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Best Motorola phone 2024: Which Moto is right for you?

Best Motorola phone

With so many Motorola phones to choose from, it can be hard to tell them apart. We’ve got you covered with options suited to all budgets

Motorola might not attract the frenzied hype of Apple and Samsung devices, but its smartphones are usually great alternatives, especially if money is a bit tight.

Catering to lighter wallets doesn’t mean that Motorola phones are lacking in quality, either. The ever-popular G-series models often have features that were previously unheard of for the price, while the mid-range Edge series of handsets offer extra quality for a little extra money. There’s even a rugged Moto for accident-prone buyers.

With so much to choose from, we’ve saved you time and listed our favourite Motorola models below, considering all-important factors from cost to battery life. After a read of our rundown, you’ll know which Motorola phone is best suited to your needs and budget.

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How we test Motorola phones

We test a Motorola handset using the same benchmarks and testing criteria as we do for other Android and iPhone reviews. We begin by running the Geekbench and GFXBench applications, found on the Google Play store, to assess CPU processing speed and GPU rendering performance.

Next, we examine the display. Using a combination of a display colorimeter and the DisplayCAL software, we note the colour accuracy of a handset’s screen as well its peak brightness and contrast. Then we move on to battery life: we set the screen to a standardised brightness, switch off all data connections and play a looped video until the phone runs out of power. Thereafter, we charge the phone back up again, recording how long it takes to get back to full power.

Group testing smartphones with Geekbench 6 benchmarking software

Finally, we test a Motorola device’s cameras under a variety of lighting conditions, including indoors and in low light, being sure to use all lenses and shooting modes available.

READ NEXT: The best budget smartphones to buy


The best Motorola smartphones to buy in 2024

1. Motorola Edge 30 Ultra: The best Motorola phone

Price when reviewed: £695 | Check price at AmazonBest Motorola phone - Motorola Edge 30 Ultra

After producing a slew of excellent budget phones – many of which appear below – Motorola delivered a killer surprise in the form of the Edge 30 Ultra. Performance manages to keep up with flagships that cost hundreds of pounds more, the OLED screen is colour accurate and supports a buttery smooth 144Hz refresh rate, and the 25-hour battery life is among the best we’ve tested. Even when depleted, the bundled 125W fast charger can juice the battery back up to full in just 20 minutes.

There are a couple of issues, however: the cameras aren’t as outstanding as the rest of the package, and weatherproofing is limited to IP52, so it doesn’t offer as much protection as other flagships. Still, it’s hard to focus too much on these minor problems when the Edge 30 Ultra delivers so much flagship quality for such an affordable price.

Read our full Motorola Edge 30 Ultra review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core 3.19GHz Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1; Display: 6.67in, 2,400 x 1,080; Storage: 256GB; Camera: 200MP, 50MP (ultrawide), 12MP (3x zoom); Operating system: Android 12; Weight: 199g


2. Motorola Moto G62 5G: The best-value G series Motorola

Price when reviewed: £200 | Check price at AmazonBest Motorola phone - Motorola Moto G62 5G

Dethroning the previous best-value option in Motorola’s G series, the Moto G62 5G takes everything that worked about the Moto G50 and builds even further upon the formula. The lacklustre display and awkwardly placed fingerprint sensor that plagued the G50 are both addressed here, replaced with a higher resolution 2,400 x 1,080 120Hz display and an under-screen optical fingerprint reader.

The higher-resolution screen does dip the battery life slightly, but a score of over 21 hours is still impressive and will shepherd you nicely into a second day of moderate use if needed. Topping it all off is the 5G connectivity, improved cameras and performance, which easily outclass all other phones in this price bracket. If £200 is your strict buying budget, the Moto G62 gets you the most phone for your money.

Read our full Motorola Moto G62 5G review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus; Display: 6.5in 2,400 x 1,080; Storage: 64GB; Camera: 50MP, 8MP (ultrawide), 2MP (macro); Operating system: Android 12; Weight: 184g


3. Motorola Razr 40 Ultra: The best Motorola flip phone

Price when reviewed: £1,049 | Check price at AmazonBest Motorola phone - Motorola Razr 40 Ultra

The Razr brand has a storied history, dating back to the first inception of the flip phone, and the latest entry into this hallowed lineup is the best one yet. The Motorola Razr 40 unfolds into a larger, sharper display than its predecessor, with the 6.9in panel featuring a 2,640 x 1,080 resolution and a blisteringly fast 165Hz refresh rate. Best of all, the display crease that crops up on all folding phones is barely noticeable here, proving much more subtle than the crease on Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5.

