Best Canon RF lenses 2024: the best lenses for Canon's mirrorless EOS R cameras

As we know from reviewing the best Canon RF lenses, the glass line-up for Canon’s mirrorless system has grown considerably since launching in September 2018. It now encompasses everything from ultra-wide angle zooms, to portrait primes, to the longest full-frame zoom on the market. Canon also caters to a range of photographers with different budgets.

Looking at this variety, it’s difficult to pick a single RF mount lens that will suit every Canon photographer. The Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8L IS USM is the classic choice, with its standard range, lovely build and superb performance. But we’ve also tested some fantastic lenses for specific needs. The Canon RF 50mm F1.8 STM is one example – an affordable and versatile 50mm prime. At the other end of the spectrum, we’ve tested pro telephoto glass like the Canon RF 70-200mm F2.8L IS USM.

To compile this list, we’ve carefully assessed the best Canon RF mount lenses in the real world. We’ve shot with some of the best Canon cameras to see how each lens handles, to analyze its optical quality and to see how its performance stacks up in the scenarios most users will encounter. Based on the results, we’ve recommended our favorite lenses for different types of photographer. We’ve also shared some useful tips to help you find the right Canon RF glass.

Written by

Written by

Timothy Coleman

Tim is TechRadar's Cameras editor, with over 15 years in the photo video industry and most of those in the world of tech journalism, Tim has developed a deeply technical knowledge and practical experience with all things camera related. He notes, "While kit lenses are a good starting point for beginners, the Canon RF lenses listed here will allow your photography to expand as your skills grow. In putting together this guide, we've tried to include RF mount lenses suited to every type of Canon photographer, as well as options for a wide range of budgets."

The quick list

The round-up below will give you a quick overview of the best Canon RF mount lenses available right now. When you find one that fits your budget and requirements, you can use the links beneath each entry to jump down to our full summary.

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Best Canon RF lenses in 2024

Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best Canon RF lenses in our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.

The best standard Canon RF zoom

Most of us shoot with a standard zoom lens, most of the time, so it pays to pick a good one. There are no less than four in the current Canon RF line-up. The RF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM, often sold as a kit lens with camera bodies, is a good option that combines a generous zoom range with a constant f/4 aperture rating. The newer RF 24-105mm f/4-7.1 IS STM is smaller, cheaper and more compact, while the RF 28-70mm f/2L USM has an uncommonly fast aperture but is big, heavy and very expensive, as well as being a little lacking in wide-angle coverage.

All things considered, the RF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS USM is the ideal ‘trinity’ standard zoom. It has a classic zoom range for a standard lens, combined with a fast and constant f/2.8 aperture rating and, based on our tests, delivers superb image quality and all-round performance. L-series build quality includes weather-seals and fluorine coatings on the front and rear elements. There’s super-fast Nano USM autofocus, 5-stop image stabilization and top-quality glass including three aspherical elements, three UD elements and Air-Sphere Coating. It’s typically pricey but, for an RF mount standard zoom, it’s the pick of the crop.

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The best wide-angle zoom

Many enthusiasts favor ‘trinity’ glass: wide-angle, standard and telephoto lenses with a fast and constant aperture of f/2.8. This pro-grade lens fits the wide-angle bill, with typically high-end, weather-sealed L-series build quality and handling. Like other upmarket RF lenses, it has a separate, customizable control ring, which you can assign to functions like aperture, ISO and exposure compensation. Internally, the front and back optical elements feature fluorine coatings to repel moisture and fingerprints, while Canon’s high-tech Air-Sphere Coating is employed to help minimize ghosting and flare. 

Autofocus is based on a very rapid yet virtually silent Nano USM system. Despite having a wider maximum viewing angle than Canon’s EF 16-35mm lens for DSLRs, the 15-35mm still comes with a separate hood, which enables the inclusion of a filter attachment thread that’s not overly large at 82mm. The construction is reasonably compact and lightweight, yet the lens still goes large on image quality in all respects, boosted in handheld shooting by a five-stop optical stabilizer.

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The best all-rounder Canon RF lens

Superzoom lenses are notorious for bumping up the zoom range while compromising image quality, typically with a drop in sharpness and a rise in distortions. The upside is that you can cover everything from wide-angle to telephoto shooting at the twist of a zoom ring, rather than having to change the lens on your camera, or carry additional lenses in your camera bag. As such, this type of lens is great for travel and walkabout photography.

