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- Our experts have tested over 600 smartphones, covering options for all budgets.
- We judge every phone against the same thorough review criteria, assessing their design, display, cameras, performance, battery life and software experience.
- Our favourite budget phone is the Motorola Moto G55 5G. It offers fantastic value for money, with excellent performance and battery life, accessible software and a solid main camera.
- Read on to see which other budget phones we recommend, with the top picks for battery life, cameras, gaming and more.
Black Friday deal: Save £40 on the CMF Phone 2 Pro
Black Friday has arrived, and with it comes the first-ever discount on the excellent CMF Phone 2 Pro. It's cheaper than ever at £179 and features on our roundup below as the best budget phone for cameras/photography.
£179 was £219
The Moto G56 is dirt-cheap for Black Friday
Motorola's latest Moto G56 budget phone gets a hefty discount in the Black Friday sales, bringing it down from the retail price of £199 to £158. That bargain price makes it worth picking over the G55, our current favourite budget phone.
£158 was £199
Get the mid-range Nothing Phone (3a) for budget prices
The Nothing Phone (3a) is usually mid-range fare but this Black Friday discount drops it from an average price of £313 (over the past 180 days) to a new low of £274.
£274 was £313 on avg
With prices rising everywhere we look, there’s never been a better time to consider switching to one of the best budget smartphones on the market. Right now, there’s no better bargain pick than the Motorola Moto G55 5G. It’s dirt-cheap but offers excellent performance and battery life for the money, a lovely display and a solid main camera.
If you’d like to see what else we recommend, there are plenty of other options. We’ve tested all of the best smartphones, reviewing around 50 handsets last year alone. We thoroughly assess each phone, using the most comprehensive testing process in the UK and a benchmarking spreadsheet that contains data going all the way back to the birth of Expert Reviews in 2008.
As such, we’re well equipped to separate the bargain budget handsets from the duds, and we’ve laid out our top picks below. We regularly update the selection, so you can be sure that our recommendations are always up to date.
Best budget phone: At a glance
- Motorola Moto G55 5G: Best budget phone overall | Check price
- iPhone 12 (renewed): Best budget iPhone | Check price
- CMF Phone 2 Pro: Best budget phone cameras | Check price
- OnePlus Nord CE 5: Best budget phone for battery life | Check price
How we test budget smartphones
Budget smartphones are tested using a variety of in-house and publicly available benchmark methods. We test CPU and gaming performance using the Geekbench and GFXBench applications, available from the Apple App Store and Google Play. Both of these apps provide us with performance scores, which can be used to directly compare against other handsets.
Display testing is performed using a colorimeter and the DisplayCal software for Windows and Mac. This test provides us with figures for overall colour accuracy, as well as maximum brightness and contrast.
For battery life, we set the phone’s screen to a standardised brightness, switch off all data connections and play a 20-hour looped video. When the handset switches off, we charge it up and record the timestamp.
When testing a phone’s cameras, we always use a competitor handset for direct comparison while taking pictures in a variety of different shooting scenarios, including low-light and portrait photography. Depending on the lenses available, we may also capture ultrawide or zoomed images, as well as test available resolution and frame rate settings in video recording.
If you’re keen to find out even more detail, including how we interpret the various results, you can read our dedicated How we test smartphones article for more information.
Independence is at the heart of everything we do at Expert Reviews. Our experts have been testing the latest smartphones for almost two decades: in that time, well over 600 phones and tablets have undergone our stringent tests.
Our recommendation can’t be bought. The products you see on this page have all been rigorously tested using the same carefully crafted methodology, so you can be sure our choices are fair and grounded in hard facts. If a product falls short – even if it’s a new release from a major brand – we won’t shy away from telling you.
The best budget smartphones you can buy in 2025
1. Motorola Moto G55 5G: Best budget phone overall
Price when reviewed: £147 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… performance and battery life
- Not so great for… limited software support and minor display downgrades
The Motorola Moto G55 5G replaces its predecessor as our new favourite budget phone, bringing to the table improved performance, much better battery life and faster charging, while still being available for the same price. The display is bright and colour-accurate and the main camera delivers better night photography than most other budget phones.
