What are the best cheap cigars?

Everyone wants to know “what are the best cheap cigars?” Usually, you get what you pay for when it comes to cigars, but a few exceptions standout for what you pay. This compilation shows our favorite and Best Budget Cigars, some we have reviewed, some we have not. We try and review all of these eventually and keep adding more bargains as we find them. We also add more of the best cheap cigars as we find and review them to this list.

5 Vegas AAA

This Cigars International Exclusive comes blended and rolled from the incomparable AJ Fernandez. The AAA, rolled in Nicaragua at Tabacalera Fernandez, features a Pennsylvania Broadleaf Maduro wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and filler. This cigar sells for around $5 per stick any time on Cigars International but if you have the patience, can be had for just under $3 a stick on their sister site, Cigar Bid. We reviewed the Lancero here, taking a very nice 90 score. While you can’t find the lancero anymore, I find the Toro to be an excellent smoke as well.

Alec Bradley Occidental Reserve

The Alec Bradley Occidental Reserve marks the first premium offering from the newly formed Alec Bradley cigars back in the year 2000. It paved the way for this boutique brand’s enduring success.

Named for Henke Kelner’s (blender of Avo and Davidoff) Dominican cigar factory, Occidental Reserve features an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper. After that you get Dominican Olor, Piloto, and San Vicente long-fillers.

You can buy this cigar in bundles for around $2 a stick, and we gave it a 92 in our blind review.

Another Cigars International Exclusive, this one comes from Nestor Placensia and his Segovia factory in Nicaragua. This blend uses a dark Habano-seed ligero wrapper grown in the Jamastran Valley of Honduras. The blend contains Cuban-seed ligero long-fillers from Esteli and Condega paired with additional ligeros from Honduras. The blend also uses two binders: a Habano leaf from the Jalapa Valley and a flavorful Costa Rican leaf. Descriptions for this cigar include coffee, earth, pepper, and cream complemented by a spicy-sweet finish. This cigar is in the medium-full strength category and can be had regularly at $3 a piece on Cigars International and Cigar.com, or even cheaper on Cigar Bid.

Curivari Buenaventura Cremas

This offshoot of the original Curivari Buenaventura line features a Connecticut wrapper for a milder experience than the original. First shown off at the 2016 IPCPR trade show, this became one of the best-selling lines for Curivari. We scored it a whopping 93 points in our blind review, and these sell for around $5.

The packaging feels old-school “Cubanesque”. The binder and fillers feature the same blend as original Buena Ventura line. The blend strives to be stronger than traditional Connecticut cigars. Curivari, a small batch cigar company, only uses traditional Cuban cigar making processes with authentic Cuban Criollo and Corojo seed grown in Nicaragua. All cigars feature a triple cap.

Diesel Unholy Cocktail

This Cigars International Exclusive from AJ Fernandez stands the best of time as a favorite budget smoke of many on social media and the forums. A very tooth Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper covers this fat torpedo. Cigars International lists this as full in the description but we put it around medium-strong overall. A very smooth, smoke don’t let it scare you away. We reviewed this cigar here and it earned a 90 (Very Good), which is a great score for a cigar that can be had for around $3.

E.P. Carrillo New Wave Stellas

This tried and true cigar never fails to impress. This “New Connecticut” cigar contains a little more strength than the Connecticuts of yesteryear. This cigar uses a silky-smooth Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper carefully placed over a vintage recipe of Cuban-seed long-fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican. Smooth and creamy flavors hit the palate from start to finish, leaving behind a toasty spread of leather and sweet tobacco with each puff. The long finish complets a savory everyday smoke. The consensus on the best of this line usually gravitates towards the smaller ring gauges. These sell regularly at under $4 a stick, and less than $3 if combined with a sale or coupon.

Famous Nicaragua 1000 Robusto Maduro

Exclusive to Famous Smoke, these medium-bodied cigars come from an undisclosed Nicaraguan factory. Nicaraguan Selection 1000 cigars are medium-bodied premium cigars handmade at one of Nicaragua’s top factories.

