The Best Compound Microscopes for Looking At Bacteria

Have you ever thought about getting a microscope to use at home for fun? You can use a compound microscope to explore microorganisms such as pond microbes, tardigrades, and even organisms as small as bacteria.

With all of the options for sale out there, you might be wondering which microscope you should choose. Below, you’ll find out the best compound microscopes for looking at bacteria and what microscope features to consider when making your purchase.

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This post contains affiliate links — see my disclosure policy.

What’s the best compound microscope for looking at bacteria?

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Swift SW380T 40X-2500X Magnification, Siedentopf Head, Research-Grade Trinocular Microscope Compound Lab with Wide-Field 10X/25X Eyepieces, Mechanical Stage, Ultra-Precise Focusing, Camera-Compatible

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Swift SW380T

If you’re looking to buy a compound microscope but don’t know what to look for, read on.

What is a compound microscope?

A compound microscope is a microscope with higher magnification than a simple microscope. It can be used to investigate small objects not visible with the unaided eye, such as cells and bacteria, and even see some details of certain organisms. Compound microscopes can be used for basic scientific research or a microscopy hobby at home.

Compound microscopes use two lenses to enhance image resolution compared to a single lens. The eyepiece or ocular lens magnifies to 10X, and the objective lenses can magnify to 4X (scanning), 10X (low power), 40X (high power), and 100X (oil immersion), so combined, they magnify an image to 40X, 100X, 400X, and 1000X.

Some microscopes include a second eyepiece with a magnification of 25X, claiming to provide a total magnification of 100X, 250X, 1000X, and 2500X. But in reality, 2500X on a compound microscope does not work well and actually produces a lower quality image (I’ve seen it firsthand) than 1000X using a 10X eyepiece. Eyepieces can also be 5X or 15X.

Compound microscopes collect and focus visible light through the objective lens, which is located above the stage holding the sample to be observed. The light source is located below the specimen and passes through it before the objective lens. With more than one objective lens, you can look at an object at different magnification levels. That way, you can use the same microscope for both low- and high-magnification views.

Compound Microscope Features To Consider

Abbe condenser

If you want crisp images and to be able to see bacteria, you’ll need an Abbe condenser. It becomes the most important at 400X and above.

The Abbe condenser is the large black circular object located below the stage that you can use to adjust the light as you increase the objective lenses you’re looking through, going from the 4X objective up to the 40X and 1000X.

Mechanical stage

The mechanical stage is a must-have for a microscope, in my opinion, because it allows you to use knobs to control the movement of the slide while you’re hunting for microbes. If you don’t have a mechanical stage, you have to manipulate the slide with your fingers, which becomes tedious. Plus, it’s difficult to make the fine adjustments you’ll need when you are at high magnification. So, opt for a mechanical stage for microbe hunting.

Siedentopf head

A Siedentopf head allows you to change the interpupillary distance without affecting the focus. Everyone’s eyes are different distances apart, so you’ll need to adjust the interpupillary distance to fit your face.

Without a Siedentopf head — and using a sliding head instead — you would have to refocus the eyepiece each time you adjust the interpupillary distance, which would be problematic with groups using the same microscope. So, a sliding head is okay if only one person uses the microscope. But if more than one person uses it, like in schools or homeschooling with multiple children, you’ll want a microscope with a Siedentopf head.

Light Source

Pay attention to the light source. An LED light source will produce let heat than halogen, so it’s something to consider.

With that background info, you are now ready to move on to finding the best compound microscope to suit your needs.

Best Compound Microscopes

Rank	Microscope	Type of Microscope Head	Camera Options*	Magnification	Light Source	Price
1	Swift SW380T	Siedentopf Trinocular Head	can attach high-quality microscope camera to trinocular head, c-mount adapter included	40X-2000X	LED	check price
2	Swift SW380B	Siedentopf Binocular Head	phone adapter or 1.3 or 5MP eyepiece camera	40X-2500X	LED	check price
3	AmScope B120C	Siedentopf Binocular Head	0.3 – 5MP camera add on	40X-2500X	LED	check price
4	AmScope T490B	Siedentopf Trinocular Head	can attach high-quality microscope camera to trinocular head, c-mount adapter included	40X-2000X	halogen	check price
5	OMAX MD82ES10	Sliding Binocular Head	1.3MP camera included	40X-2000X	LED	check price
6	OMAX M82ES-SC100-LP100	Sliding Binocular Head	phone adapter or eyepiece camera	40X-2000X	LED	check price

*Learn more about camera options for microscopes in this post.