I've been reviewing tablets for years, and for my money there's no better budget Android slate than an Amazon Fire tablet. They've earned their reputation for being cheap, durable slates, and the best Amazon Fire tablets let you browse the web and enjoy your favorite books, shows and games without costing an arm and a leg.
Trust me: My team and I review all the major tablets from Amazon, Apple, Google, Samsung and more every year, so I know what your money buys you in this market. I regularly recommend the Amazon Fire HD 10 as the best Amazon Fire slate for most readers because it gives you plenty of battery life, capable performance and a nice screen for significantly less than your average iPad.
If you're willing to spend a bit more and want something nicer than the 10, I recommend upgrading to the Amazon Fire Max 11 because it sports a bigger, brighter display, more power and more storage than the Fire HD 10 for roughly a hundred bucks more.
But if you're on a really tight budget and just need a cheap tablet to browse the web, I bet you'll be just fine with the Amazon Fire 8. It's a small, cheap slate with sub-1080p resolution, so it's not great for enjoying your favorite movies—but it's one of the best you can get for $100.
I've got a lot more advice and recommendations to share below, so scroll down for more help finding the best Amazon Fire tablet for you!
The quick list
In a hurry? Here's a brief overview of the tablets on this list, along with quick links that let you jump down the page directly to a review of whichever slate catches your eye.
The Amazon Fire HD 10 is the Amazon tablet we recommend most due to its great mix of price, size and performance. At under $150 with ads (or slightly more without), this is the sweet spot for Amazon Fire tablets.
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The Amazon Fire HD 8 represents the sweet spot in terms of price, power, and functionality. This 12th-generation Fire HD 8 tablet packs roughly 30% more power than the last model. It’s also lighter yet more durable. This is an amazingly solid tablet for the $100 asking price .
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If you can afford it, the Amazon Fire Max 11 is the Fire tablet to upgrade to because it sports the biggest screen, the highest resolution and the most power of any tablet on this list.
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For older kids (ages 6-12) we recommend the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro because its cheap, durable and comes with a 2-year warranty and a year of Amazon Kids+ included at no extra charge.
For youger kids (ages 3-7) we recommend the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids because its cheap and comes in bright colors, yet remains extra durable and comes with a 2-year warranty and a year of Amazon Kids+ included.
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Best overall
The Amazon Fire HD 10 is a great all-around tablet, which is why I generally recommend it as the best Amazon Fire tablet for most people.
While it's not the fastest or most beautiful tablet on the market, or even the most premium Amazon tablet (that honor belongs to the Fire Max 11), the Fire HD 10 hits a great sweet spot in terms of performance and price.
I say that because (according to our testing) you get great battery life, good performance, and a nice screen for a starting price of $150, making this a more affordable way to enjoy the benefits of having a tablet around without having to pay Apple or Samsung prices.
Its biggest flaws, though, are those endemic to the Amazon Fire tablets in general. Most notably, Amazon's Fire OS is still app-challenged, missing the Google Play app store — which means you can't get the full YouTube experience, for example, and you'll miss out on a lot of great apps not available on Amazon's app store.
But as long as you're happy to content yourself with the apps available to you in the Amazon App Store, you can have a lot of fun with the Fire HD 10. It definitely helps to be deeply invested in Amazon's ecosystem, as these slates are great for streaming videos, reading ebooks and browsing the web.
Read our full Amazon Fire HD 10 review.
Best budget option
The Amazon Fire HD 8 is a cheap tablet, and for some that's the main selling point.
I recommend this slate to Fire shoppers on a budget because its slightly nicer than the bottom of the barrel Fire 7, yet still affordable at $99. And while the 8-inch touchscreen isn't sharp enough to support 1080p content, it's more than fine for browsing the web and reading books.
This is a great utility tablet because you get good battery life (nearly 14 hours in our testing) and decent speakers, as well as easy access to Amazon's various content streaming apps and strong parental controls. Of course, the front and rear cameras are pretty bad, but who uses their tablet to take photos anyway?
