The Best Night Vision Monoculars

Comparison Table

Best Night Vision Monocular under $500 – Bushnell EQUINOX Z Digital Night Vision Monocular

The first thing we noticed about Bushnell’s EQUINOX Z night vision monocular was how big it felt in our hands. This is not necessarily a bad thing as offers the simultaneous feeling of sturdiness and reliability. It is certainly not too bulky for hunting or distance travel, but there are more compact models available if size is what you are concerned about.

Great night time color from this monocular, thought the viewing distance on this, as well as many of the other products on this list, is going to be significantly less than what was advertised. The image quality is only crisp and clear to about 50 feet and anything beyond that is hard to make out. This is par for the course for a monocular at this price range, so we are not counting it as a fault.

It was a nice surprise when we discovered that the EQUINOX Z is actually capable of being powered via the mini-USB port on the side, allowing you to bypass the AA batteries if a power source is available or if you want to utilize a portable battery pack with more power than just a pair of AAs.

If we have one recommendation for Bushnell it is that they take the time to rethink their button layout and programming, as it is hardly intuitive on this model and it is absolutely necessary to sit down and read the entire manual to figure out how to work the basic functions. And you know how we feel about people that make us read!

Excellent daytime performance from this model. Aside from a somewhat slow focus knob that makes the EQUINOX Z less ideal for fast paced activities like paintball, it’s a great all-around monocular with reliable performance.

Best Night Vision Monocular under $300 – Firefield FF24066 NIGHTFALL Night Vision Monocular

The best thing about the NIGHTFALL monocular by the engineers at Firefield is that they somehow figured out a way to get their monocular to run on only two AA batteries, which is one of the smallest battery sources of all the products on our guide. This is certainly handy for excursions when you don’t want to be hauling a bunch of batteries out onto the trail.

However the overall image performance might be the thing that the manufacturers chose to sacrifice in favor of the reduced battery pull. While the image quality is quite good at the recommended range and there is an impressive lack of grain, the edges of the image seem faded and somewhat “cut off”, making us wonder if we are seeing the entire image or if the processor is having a hard time rendering it.

Overall though these work pretty well, and the small size and compact nature compared to the competitors make this an excellent choice for on-the-go adventurers and hunters who have a few more miles to cover before nightfall.

The NIGHTFALL also seems to have some problems processing even distant light sources. A porch light some distance away will likely be blinding through these. The IR light stands out quite obviously on the target end, making these a risk for some hunting purposes.

Best Multifunction Night Vision Monocular for Rangefinding – LaserWorks LRNV009 DAY AND NIGHT Multifunction Laser Ranging Night Vision Monocular

Here is a night vision monocular for the real tech nerd. With over a dozen unique features that you simply cannot find on any other unit, the DAY AND NIGHT monocular from LaserWorks is the king of the high-tech night vision world. Thing like a thermometer, barometer, and compass are only a selection of the kind of things that this monocular has to offer.

But we are not so easily fooled. We wanted to find out whether or not there was a well-functioning night vision monocular beneath all those fancy bells and whistles. That’s because it is not uncommon for manufacturers to hide poorly made products beneath distracting features and add-ons.

Fortunately, that is not the case with LaserWorks’ monocular. What you are getting here is super clear vision at an impressive distance, day or night. The integrated laser rangefinder works like a charm, and the combination of these elements means that the final product is one of the most well-made devices that has showed up on our team’s desk. One problem we noticed with this monocular was the tendency of some of the elements to fog up and disrupt the image quality. It seems that there is a problem with moisture condensation inside the unit, but we hope this was an isolated incident and not indicative of the product line as a whole.

Best Night Vision Monocular of 2023 – Bushnell NIGHT WATCH with Built-In Infrared Monocular

There is a reason that Bushnell has been an industry leader in optic technology for the outdoors for so many years. It’s because they’ve made it their quest to bring the best quality lens technology to the market in the most affordable way possible, meaning that even the casual outdoor enthusiast can enjoy the stunning capabilities of this technology.

