For many guitarists, a reverb pedal is an absolute must-have. If the amp you’re playing through doesn’t have reverb on board, or you simply want more options but don’t want to spend a load of cash, then you’ll want to check out one of the best budget reverb pedals.
A good reverb pedal can make your guitar sound bigger, thicker, wider and just generally better. It gives your guitar tone texture, and can stop it sounding dry.
Of course, it depends on the style of music you play and personal preference, but if you listen to any album that's been recorded over the last 75 years or so, there’s a very good chance that there’s some reverb on the guitars.
Reverb is such a staple effect and is often used on vocals, drums, keys and more. It’s a great way of gelling everything together during the recording/mixing process. It can do the same with your guitar sound too, whether you’re using other effects or not.
There are lots of different options out there, given that they’re so popular and it’s easy to spend a lot of money. I've searched the market though to find the best budget reverb pedals that give you incredible sounds, without breaking the bank.
Quick list
My top choice of budget reverb pedal goes to the brilliant TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2. It has a deep feature set, is easy to get up and running, is well-built and it offers a huge amount of tones - all for an incredible price.
New players looking for a budget reverb pedal should start with the DR600. It has six different 24-bit stereo reverbs, provides a wide sound and is available at an eye-popping price. It's simply too good to pass up on.
If you're looking to add a touch of reverb to your groaning 'board, then the Verb Square could be the answer. You get seven sounds to experiment with and although a few sound alike, for the money, you can't go wrong.
Best overall
✅ Buy if you want one of the very best budget pedals on the market: The Hall of Fame 2 impresses at every turn and is packed with everything you could want.
❌ Avoid if you want a pedal that works straight out the box: You'll need Toneprint software on your tablet/laptop to fully utilise the pedal.
Build quality: ★★★★★
Usability: ★★★★★
Sounds: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★
The TC Electronic Hall of Fame is not just one of the best budget reverb pedals, it’s an iconic reverb pedal all of its own. Despite the deep feature set, it’s surprisingly easy to get up and running with this box of tricks and the variety of tones on offer is simply outstanding.
As well as the more typical room, hall, and spring modes, you also get a touch of the more esoteric with the shimmer, modulated, and lofi options. The three custom ‘Toneprint’ options add further versatility to this brilliant stompbox too, letting you create your own custom ‘verbs or download those sculpted by pro guitar players.
The Hall of Fame 2 is a well-built unit, I've had a bunch of TC pedals on my ‘board for the last few years now and they’ve yet to let me down.
The MASH footswitch is a really cool feature too, allowing you to utilize real-time parameter control that manipulates the reverb tails in different ways depending on the preset.
Best beginner
✅ Buy if you're on a tight budget but still want an excellent pedal: The DR600 delivers well above its price point and is a great option if money is tight.
❌ Avoid if you want a more robust pedal: While the DR600 is sturdy enough, you might want something a little more durable for constant use.
Build quality: ★★★★
Usability: ★★★★
Sounds: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
The Behringer DR600 Digital Reverb pedal definitely gives you ‘too good to be true’ vibes when you look at the price point. Your eyes don’t deceive you though, it really gives you six stereo reverbs for less than $/£50 which is incredible value.
For your money, you get plate, hall, spring, gate, room, and modulate modes, which should be plenty to suit a variety of playing styles. They’re all 24-bit stereo reverbs too, delivering a really wide, three-dimensional tone when you plug into two separate guitar amplifiers. The modulate option sounds fantastic, delivering a chorus-like, detuned reverb tail.
Behringer pedals have gathered a bit of a reputation for poor quality, but if I'm completely honest, I've had a few on my pedalboard and I've never had an issue with them. Sure, the enclosure isn’t the most sturdy feeling, but so long as you’re not jumping on it with both feet, it should put up with regular gigging.
Best mini
✅ Buy if you're after a small pedal that has enough sounds to keep you happy: With seven different sounds, there's a lot packed into this wee pedal.
❌ Avoid if you want a huge variety of sounds: If you're looking to add a bunch of sounds to your playstyle, you're best to look elsewhere.
