A fair question deserves a straight answer, even from an acoustic piano shop. The Piano Gallery in Faringdon does not display a huge number new digital pianos, although we are Yamaha dealers.
Best digital pianos under £500
- Yamaha P-145 (around £450): our usual answer. 88 weighted keys, dependable action, sensible sound. Everything a beginner needs and nothing they do not.
- Roland FP-10 (around £400): Roland's excellent PHA-4 action at the lowest price it appears anywhere.
- Casio CDP-S110 (around £330): the honest budget pick if £400 is genuinely the ceiling.
Below £300 new, we would gently steer you away. Unweighted keys and short keyboards teach habits a piano teacher then has to undo.
What £500 to £1,000 buys
- Roland FP-30X (around £600): better speakers and Bluetooth. We wrote an honest FP-30X review.
- Kawai ES-120 (around £600): lovely tone for the money.
- Yamaha Arius YDP-145 (around £850): a cabinet style digital that looks like furniture and suits a family home.
The comparison nobody makes
At the top of that budget, something interesting happens: you reach real piano money. Our used acoustic pianos start from under £1,000, tuned, checked and delivered. A digital piano loses most of its value in five years; a good acoustic upright can hold its value for decades, and we often buy them back. If headphone practice is why you are shopping digital, a silent piano covers that too, on a real piano action.
Decide with your hands, not reviews
Come and play at our Faringdon showroom, compare an acoustic beside anything on this list, and see what feels right. If a digital is the right call today, buy it happily and know we take digitals in part exchange when your player outgrows it. Our guide on how much to spend on a piano is a good next read.