The 7 Best Telecaster Copies For The Money

If you want one answer, buy the Squier Classic Vibe ’50s Telecaster. It’s the closest thing to an early ’50s Tele you can get for about $500.

This page used to list 20 guitars. When I went back through it in October 2026, more than half of them were discontinued, sold only in Europe, or no longer in US stores, so I cut it down to the seven I’d actually buy. Each one is here for a different reason, and each one has a demo so you can hear it first.

The Quick Picks

Guitar	Best for	Pickups	Price
Squier Classic Vibe ’50s Telecaster	Most players	2 single coils	About $500
Squier Sonic Telecaster	A first guitar	2 single coils	About $250
Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Telecaster Deluxe	Classic rock	2 humbuckers	About $530
Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Telecaster Thinline	A lighter semi hollow Tele	2 humbuckers	About $530
Squier Classic Vibe Custom Telecaster SH with Bigsby	Vibrato, rockabilly, country	Single coil and humbucker	About $650
Schecter PT Special	A step up from a first guitar	Single coil and P-90 style	About $800
Charvel San Dimas Style 2 SD2 HH HT	Hard rock and metal	2 humbuckers	About $570

Prices are typical US music store prices in late 2026 and they move around, so click through for today’s price.

How I Picked These

I didn’t test these seven side by side in a studio. I went through current reviews from Guitar World, MusicRadar, Guitar Player and guitar.com, the makers’ spec sheets and a lot of owner reviews. Then I threw out anything that’s discontinued, anything you can’t buy new in the US, and anything over $1,000.

Why So Many Squiers?

Squier is Fender’s own budget brand, so a Squier Tele isn’t really a copy. It’s the licensed version, made in Indonesia or China, and it’s what most people mean when they say they want a cheap Telecaster. Most of the good Tele style guitars from other brands, like Sire, Reverend and Chapman, aren’t sold on Amazon in the US, and some of the old favorites are gone (more on that further down). The Classic Vibe Squiers are also the guitars reviewers keep pointing to at this price, so five of them earned their place.

1. Squier Classic Vibe ’50s Telecaster: Best Overall

The closest you’ll get to an early ’50s Tele for about $500, and the one most reviewers recommend first.

The ’50s model follows the early Telecaster recipe closely: a pine body, a one piece maple neck, two alnico single coil pickups and a three saddle bridge with the strings going through the body. MusicRadar says the pickups are a throwback to the bright, low output sound of the early ’50s. Guitar Player picks it as the best Telecaster for beginners, and Guitar World says it gets you most of the way to Fender’s own Standard Telecaster for less money.

The downsides are small. The gloss neck can feel sticky to some players, and with three saddles two strings share each one, so the tuning higher up the neck is never perfect on every string. The ones I found weights for were between 8 and 9 pounds, which is normal for a Tele but not light.

2. Squier Sonic Telecaster: Best Under $300

The cheapest Telecaster I’d buy. Light, easy to play and good enough to learn on for years.

The Sonic is Squier’s entry level Tele. It has a thin, light poplar body, a satin neck that feels fast, and a six saddle bridge that’s easier to set up than the vintage three saddle kind. Guitar World called it an authentic Telecaster experience for under $200 when it came out, and ideal for beginners. It costs about $250 now.

Guitar Player was surprised by the quality at this price, but found a couple of slightly sharp fret ends and suggests a professional setup out of the box. Guitar World found the bridge pickup a little bright. A setup costs far less than the jump to the next guitar, so I’d budget for one. If you want something in between, the Squier Affinity Telecaster sits at about $330.

3. Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Telecaster Deluxe: Best For Classic Rock

Two humbuckers and Les Paul style controls in a Tele body, for players who want a thicker rock sound.

This one copies Fender’s 1972 Telecaster Deluxe. It swaps the single coils for two Wide Range humbuckers, and the controls work like a Gibson: a volume and a tone for each pickup and a toggle switch to pick between them. MusicRadar’s take is that this is the Tele to buy if you like classic rock, with humbuckers that keep the notes clear even with a lot of distortion.

There’s no coil split, so you won’t get the classic Tele spank from it. It’s also hard to find right now. Fender only lists it in Olympic White in the US, and Amazon had one left when I checked, so look at the music stores too if it’s gone.

4. Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Telecaster Thinline: Best Semi Hollow

A lighter, airier Tele with the f hole look, and humbuckers that still sound bright.

The Thinline’s body is partly hollow, with one f hole, so it’s lighter than a solid Tele and sounds a bit more open. It has the same Wide Range humbuckers as the Deluxe, but Guitar Player found they sound surprisingly bright, closer to single coils than you’d expect. Guitar World found it handles a lot of different styles well.

