Cheap Treadmills under $500

Electric treadmills costing less than $500 aren't recommended

You can buy a motorized treadmill at a discount store for less than $500, but experts usually recommend steering clear of these cheaper models. Compared to their pricier counterparts, treadmills costing $500 or less have less-powerful motors, smaller belts, lower weight capacities and shorter warranties. However, not everyone can afford to spend thousands of dollars on a treadmill, and cheap models can be a decent choice if you're just starting an exercise program or you work out only occasionally. Although no low-cost models stand out far enough from the pack to be chosen as Best Reviewed, a few do get relatively high marks in owner-written reviews, where users who keep their expectations in check are generally happy with their purchases.

TreadmillDoctor.com, one of the best-respected and most prolific treadmill review sites, names the Merit Fitness 715T Plus (*Est. $400) a best buy in the less-than-$399 price range, along with a warning that "it's a limited machine for those on a limited budget." The 715T Plus' lifetime frame warranty is impressive in this price range, but the 90-day parts and labor warranty isn't encouraging. Its maximum 10-mph speed is adequate for fast walking and light jogging and it has a three-position, manual-adjust incline, but the max incline setting is only 5 percent.

The Weslo Cadence G40 (*Est. $300) is another low-cost treadmill that gets positive user reviews, although expert opinions are less favorable. The G40's 16-by-50-inch treadmill belt is a little longer than we found on most budget models, and like the Merit 715T Plus, it has a three-position, manual-adjust incline and a max speed of 10 mph. As should be expected in this price range, durability is a major concern, with user-reviewers on Walmart.com complaining of cracked decks and blown-out motors.

The Gold's Gym 480 (*Est. $380) receives higher ratings than most treadmills priced at less than $500. Users on Walmart.com and Amazon.com are particularly pleased with its motor-adjust incline feature, an extremely rare find in this price range. The preset workouts are also a big hit. According to TreadmillDoctor.com, the quality of Gold's Gym treadmills has improved over the past few years in terms of better motors and rollers, so this may be a reasonable purchase if you have a strict set budget. However, serious runners should look elsewhere. One owner warns, "If you like to run, DO NOT buy this treadmill! I would only recommend this for slow walkers at no incline." While the 480 used to be sold in Walmart stores, it's now available only online at Walmart.com, so you can't try it before you buy it.

The ProForm XT70 Shock is a just-discontinued model that you might still be able to find in some outlets. It's actually an incline trainer but isn't always labeled clearly as such, so user reviewers are sometimes surprised to discover it can't operate at a flat, 0-percent incline. It has just two incline settings -- 10 and 20 percent -- which you must adjust manually. In spite of this limitation, more than 60 reviewers give the XT70 a 4-star rating out of 5 on Walmart.com, saying they enjoy its sturdiness, quiet operation and variety of preprogrammed workouts. Most complaints describe units arriving damaged or not working when first put together, and one owner reports that assembly took three hours. Expert reviewers are generally critical of this treadmill's shock absorbers, which allow the deck to move up and down as you walk or run, but users seem to enjoy this unusual feature; one says her husband "can now walk comfortably for long periods" because of the adjustable shocks.

Overall, there's no treadmill available for less than $500 that earns a positive recommendation from expert reviewers such as those at ConsumerReports.org or Runner's World; these publications don't even test models this inexpensive. User reviews seem to be the best indication of treadmill quality in this price range, and even so, results are highly variable. It's not uncommon for the units to arrive damaged or not work at all when first assembled.

Warranty coverage may be the next-best indicator of treadmill quality in the less-than-$500 price range; the longer a manufacturer is willing to back its product, the more you can expect from it -- or at least you'll have some recourse if the treadmill breaks within the warranty period. If your budget is tight, reviewers recommend saving up for a little longer because there are several good options if you can spend more than $500. In fact, our overall Best Reviewed budget treadmill costs only $600.