It’s easy to pick out the best iPhone, given that Apple only releases a handful of phones every year, but it’s far trickier to identify the best Android smartphone. With multiple brands releasing dozens of handsets across a twelv-month period, the choice can be dizzying. The best of these Android brands include familiar names such as Samsung and Google, as well as some that might be less familiar, such as OnePlus and Honor.
Thanks to the sheer number of Android phones that they produce between them, it’s possible to pick out a handset that’s tailored to your specific needs, whether that relates to budget or function. I’ve answered some of your frequently asked questions at the bottom of this guide, while the reviews below cover some of the best Android phones for a range of requirements. Before I get started, though, here’s a quick look at my top five:
The best Android smartphones in 2026: At a glance
How to choose the best Android smartphone
You can pay anywhere between £100 and £2,000 for a modern Android smartphone, with manufacturers able to pick from a range of components to meet a wide selection of budgets. This guide generally focuses on the middle of that price scale, where most high-quality smartphones can be found, with one or two noteworthy exceptions.
At a basic level, every single Android phone offers the ability to place calls, send and receive messages, take photographs and run applications for popular services such as Netflix or Uber. However, the quality and consistency of each of those elements – as well as practical matters such as battery life
Besides establishing how much you’re prepared to pay for your phone, it’s important to decide on the design that you’re most comfortable using. Android phones come in a range of shapes and sizes, from compact rectangles that can be operated with one hand, to large ‘foldables’ that physically unfurl to the size of a small tablet. Again, most phones fall somewhere in between those two extremes, but we’ve considered a range of size options.
