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The best of the best! We round up the best budget golf irons for the 2025 season.
On the whole golf can be an expensive sport, but it doesn’t have to be. Choosing the right iron set can be the difference between an average round and your personal best, but quality doesn’t have to come at a premium. We recognise that not every golfer is looking to break the bank for performance. That’s why we’ve put together this guide to the best budget irons for 2025, to help you find reliable, forgiving, and affordable options.
For those looking to get started in golf or those on a budget, there are plenty of options for affordable golf irons that still offer quality performance. We have tested all the latest budget-friendly offerings from the top golf brands performance and feel, as well as price.
Read on to discover our top picks for budget irons in 2025, and find out which set could be your best for you this season…
There’s no getting away from how big these irons are. At address the Rogue ST Max irons almost make the ball look small, which is good as these clubs are designed for a player who wants maximum forgiveness and distance. They sit with the classic Callaway iron style and have the strongest lofts in the Rogue ST family.
The results do not disappoint, these irons are crazy long. From what I would consider being fairly average club head speed averages, I was able to hit a 9 iron that carried 149, a 7 iron that carried 180 and my longest 5 iron went 204 CARRY. This was easily the longest Rogue ST iron model.
The Rogue ST Max are not only long but also incredibly forgiving. Strikes from places other than the centre also flew extremely far and felt really solid. I even had mishits with the Rogue ST Max irons that fly further than a good strike on my current irons. Not a good look for the old blades.
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The only downside I see with the Rogue ST Max irons would be that the spin on the shots is very low. This is great if you want more distance but not good if you’re trying to control it, and would give me problems when hitting into greens. I would also probably have to add at least two more wedges into my bag to fill some gaps created by the irons going so far.
Pros:
Long
Consistent ball speeds across the face
Strikes feel powerful
Cons:
Chunky heads won’t suit the eye of all players
RELATED: Read our full Callaway Rogue ST Max irons review here.
Ram Golf have created something really good here. The FX77s have strong lofts and a lot of offset so you really feel like the club is going to work for and help you, but they have a thin enough top line to make you feel like you are still using players’ clubs.
I was blown away after just one shot as the ball seemed to rocket off the face. I knew that the FX77 irons had strong lofts, but they’re no stronger than similar clubs on the market, so I was pretty surprised to see the 9-iron shots carrying near to 150 yards, with one landing at 156.
I was really pleased with how solid the FX77 irons felt on off-centre hits though. This is an important factor for the player’s distance irons as the golfer they’re aimed at probably doesn’t find the centre every time. It was noticeable however that the clubs seemed to mark or scuff up quite quickly with my strike pattern starting to show up after just 10 or so shots.
These are a brilliant set of irons that I recommend to anyone who needs more distance but is shopping on a budget. These may be the best value irons out in the market right now, and probably the longest I’ve hit all year so be sure to check them out!
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PROS
Long
Very forgiving irons on off-centre hits
Strikes feel powerful
Arguably the best golf irons on a budget
CONS
A lot of offset won’t suit the eye of all players
Crazy ball speeds make distance control hard with short irons
RELATED: Read our full Ram Golf FX77 Irons review here.
If you are a high handicapper and not a particularly consistent ball striker, in terms of face contact, then these should be ideal for your game. With Wilson you know you are going to get great value for money as these Wilson Dynapwr irons are nowhere near as expensive as other sets.
The irons move through the turf really nicely and the irons gap really nicely to fit in the same set as each other to deliver ideal distances for each iron. Even off-centred strikes were still performing at a high and consistent level. I hit a few shots out of the neck of the club and still carried only one yard less than some of the cleaner nine iron strikes.
The feedback from these irons is incredible. The ball cracks off the face on the good strikes and its not much of a stretch to say that on these strikes the ball goes for miles.
For the golfers who don’t tend to hit a high launch in their ball flight and is looking for maximum distance then your in luck. You will optimise your total distance using these irons and they do feel epic.
PROS
Lightning quick ball speed
Exude great control into greens
Feel really good
Unbelievable distances
CONS
Launch height not very suitable for better control into greens
RELATED: Read the full Wilson Dynapwr Irons 2025 review here.
I love the clean, simple design of these irons; they have a thin sole and minimal offset, which gives you a real player’s feel. The top line, however, isn’t super thin, so at address, you do feel like you’ve got a chance of hitting some good shots.
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These irons are forged from 620C steel, which provides a really soft contact feel. When you use a blade, your primary concern is control, so you don’t want a strike that feels at all fiery from the face.
I found controlling the flight in terms of trajectory and shot shape really easy with the Takomo 301 MB irons. I love hitting it higher and lower and attempting to work shots into different flag positions on the green. This isn’t always the most sensible approach to golf, but it makes it loads of fun, and the Takomo’s amplify this.
These irons are excellent for any golfer in any condition, and they have travelled to some exciting venues with me. I took them to Sawgrass to play both the Stadium and Dye’s Valley course. I drove them over to Hillside for a game on the links and even had the game of my life at my home club Sand Moor and shot 62!
