By Tati Taylor 23 days ago, Cameras & Lenses
The best Nikon lenses from wide-angle to telephoto ones.
Are you in search of a new lens for Nikon? The list below covers the best Nikon lenses in all categories, from wide-angle and zoom to telephoto.
Finding an appropriate lens isn’t easy regardless of what brand your camera is, but if you’d like to take photos in the highest possible quality, it’s better to buy lenses from the same manufacturer.
Below you’ll find the best Nikon lenses the market can offer in 2024. While there are a lot of top-tier lenses made by other manufacturers available as well, picking them over Nikon lenses doesn’t make much sense as first-party lenses come with a set of advantages that can’t be matched by outside products.
Mount: Nikon F | Diaphragm blades: 9 | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 1.1 m | Max magnification: 0.21 x | Filter thread: 77 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 88.5x202.5 mm | Weight: 1430 g
⊕ Fluorine coatings
⊕ Accurate AF
⊕ Weather sealing
⊕ Detachable, rotating tripod
⊖ Heavy
⊖ Expensive
This Nikon telephoto lens has been setting an example for all other telephoto zoom lenses for a while now, as it provides top-notch low light, sports, nature, event, wedding, and lifestyle photography performance. This updated version manages to enhance that performance even further, as you get to enjoy stunning picture quality that won this lens the adoration of both professionals and enthusiasts.
The latest version comes with 6 extra-low dispersion components and a single fluorite component as well as one high refractive index element, as all of them serve to minimize chromatic aberrations and color fringing to produce a clear, sharp image.
Mount: Nikon F | Diaphragm blades: 9, Rounded | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.28 m | Max magnification: 0.15 x | Filter thread: none | Dimensions (WxL): 98x131.5 mm | Weight: 1000 g
⊕ Wide-angle zoom
⊕ 3 aspherical elements
⊕ Nanocrystal coating
⊕ Fast and silent
⊖ Quite costly
⊖ Rather bulky
This Nikon zoom lens comes with 3 aspherical components and 2 extra-low dispersion components, which do wonders for minimizing distortions and aberrations while providing a sharp, clear and precisely rendered images.
The 14-24mm f/2.8G offers a quick aperture, terrific performance and ultra-wide-angle zoom that was designed for FX and DX sensors, while also being supplied with ED Glass and Nano Crystal coating. Overall, this lens allows you to enjoy top-tier sharpness and contrast regardless of how wide the aperture is.
Mount: Nikon Z | Diaphragm blades: 9, Rounded | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.4 m | Max magnification: 0.15 x | Filter thread: 62 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 76x86.5 mm | Weight: 415 g
⊕ Attractive price
⊕ Smooth and silent
⊕ Speedy autofocus
⊕ Configurable control ring
⊖ Sharp is not perfect
This is a reimagining of one of the best Nikon lenses that has ever been released. The classic 50mm prime was redesigned for the Z series and now provides higher sharpness across the whole frame. It also doesn’t create any distortions, even when shooting at wide open.
The lens allows you to enjoy a gorgeous bokeh effect even at shorter focus distances and generally performs great in low-light conditions. Other great features of this lens include silent focusing, small size, a normal field of view, and a bright f/1.8 max aperture.
The convenient perspective mixes well with the f/1.8 design, allowing you to work in difficult lighting conditions and granting you more control over the depth of field.
Mount: Nikon F | Diaphragm blades: 7, Rounded | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.48 m | Max magnification: 0.32 x | Filter thread: 67 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 78.5x99 mm | Weight: 550 g
⊕ Small
⊕ Lightweight
⊕ Super integrated coating
⊕ Universal zoom
⊖ Overpriced
Pleasantly small and light compared to most other 16.7x zoom Nikon DSLR lenses, this product provides top-tier performance for DX cameras and can be a terrific secondary lens. It allows you to take wide-angle photos of landscapes and groups of people, portraits with subtly blurred backdrops, telephoto close-ups, and all other image types you can imagine.
Created with DX cameras in mind, this 27-450mm equivalent zoom comes with enhanced optics that contain both aspherical and extra-low dispersion components, which are great at dealing with distortions and aberrations on the entire zoom range.
Mount: Nikon F (FX) | Diaphragm blades: 7 | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.16 m | Max magnification: 0.34 x | Filter thread: None | Dimensions (WxL): 77.5x83 mm | Weight: 485 g
⊕ Fisheye design
⊕ Zoom functionality
⊕ Weather sealing
⊕ Good for photos and videos
⊖ High price
This is one of the best Nikon lenses if you’re looking for a wide-angle model that produces a sharp, fisheye image. You can use it to take frame-filling photos from distances as small as 0.5ft, as the lens is capable of handling complex, severely backlit, and extreme shooting conditions.
Developed for full-frame cameras, the 8-15mm f/3.5-4.5E is made of lightweight magnesium alloy and relies on internal focusing to maintain its small size. This is also the brand’s latest product that uses an electromagnetic diaphragm to sustain consistent exposure during burst shooting and ensure the footage looks smooth when recording videos.
Mount: Nikon F | Diaphragm blades: 7, Rounded | Autofocus: yes | Min focus distance: 1.1 m | Max magnification: 0.22x | Filter thread: 58 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 72x125 mm | Weight: 415 g
⊕ Compatible and reasonably-priced
⊕ Quick focusing
⊕ Crop sensor
⊕ Solid image quality
⊖ Plastic body
If you’re looking for Nikon professional lenses, this one definitely deserves your attention. The Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G is a DX telephoto zoom lens (equivalent to 105-450mm full-frame) that offers a solid combination of small size and impressive picture quality, while also sporting an enhanced focusing system.
