Most observing happens from a garden with streetlights nearby, and the equipment advice for that situation is different from the advice for a dark site. This page is about what works from home.
Which telescope do I need? Ask us below
What light pollution does and does not ruin
It raises the sky background, which drowns faint extended objects: galaxies, most nebulae and the Milky Way. It does almost nothing to the moon, the planets and double stars, which are bright enough to cut straight through it. So a suburban garden is a poor place for deep sky and an excellent one for the solar system.
The best at home telescope is aimed at what your sky allows
From a bright garden, a modest aperture on the moon and planets will give more satisfying nights than a large one hunting galaxies that are not there. Add a filter only if emission nebulae are your target, because a narrowband filter is the one accessory that genuinely fights light pollution, and only on those objects.
Local light is worse than distant light
A single neighbouring security light does more damage than the whole town's glow, because it puts stray light directly into the tube and into your eyes. A shield, a hood over the focuser, or simply standing where a wall blocks the lamp is more effective than any filter. Dark adaptation takes twenty minutes and one glance at a white light undoes it.
The advantage nobody mentions
Home observing has no travel, so a clear hour can be used at short notice, and the equipment can be left set up. Over a year that produces far more time at the eyepiece than occasional trips to a dark site, which is why most people's best observing is done from their own garden.
Questions people ask about telescope
Can I use a telescope in a city?
Yes, and for the moon, planets and double stars a city is barely a handicap. Faint deep sky objects are what light pollution takes away.
What is the best home telescope for a light polluted garden?
One aimed at the solar system: any aperture with good optics and a steady mount. Chasing faint galaxies from a bright site disappoints at any price.
Do light pollution filters help at home?
On emission nebulae, yes. On galaxies and clusters, no, because they emit across the spectrum and the filter dims them as much as the sky.