The best Samsung phone is hard to pick, because Samsung makes more phones than any other phone maker, with a wider variety to choose from. Our pick for the best phones you can buy is the Galaxy S24 Ultra, Samsung's premiere flagship phone. It's packed with features and very pricey, but it isn't even the most unique or expensive phone Samsung makes.
Samsung doesn't just make the best Android phones, it also pioneered foldable screen technology, and it makes some of the best foldable phones you can buy. Whether you want a foldable tablet like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 or a pocket-sized clamshell foldable like the Galaxy Z Flip 5, Samsung gives you foldable phones with a distinctively Samsung twist.
What is the Samsung twist? It's One UI on top of Android, offering a slew of software features you won't find anywhere else. Most of Samsung's Galaxy S phones, including the Galaxy S23 FE, can run Samsung DeX for a full desktop environment from your phone. Even bargain models, like the Galaxy A54, have tons of features that other Android phone makers can't match.
Read on for our picks of the best Samsung phones you can buy, based on our extensive testing and experience using Samsung phones. And if you've accidentally taken a wrong turn, we also have a list of the best Apple iPhones you can buy.
The quick list
This section gives you an abridged rundown of our pick of Samsung's top phones, available right now. With details on design, key features and specs, our reasoning for why each phone is worth your time and money, and a star rating based of our in-depth reviews, which you'll also find links to down below.
The best Samsung phone
An upgrade in every way over last year's phone, the Galaxy S24 Ultra now offers seven years of software, improved battery, and a titanium frame.
The best value Samsung phone
Good looks, an excellent display and impressive cameras combine to make the Galaxy A54 one of the best value options on the market.
The best foldable Samsung phone
Not just the best foldable Samsung but also the best foldable overall, the Z Fold 5 is a do-everything device with few compromises. Pricey, though.
The best clamshell Samsung phone
The compact Z Flip 5 fixes most of its predecessor's biggest flaws to become, without question, the best clamshell phone you can buy.
The best compact Samsung phone
The Galaxy S24 is super-powerful and packed with almost all of the same features as the Galaxy S24 Ultra, including Galaxy AI. It also gets seven years of software updates and security patches.
The best cheap Samsung phone
The Galaxy A13 is a seriously cheap smartphone that manages to be good enough in most of the areas that matter.
The best Samsung phones in 2023
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Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best Samsung phones on our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure to trust our recommendations.
The best Samsung phone overall
✅ You want more than any other smartphone: There is no other phone that matches everything the Galaxy S24 Ultra can do, not even close.
✅ You want a phone that is future proof: The Galaxy AI features are just warming up, and with seven years of major Android OS updates, and plenty of new AI features to come, the Galaxy S24 Ultra will be the first phone to take that step into the next generation.
❌ You don't need everything this phone can do: There are plenty of Samsung phones that do almost as much as the Galaxy S24 Ultra, but won't cost nearly as much if you don't need the S Pen.
❌ You prefer something easier to use: Samsung keeps adding features, and the software and menus get harder to use every time. If you want a phone that makes things easy, check out an iPhone instead.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra pushes the bounds of smartphone technology, offering top-of-the-line features and capabilities. It excels in versatility and intelligent functionality, although it comes at a premium price. if you want the absolute best in performance, camera quality, and power, the Galaxy S24 Ultra stands as the undisputed leader. ★★★★½
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra takes smartphone features further than any other phone. It's a top-performer, and in so many ways you won't find better. It has longer battery life and faster performance than the iPhone, more camera options than any other Android, and features we don't often see, like the S Pen stylus.
Design: The Galaxy S24 Ultra is a big, heavy phone, even with the new titanium frame. Samsung still manages to pack so much inside, and the design improvements are welcome. The display is easier to read this year, and the titanium finish and colors are very nice, though it's too bad the phone couldn't shave some weight.
Display: The bright, OLED display on the Galaxy S24 Ultra is one of the best you'll find, especially with the new coating that reduces glare and makes it easier to read in bright light. Samsung's display is colorful, sharp, and bright enough for every task.
Camera: There have been plenty of changes to Samsung's cameras, even if the spec sheet looks the same as last year. The Galaxy S24 Ultra produced better images in every setting. Portrait and landscape photos look a lot better, and even zoom photos have more color and better lighting, though we do miss the 10X zoom from the last generation.
Performance: This is the fastest phone you can buy right now. In our tests playing games and editing photos, the Galaxy S24 Ultra was the fastest we've used, beating even Apple's iPhone 15 Pro,. That's a first for Samsung phones ever since Apple starting designing its own chipsets.
Battery life: I had no trouble using the Galaxy S24 Ultra for two days when I used it normally, and it lasted through a full day of camera usage and gaming with no trouble. The battery hasn't gotten bigger, Samsung manages power on this phone better than ever before.
