In 2026, spending over a grand on a phone feels harder to justify. Premium handsets are great if you’ll use all the extras, but if you just want a reliable everyday phone for calls, entertainment and decent photos, our selection of the best cheap phones has you covered.
Unlike the best phones overall, or even the slightly more expensive crowd of the best mid-range phones, cheap phones do come with compromises, but they’re usually easy to work around. The trick is knowing what matters most to you, whether that’s battery life, performance, cameras or software.
If you want a great screen or reliable cameras, brands like Honor and Xiaomi are a good place to start. If software is your priority, Samsung and Nothing are strong options. Either way, there’s more choice than ever, and this list should help you find the right upgrade without hours of research.
To keep things affordable, we’ve capped this guide at £400/$400, so every phone here stays under that price. And if you’re not ready to upgrade just yet, it’s worth bookmarking this page, as our rankings change over time.
Keep on reading to see which of the latest budget phones have most impressed our team of testers, and if you’re curious to save a buck on other tech purchases, then feel free to check out our guides to the best cheap smartwatch, the best cheap headphones, the best cheap tablets and even SIMs.
Best cheap phones at a glance
Learn more about how we test mobile phones
Every phone we review goes through a series of uniform checks designed to gauge key things including build quality, screen accuracy, battery life, performance and camera prowess.
These include formal synthetic benchmarks and scripted tests, plus a series of real-world checks, such as how much battery it loses per hour streaming video.
We also make sure to use every phone we review as our primary handset for at least 4 days to ensure our review is as accurate as possible.
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Excellent battery life
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Bright screen
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Good water resistance rating
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All-plastic shell
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Not all that powerful for its class
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Weak ultra-wide camera
For anyone who puts battery life above everything else, the Honor Magic 8 Lite is one of the most compelling options on this list. Its 7500mAh cell is bigger than what you’ll find in most phones at any price, flagships very much included, and in practice that translates to a couple of days between charges under the right circumstances.
When you do eventually need to top it up, 66W fast charging gets the job done in under 70 minutes, which is a reassuringly short wait given just how much capacity there is to fill. What makes all of this even more impressive is that despite carrying such a sizeable battery, the phone measures just 7.85mm thick. The plastic build keeps the weight down while also proving more resistant to the scratches and knocks of daily life than glass or metal alternatives, and the IP68/IP69K rating means submersion and high-pressure water jets are both covered.
Framing the experience is a 6.79-inch 120Hz OLED display that punches well above its price point. Colours are vibrant, contrast is strong, and brightness levels are more than sufficient to keep things readable in harsh outdoor lighting. It’s a great screen for catching up on streaming content, and the battery life only adds to that appeal.
Where the Magic 8 Lite falls short is in performance. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 handles everyday tasks without complaint, but if raw processing power is important to you, then the Poco F7 will serve you better.
If battery life is your top priority, however, the Honor Magic 8 Lite makes an easy case for itself.
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Incredibly competitive price for the spec
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Multi-day battery life
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Big, bright screen
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Cameras remain a weak point for Poco
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HyperOS is packed full of bloatware
For any mobile games who don’t have a ton of cash to spend on their next upgrade, the Poco F7 fills the gap of being a high performing smartphone that still somehow carries a budget price tag. At just £389, the Poco F7 carries a handful of features that you’d expect to see on phones almost double the cost, the most important of which is its performance.
Thanks to the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 processor housed within the phone, the Poco F7 provides some of the best gaming performance we’ve ever seen on a budget handset. As a point of comparison, the Poco F7 steamroller over the Pixel 9a and the Samsung Galaxy A56 in multi-core tests, and even wasn’t that far off from the Poco F7 Pro when running the 3D Mark Wildlife Extreme test.
What ties the experience together is the massive 6.83-inch AMOLED display which provides phenomenally vibrant colours while the 120Hz refresh rate ensures that any action happening on screen is fast paced and engaging. It’s just as good for sitting back and enjoying a bit of streaming, as it is for gaming.
