We're currently reviewing the Samsung Galaxy A56 and are expecting Google to announce the Pixel 9a this month, so we suggest you avoid buying the A55 and Pixel 8a until we've had a chance to test their respective successors.
The best cheap phones aren't as flashy as the very best phones, but they do excel at the basics and, as a result, offer great value for money.
In this guide, we've rounded up the best cheap phones from brands including Samsung, Apple, and Google, leveraging our significant phone-testing experience (we've tested over 1,000 handsets since 2005) to bring you a definitive list.
Our current guide includes big hitters like the Google Pixel 8a and Samsung Galaxy A55, though do bear in mind that successors to those models are set to launch imminently (or are currently in our testing labs!). If you're after a cheap phone with a more specialised use case, then the Oppo Reno 12 Pro, OnePlus Nord 4, and Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro are worth considering, too.
Of course, if you can spend a bit more, then one of the best Android phones, best iPhones, or best camera phones might be a more suitable fit.
Quick list
Samsung's 2024 mid-ranger offers great battery life, an impressive 6.6-inch display, and a design that looks and feels more premium than its affordable price tag suggests.
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The iPhone 16e isn't 'cheap' in the traditional sense, but it's now the cheapest iPhone available as new from Apple directly, and you'll get market-leading longevity for your money.
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The Google Pixel 8a is the most affordable way to access Google's impressive suite of AI features, offering a decent chipset and stellar longevity to boot.
Read more below
For photography fans, the Oppo Reno 12 Pro offers a flagship-level 50MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom, as well as a host of Pixel-style AI image editing features.
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Despite its seemingly mid-range chipset, the OnePlus Nord 4 is a formidable performer. It comes with up to 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, which is quite frankly indulgent in this price range.
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If battery life is your priority, the Poco X7 Pro's almighty 6,000mAh cell will see you through two days of casual use. The phone's Mediatek Dimensity 8400 Ultra chipset is seriously impressive, too.
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I'm TechRadar's Phones Editor, and have been reviewing and writing about the best mobile devices for several years. Based in the UK, I handle news and feature coverage for the phones section of the site, and regularly edit TechRadar's phones-related reviews and buying guides. You'll find my byline on over 1,500 TechRadar articles.
The best cheap phones in 2025
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Below, you'll find full write-ups for each of the best cheap phones on our list. We've tested each model extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
The best cheap Samsung phone
Samsung's Galaxy A series smartphones regularly rank among the best Samsung phones for value, and the company again delivered a supremely well-rounded (and great-looking) product with the Samsung Galaxy A55. We're currently testing its successor, the Galaxy A56, which prohibits the latter's inclusion on this list, but its existence is worth bearing in mind as you read the below entry (we'll likely be replacing the A55 with the A56 very soon!).
With the A55, Samsung ditched the Galaxy A54's plastic casing in favor of a new and strikingly classy metal build on its latest mid-tier champion. The Galaxy A55 looks and feels like a premium device, despite being almost half the price of the Samsung Galaxy S25, and it boasts a suite of near-flagship specs, too.
The phone's chipset, for instance, is a highly capable Exynos 1480, which delivered smooth browsing and gaming performance during our testing. The A55's 6.6-inch Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate is also impressive, and won't make you feel as though you're missing out on one of the best phone displays.
You'll get a long-lasting 5,000mAh battery and 25W wired charging with the Galaxy A55, as well as four cameras: a 50MP main, a 12MP ultra-wide, a 5MP macro camera, and a 32MP selfie snapper. The latter set is unchanged from the Galaxy A54, but they should still prove versatile enough for most amateur mobile photographers.
It's worth noting that the similar-looking Samsung Galaxy A35 is a essentially cheaper version of this phone, though the Galaxy A55 packs a superior processor, which should mean it lasts you longer. If you're keen to spend a bit more, the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE is worth considering, too.
The best cheap iPhone
The launch of the iPhone 16e saw Apple discontinue the iPhone SE (2022) and iPhone 14, meaning the company's new entry-level iPhone 16 is now the cheapest iPhone available as new from Apple directly.
Sure, at $599 / £599 / AU$999, it's not as cheap as some other models on this list, but that price will at least get you a supremely powerful chipset, impressive battery life, and industry-leading software longevity.
Versus more expensive iPhones, you'll lose out on the Dynamic Island, MagSafe compatibility, and dedicated telephoto and ultra-wide cameras (which you will find elsewhere on this list) by going for the iPhone 16e, though Apple's iPhones are renowned for lasting, a very, very long time, so this really is a safe choice if you don't care about flagship bells and whistles.
To see how the iPhone 16e stacks up against its more expensive siblings, check out our iPhone 16e vs iPhone 15 and iPhone 16e vs iPhone 16 comparisons. Put simply, though, this is the best cheap iPhone in 2025.
Read our full iPhone 16e review
The best cheap Pixel Phone
If you're a fan of Google's streamlined OS and aren't fussed about joining the AI revolution, then the Google Pixel 7a remains an attractive, now-even-cheaper option in 2025. However, its successor, the Google Pixel 8a, takes the crown as the best cheap Pixel phone by virtue of it being the cheapest way to access Google's latest and greatest mobile AI tools.
Features including Circle to Search, Call Assist, Magic Editor, and Google's Gemini assistant are all present and correct here, with Google's unprecedented seven-year update commitment to the Pixel 8a set to ensure that this phone gets even better with time.
The Pixel 8a gets the basics right, too. It's got a pleasant-looking display, the camera is decent (at 64MP, it has the highest megapixel count of any Pixel phone, though you'll find the same cameras on its predecessor), and it's also a really compact device, at a comfortable 6.1-inches.
