The Best Phones in 2025: Our top recommendations
Which is the best phone to buy right now, in 2025? Should you get the latest iPhone 16 Pro Max, Google's Pixel 9 Pro XL or the new Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra a better choice? Or... is there some low-key great smartphone that you might not even know about?
We have made this list of the best phones on the market in an effort to help you find the phone for your specific needs. Some people may want an all-out premium smartphone, whilst others want a more compact device. Some might be picky about camera quality and battery life. Below, you will find the best new phones across these different categories and we will explain why we think our nominees stand out.
You should also know that absolutely all phones in this top phones list have been rigorously tested and used by the PhoneArena team. We run various performance tests, including thorough battery and camera testing, and use specialized equipment to measure display quality. We combine this extensive research data with our reviewers' real-world user experience to form a recommendation. And we never recommend a phone that hasn't been through this extensive testing process.
How we test phones
We have included the most important results from our in-house benchmarks next to each phone in this ranking. Here is what you should know about these numbers: first, the PhoneArena Review Rating accounts for a dozen different categories, ranked by importance (so battery life has more weight in the final score than other categories like design). The numbers here are on а 0 to 10 scale, with the best 2025 phones scoring around the 7.5 to 8 mark.
As a reader, you might be wondering: "why such a low score for the top rated smartphones currently around, and don't they deserve a nine or even ten out of ten?". This is a peculiarity of our review rating system, as it looks further into the future. This way, a phone might score a nine out of ten in a few years, and then you will be able to see the exact evolution and improvements in a much clearer way. Just remember that the best way to interpret the score of a particular phone in this system is in comparison with others in its class, rather than relying on the number alone to guide you.
Second, we have the PhoneArena Battery Score, which aims to give you an approximate number for screen time use. It is calculated based on scores from our web browsing, video streaming and 3D gaming tests. Anything above 7 hours is considered very good here, while a score of around 5 to 6 hours is typical for smaller phones.
Third and last, we have the PhoneArena Camera Score, our comprehensive camera benchmark that looks at each camera separately, assigning scores for both photo and video performance, and averaging them for the final score. The maximum possible score is 200 points, and the best camera phones currently hover around the 150-160 mark.
With all of this in mind, let's get to the best cell phones of 2025.
Best smartphones of 2025 at a glance
- Best Premium iPhone: iPhone 16 Pro Max
- Best Premium Android Phone: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
- Best iPhone for Most People: iPhone 16e
- Best Android Phone for Most People: Google Pixel 9
- Best Camera Phone: Galaxy S25 Ultra
- Best Foldable Phone: Pixel 9 Pro Fold
- Best Flip Phone: Motorola Razr Ultra (2025)
- Best "Almost flagship" Phone (Around $600): Galaxy S24 FE
- Best Android Phone Under $500: Google Pixel 9a
- Best Battery Life: iPhone 16 Pro Max
- Best Compact iPhone: iPhone 16 Pro
- Best Compact Android Phone: Galaxy S25
- Best Phone Under $300: CMF Phone 2 Pro
- Best Gaming Phone: Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro
- Fastest Charging Phone: OnePlus 13
Also read:
If you are looking for the most premium and newest iPhone with the biggest screen and best battery life, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is the one to get.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max keeps the signature features of the previous 15 Pro Max model – it has the same titanium material and 5X "tetraprism" camera – but improves in a few important areas.
The screen on the iPhone 16 Pro Max grows extra large to 6.9 inches, and the borders around it are now even slimmer. The new A18 Pro chipset is again faster, but the best improvement might just be the longer battery life.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max battery life is an hour longer than the previous generation and we estimate use time of around 8 hours and a half in our PhoneArena Battery Score. It has the longest battery life around.
Unfortunately, we did not spot any major changes in the camera department, and despite a brand new, 48MP ultrawide camera, the iPhone 16 Pro Max camera system overall ranks similarly to the previous model. Well, at least you get a new Camera Control button!