The trade offs: Guitar World thought the bridge pickup sounds mellow next to a regular Tele, MusicRadar warns about feedback at very high volume, and the gloss neck can feel thick to some players. It isn’t a metal guitar, but that’s not what it’s for.

5. Squier Classic Vibe Custom Telecaster SH With Bigsby: Best With A Vibrato

The only guitar here with a vibrato arm, plus a humbucker in the neck for warmer leads.

A Bigsby is the old style vibrato you see on a lot of Gretsch guitars. It’s made for a gentle wobble on chords rather than big dives. Squier pairs it with a classic Tele bridge pickup and a humbucker in the neck. Guitar World liked getting a Bigsby at this price and said the bridge pickup has plenty of Tele bite, and guitar.com gave it 8 out of 10.

Neither review found the tuning perfect after using the arm. Guitar World called it acceptable for the money, guitar.com was less kind, so expect to retune now and then. Both also found the neck humbucker a bit dark and muddy with gain. The price has gone up since it came out, from about $500 to about $650, which puts it close to Fender’s own Standard Telecaster.

6. Schecter PT Special: Best Step Up

A Korean made Tele style guitar with better parts than the Squiers and a P-90 style neck pickup.

The PT Special is made in South Korea, and you can see it in the parts: a swamp ash body, Grover tuners, a TUSQ nut and brass saddles. The neck pickup is a P-90 style single coil, and Total Guitar found it one of the brightest neck pickups they’d heard and very useful for heavier rock. A push pull switch on the tone knob changes how the pickups are wired, which gives you a few extra sounds.

It’s the heaviest guitar here at about 8.5 pounds, and the reviews are old. The best one I found is Total Guitar’s 2018 group test, where it was picked as the best guitar for rock. They also heard some extra hum in the alternate switch setting and found the neck chunky. It has been in Schecter’s catalog since 2017, which is a good sign.

7. Charvel San Dimas Style 2 SD2 HH HT: Best For Hard Rock And Metal

A Tele shape built for speed, with hot humbuckers and a thin neck with rolled edges.

Charvel’s Standard Series came out in March 2026, and the SD2 is the cheapest way into a Charvel Tele shape. The neck has rolled edges and gets flatter higher up the board, the locking tuners make string changes quick, and at under 7 pounds it’s the lightest guitar here. MusicRadar said the playability is the real standout, and Guitar World called it a lot of guitar for the money. If you’re still deciding between styles, my list of budget metal guitars has more options.

The two big reviews don’t agree on everything. MusicRadar found some neck dive and tuning that drifted more than expected. Guitar World had no neck dive and good tuning, but found the oiled neck a little rough and the plastic nut a letdown. The scale is 25.1 inches, a little shorter than a Fender, which makes bends slightly easier.

Or Just Buy A Fender?

If you can stretch a little, Fender’s own Standard Telecaster is about $680. Next to the Classic Vibe ’50s it has a satin neck and sealed tuners, and it’s made in Indonesia. The Fender Player II Telecaster is about $850 and made in Mexico. For most people learning or playing at home, the Classic Vibe is close enough that I’d keep the difference for an amp.

What Happened To The Rest Of The List?

The old version of this page had 20 guitars. Here’s what happened to most of the others:

• Harley Benton Fusion-T: only sold by Thomann in Europe, not in US stores.
• G&L Tribute ASAT Classic: G&L’s parent company was dissolved in late 2025, and the Tribute is gone from US stores.
• Sire Larry Carlton T7: replaced by the T7 New Gen, which is backordered and not on Amazon.
• Schecter PT Pro, LTD TE-200, FGN Boundary Iliad, Godin Radium and Solar T2.6N: discontinued.
• Godin Stadium HT: about $1,100 now, over my $1,000 limit.
• Framus Panthera Supreme: a Les Paul style guitar, so it never belonged here.
• Chapman ML3 Pro Traditional and Reverend Eastsider T: still made and still good, but not sold on Amazon in the US. If you’re buying from a music store, they’re worth a look.

How To Choose A Telecaster Copy

• Single coils or humbuckers. Two single coils give the classic bright Tele twang. Humbuckers sound thicker and stay quieter with distortion.
• Three saddles or six. Vintage style bridges have three saddles, two strings on each, so the tuning higher up the neck is never perfect. Six saddles let you set each string on its own.
• Weight. These range from under 7 pounds (the Charvel) to about 9 pounds (some Classic Vibe ’50s). If you play standing up for long sets, it matters.
• Budget for a setup. Any guitar plays better after a proper setup, and on a guitar under $500 it makes the biggest difference.
• Don’t forget the amp. If you still need one, my page on budget guitar amps covers the ones I’d buy.

Good luck and keep on rockin’!