Today’s leading phone manufacturers are evolving and innovating faster than ever, with features such as foldable screens, 5G connectivity and super AMOLED displays. When it comes to Android, Samsung’s Galaxy line dominates and has no intentions of stopping (in fact, Samsung is gearing up for its third Unpacked event this season). But other companies are gunning for the title of the best Android phone — and all this competition directly benefits you.
There are now a number of fantastic Android phones available at a variety of prices, ranging from high-end flagship phones to budget devices. We took a look at them all and rounded up our favorites, which we keep up to date. These phones have great battery lives, screens, cameras or all of the above. We also took into consideration features such as a fingerprint scanner, wireless charging and expandable storage. Read on to see our top picks for the best Android phone options and check out our tips on how to buy a new phone too.
Read more: Best phones of 2020
Watch this: What to look for when buying a phone
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As Samsung’s flagship phone for 2020, the Galaxy S20 features a brilliant 6.2-inch AMOLED display with an ultra-smooth 120Hz refresh rate, reverse wireless charging, a water-resistant design and three rear cameras (in addition to its pretty good front camera). This Android device a fantastic daily driver for an Android user and if you have more to spend, there’s also the Galaxy S20 Plus and Ultra. Read our Samsung Galaxy S20 5G review.
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Pixel phones have a loyal following and with good reason. Without considering its price, Google’s Pixel 4A has a top-notch camera performance that takes brilliant photos. But it’s even better that the budget smartphone costs $349 (£349, AU$599). The 5.81-inch handset also features a headphone jack, 128GB of storage out of the box and a better battery life than last year’s Pixel 4. Read our Google Pixel 4A review.
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The Note 20 Ultra, along with its smaller counterpart the Note 20, is a pricey, ultrapremium Android phone with an expansive screen, an embedded S Pen stylus and 5G. The Note 20 Ultra also has a triple-rear camera array, the high-powered Snapdragon 865 Plus processor and reverse wireless charging. It comes with either 128GB or 512GB of internal storage. Read our Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra review.
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While OnePlus isn’t as well-known as Apple or Samsung, the OnePlus 8 and 8 Pro smartphone offers a premium experience at a relatively more affordable budge phone price than its rivals. As the more advanced Android smartphone, the OnePlus 8 Pro has a 120Hz display and a telephoto camera. But the OnePlus 8 is more affordable and still has 5G, a fast 90Hz display and the same top-of-the-line processor. Read our OnePlus 8 review.
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The Motorola Edge Plus has pretty much everything you’d hope for in a premium 5G phone: A Snapdragon 865 chipset, a giant battery, an OLED screen with a high refresh rate and multiple rear cameras with heavy-duty specs. Motorola took features found on other top-of-the-line Android phones, put its own Moto spin on them and built them all into one of our favorite Android phones of the year. Read our Motorola Edge Plus review.
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In addition to its main Galaxy S flagship phones, Samsung has a more cost-conscious A series line of phones. This year it launched the Galaxy A51 for $399 (£329, AU$599) — though there is a 5G variant that costs $499. The device has four cameras, an in-screen fingerprint reader and expandable storage. Read our Galaxy A51 review.