Of course, if you do plan on using the Poco F7 as something of an entertainment hub on the go, then you’re going to need a solid battery to back it up and thankfully that isn’t an issue here. The gigantic 6500mAh cell allowed us to reach two days of use under the right circumstances, so you definitely won’t have anything to worry about over the course of a single day.
The inclusion of 90W fast charging means you won’t be waiting around for long either, as we managed to charge the phone from 0% to 100% in only 40 minutes. As a final flourish, the Poco F7 still carries a premium build boasting full IP68 dust and water resistance. If you’re the type of person who’s run into durability issues with affordable phones in the past then the F7 should be a major step up.
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Very long battery life
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Solid maximum screen brightness
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Fairly fast charging
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Uses a space-filling junk camera
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Water-treading design
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All-plastic frame
As great as it can be to have top-notch cameras, cutting-edge software and more, for a lot of people out there the only thing that truly matters is a battery life that actually sees you to the end of the day without any sense of panic. If you’re someone who uses their phone for surfing the web, messaging, payments and other such daily tasks and needs a battery that can keep up with it all, then the Motorola Edge 70 Fusion is the phone for you.
This beast of a handset, despite being wonderfully slim, manages to cram a whopping 7000mAh battery into its build, pretty much outdoing almost every other phone in its price bracket. In fact, a battery of that size is quite a rarity amongst the flagship end of the market too, with even something like the Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (which costs £1099/$1099.99) only having a 4900mAh cell to work with.
In fact, if you’re a more conservative user then you could probably stretch the Edge 70 Fusion’s battery to run for up to two days at a time. When you do need to top it up, you can make use of speedy 68W wired charging which, from our testing, can net you a full battery in just shy of an hour.
There’s a luscious 6.78-inch AMOLED display onboard with a 144Hz refresh rate to boot. Because of the battery life available, this all combines to make the Edge 70 Fusion a great phone for catching up on a bit of entertainment, especially when you’re travelling. That higher-than-average refresh rate makes even simple things like scrolling through social media feel that bit better.
Unfortunately, anyone thinking that the refresh rate would also come in handy with a spot of gaming should think again, as the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 chipset just isn’t quite powerful enough to do intensive 3D titles justice. It’s fine for everyday tasks but for more than that, you’re better off seeking out a Poco phone.
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Attractive, unique design
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Lightweight but delightful software experience
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Reliable battery and camera performance
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Affordable price – There’s a pink one!
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Not the most powerful phone around
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Display is a little dark at times
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Glyph Light bars are gone
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Not a big jump on the Phone 3a
Who said that budget phones had to look cheap? The Nothing Phone (4a) carries the same level of style that has made Apple such a household name, and depending on your particular tastes, you may even prefer Nothing’s space-age aesthetic. Just like the Nothing Phone (3a) before it, the (4a) looks like a device of science fiction on the back, but it’s very much real and costs just a fraction of the flagships.
Although the Nothing Phone (4a)’s design is certainly eye-catching, it’s also functional with the Glyph Bar on the side of the camera bump acting as a means for you to see incoming calls and notifications while the phone is placed face down on a surface. The intent is so that you don’t need to constantly pick up the phone to see if anything’s come in, and avoid needless doomscrolling.
The brand’s unique approach to design extends far beyond the hardware too, as the Nothing OS Android overlay is leagues ahead of what you’ll find on most budget phones. Not only is the UI wonderfully free of bloatware, but there are tons of exclusive widgets that utilise the brand’s iconic pixel art.
What surprised us the most is that although there’s a modest battery upgrade which brings the included cell up to 5080mAh, the phone actually makes fantastic use of what’s available to keep things running for up to two days under certain use cases. Even if you are someone who racks up a hefty amount of screen time then you won’t have to worry about depleting the battery over the course of a single day.
