Quick answer: The Alesis Recital, around $260, is the cheapest digital piano we’d actually recommend — 88 semi-weighted keys and 128-note polyphony for less than most starter bundles. If you can stretch to roughly $460-580, the Donner DDP-80 adds a real hammer action and the same 128-note polyphony. Watch the spec sheet, not just the price tag: the slimmer, pricier-looking Casio CDP-S110 (around $350-400) actually ships with only 64-note polyphony — half of what the two cheaper boards above it offer.
Shopping by price alone is the easiest way to get burned on a cheap digital piano. The number that actually determines whether a budget board sounds musical isn’t the price or even the key count — it’s polyphony, the maximum number of notes the instrument’s sound engine can produce at once. We checked the spec sheets most shoppers skip and ranked the cheap pianos that are actually worth buying.
Best cheap digital pianos at a glance
| Piano | Best for | Keys / action | Polyphony | Price | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alesis Recital | Lowest real price | 88 / semi-weighted | 128 notes | ~$260 | ★★★★☆ |
| Casio CDP-S110 | Slimmest / most portable | 88 / touch-sensitive | 64 notes | ~$350-400 | ★★★☆☆ |
| Donner DDP-80 | Best real hammer action | 88 / hammer action | 128 notes | ~$460-580 | ★★★★☆ |
1. Alesis Recital — Lowest Real Price
Alesis Recital
- Full 88 semi-weighted keys with adjustable touch response (low/medium/high).
- 128-note polyphony — more headroom than some pianos costing much more.
- Semi-weighted, not a true hammer action — fine for a first keyboard, a step below the Recital Pro.
If the budget is the hard limit, the base Recital is the floor we’d actually recommend. Don’t confuse it with the pricier Recital Pro — that model swaps in a real hammer action (see our beginner picks for that version). The plain Recital is semi-weighted, not a true hammer action — see our weighted keys guide for why that distinction matters — but at this price it still beats any “88-key” board that turns out to be an unweighted keyboard in disguise. It’s a light, boxed instrument — try Amazon Prime free for 30 days for fast two-day delivery instead of waiting on standard shipping.
2. Casio CDP-S110 — Slimmest / Most Portable
Casio CDP-S110
- Touch-sensitive 88-key action in a genuinely slim, light cabinet — easy to move or tuck away.
- Runs on batteries, so it works without hunting for an outlet.
- Only 64-note polyphony per Casio's own spec sheet — the lowest of the three pianos here, despite the higher price.
The CDP-S110 is the pick if portability is the priority — it’s the slimmest, lightest board in this roundup. Just be aware of the trade-off: Casio’s spec sheet lists maximum polyphony at 64 notes, compared to 128 notes on both the cheaper Recital and the pricier DDP-80 below. In practice that means pedal-heavy playing — holding the sustain pedal through a full chord while the previous notes are still ringing — can cause the piano to audibly drop (steal) notes sooner than on the other two boards. Fine for casual pop and simple pieces; a real limitation if you’re working through classical or romantic repertoire that leans on the pedal.
3. Donner DDP-80 — Best Real Hammer Action
Donner DDP-80
- Genuine hammer action, heavier in the lower register and lighter toward the top — the closest feel to an acoustic here.
- 128-note polyphony and a built-in double 20W speaker system.
- Heaviest and most expensive of the three — a bigger piece of furniture, not a travel board.
If you can stretch the budget, the DDP-80 is the one piano here that doesn’t ask you to compromise on feel — it’s a real hammer action, not semi-weighted. It regularly drops to around $460 during sales (list price runs closer to $580-620), which puts it in range of entry Yamaha and Casio boards while still undercutting them. The trade-off is size and weight: at nearly 54 pounds, it’s built more like furniture than a board you’ll move often.
Why polyphony matters more than price
A piano with low polyphony runs out of “voices” and starts cutting off notes that are still sounding — a process called note stealing. It’s most noticeable with:
- the sustain pedal held down through a full chord, since every ringing note counts against the polyphony limit, and
- layered sounds (piano + strings, for example), which can use up the note budget twice as fast.
At 64-note polyphony, like the Casio CDP-S110, that ceiling arrives sooner than on a 128-note board. It’s not a defect — Casio’s own spec sheet lists the number — but it’s the kind of spec a quick in-store test rarely reveals, because most demos don’t layer hands and pedal the way home practice does. Check polyphony on the spec sheet before you check the price tag.
New to the category entirely? See digital piano vs keyboard to confirm you actually want a weighted piano and not an arranger keyboard.
The bottom line
For the absolute lowest real price, the Alesis Recital (~$260) is the honest floor. Want the slimmest, most portable board and can live with fewer notes of headroom? The Casio CDP-S110 fits. If a real hammer action matters more than saving the last $200, the Donner DDP-80 is worth the stretch. Whichever you pick, read the polyphony spec before the price tag — it predicts how the piano behaves once you actually start playing more than the dollar amount does. Ready to spend a bit more for a better action across the board? See our best digital piano picks for every budget.