K0TFU

Handheld Ham Radio Buyers Guide

Looking to buy a handheld amateur radio? There are dozens of options from many manufacturers with a broad range of available features and capabilities.

Purchasing Your First Radio has simplified advice to help you make your first purchase so you can get on the air right away.

This guide also is useful for more experienced amateur radio operators who want detailed comparisons of features so you can make an informed purchasing decision balancing the tradeoffs between budget, features, durability, and ease of use.

Handheld radios have limited power; none transmit with more than 10W and most top out at 5W. With this power output, the antenna you use makes a tremendous difference in how effective your transmissions are. The antennas that come with most handheld radios don't perform very well, and are often referred to as a "rubber duck". Buying a new antenna is an inexpensive way to increase the effectiveness and range of your transmissions. This guide includes a section on handheld antennas to help you get the most out of your radio.

Browse by Budget

You can select a radio based on the amount of money you want to spend. Prices fluctuate, and sometimes handhelds go on sale. Rather than trying to keep current on the specific pricing for each handheld, this guide groups the radios into budget categories:

less than $100
$100 to $300
more than $300

Browse by Brand

If you know the radio you want to look at, browsing by brand is an easy way to find it.

All Radios

I've got a page with all the handhelds currently in production, and another page with those that have been discontinued. There's also a page listing all the handhelds.

Accessories

Once you have a radio, there are some key accessories you should consider.

The most important upgrade you can buy for your radio is a better antenna than the "rubber duck" that comes with it. This guide includes a section on handheld antennas which covers the factors to consider and product recommendations.

Most radio's allow you to program the memories from the keypad on the device. However, it's a long tedious process if you want to add a bunch of repeaters. The manufacturer typically provides software which can manage radio settings and memories. Some of these software applications can program the radio over bluetooth, but usually you'll need an appropriate programming cable. Many radios use the K1 programming cable. Some require a proprietary cable, and a growing number use a standard USB-C or Bluetooth connection.

In addition to the manufacturer software, there are other programming software options. CHIRP is a free, open-source tool for programming hundres of different radios. RT Systems sells programming software and cables for dozens of brands and hundreds of radios too.

Where To Buy

It would be lots of work to maintain links to all the online sellers for each handheld radio included in this guide, so I don't do that. Rather, here's an alphabetic list of retailers who carry handheld amateur radios.

Radios to Add to This Guide

We all have a todo list. Here's the list of radios that I'd like to add to this guide:

  • VGC VR-N76 and BTECH UV-PRO
  • BAOFENG BF-F8HP Pro
  • BAOFENG UV-32
  • TYT TH-UV88
  • Retevis Ailunce HD2
  • Yaesu FT-4XR
  • TIDRADIO H3
  • Kenwood TH-D75
  • Quansheng UV-K5
  • Quansheng TK11
  • Wouxun KG-UV9PX

Get in touch if you'd like to provide any radio for testing and review.

Disclosures

I don't participate in any affiliate programs, nor do I accept money from any manufacturers, distributors, sellers, or any other companies or entities. Manufacturers and distributors have sent handhelds to me at no cost for testing and review. If I received a handheld at no cost, I'll clearly disclose who provided the radio at the top of the radio detail page.