Where the Nothing Phone (4a) doesn’t quite hit the mark is in performance. Just like how it is with the Motorola Edge 70 Fusion, the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 chipset does a fine job with most everyday tasks, but it just isn’t as smooth as what you’ll find on a comparatively priced Poco phone. Still, for the asking price and everything that the Phone (4a) delivers on, it’s hard to imagine anyone being dissatisfied with it.
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Compact yet rugged design
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Dedicated telephoto camera
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Wireless charging
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Not the strongest performer
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Cameras can be a little inconsistent
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Very similar to the Edge 50 Neo
At under £400, the Motorola Edge 60 Neo is a brilliant budget-friendly Android that should suit most everyday uses.
With a 6.36-inch pOLED display, paired with a faux-leather finish on the back, the Edge 60 Neo can easily be used with just one hand. Plus, don’t worry about accidentally dropping or even spilling water on your handset, as it’s equipped with flagship standard IP68 and IP69 ratings too.
Speaking of the display, it’s packed with surprisingly premium screen technologies for its price tag. Not only does it sport a 120Hz refresh rate, something which was missing from the entry-level iPhone until the new iPhone 17, but it also offers a 3000 nits peak brightness and supports HDR10+ content too.
Where the Edge 60 Neo really impresses, however, is with its photography ability. We should disclaim that this might not be one of the best camera phones, but it’s still a solid shooter for most conditions.
The star of the show is, unsurprisingly, the 50MP Sony main sensor which churns out detailed and vibrant shots during the day. Even at night, the main camera is able to brighten shots up while maintaining sharpness too.
This is supported by a decent enough 13MP ultrawide and a 10MP 3x camera, which is a rare addition for phones at this price range. It’s not the best, especially when you attempt to surpass 3x zoom, but generally it’s able to capture decent shots.
Otherwise, powering the Edge 60 Neo is a mid-range MediaTek Dimensity 7400 chip which runs casual apps and the odd spot of gaming without much stutter. Motorola also promises up to five years of major Android upgrades too, making this a solid budget investment too.
Finally, with support for 68W wired charging speed, and 15W wireless too, the Edge 60 Neo even surpasses the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra for battery prowess too – for over half the cost.
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Solid performance in virtually every situation
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Gorgeous 120Hz AMOLED display for HDR gaming
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Good enough camera in good conditions
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Noticable background battery drain
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Iron Man stylings are lackluster
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Fair bit of pre-installed bloat
When it comes to performance in budget phones, it’s Poco handsets that surprise us time and time again. These devices go far beyond what you’d expect from phones at the lower end, giving you the type of chipsets that can handle everyday tasks with ease, and rarely (if ever) buckle under the pressure. The excellent Poco X8 Pro keeps that tradition going nicely.
Under the hood is the MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra which has an available 12GB RAM to lean on, allowing it to make short work of most apps. It can also hold its own with a bit of gaming, as we were able to enjoy a few rounds of PUBG without issue. Even with Zenless Zone Zero, which is a fairly taxing title, the phone managed to achieve a fairly stable 60fps throughout. That level of performance is just mindblowing for a phone that costs less than £400/$400.
Gaming on the X8 Pro is made even more enjoyable by the large 6.59-inch AMOLED 120Hz panel, especially when it kicks things into gear with HDR. The panel packs a 1.5K resolution and support for Dolby Vision, so if gaming isn’t your thing and you’d rather use the phone for catching up on the latest shows and films, then you’ll still have a great experience here.
The phone packs a sizeable 6500mAh battery and, perhaps even more surprisingly given that a lot of flagship phones can barely match half of this, 100W wired charging. There’s 27W reverse wired charging too for when you need to top up some headphones or a pair of earbuds on the go. We don’t recommend leaving the phone on overnight however as we picked up on surprisingly potent battery drain.
The only area where the X8 Pro doesn’t quite match up to the impressive specs found elsewhere is in the camera setup. To its credit, the main 50MP sensor can pick up some decent shots if there’s a good amount of light available, but if not then the whole experience falls apart pretty quickly. If you’re obsessed with camera quality on a budget then the Pixel 9a is a better buy.