PROS
Out the centre, the contact feels amazingly soft
Really easy to manipulate flight
Stunning behind the ball
CONS
Not forgiving for inconsistent ball strikers
RELATED: Read our full Takomo 301 MB Irons review here.
These are some of the longest irons on the market, perfect for players who are looking to pick up extra yardage.
What was pleasing was I didn’t give up any dispersion in return for that distance. In fact, my 5-iron had the tightest dispersion of the test, with under 10 yards front-to-back dispersion and just over 5 yards left-to-right dispersion. All the data with this 5-iron is absolutely ridiculous.
Overall, I really enjoyed testing these irons. The stand-out factor is definitely the distance, but I think these are a real all-rounders and are contenders to be the best game-improvement irons this season.
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PROS
Exceptionally long
Relatively compact shaping
Forgiving on off centre strikes
CONS
Not as workable as other models
RELATED: Read our full Cobra Aerojet irons review here.
The Benross Delta XT irons offer an easy use set of clubs for a much cheaper price point than we see other iron sets on the market. With a sharp look to them, these Benross irons are a good option for mid-handicappers seeking to get their money’s worth. These offer a smaller, sleeker club head than the brand’s Aero XF irons but still deliver that crucial distance and forgiveness.
Positively, for those who want to get more height on your shots, the irons delivered a healthy launch angle and overall peak height. On my best shots, my apex was over 80 feet, which is great for my club head speed and will give me more control coming into the greens. This allows players of wide-ranging abilities to get the ball up in the air, giving you longer hang times and more consistent carry distances.
I was also impressed with the level of ball and club speed I was able to reach with the various clubs from the set. According to Benross, the high-strength C455 stainless steel face provides more flexing at impact for improved ball speed, which ultimately allows the ball to go further.
PROS
Great price point
Generates good distance
Clean design
CONS
Left to right dispersion could be tighter
RELATED: Read our full Benross Delta XT Irons review here.
Affordable golf irons don’t have to sacrifice quality and performance. The best budget irons for 2025 prove that you don’t need to pay top-tier prices to get modern performance, forgiveness, and confidence at address.
Whether you’re just starting out in golf or looking to upgrade your equipment without breaking the bank, these budget golf irons offer the forgiveness, distance, and playability you need to take your game to the next level.
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Check out our other buyers guides for 2025 to get fully equipped this season:
At National Club Golfer we are passionate about producing accurate and thorough reviews and make sure our testing process is rigorous so we get a good understanding of how each club performs.
Each iron is hit with Pro V1 golf balls to allow us to collect launch monitor data with our in-house TrackMan and Flightscope. After this it is time to head out onto the golf course and test the clubs in practice and competition play. We do this across a variety of golf clubs in our base of Yorkshire.
What is important when buying a new iron?
When buying a new set of irons it is important to know what you want from that club to help you improve.
Most people are looking for more distance, each iron model is optimised for different things. Depending on your swing and your impact conditions, you may not actually hit the model that is advertised as the longest, the furthest. So if you want more distance it is always worth giving different models a hit before you make a decision.
For most golfers, especially high handicappers, something that is more forgiving is going to yield the best performance. Most forgiving golf irons have a slightly bigger club head with perimeter weighting for high MOI. They also have a center of gravity that is further back to help players get more height on their shots.
Do you want something that is draw bias? There are so many models out there to help with slice correction, it would be silly not to take a look if you see your ball disappearing into the right trees too often. A closed face and draw bias weighting can get you hitting straighter shots in no time at all.
Don’t forget about the shaft either. Getting the correct shaft can help dial in your spin, launch angle and can also give you some extra distance. Having a custom fitting or trying different options with your local pro can really improve the performance of your new driver.
Best Budget Golf Irons 2025: FAQ’s
What irons are best suited for high handicappers?
High handicappers will often be best suited to game improvement irons as they are designed to help players hit the ball straighter, higher and further.
They’re also the most forgiving of any type of irons available, whilst even including some of the longest irons you can get your hands on. This is generally achieved with a lower centre of gravity and stronger lofts. Distance AND forgiveness? Yes, please.
What handicap are game improvement irons best suited for?
These type of irons are ideal if you’re a high handicap golfer. Typically, if you’re shooting above 85 or only occasionally hitting a shot in the sweet spot then they’re also the go-to. Handicap-wise, mid-to low handicappers will also benefit from these clubs. And as we know, the average handicap is between 14 and 20, hence why they’re so popular on the shelves!
They are also great for players with slower swing speeds as they can help with higher launch, which these golfers can struggle with, especially in longer irons.
Do any pros use game improvement irons on tour?
Unsurprisingly, most PGA Tour pros don’t opt for game-improvement irons. As we covered earlier, the sort of irons are best suited for mid-handicap golfers looking to – quite literally – improve their game.
The most elite golfers in the world tend to game players’ irons or blades. These forged irons are thinner, have a smaller sweet spot and therefore are much harder to hit consistently than game improvement irons. From time to time some pros do add game improvement clubs in for long irons or as driving irons for a more forgiving option off the tee.