The cigars are blended with Nicaraguan longfiller tobaccos rolled in rich-tasting Broadleaf Maduro wrappers. The smoke is smooth, well-balanced and earthy with notes of caramel and sweet spice on the finish. If you’re a bargain hunter, order a bundle now and taste for yourself. You’ll be pleasantly surprised. They are blended with Nicaraguan longfiller tobaccos rolled in Broadleaf Maduro wrappers. The normal everyday price on these is $1.35 and sometimes go on sale. We did a blind review of these recently here and it scored a 90, making this a no-brainer. The only problem is that they are often out of stock and hard to find.

Flor De Oliva Maduro

This is the value line from the well know Oliva Cigars. The Flo De Olivas are a handmade longfiller with a maduro wrapper. Flor de Oliva cigars are value-priced beauties from Gilberto Oliva and family, crafted from Dominican and Nicaraguan long-leaf tobaccos and a robust and satisfying Sumatra wrapper. After aging, the end result is a flavorful, creamy smoke – rich and creamy without the bite. Flor de Oliva hails from the generations old Oliva tobacco farms in Nicaragua and is manufactured exclusively from their premier tobacco. This mild-medium bodied puro with a deep, complex flavor sports a rich Maduro wrapper and presents a superb value to any educated smoker. They come in bundles of 20, and ring up at just under $2 a stick. Unlike a lot of budget bundles, these actually have a nice band so you don’t feel cheap giving them to your friends.

Gran Habano Vintage 2002

If you are a cigar smoker and a bargain hunter, you have probably tried this cigar. These are a variation of the highly rated Gran Habano #5 Corojo blend. They come in bundles of 20 at a price tag of $50 regularly, putting it at $2.50 a stick and even cheaper on sale or through bidding. This is the Gran Habano Corojo #5 blend composed of full-bodied, Habano-seed long-fillers from Nicaragua and Dominican but it boasts a juicy Nicaraguan-grown Corojo wrapper leaf cultivated back in 2002, one which has enjoyed an extended cedar-nap for the past 8 years. The outcome is virtuous: a deep series of rich, creamy flavors smacking of coffee, nuts, and earth tamed by the smooth, Cuban-esque qualities of a well-aged Corojo leaf. The Gran Habano Vintage 2002 cigar remains medium to full-bodied but maintains a wonderful balance and long, elegant finish.We rated the Churchill version of this cigar here, and while it didn’t rate poorly, it seems the robusto is the better choice.

Illusione *R* Rothchildes

If you can find them, these are one of the best deals in the cigar world currently. This is a stand-alone project from Dion Giolitto meant to be an affordable short smoke without sacrificing any quality, and that’s exactly what we have here. One of the latest released from Dion Giolotto’s Illusione brand, the “r” Rothschild is a 4 1/2 x 50 sized Petit Robusto / Rothschild. The blend features all Nicaraguan Aganorsa leaf filler and binder and is encased in a Mexican San Andreas wrapper. The cigar has a rustic look, with the wrapper cocoa brown with a mottled marblized look to it. For a cigar under $5, it is extremely complex and offers a wide variety of flavor. Initially spice and a unique floral note, giving way to sweetness and a rich earthy flavor that only Aganorsa leaf can provide. Very satisfying and in the medium body strength range, the new Illusione r Rothschild is hard to beat for the price. We reviewed this stick here and it came in at a solid 90 (Very Good) rating, and at under $4 a piece, these are a steal.

Jesus Fuego Origin Original

This cheroot vitola is an offshoot of the Origin line, and sold at almost half the price. It’s not pretty to look at, and they don’t have bands, but man they are tasty, especially for $2. We reviewed the Sangre de Toro version here, and the Gran Reserva Originals here.

Another budget friendly cigar from AJ Fernandez and Cigars International. These are marketed as the poor man’s Padron, and while I wouldn’t compare them directly to a Padron, they do offer some of the same flavors at a fraction of the price. Hand-crafted in Nicaragua, Nica Libre is a veritable candy bar. This blend showcases an aged combination of Nicaraguan long-fillers secured within a Habano binder, inside dark and oily, positively resplendent San Andres maduro wrapper. A classic maduro experience: rich, hearty, and silky smooth. Deep notes of coffee and earth smack the palate in balanced fashion, leaving behind a bold, somewhat peppery aftertaste that lingers long on the palate. A hint of dark chocolate is present during the slow burn, completing an eventful and enjoyable medium-bodied cigar. These are readily available at under $3 per stick, and even under $2 if you are patient and snag them on sale or in a bid.