Apple has not improved charging speeds via a cable in the 16 Pro Max, but MagSafe wireless charging is now much faster at 25 watts, so basically wireless charging is now as fast as wired top-ups. You do need to buy a new MagSafe charging puck, though, to benefit from this.
For alternatives, you are not losing out too much with the previous generation iPhone 15 Pro Max, so if you find it at a good price, it's definitely a good buy. Those who want to save up should consider the $900 iPhone 16 Plus, which also has a big screen and solid battery life, but lacks the ProMotion tech and the zoom camera.
To dig deeper into the differences between iPhones, read our best iPhones breakdown.
Key iPhone 16 Pro Max specs:
- Display: 6.9-inch 120Hz screen
- Processor: Apple A18 Pro
- Cameras: 48MP main + 48MP ultra + 12MP telephoto (5x zoom), 12MP front-facing
- Battery: 4,685 mAh, 20W charging
- Storage versions: 8/128GB, 8/256GB, 8/512GB, 8GB RAM + 1TB storage
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is an iterative upgrade, but it still feels like the best premium Android phone.
The new Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset flies through tasks, but the real highlight are the optimizations with One UI 7 and the more pleasing esthetic of the new software. You still have the S Pen on board too, for those who care.
Samsung keeps the four cameras on the back, with two zoom cameras for an industry leading zoom performance. The new 50MP ultra-wide camera captures more detailed photos and macro captures are also crisper. The UI is also improved in subtle ways – switching cameras happens smoother, and you have welcome new controls like a dial for smooth zooming in video. Pros will also be happy to see the option for LOG video recording.
The anti-reflective Gorilla Armor screen, our favorite Galaxy Ultra feature, is back on the S25 Ultra in its second iteration with durability improvements. This makes the S25 Ultra easily the best phone for using outdoors.
We cannot help but notice, though, that the 5,000mAh battery here is smaller than other flagships (the OnePlus 13 come with a 6,000mAh battery).
With 45-watt charging speeds, the S25 Ultra tops up fully in just over an hour, which is decent, but not the fastest around. If you want to learn even more, check out our detailed guide to the best Android phones around, and don't forget that we have the best current Galaxy S25 series deals too.
Key Galaxy S25 Ultra specs:
- Display: 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 1440 x 3120 pixels, 120Hz
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm)
- Cameras: 200MP main + 50MP ultra + 10MP 3X Zoom + 50MP 5X, 12MP front-facing
- Battery: 5000 mAh, 45W charging
- Versions: 12/256GB, 12/512GB, 12GB RAM + 1TB storage
3. Best iPhone for Most People: iPhone 16
While there is no "one size fits all" smartphone, Apple's iPhone 16e hits the right spot of price and features, and in our opinion it is the best iPhone for most people.
The iPhone 16e has the same powerful A18 chip as the iPhone 16 and it supports Apple Intelligence, so you are not missing out on performance.
But the best thing about the iPhone 16e is that it does 90% of what the iPhone 16 can do at a much lower price of $600.
In fact, it does one important thing better: it lasts longer! The 16e has the best battery life of any 6.1-inch iPhone, so you can expect slightly longer runtime. It lacks a ProMotion display, which is bad, but so does the more expensive iPhone 16.
The two bigger omissions on the iPhone 16e are MagSafe (you have wireless charging, but at slower speeds and without the magnets) and the lack of an ultra-wide camera.
Oh, and the iPhone 16e is only available in one size — small. If you prefer a bigger phone, we would still recommend the iPhone 16 Plus as your best option.
Key iPhone 16e specs:
- Display: 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR, 60Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Apple A18
- Cameras: 48MP main, 12MP front-facing
- Battery: unknown battery size, 20W charging
- Versions: 8/128GB, 8/256GB, 8/512GB
4. Best Android Phone for Most People: Google Pixel 9
It's so hard to pick just one in the heated competition among Android phones, but ultimately, we recommend the Google Pixel 9 as the best Android phone for most people (and the best value Google Pixel phone around).