Build quality: ★★★★
Usability: ★★★★
Sounds: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
Donner has been releasing all manner of effects over the last few years, cultivating a name for budget mini stompboxes that get the job done. Some of them can be a bit hit-and-miss, but I love the Donner Verb Square for its pure value for money.
Giving you seven different sounds to play with, it leans more towards the traditional end of the spectrum with room, hall, church, spring, plate, studio, and mod settings. Some of them are fairly similar sounding, but the quality of each is great and I particularly enjoyed the spring mode on it.
The enclosure is really well built despite its small size, with the large rotary knob far enough away from the footswitch to prevent any accidental movement while you’re playing. The size means it will nestle comfortably on the busiest of pedalboards too.
Most versatile
✅ Buy if you need a no-fuss pedal with a huge variety of sounds: The Snake Bite is great fun to play around with and doing so will reward you with a solid variety of tones.
❌ Avoid if you want some oomph from your pedal: The Snake Bite really comes into its own if shoegaze and post rock is more your thing than heavy rock.
Build quality: ★★★★½
Usability: ★★★★
Sounds: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
The Caline Snake Bite has been a bit of a sleeper hit, finding favor with guitarists of an ambient or shoegaze inclination thanks to its unique sound and versatile control set.
Despite not having select reverb modes, it’s surprisingly versatile, and with some manipulation, you can get a huge variety of sounds out of it.
The unit is really well built, feeling a lot more expensive than it actually is. The aluminum cast housing is hefty, and will certainly put up with the rigors of regular live performance.
Six knobs give you controls for resonance, center frequency, low pass filter, pre-delay, mix, and decay - plenty for you to experiment with and get the sound you desire.
While you can get some convincing room and spring sounds, it definitely leans more toward the larger, ambient side of the sonic spectrum. Once you get the mix and decay dials past 12 o’clock you start to get some really broad sounds that will sit well underneath post-rock instrumentals and shoegaze licks.
Best vintage
✅ Buy if you're after a pedal that produces classic reverb sounds: The SkySurfer has plenty of options to help you achieve some beautiful, classic tones.
❌ Avoid if you want a more modern tone: You might want a different pedal if those vintage reverb tones aren't quite your thing.
Build quality: ★★★★½
Usability: ★★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★½
Overall: ★★★★½
The TC Electronic SkySurfer is a great budget stompbox for players who want those classic reverb sounds. Modeled after TC’s studio rack reverb units, these are some seriously high-quality algorithms for relatively little money.
You get spring, slate, and hall settings to play with, plus three super versatile controls to help you sculpt your sound.
I found that the spring setting feels pleasingly realistic with its metallic tang, while the plate mode is bright and lively, great for vintage guitar tones. The hall mode gives you a properly luscious sound too, feeling huge and atmospheric.
With these studio-quality reverb algorithms, this little blue box gives you a lot of sound for your money. The enclosure is rock solid too, so you know it’s going to put up with plenty of onstage abuse.
Most robust
✅ Buy if you want a Fender pedal for a great price: With three distinct tones and excellent build quality, don't sleep on the Hammertone.
❌ Avoid if you want a super clean tone: Crank the Hammertone up, and you might experience some unwanted artifacts.
Build quality: ★★★★★
Usability: ★★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★½
Overall: ★★★★½
The Fender Hammertone Reverb is part of Fender's latest line of budget stompboxes, delivering top-quality effects at an excellent price point. As you’d expect with anything with the Fender logo on it, this thing is excellent quality and eminently usable.
You get three different sounds for your money, with hall, room, and plate modes. Surprisingly for a company so defined by its sound, there’s no spring mode, but you can dial in something similar with a little tweaking of the hall settings. They’re all super-usable, with the handy ‘damp’ knob that lets you blend the trail in for a more focused sound.
It’s got a great mix of traditional to ‘far-out’ sounds and at more extreme settings you can get an almost freeze-like effect. The unit itself is resoundingly solid too, with the stripped-back look and unusual color scheme sure to make it stand out on your ‘board.
"What the Fender Hammertone series lacks in versatility it makes up for in practicality and tone – and delivers great value for money."
Read more: Fender Hammertone pedals review
Best ease of use
✅ Buy if you want a straightforward reverb pedal: Despite the clean and simple design, the JHS 3 Series provides excellent depth.