Value for money: The Galaxy S24 Ultra is expensive, even more than last year, but the upgrades are a big deal. Samsung now offers seven years of software updates, including Android updates, and that makes the Galaxy S24 Ultra a better value than any Galaxy Ultra to come before.
Read our full Galaxy S24 Ultra review
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Even more than before, but you get the best when you pay for it. | ★★★☆☆ |
| Design | It looks very familiar, but the screen is less reflective, and also sharper. It's still as heavy, even with titanium. | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | There isn't a better display, and the new anti-glare finish really helps outdoors. | ★★★★★ |
| Camera | The cameras are better all around, even if the spec sheet looks a bit suspicious. Still the best, most versatile camera system. | ★★★★★ |
| Performance | Performance that beats an iPhone 15 Pro, for the first time we can remember, putting Android ahead of Apple. | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | Better battery life this year means the Galaxy S24 Ultra can last a very long time. | ★★★★★ |
The best value Samsung phone
✅ You want a stylish mid-ranger: Although it’s a little chunky, the A54 is a good-looking phone, with a clean design and some noteworthy colors to consider, not to mention it’s IP-certified against dust and water ingress.
✅ You want a strong camera at a mid-range price: The Galaxy A54 might not be the best cameraphone out there on a budget, but it’s a competent all-rounder, with some smart features and surprisingly good low-light performance.
✅ You plan on using this phone for a long time: While the chipset might not have the most grunt in the world, so long as Samsung keeps to its promise of four years of OS updates and five years of security updates, the A54 should have much better staying power than a lot of similarly-specced or priced rivals.
❌ You value performance overall: While the A54’s software promise is strong, like its predecessors, Samsung’s latest mid-ranger still feels a little behind the curve when it comes to raw power. It’s not a problem from the get-go, but does raise questions about how well the user experience will age.
❌ You want the best bang for your buck: The A54 isn’t priced badly, but it’s also not the best deal out there, considering what it has to offer; this is particularly true in the UK, where the generational price hike is an added sting.
❌ You hate One UI: Samsung's build of Android doesn’t look or behave quite like the cleaner experiences found on the likes of Pixel and Motorola phones, so keep that in mind if you’re not comfortable with change.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy A54 is the cornerstone of Samsung's A-series mid-rangers and packs in some nice upgrades over its predecessor, even if battery life claims fall a little short of what’s promised. ★★★★
What you need to know
The A54 is essentially a 'lite' version of the Galaxy S family, bringing lots of 'S-range' features to a lower price point. It's not the absolute cheapest phone Samsung makes by some distance, but it unquestionably mid-range, and definitely worth considering if you're on a budget.
Design: The phone measures 158.2 × 76.7 × 8.2mm and weighs 202g, so we’d call it medium-sized. It’s not so big that it’s uncomfortable to use, so long as your mitts aren’t massive. It's also undeniably attractive; adopting the floating camera design language found on the S24 series. Other colorways are similarly pretty.
Display: The Samsung Galaxy A54 boasts one of the best-looking screens you’ll see on a phone for this price. It’s a vibrant, colorful 6.4-inch Super AMOLED panel, with a FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate and 1,000 nits max brightness, marking some nice upgrades over its predecessor.
Cameras: The main camera is an optically stabilized 50MP f/1.8 sensor, joined by a 12MP ultra-wide and – after ditching its predecessor's depth sensor (thanks to all-focus pixels on the new main sensor) – a 5MP f/2.4 macro sensor. The snappers take photos that are bright and colorful, which makes shots of wildlife, food, landscapes or people 'pop'. There’s good dynamic range for a phone at this price and pictures are sharp too, as long as you take them on the main camera.
Performance: The Galaxy A54 may lap same-price rivals in the camera and display departments, but it falls behind on performance. The chip here is the Exynos 1380, which is a home-brewed piece of mid-range kit from Samsung – and, while capable, doesn't measured up to similarly-priced rivals.
Battery life: The 5,000mAh battery is on the big side, though we see lots of mid-rangers pack this kind of power. That bright screen and 5G require a lot of juice, and we found that the phone comfortably lasted a day between charges, but no more.
Value for money: The Samsung Galaxy A54 gives you some surprisingly top-end specs for its price in some departments, but in others it's weaker than its rivals.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy A54
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Worse value than key rivals but better than its predecessor | ★★★½ |
| Design | A chunkier rendition of Samsung's flagship design language, with IP68 certification | ★★★★ |
| Display | A lovely screen with nice upgrades over the A53 | ★★★★ |
| Performance | Adequate but behind rivals | ★★★½ |
| Cameras | Suprising image quality that surpasses expectations | ★★★★½ |
| Battery life | Samsung overpromised but a comfortable day's use in in reach | ★★★½ |