We may earn a commission from links. It never changes our picks. How we make money
The Horizon T101 is the budget treadmill we'd buy: it usually sells for $649 to $999 and still has a lifetime frame and motor warranty, 10% incline and a 300 lb rating. If you want to run, spend up to the Sole F63, typically $1,099 to $1,399, for a 60-inch belt and a 3.0 HP motor.
Under $1,000, you're buying a warranty as much as a machine. The frame is rarely what fails on a cheap treadmill. The motor controller is, and what separates a good budget buy from a bad one is whether anyone will send you the part. That's why this list leans on brands with a parts desk: Horizon, Sole and XTERRA. Amazon brands like WellFit and DeerRun come with a 1-year warranty, so we treat them as walking machines with a short life and price them that way.
For walking and light jogging, it's the best thing you can put in a spare bedroom for the money.
You won't find a sturdier frame for under $1,400. Next to the F80, you give up 2 inches of belt width and get a slower console.
The $400 folding treadmill with a real brand behind it: a short 50-inch belt, manual incline and a lifetime frame warranty.
A folding Amazon treadmill with real handrails, three manual incline positions and a 300 lb rating.
An Amazon 2-in-1 with a fold-down handle: walk under a desk, or raise the rail and jog to 7.6 mph.
A Wayfair house-brand 2-in-1 that's fine for walking, with a 40-inch belt that's short for jogging. The warranty comes from the retailer.
A solid 3.5 CHP treadmill from the Bowflex parent company, sold off as the brand wound down.
Product photos are representative stock images, not the exact models, until our own test photos replace them.
Prices are typical ranges, not today's. Tap a column heading to sort.
| Model | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Horizon T101Horizon · 4.0/5 | $649–999 | 2.5 CHP | 20 x 55 in | 300 lb | 46 × 34 × 61 in | Not yet tested |
| Sole F63Sole · 4.2/5 | $1,099–1,399 | 3.0 HP DC | 20 x 60 in | 325 lb | 45 × 35 × 70 in | Not yet tested |
| XTERRA TR150XTERRA · 3.2/5 | $399–549 | 2.25 HP | 16 x 50 in | 250 lb | Folds | Not yet tested |
| WellFit Folding TreadmillWellFit · 3.2/5 | $279–399 | 2.5 HP | 17 x 43 in | 300 lb | Folds | Not yet tested |
| DeerRun A1 ProDeerRun · 3.1/5 | $229–349 | 2.5 HP | 16 x 41 in | 300 lb | Folds | Not yet tested |
| 17 Stories Compact Foldable17 Stories · 3.0/5 | $249–399 | 2.25 HP | 16 x 40 in | 265 lb | Folds | Not yet tested |
| Nautilus T618Nautilus · 3.6/5 | $1,599 | 3.5 CHP | 20 x 60 in | 350 lb | Folds | Not yet tested |
Tap a column to sort. Ratings come from published specs until we bench test a machine; specs are the manufacturer's unless a review says we measured them. Noise shows once we've measured that machine.
For walking, often. A $400 folding treadmill can carry a lighter walker for years. For running, rarely: the motors are small and the belts are short. The cheapest machine on this page we'd run on is the Sole F63.
The XTERRA TR150, typically $399 to $549, if you want a brand with a parts channel and a lifetime frame warranty. The WellFit, typically $279 to $399, if you need its 300 lb rating, though its 43-inch belt is shorter than the XTERRA's 50. Both are for walking and light jogging. Our under-$1,000 list covers the next step up.