❌ Avoid if you want more bells and whistles: Those looking for more tones and features are best to choose another reverb pedal.
Build quality: ★★★★½
Usability: ★★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★½
Overall: ★★★★½
The JHS 3-Series gets its name from the three knobs each pedal has but don’t let the simple fascia and controls fool you, there’s a lot of depth to this reverb pedal. I particularly love that JHS is able to manufacture these pedals in the US while still keeping the cost low.
Despite only having one core reverb sound, you get a surprising amount of variation from the combination of the verb and decay knobs. The pre-delay switch lets you add further space to your sound, and although it’s not a classic reverb tone, I found it to be very musical and usable.
As you’d expect from JHS, the enclosure is really solidly built with high-quality components inside. The plain look may be divisive, but I think it looks really smart alongside other pedals, standing out more than you’d think.
Best dual pedal
✅ Buy if you want a reverb pedal with added delay: Two pedals for the price of one makes this pedal brilliant value for money.
❌ Avoid if you simply need a reverb: If you have no need for a delay pedal, then a pure reverb pedal from the list will suit you better.
Build quality: ★★★★½
Usability: ★★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★½
Overall: ★★★★½
Okay so I'm cheating slightly with this one, as it’s actually a delay pedal and reverb pedal in one, but I think it’s brilliant. For the cost of one pedal, the NUX Atlantic gives you two high-quality sounds in one compact unit, with bags of customization options.
All the classic reverb sounds are present and accounted for here with spring, plate, and hall options. You can also hold down the reverb footswitch for a shimmer effect, great for those prog-rock and shoegaze escapades.
The delay side gives you plenty of scope as well, with a dedicated time division knob and tap tempo.
A TRS stereo input saves space, with mono and stereo outs for those running multiple amp rigs. A series/parallel switch lets you change how the pedals interact with one another, and if you open it up you can change the order in which the pedals run.
An input level control gives you +4dB or -10dB, great for running it in FX loops.
Best ambient
✅ Buy if you want a wide range of reverb sounds: There's 14 high-quality digital reverb sounds here making this a versatile and well-priced pedal.
❌ Avoid if you want more of a no-fuss pedal: I found the LED system to be a little clunky and not very intuitive.
Build quality: ★★★★
Usability: ★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★
This competitively priced purple pedal is actually a culmination of two previous Mooer stompboxes, the R7 Reverb and the A7 Ambience. The Mooer Audio R7 X2 Reverb gives you double for your money, with 14 high-quality digital reverb sounds to play with.
There’s a considerable amount of sounds available here, and they’re immaculate and for the most part, artifact-free.
The classic reverb sounds are really good, and we particularly enjoyed the spring reverb mode. The studio tone is nice and warm, and the infinite button gives you the option to catapult things to the stratosphere.
One of the best things about this pedal is the presets, once you’ve saved your settings you can instantly recall by switching up or down, making it great for long setlists where you need different sounds.
With stereo in and outs, this pedal gives you a lot for relatively little money.
"It has its quirks, but the R7 X2 is packed with superb reverbs suitable for everything from everyday ambience to washy ambient soundscaping."
Read more: Mooer Audio R7 X2 review
Best shimmer
✅ Buy if you want that classic shimmer reverb: You can tweak all the settings here giving you a massive range of awesome tones.
❌ Avoid if you're just starting out: There's a lot to get your head around with this pedal, so a more simple choice might suit you better.
Build quality: ★★★★½
Usability: ★★★★½
Sounds: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★½
The EHX Oceans 11 Reverb gives you a massive array of reverb sounds in a compact footprint and for the money, it's up there with the best in terms of pure sounds you can get out of it.
Alongside your standard spring, room, and hall sounds, you also get some more unique timbres including the much-loved shimmer reverb and an excellent modulated sound.
There's a lot of ability to tweak these sounds too, giving you a massive tonal palette to play with.
The mode switch in the center of the pedal allows you to double or even triple some of the sounds, as well as unlock further parameters to sculpt, which the pedal itself handily remembers when you turn it off.
"The Electro-Harmonix Oceans 11 is a reverb pedal that truly does it all, from standard reverbs with studio sound quality to sophisticated synth-like effects previously only found on much more expensive products."