Not everything is perfect – the display’s contrast and black levels are a little weaker than before and Motorola is still only offering a single OS update – but at this price, it’s hard to focus on the negatives. As a balance between affordability and functionality, the Motorola Moto G55 5G is unrivalled.
Read our 2024 Motorola Moto G55 5G review
Key specs – Processor: 2.5GHz MediaTek Dimensity 7025; RAM: 8GB; Display: 6.49in, 2,400 x 1,080; Storage: 256GB; Cameras: 50MP, 8MP (wide); Operating system: Android 14; Weight: 179g
2. CMF Phone 2 Pro: Best budget phone cameras
Price when reviewed: £218 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… telephoto camera and excellent display
- Not so great for… weak speaker and no camera OIS
The CMF Phone 2 Pro is the best bet for photographers on a budget because it includes a 50-megapixel 2x telephoto lens in its camera suite – near-enough unheard of for cheap phones. Shots captured with this and the 50-megapixel main camera are crisp and colourful in good lighting, and even night photography is above average for this price range.
On top of the accomplished camera array, the CMF Phone 2 Pro has a bright and sharp 6.77in AMOLED display, decent performance and battery life and slick software with Nothing’s useful Essential Space AI feature included.
The single mono speaker is rather weedy and optical image stabilisation could have made the cameras even better but regardless, the CMF Phone 2 Pro offers the most comprehensive photography suite of any budget phone. It’s the perfect way to get great snaps without breaking the bank.
Read our 2025 CMF Phone 2 Pro review
Key specs – Processor: 2.5GHz MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro; RAM: 8GB; Display: 6.77in, 2,392 x 1,080; Storage: 128GB, 256GB; Cameras: 50MP, 50MP (2x telephoto), 8MP (wide); Operating system: Android 15; Weight: 185g
3. OnePlus Nord CE 5: Best budget phone for battery life
Price when reviewed: £239 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… exceptional battery life and bright, colour-accurate display
- Not so great for… generic plastic design and no scratch resistant glass
For those with top-tier stamina needs, there’s no better pick than the OnePlus Nord CE 5. Where most budget phones last between 24 and 28 hours in our in-house battery test, the Nord CE 5 kept going for an outstanding 33 hours. This phone will easily see you through a day of heavy use and still have battery life to spare come bedtime.
The AMOLED display is also a highlight, with excellent peak brightness, a smooth 120Hz refresh rate and pin-perfect colour accuracy, delivering an average Delta E of just 1.05 in our testing. General performance is some of the best in this price range and the 50-megapixel main camera produces sharp, well-lit images with broad dynamic range.
The design is a little on the generic side and the display lacks any official protective glass (Gorilla Glass, for instance) but otherwise, there’s very little to dislike about the Nord CE 5. Come for the fantastic battery life, stay for everything else that it gets right.
Read our 2025 OnePlus Nord CE 5 review
Key specs – Processor: 2.5GHz MediaTek Dimensity 8350; RAM: 8GB; Display: 6.77in, 2,392 x 1,080; Storage: 128GB, 256GB; Cameras: 50MP, 8MP (wide); Operating system: Android 15; Weight: 199g
4. Motorola Moto G35 5G: Best budget phone under £100
Price when reviewed: £99 | Check price at John Lewis
- Great for… affordable 5G and bright, sharp display
- Not so great for… display contrast isn’t the best and only one OS update
The Motorola Moto G35 5G is the absolute best way to get 5G connectivity for less than £100.
For that low price, you’re getting a competent 6.72in display with a 1080p resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, a reliable 50-megapixel main camera that delivers crisp, colourful shots in good lighting and performance that kept up with other sub-£200 phones in our testing.
