These are the best pancake lenses for astrophotography when you want ultra-light kits, discreet carry, and clean nightscapes on city breaks or backpack trips—knowing pancakes trade speed for size—and here’s what to look for as you buy: favor wider fields of view (14–28mm full-frame; 10–18mm APS-C; 7–14mm MFT) with disciplined corners (low sagittal coma/astigmatism), solid wide-open contrast, precise manual focus with a repeatable infinity mark, and good flare control for streetlights; stabilization doesn’t help stars, so prioritize a firm manual ring, a deep-ish hood, and bodies with clean high-ISO and interval timers; expect to stop down 2/3–1 stop to tighten corners, or use stacking/trackers to compensate for slower apertures. Full-frame pocket standouts: Sony FE 24mm ƒ2.8 G (not a literal pancake but truly tiny with tidy corners by ƒ3.2–ƒ4), Nikon Z 26mm ƒ2.8 (ultra-thin travel star—stop to ~ƒ3.5 for cleaner edges), Nikon Z 28mm ƒ2.8 (small, affordable, and calmer corners a notch down), Canon RF 28mm ƒ2.8 STM (featherweight; sharpen edges at ~ƒ3.5–ƒ4), and Sigma 24mm ƒ3.5 DG DN Contemporary (near-pancake feel with excellent flare control—pair with high ISO/stacking). Compact primes that feel “pancake-adjacent” and excel for astro: Samyang/Rokinon 18mm ƒ2.8 FE (minuscule, good coma control for its size), and Sigma 20mm ƒ2 DG DN C (very small, fast enough for Milky Way while still travel-friendly). APS-C travel wafers: Sony E 20mm ƒ2.8 (30-eq; stop a touch for corners), Sony E PZ 16–50mm ƒ3.5–5.6 OSS (power-zoom pancake—use 16mm at ƒ4–ƒ5 and stack), Nikon Z DX 16–50mm ƒ3.5–6.3 VR (collapsible; 16mm at ƒ4–ƒ5 with stacking works), Fujifilm XC 15–45mm ƒ3.5–5.6 OIS PZ (tiny; 15mm at ƒ4 with stacking), and the Fujifilm XF 27mm ƒ2.8 R WR (40-eq for constellations/blue hour when you want minimal kit). Micro Four Thirds mini marvels: Panasonic 20mm ƒ1.7 II (pancake legend—use ƒ1.7–ƒ2.2 and stack to tame corners), Panasonic 14mm ƒ2.5 (ultra-light; stop to ~ƒ3.2), and Olympus 17mm ƒ2.8 (older but truly flat—best at ƒ3.5–ƒ4 with stacking); pair any of these with strong IBIS bodies (for framing only) and a tiny travel tripod. Practical buyer tips: pick ~20–24mm (FF) / 14–16mm (APS-C) / 10–12mm (MFT) for classic Milky Way framing; accept that most pancakes are slower—solve with higher ISO, short NPF-limited exposures, and stacking, or add a palm-sized star tracker for 30–120s subs at base ISO; if coma bothers you, test corners before a trip and plan to stop down slightly; bring a slim hood to fight veiling flare, and standardize small filter threads for a night-friendly soft-edge grad or mist filter if you like mood. Astro shooting tips with pancakes: switch to manual focus, magnify a bright star and tape the ring, start near wide open then stop 1/3–1 stop to clean corners, use the NPF rule (more accurate than the 500-rule) for untracked exposures, shoot RAW at ISO 1600–6400 depending on your body, bracket 20–100 short subs and stack (Sequator/Starry Landscape Stacker/DSS) to crush noise, dither between sets, set WB around 3800–4200K or fix in post, shade the lens from oblique lights, carry a lens heater or hand-warmers for dew, and leave framing margin for perspective correction; with a tiny tracker, run 60–120s at lower ISO for cleaner files. Whether you’re packing ultralight for a hut hike, slipping a camera into a city jacket, or doing spontaneous Milky Way stops on a road trip, the best pancake lenses for astrophotography balance compact build, respectable corner control, and focus precision—so your stars stay tight, your files stay clean, and your travel rig stays truly pocketable.