Rising well above the norm, we found that the RF 24-240mm delivers very good sharpness and, while distortions are very extreme, they’re automatically corrected in-camera, basically becoming a non-issue. Handling is natural and, as with some other RF lenses, a switch is featured that enables you to swap the action of the manual focus ring to other, customizable functions. There are no weather-seals and you need to buy the lens hood separately but, all in all, this is a lens that really puts the ‘super’ into superzoom.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 24-240mm F4-6.3 IS USM review

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The best Canon RF telephoto lens for pros

Unlike other constant-aperture 70-200mm telephoto zoom lenses, this one doesn't have a fixed physical length. Instead it adopts a telescoping design that gives it a comparatively compact and lightweight construction. Yet it also benefits from rock-solid build quality and features a full set of weather-seals. The longest of Canon's ‘trinity’ f/2.8 zooms, it's ideally suited to action sports and wildlife photography, as well as for shooting events and even portraiture. 

In our tests, we found that image quality is excellent in all respects. Real-world performance is boosted by a super-fast Dual Nano USM autofocus system, along with 5-stop image stabilization. The stabilizer has three switchable modes, for static and panning shots, as well as a third mode that only applies stabilization during actual exposures. This makes it easier to track erratically moving objects in the viewfinder. As you’d expect from a flagship RF zoom, there’s a third control ring, as well as the usual zoom and focus rings, which can be customized for carrying out different functions.

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The best standard prime for Canon RF cameras

Many of Canon's RF lenses are big, heavy and eye-wateringly expensive. That's certainly the case with the range-topping RF 50mm f/1.2L USM, but this RF 50mm f/1.8 STM bucks the trend. It’s super-small at just 41mm in length, weighs a mere 160g and is by far the cheapest RF lens that Canon has made to date. It’s also tidily designed, impeccably finished and has a fast f/1.8 aperture rating. As you’d expect at the price, however, it doesn’t feature weather-seals and a hood isn’t included.

From our hands-on time with it, the lens feels right at home on smaller Canon mirrorless cameras like the Canon EOS RP. Handling benefits from a dual function control ring, which can be switched to manual focus or other duties like aperture control, ISO and exposure compensation. The optical path includes a precision-moulded aspherical element and Super Spectra coating. Image quality proved impressive in testing, with excellent sharpness and pleasantly smooth bokeh. Image stabilization would have been a nice addition, but you can't really go wrong at the price.

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The best budget telephoto lens for Canon cameras

With a portable build and accessible controls, this is a fantastic full-frame telephoto lens for students of sport and wildlife photography. Lightweight at 635g and relatively compact at 165mm from end to end, we found it easy to wield in testing. Space around the lens is utilised well, with a broad zoom ring that comes in handy when you need to quickly target a subject. And despite its handy proportions, it offers an excellent amount of reach: 400mm offers useful flexibility.

A maximum aperture of f/5.6 isn’t the widest around, and means you’ll need to accept the noise of higher ISO settings if you want faster shutter speeds. That said, the lens performs well in good light, with no noticeable barrel distortion or chromatic aberration. While the built-in image stabilizer only has one mode, it still works impressively well. There are some limitations that come with the accessible price tag: there’s no focus limiter and you can only lock the focal length at 100mm. But this is nevertheless a fun telephoto that’s easy for beginners to shoot and travel with.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 100-400mm F5.6-8 IS USM review

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The best 35mm Canon RF prime lens

Thanks to its natural perspective, 35mm is a popular focal length that's ideal for street, architectural and landscape photography. This Canon number is particularly versatile, because it delivers 0.5x macro magnification at its shortest focus distance of 0.17m, so it can capture extreme close-ups. The only catch is that, as the distance is measured from the focal plane of the camera, and the lens’ inner barrel extends at shorter focus distances, the working distance between the front of the lens and the subject shrinks to just 6cm for 0.5x macro shooting.

