to point at a bright object without thinking about polar alignment. The mounts in this slice are paired with refractors and Newtonians, so the tube can be short and wide or long and narrow depending on the optical design.

Because the mount does not track the sky on its own, you nudge the tube by hand as the Earth turns. That suits quick sessions where you want to look at the Moon, a planet, or a bright cluster and then go back inside. Several samples include a smartphone adapter, which lets you capture what you see without a separate camera rig.

How the altazimuth form differs from other mounts

Equatorial mounts follow the sky with one axis tilted to match your latitude, which is useful for long-exposure photography but adds setup steps. Altazimuth mounts keep both axes level and perpendicular, so there is no counterweight to balance and no polar scope to align. Tabletop altazimuth scopes sit on a flat surface instead of a tripod, which trades height for stability on a picnic table or balcony rail.

Related
For adults Refractor For beginners Tripod included For moon viewing For kids Portable 80mm aperture