You can't go wrong with Leupold or Nikon typically, and the new Redfields are actually pretty nice for the money now that Leupold owns them. I'd also look at Sightron, they make great scopes for the money as well equally as good as those 3, imo. Agree that you get what you pay for also, but if you are really tight on spending, you should be able to get a very capable (and nice) scope for $200. Certainly a huge step up from the typical less than $100 scopes. There is no comparison.