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Greatly improved cameras
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Brighter screen with better colours
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Slightly quicker
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NFC Payment support
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Only IP54 rated
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Back isn’t replaceable
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Essential Space could cost money soon
The CMF Phone 2 Pro is a follow-up to the Nothing sub-brand’s original CMF Phone, and it fixed most of our complaints about the original modular phone.
With a modular design, the CMF Phone 2 Pro is one of the more unique offerings in the budget smartphone market. Though you can no longer easily replace the back panel, the Accessory Point returns, allowing you to attach lanyards, kickstands and more.
You can also add new macro and fisheye lenses to the new triple camera setup, transforming the look and feel of your photos.
Modular design aside, the CMF Phone 2 Pro offers a surprisingly rounded experience.
The 6.67-inch AMOLED display has a 120Hz refresh rate and a boosted 3000 nits of peak brightness. Arguably more importantly, the screen can now display over a billion colours with 10-bit colour support, reducing banding and providing more accurate colours overall.
The single 50MP camera was arguably the weakest area of the original CMF Phone, but with a combination of 50MP main, 50MP 3x telephoto and 8MP ultrawide lenses, the CMF Phone 2 Pro is wholly more capable. Don’t expect flagship-level performance, but there is a notable jump.
Throw in a boosted Dimensity 7300 Pro processor, a 5000mAh battery with enough juice to last two days, and Nothing’s charming Nothing OS 3.2, and you’ve got a stand-out budget smartphone.
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Excellent battery life
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Reasonable price to performance
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Vivid, detailed OLED screen
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Ad-riddled OS leaves a sour taste
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Much more expensive than its predecessor
At its core, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus 5G is a great phone, and right now it’s our top pick if a stunning display is what you care about most.
Working in the phone’s favour is an excellent 6.83-inch 120Hz AMOLED panel that’s sharp, punchy and gets seriously bright. With Dolby Vision and HDR10+ both onboard, supported films and shows look noticeably richer, which is great news if you tend to watch movies or game late at night.
The build is another highlight worth calling out. Full IP66, IP68, IP69 and IP69K ratings put it on par with proper flagships, making it one of the toughest phones we’ve tested at this price. That level of durability is genuinely rare to find, and it means you won’t have to baby the handset the way you might with some of its cheaper rivals.
Performance is a solid step up from the previous generation too, with the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 keeping everyday use feeling snappy and handling games happily at 60fps.
Software is where things get a little bumpier, as Xiaomi’s HyperOS still feels rougher around the edges than a stock Android experience, and there’s a fair bit of bloatware and the odd ad mixed in. The 6500mAh battery more than makes up for it, stretching comfortably across multiple days between charges.
At £429, it sits just above the budget bracket, but for the screen quality on offer, it’s a worthwhile stretch.
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Crisp, clear, and fluid P-OLED display
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Big performance boosts over the previous model
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Great cameras for most people
At under £200, the Moto G86 is a fantastic choice for anyone who doesn’t want to splurge on a fancy phone, who needs a reliable second phone for work or who wants a decent Android for their child.
In a world where most premium smartphones look pretty similar to one another, the Moto G86 boasts a more unique design, thanks to the woven texture at its rear. That’s paired with a chrome rim around the bezels which catches the light and helps the handset look more premium than its price tag would suggest.
Perhaps most surprising about the Moto G86 is how brilliant its display is. The 6.67-inch pOLED panel sports a 120Hz refresh rate and a tight 89.2% screen-to-body ratio which means the bezels are nearly invisible and helps to maximise bright colours and dark blacks. Because of this, we found that streaming HDR content feels like using a much more expensive handset.
Powering the Moto G86 is the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chip, which although certainly doesn’t achieve particularly high benchmarking scores, offers superb everyday performance. Sure, gamers will undoubtedly be better off with one of the best gaming phones, but for casual mobile games and social media scrolling, the Moto G86 does the job.
Flip the handset over and you’ll find its 50MP main and 8MP ultrawide lenses, alongside the depth sensor and flash. All in all, the camera is pretty decent and can manage confidently in good lighting conditions.