Read more: Electro-Harmonix Oceans 11 review
Best convolution
✅ Buy if you want to invest in a brilliant reverb pedal: This is one of the best reverb pedals you can get your hands on right now, and while expensive, others with similar feature sets are even pricier.
❌ Avoid if you're on a tight budget: There are plenty of cheaper options in the guide if you can't splash out on this particular pedal.
Build quality: ★★★★★
Usability: ★★★★★
Sounds: ★★★★★
Overall: ★★★★★
This is the most expensive reverb pedal on the list, but I've included it for good reason - it's a pretty special convolution reverb that comes in much cheaper than some other pedals - and it sounds amazing. Seriously good in fact.
The Verbera's dual-engine design comes with a whopping 120 impulse responses which have been captured from spaces including symphony halls and cathedrals
It's also possible to clone pedal sounds and store up to 1024 within the pedal itself - and, together with the Neon Collector app, managing these is a breeze. And even with so much going on, actually putting the pedal though its paces isn't as complex as you might initially think.
Build quality is excellent, although I'd argue its sleek, space-age design won't be everyone's cup of tea.
If you have a bit more cash to spend, then the Hotone NC-200 Verbera should be top of your shopping list.
"Simple to use, built to last, and with tones that would make pedals twice this price jealous, there’s really not a lot to dislike about this pedal. I’m not really a fan of the locations of the MIDI in and outs, but it’s a small issue in an otherwise flawless pedal."
Read more: Hotone NC-200 Verbera review
How to buy
When shopping for one of the best budget reverb pedals, here are some topics to have on your checklist:
Features
The best budget reverb pedals come with an array of different features. Not everyone needs it to do a lot - you might just be looking for a simple, always-on reverb to add a touch of texture to your sound. If that’s the case, then you don’t need a ton of features.
However, for players that want to do a little more, then having options on board will be useful. Some pedals have different reverb types that you can select between - hall, plate, spring and more.
Some even give you option of saving presets and changing between them via the footswitches (again - some have multiple), so if you need more than one reverb type during a song, then this is a must-have.
The TC Electronic Hall of Fame 2 even has a footswitch that doubles as an expression pedal allowing you to get really creative with your reverb. There are tons of different things out there, so definitely check out the additional features that these pedals offer.
Fine-tuning your reverb
If you’re chasing a particular reverb sound, then having a pedal that offers multiple knobs and/or switches may be beneficial. This will allow you to tweak a number of different parameters allowing you to really craft the tone you’re seeking.
Some of the best budget reverb pedals might only have the option to control the level of the reverb, how long it lasts and maybe an EQ option. This should do just fine for a lot of players, but if you know that you’re one for fine-tuning and precise dialling in, then look for one that offers more controls.
Size
It’s always worth considering your whole setup when shopping for a new pedal. The best budget reverb pedals come in all sorts of sizes so you can certainly find something suitable.
If you’re running low on pedalboard real estate, then there are some good compact options that don’t take up a lot of room. Just remember though that smaller pedals will either come with fewer controls on, or the interface will be smaller which can mean that making adjustments on the fly is a little more awkward.
Stereo capabilities
A decade or so ago, a decent reverb pedal with a stereo output would have set you back a good chunk of cash. Nowadays, you can get the same thing for far less money.
A stereo reverb pedal has two outputs allowing you to send signals to two different amps or inputs. This can give you a much wider, atmospheric sound essentially recreating the space you’re emulating more accurately.
If reverb is a big part of your sound, and you’ve got the rig to facilitate it, a stereo pedal can make a big difference.
FAQ
Reverb is one of the most popular effects in the whole of music, not just for the electric guitar. Frequently used on pretty much any instrument you can think of, it adds a sense of space to an instrument’s playing and can be used for effect too, sending the sound of your guitar to worlds hitherto unexplored. It’s also great for helping glue instruments recorded separately together, as well as allowing your guitar to sit better in a band context, adding warmth and depth to your tone.
What is reverb?
Let’s start with the basics - what is reverb? Reverb is what you hear after an initial sound source has finished. A sound is created, then those sound waves reflect off the environment around it. The best example is if you clap once in a large room or hall, you hear the clap ringing out for a few seconds after you’ve done it. The bigger the space; the longer the reverb.