The Pixel 9 comes with a brand new design with flat sides, and it feels more premium than earlier models by the company. The one area where it beats arch-rival Galaxy S25 is battery size. With a 4,700mAh battery on board, the Pixel 9 has a sizable advantage over the 4,000mAh battery on the S25.
There are three major upgrades in the Pixel 9: the phone now comes with 12GB of RAM, great for AI tasks, you get a new ultrasonic fingerprint reader, more reliable than the optical scanner used before, and finally, you get the same main and ultrawide camera as on the Pixel 9 Pro series.
All of that comes at a slightly higher than before price of $800 (but you could probably score a sweet discount if you keep an eye on our best current Pixel 9 deals).
The Pixel 9 also checks all the boxes you would expect at this price point and from Google: a 120Hz refresh rate for smooth scrolling and seven years of Android OS updates.
On our PhoneArena Battery Score the Pixel 9 is estimated to last nearly seven hours and a half, impressive for a phone of its size, as those typically get an hour less. This score also means the Pixel 9 beats the iPhone 16 on battery life, but it still won't last more than a day between charges.
Meanwhile, in our tests the Pixel 9 camera ranked lower compared to main rival Galaxy S25, so if camera and especially zoom is your priority, you should definitely take a closer look at the rest of the Pixel 9 vs Galaxy S25 differences.
Key Pixel 9 specs:
- Display: 6.3-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Google Tensor G4
- Cameras: 50MP main + 48MP ultra, 10.5MP front-facing
- Battery: 4,700 mAh, 27W charging
- Versions: 12/128GB, 12/256GB
5. Best Camera Phone: Galaxy S25 Ultra
The S25 Ultra gets a new 50MP ultra-wide camera with faster aperture
The Galaxy S25 Ultra is taking over as our new best camera phone, taking the place of the outgoing S24 Ultra.
Most of the camera hardware is the same, with the only bigger new addition being the new 50MP ultra-wide camera that now comes with a faster, f/1.9 aperture (upgrade from the 12MP f/2.2 camera on the previous Ultra). The main camera and the two zoom cameras (3X and 5X) remain unchanged.
Check out our full ranking of the best camera phones for all the detail and camera scores for each individual camera.
So what are the key advantages of the Galaxy S25 Ultra's camera? Well, the combination of two zoom cameras remains a rarity, beating the Pixel and iPhones, so you get cleaner photos across a wider zoom range. The Galaxy also has improved skin tones and still-incredible separation for portrait mode photos too.
Previous camera issues are now largely resolved. For example, older models captured shots with excessive sharpening, which could look really bad when viewed on a larger screen.
In video, we now have less noise thanks to a new Spatio-Temporal Filter, a complex name for a technology that is able to distinguish between moving and still subjects, and reduce the noise for the still ones.
Key Galaxy S25 Ultra Camera specs:
- 200MP main camera, 23mm lens, f/1.7 aperture
- 50MP, 13mm, f/1.9 ultra-wide
- 10MP 3X zoom, f/2.4
- 50MP 5X zoom, f/3.4
- 12MP front camera
6. Best Foldable Phone: Pixel 9 Pro Fold
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold takes over as the best foldable phone you can buy so far in 2025, beating the Galaxy Z Fold series and the OnePlus Open.
Its big advantage over the Galaxy Fold series is a wider front screen, while the Samsung foldable has a narrow front screen, which is hard to type on and is far less functional.
We also love the extra-large 8-inch main screen and the sleeker design on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. While it's not quite the thinnest foldable phone in existence, it is the thinnest one you can get in the US and it still feels very well made. It's a huge improvement from the first Pixel Fold and Google has made a remarkable progress in just one year.
You also get a capable camera system on the 9 Pro Fold, powered by Google's computational photography, and it's nice having a 5X telephoto lens here for longer reach.