Otherwise, the Moto G86 sports an average-sized 5200mAh battery which although isn’t particularly impressive, can still ensure the phone comfortably sees the day through.
FAQs
The best cheap phone depends on your priorities. For the best blend of design, hardware and software, we’d recommend the Nothing Phone 4a.
Our favourite cheap phone for the camera is the Motorola Edge 60 Neo, though the Nothing Phone 4a isn’t too far behind.
Yes, all of the phones in the above list offer 5G connectivity so you’ll be able to get these data speeds as long as you have network coverage and a compatible SIM card.
We usually say between £200-400 / $200-400 just because you’ll get 5G connectivity, solid cameras, decent displays, and good enough performance for the price. Of course, you can go cheaper, but phones under £100/$100 often involve significant compromises in performance.
This depends on the manufacturer. Google Pixel phones offer the best support (seven years, for example for the Pixel 10a). Samsung traditionally offers 4-6 years of updates on A-Series phones, while Motorola and other brands typically offer 2-3 years. We’ll let you know for each of our picks, but if you’re ever in doubt check the manufacturer’s policy.
Test Data
| Honor Magic 8 Lite | Poco F7 | Motorola Edge 70 Fusion | Nothing Phone 4a | Motorola Edge 60 Neo | Poco X8 Pro | CMF Phone 2 Pro | Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus 5G | Motorola Moto G86 5G | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geekbench 6 single core | 1070 | 2094 | 1145 | 1236 | 1095 | 1724 | 1003 | 1252 | 1046 |
| Geekbench 6 multi core | 2882 | 6294 | 3183 | 3312 | 3111 | 6616 | 2910 | 3278 | 2962 |
| Geekbench 6 GPU | – | – | 2298 | 3549 | – | 12549 | – | 3552 | – |
| 3DMark Solar Bay | – | – | – | – | – | 26 fps | – | – | – |
| AI performance | – | – | – | 652 | – | – | – | 2229 | – |
| Max brightness | 1720 nits | – | – | – | – | – | – | 3200 nits | – |
| 1 hour video playback (Netflix, HDR) | – | 5 % | 2 % | 5 % | 6 % | – | 7 % | 3 % | 6 % |
| 30 minute gaming (intensive) | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 8 % |
| 30 minute gaming (light) | – | 5 % | 6 % | – | 2 % | – | 5 % | – | – |
| Time from 0-100% charge | 68 min | 40 min | 59 min | – | 57 min | 62 min | 65 min | 162 min | 98 min |
| Weight via scales | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 207 grams | – |
| Time from 0-50% charge | 33 Min | 17 Min | 22 Min | – | – | 29 Min | 26 Min | 75 Min | 47 Min |
| 30-min recharge (included charger) | – | 82 % | 64 % | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 15-min recharge (included charger) | – | 46 % | 37 % | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 60-min recharge (no charger included) | 94 % | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 30-min recharge (no charger included) | 54 % | – | – | – | 69 % | 52 % | 57 % | 20 % | 31 % |
| 15-min recharge (no charger included) | 29 % | – | – | – | 37 % | 31 % | 29 % | – | 15 % |
| 3D Mark – Wild Life | 3684 | 4341 | 1085 | – | 1031 | 4053 | 852 | 1135 | 18.87 |
| 3D Mark – Wild Life Stress Test | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 98.9 % | – |
| GFXBench – Aztec Ruins | 18 fps | 61 fps | – | – | – | – | 22 fps | – | 24 fps |
| GFXBench – Car Chase | 17 fps | 66 fps | – | – | – | – | 29 fps | – | 22 fps |
Full Specs
