Affordable portable Bluetooth speakers under $100 in 2023

If you want to play music while you’re out-and-about on something other than headphones, a portable Bluetooth speaker is probably what you want. There’s a broad range of devices for all types of circumstances. However, it's price need be affordable,and sound quality need good enough.

Bluetooth technology lets devices connect and exchange data over short distances using ultra high frequency (UHF) radio waves. It’s the frequency range that’s carved out for industrial, scientific and medical purposes, called the 2.4GHz ISM spectrum band. This range is available worldwide, making it easy for companies to use with devices for global markets.

Bluetooth speakers include this tech, which lets them communicate with source devices like smartphones, tablets or computers in order to exchange data. The two devices pair by sharing a unique code and will work within the proscribed range for the device and Bluetooth version. 

UE Wonderboom 3 is a tiny yet powerful portable, delivering the biggest sound in its size range. It’s still a cute, barrel-shaped small speaker with a nubby little strap. This refreshed model includes a couple of bright new colors, an extra hour of battery life and improved wireless range, and with an IP67 rating. The audio quality is bright enough for what you’d expect at this scale and price range. There’s also an outdoor mode button on the bottom that boosts range to help the audio carry over a greater distance.  It's about $60.

Soundcore Trance Go is bigger than most others in this price range and would weigh about six pounds, but offers a carry strap, up to 24 hours runtime, a port for charging your devices and an aux input. It's about $60.