The display’s contrast is a little soft, so icons and text don’t pop as much as they could, and the software updates stopped with Android 15, meaning that you don’t get any new features from Android 16 and onwards. These are acceptable sacrifices for a phone this cheap, however – if you want 5G for as little as possible, the Motorola Moto G35 is the way to go.
Read our 2025 Motorola Moto G35 5G review
Key specs – Processor: 2.2GHz Unisoc T760; RAM: 4GB; Display: 6.72in, 2,400 x 1,080; Storage: 128GB; Cameras: 50MP, 8MP (wide); Operating system: Android 14; Weight: 188g
5. Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro: Best budget phone for gaming
Price when reviewed: £219 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… extremely powerful performer and IP68 dust and water resistance
- Not so great for… cluttered software and middling battery life
The best mobile gaming performance is usually reserved for more expensive phones but the Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro has the hardware to compete with handsets that cost more than twice its price. In our testing, the Poco X7 Pro managed onscreen framerates well over 60fps, so anyone looking to engage in some fluid 3D gaming on a budget need look no further.
General performance is excellent as well, once again keeping pace with far pricier handsets in our tests, and the display is a real cut above what we expect from cheap phones. The 6.67in AMOLED panel has a crisp 1.5K resolution, a buttery 120Hz refresh rate and exceptional colour accuracy, scoring a 1.09 average Delta E in our testing, which is right on the money.
Battery life is middling and Xiaomi’s software is far too cluttered, with a fussy control centre and too much bloatware, but otherwise, the Poco X7 Pro is a quality experience and a better gamer than anything else in its class.
Read our 2025 Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro review
Key specs – Processor: 3.25GHz MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra; RAM: 8GB, 12GB; Display: 6.67in, 2,712 x 1,220; Storage: 256GB, 512GB; Cameras: 50MP, 8MP (wide); Operating system: Android 15; Weight: 195g
6. Google Pixel 7a (renewed): Best budget Pixel phone
Price when reviewed: £210 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… fantastic cameras and software support until 2028
- Not so great for… relatively pricey and only 18W charging
If you fancy one of Google’s handsets, the Pixel 7a is in our opinion the best budget option around – especially now it’s been superseded by newer models. As with all Pixels, the standout here is the cameras, which produced beautifully lit, colourful shots with bundles of detail and broad dynamic range when we took them for a spin. Even better is the editing software, including the excellent Magic Eraser and Photo Unblur features.
Google’s software pledge is another bonus; the Pixel 7a is due updates through to 2028, which massively surpasses everything else on this list, and Pixels tend to get early access to new Android features. Add in decent performance, battery life that improves upon the previous generation and a bright, colour-accurate display, and the Google Pixel 7a is an absolute bargain at this price.
Read our 2023 Google Pixel 7a review
Key specs – Processor: 2.85GHz Google Tensor G2; RAM: 8GB; Display: 6.1in 2,400 x 1,080; Storage: 128GB; Cameras: 64MP, 13MP (wide); Operating system: Android 15; Weight: 194g
7. Apple iPhone 12 (Renewed): Best budget iPhone
Price when reviewed: £251 | Check price at Back Market
- Great for… decent performance for the price and 5G connectivity
- Not so great for… only a 60Hz display and middling battery life
It’s not Apple’s latest but the iPhone 12 still has a lot of value to offer, especially if you’re looking to pick up an iPhone on the cheap. The 6.1in OLED display still only has a 60Hz refresh rate but it improves the resolution compared to the iPhone 11, now 2,532 x 1,170. We measured excellent brightness and colour accuracy, meaning that the iPhone 12 more than competes with newer phones in the display stakes.
The A14 Bionic chip is still a swift performer, too, outpacing phones that cost £100 more than this and delivering gaming benchmarks close to 60fps, which again is rare at this price. Battery life lets the side down somewhat, only lasting 16hrs 30mins in our standard test, but if you’re looking to get that Apple logo without paying exorbitant prices, a refurbished iPhone 12 is an excellent choice.