| Honor Magic 8 Lite Review | Poco F7 Review | Motorola Edge 70 Fusion Review | Nothing Phone 4a Review | Motorola Edge 60 Neo Review | Poco X8 Pro Review | CMF Phone 2 Pro Review | Xiaomi Redmi Note 15 Pro Plus 5G Review | Motorola Moto G86 5G Review | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Honor | – | Motorola | Nothing | Motorola | Poco | Nothing | Xiaomi | – |
| Screen Size | 6.79 inches | 6.8 inches | 6.78 inches | 6.78 inches | 6.36 inches | 6.59 inches | 6.77 inches | 6.83 inches | – |
| Storage Capacity | 512GB | 256GB | 256GB | 256GB | 256GB | 512GB | 128GB, 256GB | 512GB | 256GB |
| Rear Camera | 16MP | 50MP + 8MP | 50/13MP | 50MP + 50MP +8MP | 50MP + 13MP + 10MP | 50MP + 8MP | 50MP + 50MP + 8MP | 200MP wide, 8MP ultrawide | 50MP |
| Front Camera | 108/5MP | 20MP | 32MP | 32MP | 32MP | 20MP | 16MP | 32MP selfie | 32MP |
| Video Recording | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| IP rating | IP69K | IP68 | IP69 | IP65 | IP69 | IP68 | IP54 | IP69K | IP68 |
| Battery | 7495 mAh | 6500 mAh | 7000 mAh | 5080 mAh | 5200 mAh | 6500 mAh | 5000 mAh | 6500 mAh | 5200 mAh |
| Wireless charging | – | – | – | – | Yes | – | – | – | – |
| Fast Charging | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Size (Dimensions) | 76.1 x 161.9 x 0.8 MM | 77.9 x 8.2 x 163.1 MM | 75.6 x 8 x 157.8 MM | 77.57 x 8.55 x 163.95 INCHES | 71.2 x 8.1 x 154.1 MM | 75.19 x 8.38 x 157.53 MM | 78 x 7.8 x 164 MM | 78.3 x 163.3 x 8.2 MM | 161 x 7.8 x 74 INCHES |
| Weight | 181 G | 216 G | 188 G | 204.5 G | 175 G | 201 G | 185 G | 207 G | 185 G |
| ASIN | – | – | – | – | – | – | B0F2T4LT17 | – | – |
| Operating System | Android 15 | HyperOS 2 (Android 15) | Android 16 | Nothing OS 4.1 powered by Android 16 | Android 15 | HyperOS (Android 16) | Nothing OS 3.2 (Android 15) | Android 15 | Android 15 |
| Release Date | 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2025 | 2026 | 2025 |
| First Reviewed Date | 08/01/2026 | 27/06/2025 | 13/04/2026 | 05/03/2026 | 12/01/2026 | 08/05/2026 | 05/05/2025 | 18/02/2026 | – |
| Resolution | 2640 x 1200 | 1280 x 2772 | 2772 x 1272 | 2720 x 1224 | 1200 x 2670 | 2756 x 1268 | 1080 x 2392 | 1280 x 2772 | 1220 x 2712 |
| HDR | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Refresh Rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz | 144 Hz | 120 Hz | 120 Hz | 120 Hz | 120 Hz | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Ports | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C, microSD card slot | USB-C, SIM | USB-C 2.0 |
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 | MediaTek Dimensity 7400 | MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra | MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro | Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 | Mediatek Dimensity 7300 |
| RAM | 8GB | 12GB | 8GB | 12GB, 8GB | 128GB | 12GB | 8GB | 12GB | 8GB |
| Colours | – | Black, White, Cyber Silver | Orient Blue, Sporting Green, Blue Surf, Country Air, Silhouette | Silver, Black, Blue, Pink | Frostbite, Poinciana, Grisaille | Black, Mint Green, White, Iron Man | White, Black, Orange, Light Green | Black, Blue, Brown | – |
| Stated Power | – | 90 W | – | – | 68 W | – | 33 W | – | – |
| UK RRP | £399 | £389 | £379 | £349 | £379.99 | £349 | £219 | £429 | £280 |
| USA RRP | – | Unavailable | – | – | – | – | $289 | – | – |
| EU RRP | – | – | – | €349 | – | – | – | – | – |