We also appreciate the clean software, smooth performance and the overall refinement with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
Key Pixel 9 Pro Fold specs:
- Displays: 8.0-inch main screen, 2152 x 2076 pixels + 6.3-inch front screen, 1080p
- Processor: Tensor G4
- Cameras: 48MP main + 48MP ultra + 64MP 3X zoom
- Battery: 4800mAh, 67W charging
- Versions: 16/256GB, 16/512GB
7. Best Flip Phone: Motorola Razr Ultra (2025)
Samsung used to be the only company making modern flip phones, but its comfort was disturbed by challenger Motorola.
And the new Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) takes flip phones to the next level with a more spacious outer screen than the Galaxy Flip 6, as well as a much faster processor and a bigger battery.
It's also notable how Motorola makes stylish and beautiful devices, while Samsung in the past few years has settled for safe and somewhat boring designs.
The new Razr even has an improved camera, almost matching the one on the Galaxy (it's still a bit behind, but not by much). Learn everything about the Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) vs Galaxy Z Flip 6 differences here. And we also have a separate breakdown of all the rest best flip phones on the market.
Also, don't forget that Samsung is preparing its answer to the Razr very soon with the new Galaxy Z Flip 7, which is expected to arrive in mid to late July 2025.
Key Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) specs:
- Display: 7.0-inch OLED main screen (22:9), 4.0-inch front screen
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
- Cameras: 50MP main + 50MP ultra, 50MP front
- Battery: 4,700mAh, 68W wired charging, 30W wireless
- Versions: 16/512GB
8. Best "Almost Flagship" Phone: Galaxy S24 FE
Samsung's Galaxy S24 FE is the closest you come to a flagship experience at a mid-range price, and it's one of the best Samsung phones on a budget. This might not be the best phone to buy in 2025 overall, but it sure is a good cell phone for the price.
Equipped with a top-notch Samsung processor, this affordable phone is almost as fast as the Galaxy S24 Plus, but it has a much lower retail price of $650 (and you can easily find it on sale for around $500).
The S24 FE comes with a big, 6.7-inch AMOLED screen with 120Hz fast refresh rate, it's got three cameras on the back including a capable 3X zoom camera, and the battery capacity at 4,700 mAh is quite good.
In fact, we had to really nit-pick to find the little differences between the S24 FE and the S24 Plus. The S24 FE has less RAM on board (8GB), but that is still enough for Galaxy AI features. It uses an optical fingerprint reader rather than an ultrasonic one, its screen does not get quite as bright, charging is a bit slower and the zoom camera has slightly lower resolution. But that's about it! And that is why it gets an easy recommendation for those looking to save a buck.
Key Galaxy S24 FE specs:
- Display: 6.7-inch AMOLED main screen, 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Samsung Exynos 2400e
- Cameras: 50MP main + 12MP ultra + 8MP 3X zoom, 10MP front
- Battery: 4,700 mAh, 25W charging
- Versions: 8/128GB, 8/256GB
9. Best Android Phone Under $500: Google Pixel 9a
The Pixel A series has been our go-to recommendation for a budget Android phone under $500, and we are happy to see the Pixel 9a once again reiterate its strong position.
Google brings a slightly larger screen, a new design and most importantly, a much bigger battery, making for some big changes on the Pixel 9a compared to the Pixel 8a.
The Pixel 9a arrives with a new Tensor G4 chip, one of the fastest in this price class. It also has the familiar Google camera experience, with excellent quality photos from the main camera and very good video recording.
Other strengths include the clean, cool Android interface and an impressive seven years of software updates.
Of course, we have to mention some of the downsides too: that huge bezel simply doesn't belong on a modern smartphone and in a perfect world we would love to see a telephoto camera, too.
Key Pixel 9a specs:
- Display: 6.3-inch AMOLED, 1080p, 120Hz
- Processor: Google Tensor G4
- Cameras: 48MP main + 13MP ultra, 13MP front-facing
- Battery: 5,100 mAh, 23W wired, 7.5W wireless charging
- Versions: 8/128GB, 8/256GB
10. Best Phone for Battery Life: iPhone 16 Pro Max
The iPhone 16 Pro Max is not only one of the best flagship phones of 2025, but it also has one specific advantage. We knew the iPhone 16 Pro Max would have longer battery life when we saw the bigger battery capacity, but it beat our expectations and also scored higher than all other current flagships in our PhoneArena battery score.
