I was wondering how powerful of a scope i should to put on my 17 caliber savage. I know that i should have at least 100 yards on it but i have a budget. I dont know whether to get the scopes range right intact with how far the gun can shoot or farther than that?

I've been looking too, and the gun shops keep pointing me to the inexpensive rimfire scopes, and I'm beginning to agree. The centerfire scopes are set for a POA a little further out than you may want with the .17. The .17 is good out to 175yds or so, and even though it'll hit paper consistently at 200, I'm not sure how effective it'd be at that range. I'm using a cheap Bushnell I borrowed from a friend, but will probably get a Simmons in a couple weeks when I have to give the loaner back. The .17 has negligible recoil, so you may be safe with an inexpensive scope.

As for power, I'd go with 3-9 or 4-12, but a lot of that is how comfortable you are at 150+ yards with a low-power scope. My eyes are getting older, so I'm staying with at least the 3-9.

I'd put the range a bit less...call it 150.

What scope mostly depends on what you intend doing with it...as power goes up, field of view goes down, so moving targets get harder to track. Target shooters find more power useful than what most field shooters will need.

Would be pleased with a variable with a low end of 3 or 4X. As the last poster stated, recoil isn't a problem. With inexpensive scopes, simple is a good thing...the more bells and whistles, the more to go wrong/leak.

Now considering that 150yards is about all I'd care to push the little .17 to perform as intended, can look at it this way...if a 12-18X is enough for 300yard shots (and it is), then 6-9X would be enough for 150yard shots.
-------
Had the use of a .17HMR for a couple of months. Owner bought it, whent overseas before even scopeing it, left it in my safe with permission to wring it out. I bench tested it with an old straight 20X Leupold (which I keep loose just for that), but when I headed out to kill things with it, bolted on a even older K-8 and was happy.

But knew I wasn't going to shoot close things with it (were 8X may limit my ability to find them before they took off) as I had a .22LR along to take care of the shots under 75yards, so i didn't miss the low end power.

When he came back, he put a 3-9X one it (an expensive scope...but he had made some $ while away) as so far, he's been happy as can be.

I can highly recommend the BSA Sweet 17 scope. Your optics should be better the firearm. This scope has made my .22cal rifle a real tack driver.

Scope: 3-12 zoom, finger operated windage and elevation controls, adjustable 50mm objective lens, very bright and clear optics. I also put on flip up lens caps. I wasted a lot of money, time and ammo on cheap scopes, but this one really works.

Cost: $100

If you can't afford a good scope now, save a bit longer and get quality optics, regardless of which scope brand you decide to go with.

Got an enexpensive Tasco 3-9x. Works great out to about 125yrds. Unless you're bench shooting, how much optical power do need? Good luck.

Erick44 I shoot Cabelas Pine Ridge 2-7 or 2.5-7 variable shotgun/black powder scopes on my 22's, shotguns and my Remington 700 black powder rifle. They have excellent optics, are paralex adjust for 50 yards making them excellent out to the ranges these rifles are designed to shoot, i.e. 50 to 200 yards and best of all they are $69.95.
Good luck sitting up your rifle and shoot, shoot, shoot.