Best Budget Wired Mice for Gaming in 2024

With all the cool features a premium gaming mouse can offer, dropping $150 on a mouse is tempting, but for some gamers, that is not an option. The unsung heroes of the gaming mouse world are the budget-wired mice that are workhorses. Not all budget mice are built equally, but ones that live up to snuff are workhorses; most will vastly improve the user’s gaming experience, and they won’t break the bank.

From a plethora of wired gaming mice available in the market, finding the best ones at affordable prices needs every factor into consideration, including ergonomics, reliability, switch type, sensor, and aesthetics. The GR team, being a veteran in the field of reviewing gaming mice, has some of the best recommendations for users, to ensure exceptional functionality on a budget.

When starting the search for a budget wired mouse, consider these factors

• Grip Style & Ergonomics: Having a comfortable mouse is, in some ways, more important than the overall gaming performance that it can offer. A mouse can be the best in the world, but gaming with it will be no fun if it is uncomfortable to use. Choosing a mouse that fits a preferred grip style and size is a great way to narrow down the results.
• Gaming Performance: Depending on what games users want to play with the mouse, this can look different for everyone, but in general, gamers should look for a mouse with a decent DPI range, low click latency, and a polling rate of at least 1,000Hz.
• Reliability & Durability: Getting a budget mouse that can stand up to the test of time and rigorous gaming sessions is worth the potential extra money compared to buying a cheap mouse that will break in a few months. Brand names are not everything, but it’s usually best to go with a trusted name for electronics, like Corsair, Logitech, or Razer.

Game Rant’s Picks for the Best Budget Wired Gaming Mice in 2024

The Razer Basilisk V3 is the ultimate choice for around 50 bucks, providing brilliant features ideal for serious and professional gamers. Its construction is premium and sturdy, and weighs just 100 grams, making sure users can quickly move the mouse however they want. To further enhance its movement on various surfaces like a desk or a mousepad, the feet is improved drastically over its predecessor and doesn’t provide any friction.

Its wire is fairly flexible and uses paracord to provide both reliability and versatility. Without a doubt, the Razer Basilisk V3 has one of the quickest sensors out there, which provides little to no lag and has accurate tracking in all of its DPI profiles. While users can customize its functionality like programming its buttons, changing its RGB effects, or setting up five different DPI profiles, users can save the profiles in its onboard memory and make it work flawlessly without needing the software again.

The Razer Cobra is a fantastic FPS mouse that offers outstanding gaming performance and is very affordable. This mouse is the spiritual successor to the Razer Viper Mini, with a low-profile design and light weight, it is very similar to the Viper Mini. However, the Cobra has some much-appreciated performance upgrades that make it even better than the Viper Mini. The sensor doesn’t offer a very wide DPI range, but it makes up for that with a remarkably accurate performance and a very low liftoff distance.

With the new and improved sensor paired with an ultra-low click latency, this mouse is an absolute joy to use in competitive and casual gaming. Ergonomics-wise, the Cobra is comfortable for most hand sizes and all three grip styles, but it is ideal for gamers with small or medium hands who prefer to use a fingertip grip. Plus, there are two buttons on the left-hand side and some well-implemented RGB lighting.

With only 3 RGB zones, the SteelSeries Aerox 3 offers more astounding RGB lighting than some mice with twice the amount of zones. Two of the zones are in the palm rest, which, thanks to the honeycomb design, has some cool effects, especially with light animations. The third zone is around the back of the Aerox 3 on the bottom, which produces an underglow effect that will make fans of Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift happy.

The Aerox 3 doesn’t only shine when it comes to RGB, though; it also offers excellent gaming performance. It has low click latency and a high polling rate and performs consistently. However, the liftoff distance is relatively high, which can create a problem for gamers who often like to reposition their mouse. The Aerox 3 is incredibly lightweight, at 68 grams, and thanks to the high-quality PTFE feet, this mouse will glide over any surface easily. The cable can be stiff right out of the box, but this isn’t a massive downside because it is replaceable.

Ergonomic mice have massive health benefits for gamers, but unfortunately, most of the time, they are so expensive that people who are looking for budget options cannot afford them. Luckily, that is not the case when it comes to the Corsair Sabre Pro RGB Championship series mouse. This mouse offers fantastic ergonomic support and has pretty impressive gaming performance that can keep up with fast-paced competitive gaming. The sloped design allows gamers to rest their wrist more naturally than traditional gaming mice, creating less strain, especially during marathon gaming sessions.