There are lots of different ways of artificially recreating reverb, which has led to there being different types of reverb in the pedals that you see here. In terms of guitar, reverb is often used to add texture to the tone, and makes it sound sonically wider and thicker. Without it, it can sound too dry.
What do we mean by budget?
It’s easy to spend a lot of money on a reverb pedal. The majority of them are digital, so the chips inside have to process your signal in real time and recreate how various spaces would affect the signal you’re creating, without any latency. You can easily spend hundreds on a pedal that offers multiple different reverbs and complex algorithms.
That said, when we talk about budget pedals, we’re generally looking at pedals around or under the $150/£130 mark. Most of them are way under that, but there is a lot of range.
What are the benefits of spending more money on a reverb pedal?
When you’re looking at reverb pedals at the higher end of what we call budget, you’re likely to get more features. So, more reverb types, maybe some preset functionality - maybe even more footswitches for swapping your sounds without having to bend down. The sounds will generally be better too, plus you often get a jump in build quality.
What’s are the different styles of reverb?
When looking at the various settings on some of these pedals, you’ll see a lot of the same words - hall, plate and spring are three of the most popular, for example. They refer to the sort of space that they’re aiming to recreate or the technology used.
Plate and spring reverbs are made using physical pieces of gear and have a distinctive sound; hall reverb is exactly what you’d think - the sound you’d get if you were playing in a hall.
You might also see things like ‘shimmer’ or ‘mod’. The former incorporates some higher octaves into your reverb and the latter introduces some subtle modulation.
Where do I put my reverb pedal in my signal chain?
I always like to say that there aren’t any set rules - the best place for your reverb pedal is where it works best for you. However - the general consensus is that reverbs go at the end of your chain, so that all your effects prior get to enjoy the same reverb sound, gelling it all together.
Some players like to use reverbs and other time-based effects in the effects loop too so that if you’re using the amp’s distortion, you bypass that and get a cleaner, clearer reverb sound.
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How we choose
Here at Guitar World, we are experts in our field, with many years of playing and product testing between us. We live and breathe everything guitar and bass related, and we draw on this knowledge and experience of using products in live, recording and rehearsal scenarios when selecting the products for our guides.
When choosing what we believe to be the best budget reverb pedals, we combine our hands-on experience, user reviews and testimonies and engage in lengthy discussions with our editorial colleagues to reach a consensus about the top products in any given category.
First and foremost, we are guitarists, and we want other players to find the right product for them. So we take into careful consideration everything from budget to feature set, ease of use and durability to come up with a list of what we can safely say are the best budget reverb pedals currently on the market.
Read more about our rating system, how we choose the gear we feature, and exactly how we test each product.
Meet the experts
Matt is a Junior Deals Writer here at Guitar World. He regularly tests and reviews music gear with a focus on guitars, amps, pedals, modelers, and pretty much anything else guitar-related. Responsible for over 60 buying guides, a large part of his role is helping guitarists find the best deals on gear. Matt worked in music retail for 5 years at Dawsons Music and Northwest Guitars and has written for various music sites including MusicRadar, Guitar Player, Guitar.com, Ultimate Guitar, and Thomann’s t.blog.
After spending a decade in music retail, I’m now a freelance writer for Guitar World, MusicRadar, Guitar Player and Reverb, specialising in electric and acoustic guitars, bass, and almost anything else you can make a tune with. When my head’s not buried in the best of modern and vintage gear, I run a small company helping musicians with songwriting, production and performance, and I play bass in an alt-rock band.
Latest updates
24/09/25: The guide has received a significant update and now includes a Quick Links section highlighting a trio of our favourite reverb pedals. The product list now features the Hotone NC-200 Verbera pedal, while each of the 11 reverb pedals featured now include "at a glance" panels and star ratings. Expert verdict boxes have been added where applicable and the FAQ section has been completely rewritten. A how to buy section has been added focusing on the options to consider before purchasing, while a section on why you can trust the Guitar World team is now included. Finally, there's now a "Meet the experts" section towards the bottom of the guide.
Read more:
You can trust Guitar World Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing guitar products so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
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