Best cheap gin • whichgin hunts out the best quality bargain gin

Buying the best cheap gin doesn’t mean buying bad quality gin. We take you through the top 10 best cheap gin under £20 (or $25 USD / $30 CAD). Actually, far better to think of this as a list of good value, high quality gin:

• 10. Greenall’s
• 9. Bloom Gin
• 8. Broker’s Gin
• 7. Gordon’s Gin
• 6. Opihr Gin
• 5. Brecon Gin
• 4. Tanqueray Gin
• 3. Bombay Sapphire Gin
• 2. Plymouth Gin
• 1. Edinburgh Gin

As we’ll find below, the thing all the gins we listed above have in common is that they offer great value. How so? Surely cheap gin means bad gin? Not at all, as not all gin is made the same way. Read on for the best cheap gin.

Quality of gin

Gin is made from a base spirit (often called ‘neutral spirit’). It’s what happens next that can help determine the quality of the gin. The cheapest gins are often those that are made for the supermarkets themselves. Whilst this gin is cheap, it’s often simply a base spirit that’s been flavoured. Technically it’s gin (as long as juniper if the predominant flavour), but we haven’t them included them on our list.

If you’re looking for a quality cheap gin, what you want to find is a gin that’s been redistilled. These are often called ‘distilled gins’ or, if they meet certain additional standards, ‘London gins’. The reason they’re cheaper is that they might have potentially been bottled at a slightly lower ABV (alcohol by volume) or proof, or simply that they’ve benefited from economies of scale or distribution.

As an aside, the European Union, the United States and Canada all have slightly differing standards and definitions for gin. For example, in the European Union, for gin to be gin it needs to be bottled at at least 37.5% ABV. In the United States it’s 40% ABV (80 proof). For the purposes of this article though, we’re looking at redistilled gin as a general proxy for quality.

The best cheap gin

You’ll obviously need to check prices in your area but, at time of writing (September 2022), these are our top 10 quality cheap gins for under £20 (or $25 USD / $30 CAD). Make sure to shop around too. As well as Amazon, we have found that you can buy cheap gin at Master or Malt.

10. Greenall’s The Original London Dry Gin

This traditional gin blends 8 botanicals to give us a classic London dry gin. It’s been on the go since 1761, so they know what they’re doing. Full of citrus notes to beautifully balance out the juniper. Makes a cracking gin and tonic.

9. Bloom Gin

Bloom Gin offers something a little different (even though it’s actually made by G&J Distillers, who are behind Greenall’s too). Some spice, floral and citrus notes here, and less juniper-y than Greenall’s above. We’ve seen it creep just below our price points for this exercise.

8. Broker’s Gin

Broker’s is a great gin that wears a quirky bowler hat on the bottle. Another traditional, London dry gin. It’s recipe dates back over 200 years. The botanicals (all those that you’d expect, plus some you might not like liquorice and nutmeg) are steeped for 24 hours before distillation.

7. Gordon’s Gin

You should never forget about Gordon’s Gin if you’re looking for a good quality, reasonably-priced gin. We reviewed Gordon’s Gin quite recently, and were pleased that we did after not having tried it for a while. A lovely, uncomplicated dry gin that makes a classic gin and tonic. Very reasonably priced for all the know-how packed into this iconic gin.

6. Opihr Gin

Ophir Gin is another one on our list that’s just creeping in under our price target. We think this oriental spiced gin (actually also from the G&J Distillers stable) tastes great with ginger ale. The spicy notes come from the cubebs and black pepper in with the more traditional botanical mix. Well worth a try, and different from the norm. Great bottle tassel too!

5. Brecon Gin

Brecon Special Reserve Gin often comes in under our maximum price point too. Made with fresh Welsh mineral water from the Brecon Beacons National Park, we’ve found it to have a hint of spiciness in amongst the juniper. This is a complex gin though, and you can get citrus showing through too. Great value.

4. Tanqueray Gin

Tanqueray Gin features in many of our articles; it’s such a versatile gin that’s a great base for many cocktails. The recipe is a bit of a secret, but it works well (it includes angelica root and liquorice that we know of). Dry to the taste, with great fresh hits of citrus, nicely balanced by the juniper and a bit of spiciness. A great addition to your gin shelf.

3. Bombay Sapphire Gin

Our top three starts with another gin icon in Bombay Sapphire. This vapour-infused gin offers superb value (you can read our full Bombay Sapphire review here). You’ll find an excellently crafted balance of juniper and lemon/citrus with a slight (and light) peppery tone. If you’ve never tried a Bombay Sapphire you need to. The blue bottle is hard to beat too.

2. Plymouth Gin

One of the few gins in Europe that used to have a Protected Geographical Indication, this is a fabulous dry gin for the money. It no longer needs its geographical protection (it’s unlikely anyone will be able to set up another distillery within Plymouth’s city walls) and has been one the best gins for centuries. We’re huge fans, as you can tell from our Plymouth Gin review Gin review. A great, punchy juniper-y gin of a high quality. Plymouth Gin can bounce along at about the right price mark to meet our requirements here.

1. Edinburgh Gin

Edinburgh Gin being at the top of our list surprised us. Not because it’s not a great gin, but because we were amazed to find it creeping under our price criteria for this article! A fantastic, juniper-led London Dry gin brings notes of pine and a crisp, fresh and zesty taste. Check out the full range of Edinburgh Gins on the Edinburgh Gin website – well worth a look too. So, Edinburgh Gin wins our title of best cheap gin (of a high-quality!); let’s just hope we keep seeing it at this price point.

Well, that was our list of the best cheap gin. Tell us your favourite gins in the comments below and we’ll see if we can find them at the right price point!