The Sabre Pro RGB Championship has excellent click latency, and thanks to the powerful sensor, the Sabre Pro RGB is incredibly accurate. The feet are a little below the quality that other mice offer, with them catching on some surfaces, but as long as gamers are using a decent mouse pad, this should cause minimal issues.

Final Fantasy lovers and MMO players in general can have as many as 17 buttons in total on this Scimitar RGB Elite gaming mouse, each of them being programmable for different playstyles or games. MMO-specific gaming mice are generally more expensive than FPS ones as they have to offer better versatility in functionality for MMO games. The Scimitar RGB Elite is perfect for all hand sizes, as the side panel containing the 12 thumb buttons can be slid forward or backwards.

It is slightly over 100 grams in weight and has exceptional construction. The sensor has a low latency and the mouse DPI can be maxed out at 18,000. One of the best plus points of using it is its great compatibility with both Windows and MacOS systems, as Corsair iCUE software is one of the best peripheral software at the moment that offers customization of all Corsair devices in a single place.

Competitive games like Counter-Strike, Warzone, Battlefield, and other such titles need quick movements all the time. Gaming mice that weigh over 100 grams can quickly tire the hands, especially in several-hour long sessions. Thankfully, this isn’t a problem anymore as the HyperX Pulsefire Haste is designed to reduce fatigue and maintain comfort for several hours. The mouse is incredibly light, weighing just around 60 grams with a breathable shell that has ample ventilation.

This, however, doesn’t impact its durability, and it’s one of the most durable gaming mice out there for under $50. With its mind-blowing Virgin-Grade PTFE feet, the mouse glides buttery smooth on most surfaces. Furthermore, the mouse comes with four more rounded pads for the feet if replacement is needed at anytime. But that’s not all! With a pre-included set of grip tapes, the ergonomics of the mouse can be greatly improved, making no room for any mistakes during frequent clicks.

High Performance On A Budget

High performance doesn’t necessarily need to cost a lot. Gamers can get an excellent gaming experience out of a mouse that is affordable. When starting the search for a budget wired mouse, the number of results can be pretty intimidating, and unfortunately, there is quite a wide range in quality when it comes to budget mice.

Two of the most important factors when choosing a mouse are ergonomics and what grip styles the mouse is designed for. Using an uncomfortable mouse will outweigh all the impressive performance specs, especially considering an uncomfortable mouse can cause wrist strain. There are three main grip types: palm, fingertip, and claw. Most mice will advertise what grip types they are suitable for, but some also might depend on the size of the mouse compared to the user’s hand.

Of course, gaming performance plays a huge role in what a good gaming mouse is, but to get a quick overview, there are three main specs gamers should look at. First, gamers will want a mouse with a wide DPI range. Higher max DPIs will usually dictate that, but being able to change the DPI by smaller increments will also give mice with slightly lower DPIs a good size range. Second, make sure the mouse has a decent click latency. Mice with higher click latencies will have difficulty being accurate with clicks, especially in fast-paced games. Finally, make sure the polling rate is at least 1,000Hz. Most wired gaming mice, at this point, have a polling rate of at least 1,000Hz, but it is worth checking.

Budget products should still have decent durability; buying a cheap mouse that will break in a few months will be just as expensive as a mouse that will last for years to come. A good way to get a benchmark on this is to look at how many clicks the buttons are rated for. Most gaming mice are rated for between 20 and 50 million clicks or about 4,000 and 10,000 hours of use.

FAQ

Q: Are wired mice cheaper?

Tes, wired mice tend to be more affordable than wireless mice with similar performance. However, high-performance gaming mice can get quite expensive.

Q: Do wired mice have input lag?

Regardless of how top-of-the-line gaming mice are, they will have at least a slight amount of input lag. A lot of the time, with good gaming mice, the input lag is negligible, and typically, wired mice will have lower input lag than wireless mice.

Q: Does a cheap mouse affect gaming?

The price of a mouse doesn’t inherently make a mouse excellent or bad; some budget-orientated mice won’t have as many features as premium gaming mice, but that doesn’t mean they can’t offer excellent gaming performance.