The best retro handheld under $100

What $100 buys, and what it does not

The hard limit at this price is the chip. The Allwinner H700 is rated entry tier on the chip guide, and Retro Game Corps flags PSP, N64, Saturn, Dreamcast and a few arcade systems as not full speed in every game. The ratings in our data agree: every H700 handheld is rated no for GameCube, PS2, Switch and 3DS. A cheaper price does not change the chip, so there is no under-$100 route to PS2.

Within that limit the models differ in shape, sticks, screen and RAM, not in power. Several share the same ratings: great for GB, GBA, NES, SNES, PS1, N64, Dreamcast and Nintendo DS, and good for PSP. Those ratings are provisional (mapped from Retro Catalog and Held Games scores), so treat N64 and Dreamcast as "most games", not "all games".

Every handheld with a price of $100 or less

Sorted by the lowest dated price in our data:

The RG DS and RG Rotate appear with a "from" price because the data holds two figures for them. Handhelds with no price in our data, such as the TrimUI Smart Pro and Brick Hammer or the MagicX models, do not appear here even if they sell under $100 somewhere.

Picks

Anbernic RG35XX Pro: best overall under $100

At $50 (third-party aggregator (heldgames.com street price), Nov 5, 2026) it has two analog sticks, mini HDMI, Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2. Held Games says it ships with a 64 GB card. The cons are 1 GB of RAM and a 3.5 inch screen. Custom firmware (muOS and Knulli) is supported on the H700 family; see custom firmware.

Anbernic RG SP (2026): best clamshell

$64.99 (third-party aggregator (heldgames.com street price), Nov 5, 2026). It weighs 168 g, has a 3:2 screen, sleeps when you close it and has TV out. It has no sticks and its ratings are narrower than the RG35XX family: great for GB to SNES, playable for PS1, and no for N64 and Dreamcast. muOS and Knulli support was only expected at launch, so check before you plan around them. Alternatives with a similar shape are on the clamshell list and the GBA list.

Anbernic RG35XX Plus: stick-free

$65 (third-party aggregator (heldgames.com street price), Nov 5, 2026). Same screen and chip as the Pro, but no analog sticks. Pick it only if you play 2D games and PS1 with the d-pad.

Anbernic RG34XX SP: 3:2 clamshell with a RAM warning

$70 (third-party aggregator (heldgames.com street price), Nov 5, 2026). Anbernic cut its RAM from 2 GB to 1 GB in January 2026 and some units were reported with 512 MB, so specs differ by production batch (Held Games). Ask the seller for the RAM figure before you order.

TrimUI Brick Pro: best vertical near $100

$99.99 (retail list price as reported (not seen on store page), Nov 5, 2026). It has Hall sticks, a 3.95 inch 4:3 screen and a 5000 mAh battery. Ratings are narrower: great for GB to SNES and PS1, playable for N64, Dreamcast and PSP. A reviewer cited by the data says performance drops sharply past PS1, the screen is dim, and the stock OS is weak, so plan to install SpruceOS or NextUI. For a cheaper vertical see the vertical list.

Miyoo Mini Flip: pocket clamshell

$52.99 (retail price as reported (not seen on store page), Nov 5, 2026). It is a 2.8 inch screen with 128 MB of RAM, rated great for GB to SNES and PS1 and no for N64, Dreamcast and PSP. It has no Bluetooth and no internal storage. Onion and MinUI support is listed, and MinUI was archived on 2025-11-27, so forks such as NextUI continue.

Miyoo Mini Plus V2 and the rest

The Miyoo Mini Plus V2 is $69.99 (GoGameGeek list price (not official store), Nov 5, 2026) with 128 MB of RAM, and our data has no emulation rating for it and no confirmed firmware support. Treat it as unknown until reviewers publish results. The Anbernic RG DS and RG Rotate sit just under or over $100 in some listings and are Android devices; the RG DS has two 4 inch touch screens and the RG Rotate has a rotating 1:1 screen but a 2000 mAh battery.

Vertical and horizontal under $100

People search for "best horizontal retro handheld under 100" and "best vertical retro handheld under 100" separately. In our data the horizontal picks are the RG35XX Pro and Plus; the vertical ones are the RG40XX V ($75 (third-party aggregator (heldgames.com street price), Nov 5, 2026)) and the Brick Pro. The vertical RG40XX V has a 4 inch 4:3 screen, but its sources conflict on RAM, weight and stick count, and one source calls the small analog nubs uncomfortable for long 3D sessions.

Importing under $100: tariffs and shipping

A cheap handheld can cost noticeably more after import. The de minimis duty exemption for small parcels ended in the US, and the rules changed several times in a year:

• US: De minimis ($800) duty-free treatment ended for China/Hong Kong goods on 2025-05-02 (E.O. 14256) and was suspended for all countries from 2025-08-29 (E.O. 14324, continued by E.O. 14388 of 2026-02-20). (source, checked Nov 5, 2026)
• US: CBP interim final rule published 2026-06-24 (CBP Dec. 26-12) suspends the de minimis exemption indefinitely for non-postal shipments of $800 or less; they need formal or informal entry. Comments were due 2026-07-24. Statutory repeal of de minimis takes effect 2027-07-01. Postal shipments are handled in a separate concurrent CBP rule. (source, checked Nov 5, 2026)
• US: Supreme Court (Learning Resources v. Trump, 2026-02-20, 6-3) held IEEPA does not authorize tariffs. Refund mechanics were left to the Court of International Trade and CBP; the CIT issued a refund-related order on 2026-03-04 (Atmus Filtration v. United States). (source, checked Nov 5, 2026)
• US: After the ruling the administration imposed a 10% global tariff under Section 122 (2026-02-24 to 2026-07-24). On 2026-07-24 a new Section 301 tariff of 10-12.5% replaced it; China is reported in the ~12.5% band, stacking on 2018 China tariffs. Source is a trade-compliance blog dated 2026-07-28 and the regime is under litigation; confirm against USTR/CBP notices. (source, checked Nov 5, 2026)

Prices on this page come from named sources (Anbernic and Powkiddy official stores, or a third party); they do not include what a seller adds for shipping or duty. Compare the delivered price, not the list price. Anbernic suspended US shipments in 2025 according to Gizmodo, so a US buyer may end up with a reseller; check the seller name, as explained in the AliExpress guide.