Good zoom lense for my Nikon D3200?

I have a Nikon D3200 and am currently using the lense that came with the camera. That is the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 AF-S DX VR NIKKOR Zoom Lens. It barely zooms though, and I want a new lense that will zoom more than this lense. But the highest price would probably be 500 dollars, so could anyone tell me what lense would be compatible with my Nikon D3200 with a very good zoom for under 500 dollars?

The 18-55 you already have is a zoom lens. What you're interested in is called a telephoto lens.

If you add about 100 bucks to your budget, you could buy a 70-300 AF-S VR. If your budget is 100% set-in-stone, get a 55-300 VR.

Do you like your 3200?

70-210 70-300 see what they have on B&H photo and video you might save money by getting a non nikon lens, Tamron etc

This is a perfect example of why you should buy the body only, and then spend money on the lens you really want/need.

Some things to know about zooms and telephoto lenses. If you want more reach, be ready to lug around a larger, heavier lens, and be ready to pay for it. Also, the wider the range from the short end to the telephoto end, the bigger the hit on image quality.

Photography is all about give and take, to get something, you have to give something else up. For example, all around lenses like the 18-200mm lens are popular, but there's a compromise in image quality at all focal lengths compared to a lenses with a smaller range, and lenses like these have smaller apertures, meaning they are not suited to indoor/low light photography.

a good all around compromise would be something like a 18-135mm lens, although it appears to be over your budget (Nikon brand), check out Sigma and Tamron brands to get a better deal. It has decent reach on the long end, still a fairly wide angle at 18mm, and decent optical quality.

purchase a 35 or 50mm f/1.8 for low light work, and for defocused backgrounds that zooms and telephotos often will not give you. Make sure any lens you buy has a motor, entry level Nikon dSLRs don't have AF motors.

70-300mm would be perfect lens with a good price to quality ratio if you don't have enough money then buy 55-300, but is sucks, d3200 is a DX camera and its crop factor is 1.5 so it will cover the range from 105mm to 450mm, with this focal length you will be able to get really close, combined with you're kit 18-55 you will be able to shoot anything but you will still have a gap between the 55mm to 105mm and that range is best for portraits but make sure you buy AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED rather than AF Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6G which is older and much worser but i'm very lazy so i won't write why is it worser but it is ok

A popular second lens for those that have your camera is the Nikon 55-200mm or 55-300mm lens.

But don't buy a lens just to buy one. Make sure you know what a particular lens will do for you before shelling our $500.