For the best cheap figures what are the best Im new to armor. but what i have seen there is .

Dragon
Master Box
Zveda
Mini Art

I hate not to totally answer your question,but I have had them all build up nicely.It depends on the subject and poses,but I have enjoyed all of them.The only ones I personally don't care for are Tamiya figures,great kits though.

Any others have any thoughts??

i think Alpine figures are really well sculpted. i can also say Legends figures are one of the best for crispness and detail. if resin is not your thing the Dragon Gen 3 figures offer lots of great options.
as to the others on your list, Zvezda figures are new to me but i just bought the modern russian tanker set and opened it up to find a nicely done figure kit. the faces were pretty good and the details and sculpting on this kit were above average.

never tried minart or masterbox but i understand both are well within what you'd expect from modern manufacturers in styrene, good details and fairly well done faces/hands.

i got a chance to look at some trumpeter figures before buying a kit and it was terrible. chewing gum on a toothpick would have looked about the same.

hope this helps. cheers bd

Just MHO, but a rundown of the best styrene figures:
#1Dragon
#2Trumpeter
#3ICM
#4Tamiya/ICM
#5Academy
#7Italeri
#8Early Tamiya
#9Revell Monogram

It is a bit of a test and try and it is highly dependable on which set you buy.
Dragon has produced a lot of neat figures through the years and we have been spoiled with great poses and neat details. The Gen 2 figures went a bit further but they are harder to built and are pricier as well. But suddenly the gen2 stopped and now you often get the nice gen2 weaponsetsin the new figure boxes. That said some of the older Dragon sets are a bit soft on detail and even their newer sets (the Stug Ammo loadin crew springs to mind) are not always up to the standards that the modelers are threated with in this modern day and age.

Zvezda is always an enigma. Some of their figures are really bad while some of their later figures are really nice. I guess for this brand it is a good idea to look which set you want and try to find good reviews with pictures to make up your mind.

Miniart. I love their figures. Their earliest sets were not that special both in subject and in detail. Very soft but they have improved a huge lot. They have nice figures. Nice poses, good sculpting and are also nice priced.

Masterbox. Again a brand I love. Their earliest boxes are again not really special. Very soft details but surprisingly good poses. And through the years they managed to wrestle themselves up to the big players with their imaginative diorama in a box sets. With figures that interact nice with each other and create a nice story. Great details. And very nice priced. And to boot they have some of the nicest boxarts in the world.

But in the end you can do a lot with painting. It is true that a good sculpted figure makes the work a lot easier. But as Shep Paine said it... Good painting can save a mediocre figure while bad painting can ruin the best.

the review section on the site is very helpful when it comes to these matters, they are usually sorted by date reviewed.

Here are a few reviews of newer sets,

Zvezda https://armorama.kitmaker.net/review/6432

Masterbox https://armorama.kitmaker.net/review/6874

Miniart https://armorama.kitmaker.net/review/7255

and DML https://armorama.kitmaker.net/review/4253

should give you an idea of what you think is the best, as we all know, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the photos should help you make up your own mind, but i must reenforce, These figure sets are all pretty good.

Great info Thanks all,!!

All got they're pos and negs Dragon are about as good as it gets. IMHO ( Zvezda is always an enigma. Some of their figures are really bad while some of their later figures are really nice. I guess for this brand it is a good idea to look which set you want and try to find good reviews with pictures to make up your mind.) Some of they're newer Figure set are AWESOME! I was VERY SUPRISED ! It really all depends on what figures you want to make your scene work? MasterBox are very Dynaic while Dragon are more Standing around. Then To make things even more differcult you've got Hornet Heads to bring into the mix. To be honest all companies make great figures. Try and find review on a figure kit before buying, and if you can get inside a box even better. Plastic figures are coming on Leaps and Bounds Its a tough Question to ask? Hope this helps a little Geraint