Like the Flip 5, the Razr 40 Ultra also gets a new full-size external display, but once again, the Motorola gets the better deal. The 3.6in AMOLED panel has a stronger 1,066 x 1,056 resolution and a much faster 144Hz refresh rate. Not everything gets an update, and using last year’s processor sees the Razr 40 Ultra fall behind in performance speeds, but otherwise, this is Motorola’s best flip phone yet, and one of the best you can get on the market at large.

Read our full Motorola Razr 40 Ultra review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core 3.19GHz Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1; Display: 6.9in, 2,640 x 1,080 (cover: 3.6in, 1,066 x 1,056); Storage: 256GB; Camera: 12MP, 13MP (ultrawide); Operating system: Android 13; Weight: 185g


4. Motorola Moto G13: The best budget Moto

Price when reviewed: £123 | Check price at Amazonbest Motorola phone - Motorola Moto G13As you’ll see from the rest of this list, Motorola has a wealth of affordable phones to choose from. However, if you want the best bang for the fewest bucks, there’s no better choice than the Motorola Moto G13. The 6.5in display, while only a 720p number, refreshes at a breezy 90Hz, and the colour accuracy is decent enough, considering the price.

Inside, the Moto G13 is kept ticking over by a MediaTek Helio G85 processor. This chipset achieved above-average performance compared to other similarly priced phones, and the battery went even further, lasting for around 20 hours in our looping video test. Throw in features such as a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microSD port, and the Motorola Moto G13 offers a whole lot of phone for very little money.

Read our full Motorola Moto G13 review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core 2GHz MediaTek Helio G85; Display: 6.5in 1,600 x 720; Storage: 128GB; Camera: 50MP, 2MP (macro), 2MP (depth); Operating system: Android 13; Weight: 184g


5. Motorola Moto G53 5G: The best cheap Moto for stamina

Price when reviewed: £168 | Check price at AmazonBest Motorola phone - Motorola Moto G53 5G

While it didn’t quite offer enough bang for your buck to be our favourite of the G series smartphones in terms of value, the Moto G53 5G does have one particular area in which it excels, and that’s the battery life. Lasting for over 23 hours in our looping video test, the G53 5G achieved the best stamina out of all available G-series models. Add to this a sleek design that belies the budget price and performance that holds up well to rivals, and there’s a lot to like here.

Of course, as you’d expect in this price range, there are some compromises. First of all, as much as the battery life impressed, so too did the charging speeds underwhelm, with the bundled 10W charger needing around two hours to take the battery from empty to full. The display’s 720p resolution feels a little dated, too, but it is at least paired with a zippy 120Hz refresh rate.

Finally, the main camera, while decent enough in good lighting, can’t handle night photography, and is saddled with a pretty weak macro secondary lens. Still, if battery life is the most important thing to you, the Moto G53 5G has it in spades, and the negatives are few enough to be forgivable at this price.

Read our full Motorola Moto G53 5G review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core 2.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus; Display: 6.5in 1,600 x 720; Storage: 128GB; Camera: 50MP, 2MP (macro); Operating system: Android 13; Weight: 183g


6. Motorola Defy (2021): The most durable Moto

Price when reviewed: £189 | Check price at AmazonBest Motorola phone - Motorola Defy (2021)

The Motorola Defy isn’t like other smartphones. As rugged and hard-wearing as it gets, the Moto Defy is built to withstand military standards of pressure from extreme temperatures and repeated drops (tested from heights of 1.8m onto a steel surface). Despite all this, it somehow retains a smartphone-style appearance, even if it is a bit on the thick side.

In terms of performance, our tests showed it to have similar speeds to other Moto phones around the £200 mark – not the greatest, but not terrible either – while retaining a massive battery life of over 20 hours on a single charge.

If you’re after a high-performance phone, this list has better options around the same price, but if you live an outdoorsy life or you’re just a bit clumsy, then the Motorola Defy is a great fit for your day-to-day needs.

Read our full Motorola Defy (2021) review for more details

Key specs – Processor: Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 662; Display: 6.5in, 1,600 x 720; Storage: 64GB; Cameras: 48MP, 2MP (macro), 2MP (depth); Operating system: Android 10; Weight: 232g


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