Typical of non-L-series Canon lenses, there are no weather-seals and the hood is sold as an optional extra. Even so, build quality felt very good in testing, and there’s a separate customizable control ring, as well as onboard switches for AF/MF and on/off for the 5-stop image stabilizer. As a fast yet compact and lightweight prime lens with great performance, we think it offers great value at the price. If you’re on an even tighter budget or want a more seriously ultra-wide-angle lens, try the fully manual Samyang MF 14mm F2.8 RF.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 IS Macro STM review

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The best Canon RF mount portrait lens

For most people, the moderately priced and easily manageable Canon RF 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM is an ideal lens for portraiture on any of Canon’s full-frame mirrorless EOS R series cameras. For those who demand an even tighter depth of field and faster low-light shooting, the f/1.2L lens is simply the best. Building on the legendary reputation of Canon’s EF 85mm f/1.2 lens for DSLRs, the RF mount edition is completely redesigned. It delivers superior sharpness which remains spectacular even when shooting wide-open, along with deliciously smooth bokeh. 

In testing, we found autofocus much faster than in the older EF lens, while the high-tech optical path includes Air-Sphere Coating for minimizing ghosting and flare, and Blue Spectrum Refractive Optics that reduce color fringing to negligible levels. The L-series build includes weather-seals and, as with other high-end RF lenses, there’s a dedicated customizable control ring. If you want something cheaper with faster aperture and you don’t mind focusing manually, try the Samyang MF 85mm f/1.4 RF.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 85mm f/1.2L USM review

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The best super telephoto for Canon cameras

Picking up the baton from Canon’s highly popular EF 100-400mm zoom for DSLRs, this lens for mirrorless EOS R-series cameras delivers even greater telephoto reach, but remains reasonably compact and lightweight for a ‘super-telephoto’. The trade-off is that the aperture shrinks to f/7.1 at the long end of the zoom range, so you might need to bump up your camera’s ISO setting if you need to freeze action under dull lighting conditions, which can degrade image quality.

Like the RF 70-200mm f/2.8, this lens features a triple-mode, 5-stop image stabilizer and a fast Dual Nano USM autofocus system. However, we found that autofocus speeds were a little pedestrian on EOS R and RP bodies. The lens really comes into its own on EOS R5 and R6 bodies, where it takes full advantage of the advanced, intelligent autofocus tracking for people, animals and birds. It’s able to track these as they move around the frame with excellent accuracy and consistency.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 100-500mm f/4.5-7.1L IS USM review

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The best super zoom for full-frame Canon cameras

You won’t find another lens with reach like this: it’s the world’s first full-frame zoom to hit 800mm. Paired with a camera body like the Canon EOS R7, with its subject-detection autofocus and in-body image stabilization, you have a combo that can cover just about anything – from Sunday sport to faraway wildlife. The only major drawback is its modest maximum aperture which, at f/6.3-9, means its action credentials are limited to good lighting.

Still, our tests found this a compelling lens to shoot with. A little clarity is lost at 800mm, but image quality is otherwise impressive, and very sharp at 200mm. 5.5-stops of optical image stabilization also help to keep results crisp. The lens itself is nicely built and well-balanced when paired with Canon’s DSLR-style mirrorless models, such as the EOS R5. Its performance isn’t quite up there with Canon’s pro-grade glass, but this is still a winning choice for enthusiasts.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 200-800mm F6.3-9 IS USM review

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The best Canon RF mount macro lens

The only official macro lens for Canon’s RF mount, this close-up specialist is capable of producing extremely sharp images at short distances. Magnification of up to 1.4x means you can fill the frame with small subjects, even if the length of the lens itself has the potential to cast unwanted shadows. Built-in image stabilization is also a welcome addition, though we found it less effective when focusing up close.

Interestingly, Canon has also touted this as a portrait lens: a Spherical Aberration control ring, unlocked with a switch underneath, can be used to adjust bokeh and soft-focus, giving it a useful backup skill. Keen portrait photographers will find better value in a dedicated lens like Canon’s RF 85mm f/2 Macro IS STM, but if you want a versatile macro lens with the familiar look and feel of Canon RF glass, this has a lot going for it.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 100mm F2.8L Macro IS USM review

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The best ultra-wide Canon RF lens

Not many Canon photographers need a lens that can shoot at 10mm, a focal length so wide that it can be dizzying. In fact, we found in our review that it requires care to manage the convergence effect of the ultra-wide focal length. But if you photograph architecture and interiors, and you have the budget, this is an exceptional tool. Nothing in the RF line-up comes close to matching its full-frame field of view. 