The list of cameras that this product is fully compatible with is rather long and includes such models as D7500, D5600, D5500, D3300, D3400, D5300, and D500, just to name a few. So, if you are searching for a versatile telephoto zoom lens, the Nikon 70-300mm f/4.5-6.3G is the perfect lens for Nikon D5300 or any other model, allowing you to capture detailed and captivating shots in a wide range of situations.
Mount: Nikon Z | Diaphragm blades: 7, Rounded | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.5 m | Max magnification: 0.23 x | Filter thread: 62 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 74x110 mm | Weight: 405 g
⊕ Super integrated coating
⊕ Quick AF
⊕ Satisfying out of focus quality
⊕ Solid stabilization mechanism
⊖ Lacks weather sealing
This product is among the best Nikon lenses around as it provides terrific telephoto functionality for Z series cameras while being offered in a small, light body. Quick, precise, and pleasantly quiet, it’s equally well-suited for taking photos and recording videos.
If you get it along with the NIKKOR Z DX 16-50mm f/3.5-6.3 VR, you’ll be prepared for all possible situations. This lens provides an impressive range of telephoto focal lengths and can easily handle anything from portraits to long-distance shots.
The Z 50-250mm comes with an extra-low dispersion component that significantly reduces color fringing and chromatic aberrations, allowing you to enjoy better clarity and rendering.
Mount: Nikon F | Diaphragm blades: 7, Rounded | Autofocus: Yes | Min focus distance: 0.35 m | Max magnification: 0.22 x | Filter thread: 72 mm | Dimensions (WxL): 86x80 mm | Weight: 499 g
⊕ High sharpness
⊕ Compact
⊕ Image stabilization
⊕ 5x optical zoom
⊖ High price
⊖ Some distortions
Thanks to VR image stabilization and the brand’s signature lens technology, you can use this f2.8 lens for Nikon for everything from portraits to wide-angle shots, while enjoying terrific picture quality. It’s a fantastic option for lifestyle photography, blogging, shooting in low light conditions, and recording HD footage.
This lens offers you terrific reach in a light, compact body that is equipped with state-of-the-art coatings and electronics. The only sacrifice you have to make is the single light stop in the telephoto range.
| Image | Name | Features | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8E
Our choice |
CHECK PRICE → | |
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Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8G
High-Performance |
CHECK PRICE → | |
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Nikon 50mm f/1.8
Silent focusing |
CHECK PRICE → |
If you’re still unsure whether you need a new lens, the best way to check is by paying attention to your feet. If you notice that you’re constantly moving around when framing the subject (going back and forth or circling the subject to get a closer look or broader view), then it might be time to look in the direction of the best Nikon lenses and get yourself one of them. Don’t feel bad about it, it’s just a sign that your level of expertise has outgrown your current equipment and you need something better than a standard 18-55mm lens to improve as a photographer.
Nikon producers compact APS-C (DX) DSLR and bigger full-frame (FX) cameras. You can use the same lenses with both types, but when using FX lenses, the tinier DX sensor introduces a crop factor that limits the viewing angle of the lens. It’s not exactly a drawback, just an expected effect of specific lenses and sensor types. You can also attach a DX lens to a full-frame Nikon camera, but you’ll have to change to “crop” mode that only uses the central part of the sensor, meaning you don’t get to enjoy the camera’s maximum resolution.
The focal length of Nikon camera lenses indirectly determines the viewing angle you get to enjoy. A wide-angle model can have a length of 18 or 24mm, while a telephoto one can be 100, 200, or 400mm. If you’re using an FX camera, the transition from wide-angle to telephoto occurs at about 50mm. Overall, lenses with a focal length close to 50mm are referred to as “standard”.
While Nikon is famous for producing both full-frame and APS-C sensor cameras, the Nikon F mount is a universal option that is suitable for both DSLR types.
You can attach an FX lens to either a full-frame or an APS-C camera, but if you use it with the latter, then you’ll be forced to take photos in the crop mode, which significantly reduces the megapixel count. APS-C sensor optics are referred to as Nikon DX lenses. It’s possible to use a DX model on a full-frame DSLR, but you’ll suffer from the same crop and megapixel quality reduction. Lastly, remember that you can’t use either type of lenses with Nikon’s mirrorless cameras unless you get an adapter.
If you take photography seriously, you should own a high-quality prime, wide-angle, and macro lenses, with the prime having the focal length of either 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, or 85mm, depending on your needs.
In short, you should purchase the type of lenses that corresponds to your camera. However, if you’re forced to pick one option then choose FX lenses, as they are ordinarily a better fit for DX sensors and they’re perfect if you plan to upgrade to a full-frame camera in the future.
The Nikon 135mm f/2 DC AF is probably the best option Nikon has to offer in terms of sharpness.
Overall, Nikon full frame lenses can be considered the better choice as they gather more light, have higher sensitivity, and produce less noise. While DX lenses are better for APS-C sensors, FX models are the universal option due to the bigger image circle.
The best focal length depends on your shooting style and subject matter. Wide-angle lenses (e.g., 14mm, 24mm) are great for landscapes, while telephoto lenses (e.g., 200mm, 300mm) are ideal for wildlife and sports.
Nikon's Nano Crystal Coat is an advanced anti-reflective coating that reduces ghosting and flare caused by light bouncing off the lens surface. It ensures clear and sharp images, especially in challenging lighting conditions.
In some cases, it is possible to use Nikon lenses on other camera brands using appropriate adapters. However, autofocus and other electronic functionalities may be limited or unavailable, depending on the specific camera and lens combination.
