Improvements between the Xbox One controller and Xbox 360 controller?

I'm going for the cheapest Xbox controller which means the last generation Xbox 360 controller.

Never buy the cheapest one -.-

While I got no answer to your question as I never owned an XBOne controller, I have had a pair of x360 controllers for 11 years and they are still in great condition so I would say it is a pretty reliable piece of hardware=) the battery packs I purchased with a plug n play kit died about 2 years ago, so I had to go back to using AA batteries

Best of luck hunting them monsters!

I have a 360 and works perfect. Some buttons on the D-Pad seems to be tougher but maybe needs cleaning and it's not broken. The receptor was a complete mess. Official microsoft broke after some months and the chinese one is still working.

I have touched a one pad, only for a minute or so, and the feeling of the buttons seems to be better but I can't talk about it. I think it's better but the 360 it's not a bad choice.

I haven't used an XBox One controller yet, but I can confirm that XB360's D-pad is just jank, it happens waaaay too often that pressing a right presses right and/or down, for example. And way too often means like once in every 5-10 uses, it's annoying even with Dark Souls, that doesn't use D-pad that often - or in a hurry.

360 is better. Simple reason: D-pad. One has 8 directions, 360 has all 360 degrees, it's crucial in PvP.

I just solved that last week... I had the same problem because I left my 360 controller in Brazil and wasn`t sure if it was worth buying the xbox one.

On the pro side, as the first reply said., it has way better sticks and it is slighly larger, so it is more comfortable in comparison to the 360.

However, too many reviews complain about the usb connection (which easily interrupts connection or fail to connect to windows). So if you plan to play exclusively wired, and you are unlucky as the reviews, I would suggest you to avoid it.
I didn`t have any problem yet (i have it for 3 days), but I am getting rechargeable batteries to make life easier.

Besides the One controller having better ergonomics and a higher-end feels, 360 controllers tend to have cable issues. It happened with mine after a bit over 2 years and I know a few people who experienced the same thing. The controller would keep connecting and disconnecting everytime the cable moved just a little. Since the cable is built-in you cannot easily replace it.
If you want to buy the wireless 360 controller you will need to buy the Microsoft receiver as well and it will end up costing as much as a One controller (if you don't have bluetooth on your PC you can just buy any bluetooth dongle, you don't need the Microsoft receiver for the One controller). Also you cannot use a cable to play wired with a wireless 360 controller while the One controller allows both.

I don't have a One Controller but hold one in the hand.
It feels much better than the 360 controller and they improved the D-pad.
Depending on how much more a One Controller costs in your country i would get this one but a 360 is not bad either.

Haven’t tried the xbone one, but the 360’s pretty decent, just make sure you get the wired one for windows if you only gon use it for MHW yeahh

I much prefer the Xbox One controller over the 360. The D-pad is actually usable, and the overall feel is less clunky.

Aside from the obvious improvement over the D-pad, the One controller works out of the box in wireless mode due to bluetooth compatibility (at least for the revisioned model, the one with the upper bar with the opaque finish instead of being glossy) without having to buy an external adapter. It also supports the Play & Charger kit (which can be available for very low online) so you have a rechargable battery with a very long life without using AA batteries. Better ergonomics, the analog sticks are slightly more precise, it works flawlessly with almost all games (and in games where it doesn't, probably other controllers won't work either), it's very durable because of its construction quality (something that the Dualshock 4 is very lacking) and all the buttons have a distinct feedback when pressed. It's really a blessing and as a plus it's available in lots of colors and it's also easily moddable with third party components.

The only downside that i have found is that the ABXY buttons are quite noisy when pressed, i can still hear clicks even when using headphones .

Look, I've got 360 controllers, they're great! They're awesome! I recommend them for everyone who wants to get a controller for the PC. But it comes with a big caveat: I was doing a lot of controller based gaming for a bit and realized I was sucking up batteries faster than I liked, so I was considering getting a play and charge kit... but it's just not available any more. The only controller accessories you can get is remaining stock of questionably quality third party stuff from suppliers that really scrape the bottom of the barrel to get stuff to sell.

Remember, it's not just about the controller and the controller NOW, it's about the controller and everything related to it over the entire lifetime of the device. From that perspective the 360 controller might still be great, but it's a geriatric angry uncle in the old folks home with absolutely no future.

Of course this doesn't make it a clear choice - you still have to weigh how much this matters to you. That's what I did when I bought my last one... and I feel I made the wrong choice. Just saying that this should also weigh into your decision, because in addition to any/all improvements of the xbox one version it's a modern device, with all that implies in support from manufacturers and marketplace and availability of parts, repairs and accessories.

I have a 360 wireless controller and I have been happy with it so far, but it seems like it would be worthwhile upgrading to an Xbox One controller. But what of compatibility ? This is a big deciding factor for me, are they compatible with all games already supporting a 360 controller or they only work with recent games ?