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Best budget bass compressor pedal???

Is there a difference between those and the later ones with the monocle graphic?

YES. The monocle one has a terrible reputation whereas the earlier ones were supposed to be quite good. You can read up on the differences here: Compressor Reviews

Also there's a list of decent cheap compressors on that page that you might want to check out.
 
Is there a difference between those and the later ones with the monocle graphic?

Yes. What @tpaul says. OVNI does a great job of explaining the different versions.

YES. The monocle one has a terrible reputation whereas the earlier ones were supposed to be quite good. You can read up on the differences here: Compressor Reviews

Also there's a list of decent cheap compressors on that page that you might want to check out.
 
If you’re serious about music, or anything for that matter, do not skimp on the tools of your trade. Buy reputable products that have a good pro track record. If you buy cheap, you get cheap, sound cheap and look cheap. After you’ve created a career you can buy whatever you want but any good band is going to take a serious look at your bass, your rig and your sound. There are affordable products available, in fact, we are in a golden age of value for dollar.
 
I'd check reverb and see if you can get a deal on something like a spectra comp.

I'd also second the Joyo Scylla. Their stuff is an absurd value.

This is a bit left field, but you could also get a drive with a blend knob and just blend in a bit of the overdriven signal. That's technically "saturation," but it does compress your signal and sounds great IMO.
 
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My own feeling more-or-less tracks with what a lot of others are saying here: if money is tight, don't spend it on a compressor. Make sure you're safe and fed and all that first, which goes without saying. After that, look into saving a little bit for ZOOM multi-effects. They can do so much, the quality is honestly astounding if countless online demos are anything to go by, and the amount they can do for their price is basically unbeatable. For example, for 100 bucks, Sweetwater would sell you a Zoom B1 FOUR, which is by itself frankly sufficient as a complete rig. It isn't really missing anything you could want to play bass with except for an XLR out if you're gigging and need that. That could be a future consideration anyway and a DI box needn't be that expensive. Not just that but Sweetwater this year are offering 0% finance over 24 months, which is to say that you would pay 5 dollars a month with no interest.
Alternatively, that Sweetwater 0% finance could get you something like the Seymour Duncan Studio Bass Compressor for 8 bucks a month, if you were well-and-truly dead-set on having an analogue discrete compressor pedal. That compressor is fairly well-regarded, garnering good reviews both from TB's resident compressor reviewer, and OvniLab. Indeed, OvniLab list it in their top picks within the bracket of "little bit more expensive, little bit higher quality".