Certainly, there are flaws. The Pixel 8a doesn't rectify the battery issues we encountered with both the Pixel 7a and Pixel 6a, and you'll technically get faster performance from phones running the latest Snapdragon chipsets.
That said, compromises must be made to keep any phone's price down. Google's thoughtful AI features clearly have an audience, and the Pixel 8a is one of the nicest and most inexpensive ways you can get onboard.
It's worth noting, though, that a successor to the Pixel 8a is on the way (by the time you're reading this, it may already be out!), so if you can hold off buying a new phone for a few more weeks, you may have a better option to choose from.
Read our full Google Pixel 8a review
The best cheap camera phone
If you're a keen mobile photographer but don't want to splash out on one of the best camera phones (think the iPhone 16 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S25, or OnePlus 13), then the Oppo Reno 12 Pro is worthy (and, crucially, more affordable) alternative.
Only available in the UK and Australia, the Reno 12 Pro boasts a 50MP main camera, a 50MP telephoto camera (with 2x optical zoom), an 8MP ultra-wide camera, and a 50MP selfie camera. You won't find equivalent camera hardware anywhere else on this list, and although the Pixel 8a boasts an impressive suite of AI photo editing features, the Reno 12 Pro gets its own fair share of AI tricks (including AI Eraser, AI Clear Face, AI Best Fac,e and AI Studio).
Other specs include a 6.7-inch, 120Hz AMOLED display, a Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Energy chipset, and a 5,000mAh battery, all of which make the Reno 12 Pro a well-heeled smartphone for 2025 wants and needs.
Our only real qualms with the Reno 12 Pro are its cheap-feeling design and significant out-of-the-box bloatware, but the latter can be deleted at your leisure, while the former is to be expected from a mid-range device that offers so much elsewhere. Good job, Oppo!
Read our full Oppo Reno 12 Pro review
The best cheap gaming phone
The OnePlus Nord 4 offers the best power-for-money ratio of any midrange phone on the market right now. The phone's Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 chipset might not sound flashy, but when paired with up to 16GB of RAM, it carries the OnePlus Nord 4 to near-flagship levels of performance.
As such, the Nord 4 is something of a gaming powerhouse. It can't rival, say, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra or iPhone 16 Pro Max for graphical fidelity or cooling prowess, but relative to its competition, the Nord 4 is a capable gaming handset, tackling titles like Genshin Impact and Call of Duty: Mobile with ease. As we noted in our OnePlus Nord 4 review, the phone is a "beast for gaming."
Other key features of the Nord 4 include an eye-catching two-tone metal frame, IP65 dust and water resistance, a 5,500mAh battery, and, best of all, a 6.74-inch AMOLED display that can be used even with wet hands (thanks to OnePlus' neat Aqua Touch feature).
Being a midrange phone, the Nord 4's cameras aren't anything to write home about, but at £429, you can't expect the world. If you're keen to save even more money, the cheaper OnePlus Nord CE 4 Lite is worth considering, too.
Read our full OnePlus Nord 4 review
The best cheap phone for battery life
If you're someone who's prone to battery anxiety, the Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro is guaranteed to banish it. With a 6,000mAh power pack, this is one of the longest-lasting handsets in the midrange category, and there are very few phones on the market, period, that offer such a large battery.
But the Poco X7 Pro is worthy of plaudits beyond its two-day battery life. Like the OnePlus Nord 4, this phone's seemingly mid-tier chipset defies expectations to deliver buttery smooth performance, and you're given a choice of two RAM capacities: 8GB or 12GB (the OnePlus offers 12GB or 16GB).
On the cameras front, the Poco X7 Pro has a 50MP lens and an 8MP ultra-wide lens, and while neither bowled us over in our Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro review, the phone is set to benefit from a healthy helping of photography-related AI features in the near future (Xiaomi has confirmed that AI Erase Pro and AI Image Expansion are coming in March).
All told, then, the Poco X7 Pro is a powerful, long-lasting handset that defies its £309 price tag and then some. As a value proposition, this is indisputably one of the best Xiaomi phones, well, ever.
Read our full Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro review
FAQs
What is the best cheap phone?
The best cheap phone for you will depend on what you do (and don't) value in a smartphone. If you prefer a Samsung, then the Samsung Galaxy A55 could be for you. If you're already embedded in Apple's ecosystem, the iPhone 16e is your best bet. Alternatively, the Google Pixel 8a offers an affordable way into Google's AI-powered ecosystem, while the Oppo Reno 12 Pro, OnePlus Nord 4, and Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro offer a little bit of everything.
How to choose the best cheap phone for you
Even the best cheap phones don't have it all; that low price means there are almost always weaker elements, so the first step to choosing one is deciding which aspects are most important to you, and what you can live without.
Do you need excellent battery life? A sharp screen? Or capable cameras? Perhaps you require a high refresh rate, or consider 5G to be vital.
Another consideration, which isn't specifically price related, is the screen size; a smaller screen makes a phone easier to use with one hand, and easier to fit in small pockets, while a bigger screen can make apps, games and videos more pleasant to watch and interact with.
Whatever the case, once you've decided what you do (and don't) need, you can read through the entries above to find a phone that fits. Whatever balance you ultimately decide on, there's likely to be an ideal option above, and we've tested all of these phones extensively, so you can be sure they're good.
How we test
We only include a handset on this best cheap phones list once we've fully reviewed it, so you can be assured that every entry has been tested in full.
Our testing process involves using the phone as our main handset for days, or even weeks, testing all the key factors, from the power to the battery life, the cameras, the screen, and beyond.
That means we know exactly how each of these handsets performs in reality, not just on paper, and we use that knowledge to rank them, while factoring in their all-important price and value.
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