Read our 2020 iPhone 12 review
Key specs – Processor: 3.1GHz Apple A14 Bionic; RAM: 4GB; Display: 6.1in 2,532 x 1,170; Storage: 64GB, 128GB, 256GB; Cameras: 12MP, 12MP (wide); Operating system: iOS 18; Weight: 164g
8. Nokia G42 5G: Best budget phone for repairability
Price when reviewed: £136 | Check price at Amazon
- Great for… repairable design and impressive battery life
- Not so great for… limited software support and middling colour accuracy
The G42 5G is the second in Nokia’s line of repairable phones, and once again you can perform repairs such as replacing the battery or charging port yourself, with affordable spare parts, tools and guides available on the iFixit website. Repairs can be done in as little as five minutes – including the battery replacement we performed during testing – and most importantly, doing them doesn’t void the phone’s warranty or compromise the IP52 dust and water resistance rating.
On top of the repair-friendly design, the Nokia G42 5G puts in a solid showing for its price range, with competitive performance in both CPU and GPU benchmarks, and particularly impressive battery life. The repairability is somewhat undermined by the brand only pledging two software updates, and display colour accuracy could be better, but for a decent budget phone that’s easy to patch up yourself, the Nokia G42 5G is the best out there.
Read our 2023 Nokia G42 5G review
Key specs – Processor: 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G; RAM: 6GB; Display: 6.56in 1,612 x 720; Storage: 128GB; Cameras: 50MP, 2MP (macro), 2MP (depth); Operating system: Android 13; Weight: 194g
How to choose the best budget phone for you
How much should I spend?
This is the key question, and while the definition of budget can differ from person to person, when it comes to smartphones, we’re generally looking at handsets that fall under or around the £300 mark. That may sound a little high to be called budget, but phone prices in general have steadily been rising, so the goalposts for what is considered an affordable model have been moving with them.
To be clear, that’s an upper limit, not an average – you can find impressively specced phones for closer to £100 if your budget is particularly tight. In the opposite direction, iPhones tend to carry higher premiums, so if you want that Apple logo, expect to spend a little more.
What kind of features should I look out for?
While budget smartphones don’t get all of the bells and whistles that their £1,000+ flagship counterparts offer, there’s still plenty of functionality in this price range. These are the top things to bear in mind while shopping:
Display
This is an area in which budget phones have improved massively over the past few years. Plenty of handsets now offer Full HD (1080p) resolutions and 90Hz or 120Hz refresh rates, meaning that everything will look sharp and scrolling will feel smooth. Most are LCD screens, but OLED displays have started cropping up around this price as well, offering more vibrant colours and a deeper black level.
Cameras
You won’t see far-reaching telephoto lenses at this price, but otherwise, budget cameras have come a long way. Megapixel (MP) count gives you an idea of the camera’s resolution (how detailed images are, basically), but to see how well they perform, check out our full reviews, where we publish camera samples for you to peruse.
Battery
Battery capacity is measured in milliamps-per-hour (mAh) and the general rule is that higher-capacity batteries should last longer on a single charge. We’ve tested all of these devices, so you can jump over to our full reviews to see exactly how long each lasted in our standardised test. You can also check our best phone battery life ranking page to see what models offer the absolute best stamina.
Performance
You can get an idea of a phone’s performance by checking the clock speed of the processor (measured in GHz) and how much RAM is inside (anything more than 4GB will do nicely). We list both of these in the key specs of each mini-review, so you can see at a glance roughly how well each phone will perform. If you like to play phone games, check our full reviews to see how well each model performed in our tests; all entries here will handle the likes of Candy Crush well enough, but some may struggle with more demanding 3D games.
Storage
There are three main storage capacities you’ll see in budget phones: 64GB, 128GB and 256GB. More storage space will naturally allow for more apps, photos, videos and the like, but you can get away with picking up a lower-capacity model if it also has a microSD card slot, allowing you to add more space when the internal storage fills up.