It benefits from exceptional optical performance, even if it relies heavily on digital corrections to adjust for distortion. Edge-to-edge sharpness proved pretty exceptional, dropping away only a little at corners. In testing, we also found it a lovely lens to handle, with a lightweight build and useful physical controls. Built-in image stabilization controls wobble at the edge of the frame, too. There are better value RF lenses if you don’t need to go so wide (such as the Canon RF 14-35mm f/4 L IS USM) – but within its niche, this is an outstanding lens.

• Read our in-depth Canon RF 10-20mm F4L IS STM review

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How to choose the best Canon RF lens

Choosing the right lens for you camera is a complicated thought process. There are several factors to consider before making your decision, beginning with price. Affordability matters but if you did have the budget for good glass, then here are the the other considerations to keep in mind.

Purpose: To start with, think about what you want to use the lens for. If you're after all all-purpose, general-use lens, then a standard zoom lens like a 24-70mm might fit the bill perfectly, giving you various focal lengths as well as variable aperture. Standard zooms suits a variety of purposes, but if you shoot more macros, then a dedicated macro lens might be the best option. Or a wide-angle if you want to shoot a lot of landscapes, or primes for portraits.

Sensor format and lens mount: It's important to know what sensor your camera sports before you pick your first lens. Lenses are built specifically for 35mm (full-frame), APS-C, micro fourth thirds, and medium format bodies, although some can be used across some sensor sizes via an adapter. It also means you'll need to pick lenses that are compatible with your camera's lens mount, although you can use lens adapters while switching from a DSLR to a mirrorless body within the same brand (eg: Canon's EF lenses can be used on RF mounts).

Aperture: This is an important consideration as it controls how much light can enter a lens – the larger the aperture, the more light is going to hit the sensor, and vice versa. The f stop number in the name of the lens gives you the aperture, and the smaller the f stop number, bigger the aperture. For example, the RF 35mm f/1.8 Macro IS STM has a large aperture, meaning its low-light performance will be better than a lens with aperture of, say, f/5.6. The aperture also influences depth of field, aka that blurry background you see in some images. Large apertures like f/1.8 produce tighter depth of field, and thus very soft, blurry backgrounds and bokehs.

Image stabilization: Having a stabilized lens can be handy for handheld shoots, particularly when combined with a camera's in-body image stabilization (IBIS). This will increase the number of sharp images you capture by automatically correcting for hand and camera shake... to certain degree. Stabilized lenses from Canon are marked with 'IS' in the name.

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How we test Canon lenses

When evaluating the best Canon RF mount lenses, we follow a comprehensive testing process. Our team of expert reviewers devotes considerable hands-on time to each lens, to gain an in-depth understanding of its merits and limitations in different scenarios. We use each lens with one of the best Canon cameras and, where possible, try to pair it with both an APS-C and full-frame model from Canon’s EOS R system.

Most Canon photographers don’t use their lenses in controlled environments, so we don’t either. Instead, we test RF glass in the kind of real-world scenarios you’re likely to encounter. Depending on the lens in question, that might mean capturing candid portraits in the street, shooting travel scenes from the hip, or framing landscapes on a tripod. This approach gives us a good impression of the practical abilities of a lens, including features such as image stabilization, and how well its performance stacks up for different types of photography.

Throughout our testing process, we keep a number of elements in mind. One is autofocus, especially when looking at lenses designed with fast action in mind. We test the speed and reliability of focus performance in a range of lighting conditions. We also factor in any noise from its motor.

Handling is another important component. During our reviews, we assess how each lens feels in the hand when out in the field, including physical controls such as focus rings and function buttons. Similarly, we keep build quality in mind, especially for the kind of lenses that are likely to encounter heavy use.

When it comes to reviewing the stills shot on test, there are a few specific criteria on which we rate every Canon RF lens. First, we assess overall image quality, including contrast and sharpness across the frame. We’ll also look for smooth bokeh in areas with soft focus, particularly on lenses with wide maximum apertures. We also stay alert for optical imperfections, including distortion and chromatic aberrations (even though most Canon mirrorless cameras can digitally correct for these).

Based on all of the above, we’ll form a rounded view of a lens, the type of photographer it makes most sense for, and whether it’s one of the best Canon RF lenses.. We’ll think about its merits and drawbacks versus those of similar lenses from the Canon stable, as well as alternatives that might cost more.

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