And since this tablet isn't powerful enough to run many demanding apps very well anyway, you won't miss the full panoply of apps available on Android nearly as much.
Read our full Amazon Fire 8 review.
Best upgrade option
The Amazon Fire Max 11 is the biggest Fire tablet you can buy right now, and it's the only one with a 2K (2,000 x 1,200 pixels) display. So if pixels count, this is the Fire tablet you want to buy for streaming shows on the biggest, most vibrant screen possible.
You pay extra for the privilege, of course, as this is not only the biggest but also the most expensive Fire tablet with a starting price of just over $200. But in return you get a speedy 2.2Ghz Mediatek chip that runs games and apps well, 4GB of RAM for speedy multitasking and a pair of decent cameras on the front and back.
Of course, even this beefy Fire tablet is handicapped by shipping limited to Amazon's App Store. While you can sideload apps outside the Amazon App Store with enough know-how, it's a hassle and a lot of effort to go through so you can access Google apps like Gmail and YouTube.
But if you don't need to use YouTube, Gmail, Google Docs and other Google apps, the Fire Max 11 gives you a pretty premium-feeling slate for over a $100 less than the base iPad. It's the best Fire tablet to upgrade to if you need more screen and power than the Fire Max 10 can deliver!
Read our full Amazon Fire Max 11 review.
Best for older kids
The Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro is basically the same, hardware-wise, as the excellent Amazon Fire HD 10. It’s got the same octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM and vivacious 1,900 x 1,200 display. The big difference is that it's designed specifically for use by older kids ages 6-12, so it comes with a one-year Amazon Kids+ subscription, a colorful kickstand case, and a comprehensive, no-questions-asked 2-year warranty that covers accidental damage.
If you're in the market for a kid-friendly tablet, few competitors can match what the Fire HD 10 Kids Pro offers for $199, particularly with that generous extended warranty. Sure, it has all the same weaknesses as every Fire tablet — most notably, no easy access to the Google Play Store — but if you're planning to give this to a kid anyway, that's less of an issue.
Read our full Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro review.
Best for younger kids
The Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids, like the Fire HD 10 Kids Pro listed above, is effectively a version of the Fire HD 10 that's tailored for kid-friendly use. It costs as much as the Fire HD 10 Kids Pro ($199) and offers basically the same features, but aimed at children ages three to seven rather than older kids.
Like its siblings the Fire HD 10 Kids sports a bright display, a durable kid-friendly design, and excellent battery life. Plus, the detailed built-in parental controls give you a lot of control over what a child does on the device, with little risk of them going astray. Sure, the lack of Google Play Store apps limits what you can do with this tablet, but that's hardly a problem if you're planning to give it to your 5-year-old so they can have something to watch videos on. If you want a durable, long-lasting tablet tailored to young children, the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids is a great choice.
Read our full Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids review.
How to choose the right Amazon Fire tablet for you
Why you can trust Tom's Guide Our writers and editors spend hours analyzing and reviewing products, services, and apps to help find what's best for you. Find out more about how we test, analyze, and rate.
Still not sure which Amazon Fire tablet is right for you? Here are some important things to consider.
Screen size: The Amazon Fire tablets come in a variety of screen sizes ranging from 7 to 10 inches. If you expect to be watching a lot of videos, you'll want the biggest, nicest screen possible, so consider the Fire HD 10. But if you just want a tablet to browse the web and read ebooks, a smaller display, like those on the Fire 7 or Fire HD 8, will be more than enough for your needs.
Budget: While all of the Amazon Fire tablets are more affordable than anything Apple makes, there's still a wide price range of $50-$200, or more if you splurge on extras. If you can afford the higher end of that spectrum, the $150 Fire HD 10 is probably the best choice for you. But if you'd rather spend $100, or $50, the Fire HD 8 or Fire 7 (respectively) are decent tablets that should meet your needs.