The 16 Pro Max improved its scores on all three of our battery tests compared to the previous generation. It scored 22 hours and 39 minutes on our web browsing test, nearly three hours longer than the 15 Pro Max from last year. It also beat its score for video streaming with nearly 10 hours and a half, and finally for gaming it scored a bit more than 12 hours.
Based on these tests, we estimate that you can expect screen time of around 8 hours and a half on the iPhone 16 Pro Max, nearly an hour more than the previous generation, and that is an awesome upgrade.
In our testing, it also beat other rivals like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Pixel 9 Pro XL and the OnePlus 12. Out of these three, the OnePlus 12 was closest with a screen time of 8 hours and 9 minutes, while the Pixel and the Galaxy scored around the 7 hour mark.
Key iPhone 16 Pro Max battery specs:
Battery: 4,685 mAh
Charging: 27W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless
Charging: 27W wired, 25W MagSafe wireless
Read more:
- Phones with best battery: Independent test results
- The fastest charging phones: Test results
11. Best Compact iPhone: iPhone 16 Pro
The definition for what goes as a "compact phone" seems to change almost every year as phones get bigger and bigger.
Currently, we classify compact phones as those with a screen size of around 6.3 inches or less, and it certainly helps if the phone is not too wide.
Of course, some people will protest and name something like the iPhone 13 mini, which had a 5.4-inch display, but we have to face the reality... that phone and those like it are simply not available anymore!
So in our current world, we pick the iPhone 16 Pro as the best of the smaller iPhones.
Despite a slightly bigger, 6.3-inch screen, it gets slimmer borders around that display and overall its size is only slightly larger than that of previous generation iPhones which had 6.1-inch displays.
The iPhone 16 Pro is also a powerful thing, equipped with the Apple A18 Pro chip, a triple camera that now gets the same 5X "tetraprism" zoom as the Pro Max, and all the other bells and whistles, such as ProMotion, long software updates and the iOS ecosystem.
Key iPhone 16 Pro specs:
- Display: 6.3-inch Super Retina XDR, 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Apple A18 Pro
- Cameras: 48MP main + 48MP ultra + 12MP 5X Zoom, 12MP front-facing
- Battery: 3,582 mAh, 20W charging
- Versions: 8/128GB, 8/256GB, 8/512GB, 8GB RAM + 1TB storage
12. Best Compact Android Phone: Galaxy S25
In the world of compact Android phones, the Galaxy S25 is the one to get, if you focus on getting the smallest and lightest device.
It's more compact than Google's Pixel phones, with a narrower body that is very easy to grasp even in small hands. It is also much lighter.
With a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset on board, it beats the Pixel in terms of performance power too.
And while many compact Android phones only have two cameras, the Galaxy has a third – 3X zoom telephoto camera – that gives you much better results for those zoomed shots.
The downside of the Galaxy S25 remains the battery life. Its 4,000mAh battery is significantly smaller than the 4,700mAh size that the Pixel 9 Pro uses. If battery life is your priority, it would be wiser to conisder the Pixel instead.
Key Galaxy S25 specs:
- Display: 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 1080 x 2340 pixels, 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
- Cameras: 50MP main + 10MP ultra + 12MP 3X Zoom, 12MP front-facing
- Battery: 4000mAh, 25W charging
- Versions: 12/128GB, 12/256GB, 12/512GB
13. Best Phone Under $300: CMF Phone 2 Pro
What if you want an affordable phone – something really cheap, something under $300?
You have a few options like the Samsung Galaxy A26 5G and the Moto G Power, but new-comer CMF Phone 2 Pro (a sub-brand of tech innovators from Nothing) beats them both.