The way it works is pretty straightforward. By projecting its infrared spotlight out into the night, it is able to produce an image that we just wouldn’t be able to see otherwise.

One thing that Bushnell tends to do very well is house their optic technology in stylish protective casing, and that is certainly what they did with the NIGHT WATCH. The armor is a durable rubber, both comfortable and non-slip capable. Overall, it feels like this little unit can take some damage before showing any wear or tear.

The image quality on this model is somewhat more blurry than even on other Bushnell products, leading us to wonder what it could possibly be that would account for the difference.

This is a unit that certainly works better in absolute darkness. Otherwise the image quality is just not up to snuff for a unit in this price range. For flat ranges and moonless nights, you’ve got yourself a pretty good generation one starter model here.

Great Value Night Vision Monocular – Night Owl Optics 5-Power NOXM50 Night Vision Monocular

The fact that optical manufacturer NIGHT OWL makes more than just monoculars is no surprise. Their optical technology has been put to use in security cameras and binoculars because of the advanced image processing they are able to facilitate.

The NOMXM50 represents the peak performance of a technology that was once the absolute cutting edge of night vision technology, but now has become a better option for entry level night vision products because of how affordable the components have become.

The infrared spotlight has an effective range of about 60 feet, which isn’t bad for a monocular in this price range.

One of the strange curiosities that came with this model was that we could not figure out how to charge the battery, and the information was not listed anywhere with the product package. Eventually we figured it out (aren’t you proud?) and realized that you have to unscrew the IR light that is right behind the lens. The battery compartment is located behind that.

The biggest thing missing from this product is an eye shroud. Without it, a significant amount of light is escaping from around the view screen, which not only would appear extra bright for other NV users, but could possibly alert animals to your presence if you are hunting.

Best Night Vision Monocular Under $200 – Solomark Night Vision Monocular

Infrared technology has its number of drawbacks, but when implemented properly it can provide quality night time vision at a fraction of the price of the more advanced light amplification technologies that are out there these days. Such is the case with Solomark’s Night Vision monocular, which is not only the most affordable binocular on our list, but it also happens to be one of the coolest without question.

To back up that last statement: this is the only monocular on our list that allows the capture of video files. While the video mode is perhaps not as advanced as it could be, for the price it is a
unique feature that you will be hard pressed to find anywhere else.

One immediate issue with the video technology is that the included 1GB Micro DS card is too small to perform at the levels required of this technology, so if you are considering going with the Solomarks, we highly recommend that you consider purchasing an upgraded SD card, something closer to a 32GB microSDHC UHS-I Card.

If we can be nitpicky about one thing, it would be the sensor cap, which seems way too loose for a product like this. Knowing us, we are going to lose it the first chance that we get! Overall this monocular offers great image resolution out to about 100 meters, which is close to the limit for what we have observed in this price range of night vision technology.

Best Night Vision Monocular for Beginners – Sightmark Ghost Hunter 2x24 Night Vision Monocular

Because we were already familiar with Sightmark’s Proton 4.5x digital scope which we have used with air rifles, we were more than a little excited to see how the optics manufacturer’s GHOST HUNTER monocular would perform, especially considering its remarkably low price point.

First things first, this is Gen 1 NV technology, which means basic IR beaming and illumination. While the images produced are certainly brighter that they would be in the dark, you are not going to be getting anything like what NV looks like in the movies.

That isn’t to say that the GHOST HUNTER monocular isn’t a great product. It performs about as well as we would expect it to. Now doubt it was the reduced price target that kept Sightmark from offering this model in anything greater than 2x magnification.

Personally I could have gone with “tighter” objective and eyepiece focusing knobs. As it stands they are both a little loose, which causes annoyance as this makes it very easy to overshoot the intended focus position. If you are among the large population that is looking for an affordable entry into night vision technology, then this is the monocular for you. However if you are a high-level tactician looking for unmatched performance, you might have to dig into your pockets and see what else you can come up with.