Age: How old is the person you're buying this tablet for? Obviously if it's for you, buy whatever you like, but if you're getting a cheap Amazon Fire tablet for a younger person, there are a variety of kid-friendly options depending on their age. For those ages 3-7, the Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids offers decent performance, great parental controls, and a colorful drop-resistant case. The Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro offers effectively the same benefits for the same price, but it's aimed at older kids in the 6-12 range. And if the person you're buying for is older than that, they should be well-served by the standard Amazon Fire HD 10.
Battery life compared
Battery life is one of the key things to consider when buying a tablet, and even though Amazon's slates are pretty long-lived you can't blindly trust the manufacturer's claims about exactly how long they'll last.
That's why we put every tablet we test and review through a series of battery tests, then average the results and compare them against the competition. I've assembled the tested battery life of every tablet on this page here in one handy chart, to help you make a more informed buying decision.
| Header Cell - Column 0 | Time (min:secs) |
|---|---|
Amazon Fire Max 11 | 13:45 |
Amazon Fire HD 10 | 12:39 |
Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids Pro | 14:12 |
Amazon Fire HD 10 Kids | 14:32 |
Amazon Fire HD 8 | 13:42 |
Amazon Fire 7 | 6:56 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What apps can I run on an Amazon Fire tablet?
I'm so glad you asked! One of the biggest weaknesses of the Amazon Fire tablets is that they run on Amazon's FireOS, which is a modified version of Android. But while these are technically Android slates, you can't just buy one and start putting your favorite Google apps on it because the Google Play Store is not accessible on an Amazon Fire tablet.
That means that unless you want to futz around with sideloading apps, you can't easily install a significant number of Android apps that other Android tablets have access to. Basic Google apps like Gmail, Google Docs and YouTube are not easily available on a Fire tablet. You can still access those services by opening a web browser and using the web versions, but you should know this key limitation of Fire tablets before you buy one.
How do I find a great deal on an Amazon Fire tablet?
One of the big selling points of Amazon's Fire tablets is how cheap they are, but you can always do better if you know where to look.
First and foremost, check out our Amazon promo codes page for the latest offers and see if you can find a specific discount on the tablet you want or a general discount for shopping at Amazon.
Since the Fire tablets are sold by Amazon they're always easy to buy on the website, plus they're often among the first products to get discounted during Amazon's many sales. So if you can afford to wait for a Prime sale, do so—you'll likely be rewarded with a sweet discount on that Fire tablet you've had your eye on.
How do I get rid of lockscreen ads?
Good question! Like Amazon Kindles, Fire tablets can be ordered with or without lockscreen ads. It costs $15 more to buy one without lockscreen ads, but that means you won't have to stare at promos for products when your tablet is locked.
Luckily, if you decide to get rid of ads later (or you get an ad-supported Fire as a gift and want to banish the advertising) you can. Just head to Amazon's website, log into your account and navigate to the "Manage Your Devices" page.
From your Devices page, click on the Fire tablet you wish to remove ads on and select the "Special offers" section, then navigate to the "Remove offers" option. Click it, pay a $15 fee and voila—no more ads!
How we test Amazon Fire tablets
Before we start reviewing a new Amazon Fire tablet, we send it to our lab, where it gets run through a series of tests that help us measure its capabilities.
First, we run as many benchmarks as that tablet will allow, to see how fast they are in ways that can be compared directly against competitors. We say "will allow" as Amazon's Fire slates have trouble with side-loaded Android apps. We then use colorimeters and light meters to measure how colorful and bright these tablets’ screens can get. After that, we put them through our in-house battery test, which times how long it takes — while surfing the web with brightness at 150 nits — to drain a tablet of a charge.
After that, we do the same things you do — browse the web, watch videos, play games, compose emails — as we use the tablet like we own it, for a week or two at least.
Alex Wawro is a lifelong journalist who's spent over a decade covering tech, games and entertainment. He oversees the computing department at Tom's Guide, which includes managing e-readers coverage and reviewing man himself every year.
