25mm Vs 10mm Telescope Eyepiece [Detailed Comparison]

When buying a telescope eyepiece for the first time it’s normal to get confused. One of the common points to stumble upon is the focal length of eyepieces. You may wonder which focal length could be more useful.

So, which one is better among 25mm vs 10mm telescope eyepiece?

In 25mm vs 10 mm eyepiece, 25mm eyepieces are better to see larger objects. On the contrary, 10mm eyepieces are good for observing rather small objects. It has mid-tier magnification power over 25mm eyepieces. Both 10mm and 25mm eyepieces are equally important for stargazing.

That was the sneak peek. Care to know more about the details? Then read along with us till the end.

So, let’s jump in!

Quick comparison: 25mm vs 10mm eyepiece

Before we go onto the details let’s take a look at the main differences.

Aspects	10mm Eyepiece	25mm Eyepiece
Magnification	Mid-range	Low-range
Observable objects	Planetary details, nebula, lunar details, and small galaxies.	Large open clusters, larger nebulas, full lunar disc, etc
Specialty	Better for viewing smaller objects	Better for viewing larger objects
Cost	expensive	cheaper

Now let’s move on to the details, shall we?

Detailed comparison: 25mm vs 10mm eyepiece

A newly bought telescope comes with at least two eyepieces. A 10mm and 25mm focal length eyepiece. You’d be lucky if it’s a Plossl or Kellner eyepiece. 

If the eyepieces are poor in quality you might need new eyepieces. So, let’s see the fundamental differences between 25mm and 10mm telescope eyepieces.

Magnification

The focal length of an eyepiece and telescope determines the magnification. The magnification for 10mm and 25mm eyepieces will be different. 

Now, let’s take a look at the magnification differences between both eyepieces.

Telescopes Focal Length	Magnification Of 10mm Eyepiece	Magnification Of 25mm Eyepiece
600mm	60x	24x
1000mm	100x	40x
1500mm	150x	60x
2000mm	200x	80x

As you can see, the eyepiece’s focal length determines the magnification power. Between 10mm and 25mm eyepieces, 25mm has lower magnification. 

10mm eyepieces have mid-tier magnification. It can provide almost twice the magnification of what a 25mm eyepiece can provide.

Higher magnification doesn’t mean that it’s better than the other. It depends on what

 you wish to observe in the night sky. For example, if you’re interested in larger cosmic objects, higher magnification won’t help much.

It’s better to rather go for an eyepiece with a wide field view. Celestron zoom eyepiece could be an excellent choice. It’s a versatile eyepiece that works well on all focal lengths

Other factors such as AFOV, eye relief depend on the eyepiece design. The quality of the eyepiece also depends greatly on the manufacturer. 

Observable Objects

10mm eyepieces are good to go with any focal length. However, its field view is not as wide as a 25mm eyepiece. So, viewing larger objects with a 10mm eyepiece can be a bit troublesome.

But 10mm is good for studying planetary details, nebula, lunar details, and small galaxies. You can study them at any focal length with your 10mm eyepiece.

It is especially good for studying the craters on the moon. Since it has good background darkening abilities. 

On the other hand, 25mm eyepieces are good for viewing open clusters, larger nebulas in longer focal lengths. For short focal lengths, bigger objects are more clearly visible. 

For example, Orion nebula, full lunar disc, or large open clusters on the moon. Depending on the focal length the observable objects are many for a 25mm eyepiece.

In-short 25mm eyepieces can be called multi-purposed. They are good locators for all focal lengths.

Cost

Both 25mm and 10mm telescope eyepieces have high and low-end pricing rates. Eyepieces from the renowned brand are gonna cost more than regular eyepieces.

Also, the good quality eyepieces will be more pricy. However, getting a good 10mm eyepiece might cost you more than a 25mm eyepiece.

The starting price for good quality 10mm eyepieces is quite high. You can get a good quality 25mm eyepiece for a much lower price. But of course, it depends on the brand.

Choosing a good eyepiece isn’t that easy. So here is our recommendation on some of the best 10mm and 25mm eyepieces.

You can also look for 10mm and 25mm SVBONY Eyepieces. They offer many good quality eyepieces at a moderate price.

Final Verdict: Which One Is Better?

It’s hard to conclude on the two most common focal length eyepieces. Because both are necessary to keep in your collection for the night sky viewing. 

Also which one you should be picking will greatly depend on your purpose. So we can’t really decide on a winner here. But we can give you some suggestions. 

If you want to study larger objects then go for 25mm eyepieces. For a wider field of view, 25mm is the right choice. If you need a mid-range magnification eyepiece then 10mm is good. You can read the object’s details more precisely with higher magnification. So, which would be your priority?

Hopefully, all the given information will be of use to you.

FAQs

What is the difference between fully coated and multi-coated?

Fully-coated is those that have an anti-reflection coating on the longer side of the prism. Multi-coated means there are several anti-reflection coated on at least one surface.

Which eyepiece is the negative eyepiece?

Huygens telescopic eyepiece is known as the negative eyepiece. It’s because the real image gets formed behind the field lens. Also, the image seems like a virtual object  

What are the regular barrel sizes of eyepieces?

Eyepieces come in different barrel sizes. The common sizes are .965”, 1.25”, and 2” in diameter. .965” eyepieces are the smallest, and 2” are the biggest. 1.25” diameter eyepieces are the most common ones.

Final Words

So we reached the end of our discussion regarding the 25mm vs 10mm telescope eyepiece. Hopefully, the differences are clear to you by now.

While buying an eyepiece go for the ones that say fully-coated or fully multi-coated. They have better reflection so the contrast loss is limited.

That’s it for today. See you next time!