See, the major compromise you have to make with phones at this price range is sluggish performance. The CMF Phone 2 Pro fixes that with a carefully optimized interface and an adequate chip that make for smooth sails. The phone also comes with a triple camera system, including a 2X optical zoom camera, very unusual for this price class.
It's also just a thin phone with a stand-out design that looks great (some may also like the gimmicky accessories you can purchase).
Key CMF Phone 2 Pro specs:
- Display: 6.8-inch OLED, 1080p, 120Hz
- Processor: Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Pro
- Cameras: 50MP main + 8MP ultra + 50MP 2X telephoto, 16MP front
- Battery: 5,000 mAh, 33W charging
- Versions: 8/256GB
14. Best Gaming Phone: Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro
Gaming phones are a special category. You need some additional controls, flawless performance and great cooling, excellent sound, and a bigger screen. Oh, and you also want this to be a great phone to daily drive too with a good camera, right?
Well, as hard as this is to pull off, one phone does it best: the Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro. The popular Galaxy Ultra series or the iPhone 16 Pro Max have similar power, but they don't have the added buttons, specialized features and cooling that Asus has.
The ROG Phone 9 Pro also has a more mainstream design than gaming phones of the past, with a cleaner look. But it's still pretty much the same great gaming phone as before with those additional buttons and exceptional cooling that helps it maintain top-notch performance for longer than an iPhone or a Galaxy.
The other piece of the puzzle is the software. It is tuned to gamers and there are a ton of customization options to make it fit your gaming personality.
Key Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro specs:
- Display: 6.8-inch AMOLED, 1080 x 2400 pixels, 185Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
- Cameras: 50MP main + 13MP ultra + 32MP 3X zoom, 24MP front-facing
- Battery: 5,800mAh, 65W charging
- Versions: 16/256GB, 24/512GB, 24GB RAM + 1TB storage
15. Fastest Charging Phone: OnePlus 13
Most phones above are great, but they lack in one important area – charging speed.
Among phones sold in the United States, the OnePlus 13 stands as the fastest charging one, far above the competition.
In the US, the OnePlus 13 supports 80W fast charging (100W for models in Europe and the rest of the world). In real life, this means a full 1% to 100% top up takes just around 40 minutes. Say goodbye to overnight charging!
And all of this happens without destroying your battery, as OnePlus has proven protections in place. For example, most of the heat while charging stays in the charger rather than the phone. The OnePlus 13 battery is also rated for more charging cycles than rivals. Specifically, OnePlus claims at least 80% battery capacity will be maintained after 1,600 cycles, while Apple iPhones are expected to reach similar capacity much quicker, in just around 1,000 cycles.
The OnePlus 13 also supports super-fast, 50-watt wireless charging. This is double the speed you get on the latest iPhone 16 series and such speeds make it one of the fastest wireless charging phones.
Key OnePlus 13 specs:
- Display: 6.8-inch AMOLED, 1440 x 3168 pixels, 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
- Cameras: 50MP main + 50MP ultra + 50MP 3X Zoom, 32MP front-facing
- Battery: 6000mAh, 80W charging
- Versions: 12/256GB, 16/512GB
*Update history:
May 7, 2025 — Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) replaces Flip 6 as the best flip phone. Pixel 9a enters as new best phone under $500. CMF Phone 2 Pro takes over as best cheap phone under $300.
Feb 20, 2025 — iPhone 16e replaces the iPhone 16 as the best iPhone for most people. Pixel 9 Pro Fold is now our recommended best foldable phone, replacing the aging OnePlus Open.
Jan 23, 2025 – Replaced older Galaxy S24 models with the new Galaxy S25 series. Galaxy S25 Ultra takes place as the new best premium Android phone.
Jan 7th, 2025 – Replaced older OnePlus 12 model with new OnePlus 13.
Nov 27th, 2024 – Replaced ROG Phone 8 Pro with newer ROG Phone 9 Pro model in the best gaming phone category.
Oct 7th, 2024 – Replaced iPhone 15 models with new iPhone 16 devices. Replaced outgoing Pixel 8 series with newer Pixel 9 phones.
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