The Oba Oba is a Best Cigar Prices exclsuve project that they created with Nick Perdomo. It’s a mixed filler stick comprised of tobacco from various regions in Nicaragua meant to be an affordable cigar for everybody. A customer favorite and top-seller since their introduction in 2002, Oba Oba is easily one of the best bundled stogies there is. Our value-priced Nicaraguan puros are loaded with savory flavor and feature a consistent, even burn and draw thanks to their precise Cuban-Sandwich-style construction. Offered in either creamy Connecticut or chocolaty maduro wrapper shades, the unbeatable value of Oba Oba is only available here, at BCP.It is available (when in stock) in most major vitolas and all come in at under $2 per stick.

Padron Londres Maduro

This stick comes from the bottom of the line of a top company. Padron londres may not look like a top notch cigar, but it’s still a Padron. Looking at one in person makes it clear, these are rolled by some of the less experienced rollers. However, the quality of the tobacco still comes across in the flavors, and makes for a very tasty smoke. Padron cigars are Nicaraguan puros, as all of the leaves utilized to create the cigar are cultivated from the fertile soils of Esteli, Nicaragua. This mesmerizing mixture of hearty tobaccos produces a rich, robust smoke and offers a complex array of flavor capped off with a sweet finish. The blend comes in two equally impressive varieties: natural and maduro. Best of all, each size is reasonably priced. When all the cards are put on the table, Padron cigars are hard to top, period. We reviewed each the maduro and the natural versions here and here. Both came in at the “Good” level, but failed to break 90, which is to be expected form a bargain smoke. These sell at under $4 per stick.

Pinar Del Rio Oscuro and Sungrown

Why these are so cheap, I have no idea. They taste and smoke like a $10 cigar, but sell by the box or bundle for a very reasonable price. The Habano Sun Grown utilizes an oily, reddish-brown Habano Sun Grown wrapper from the Dominican Republic. Within, a rich Criollo ’98 binder from the Dominican and a bold blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican long-fillers. This results in a full-bodied smoke that’s complex and refined. Pinar Del Rio Oscuro employs a thick, dark Brazilian Oscuro wrapper overtop a rich blend of Dominican and Nicaraguan long-fillers to create a medium-bodied profile that’s loaded with flavor. Notes of coffee, cocoa, pepper, and a naturally sweet finish meld perfectly to create a smoke that’s complex, smooth, and balanced. At face value these are about $5 a piece, but when they go on sale, grab them. I’ve picked up boxes for myself at around $2 per stick at Cigar Bid.

Romeo y Julieta (Cuba) Mille Fleures

“There’s a budget Cuban you say?” Indeed! There isn’t much talk about this cigar, but when it is talked about, it’s always positive. The shocking part of this is the price. Depending on your vendor and currency conversion, these can be had between $3-$4.

Sancho Panza Double Maduro La Mancha

This cigar is a staple in many a humidor. These come at the right price and these tasty sticks produce loads of chocolate and coffee flavors. Smokers who want a full-bodied smoke at an affordable price embrace these remarkably rich-tasting, box-pressed cigars. The extra-dark Connecticut broadleaf wrappers spend 4 years aging before making their way to the rolling floor. The Connecticut shade binder, cured to a maduro color, also ages four years, for a richer, sweeter, and smoother smoke. All of the vitolas are pretty affordable, but most people gravitate towards the La Mancha. This offers lower price per stick and a smaller ring gauge. These sell around $2.50 per stick.

Tony Alvarez Habano

This may be the best kept secret in the budget cigar universe.

A Cuban Crafters exclusive, made by Tony Alvarez in Esteli Nicaragua, these handmade longfillers should really be sold at 3x their price. They only come in bandless bundles. But, if taste and construction are what you care about, not flashy bands and boxes, this cigar is for you. If these ever catch on, expect the price to go way up. Smaller sizes start at $1.50 a stick, and sometimes go on sale even cheaper. We reviewed it here, getting an 89 (Good).

Tips and Tricks: Best Budget Cigars