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The best Samsung phone isn't the most expensive one.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
The best Samsung phone has the performance, camera quality, and features you want at a price within your budget.
It would be too easy to say the top overall Samsung phone is the Galaxy S24 Ultra — the $1,300 model that's in a league of its own in terms of price and features. It's a very good phone, but recommending the most expensive of anything is too obvious and doesn't consider value.
Rather, the best Samsung phone for most people is the Galaxy S24, which starts at $800. It includes many of the premium features that Samsung has to offer for the best value and a more reasonable, traditional price. For more conservative spending habits, Samsung's $450 Galaxy A54 is the budget Samsung phone of choice. It's not as powerful as Samsung's flagship series, but its camera is capable, and battery life is very impressive.
Best camera: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra - See at Amazon
Best battery life: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra - See at Amazon
Best small phone: Samsung Galaxy S24 - See at Amazon
Best foldable phone: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 - See at Amazon
Best overall
Samsung's Galaxy S24 contains the vast majority of Samsung's premium features, including the company's latest AI software features, for the biggest bang for your buck. Unless you specifically value a larger display and faster charging speeds, there's little reason to spend $200 more on the Galaxy S24 Plus.
In the same vein, unless you specifically value a larger display, longer battery life, faster charging, and Samsung's S Pen stylus, there's little reason to upgrade to the Galaxy S24 Ultra for $500 more.
The Galaxy S24 is the top phone we recommend from Samsung as it contains the majority of Samsung's high-end features for the best value.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
The $800 Galaxy S24 basically has the same performance as the $1,000 Galaxy S24 Plus and $1,300 Galaxy S24 Ultra, as all three models run on the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Optimized for Galaxy processor. Where the Galaxy S24 differs is with its 8GB RAM compared to the 12GB you get standard on the larger models. It resulted in slightly lower benchmark numbers in our testing, but we couldn't tell the difference in normal daily use.
The Galaxy S24 also features the same triple-lens camera system and takes photos in identical quality as the Galaxy S24 Plus, so there's no upgrade by spending $1,000 here.
You'll also find the Galaxy S24 has a similar display with an adaptive 1-120Hz refresh rate, but it's limited to 1080p resolution compared to the 1440p resolution of the Galaxy S24 Plus. While technically an upgrade, we found the Galaxy S24's 1080p resolution to be more than sharp enough, and we'd even use the same resolution on the larger Galaxy S24 models, too.
The Galaxy S24 scored surprisingly well in our battery test, ending with a 58% result compared to Galaxy S24 Plus' 60%. The only disappointing thing about the Galaxy S24 is its comparatively slow 25W charging speed compared to the 45W charging speed on the larger models. Still, it's not a reason to ignore the Galaxy S24.
Realizing that some prefer larger displays regardless of the higher price tag, the Galaxy S24 Plus comes in at a close second, with the added benefit of slightly longer battery life and faster 45W charging.
Best budget
In the sub-$500 price range, Samsung's Galaxy A54 will serve you nicely with its 120Hz 6.4-inch display and superb battery life at $450.
Indeed, the Galaxy A54 obtained one of the best scores after enduring our battery test with 65% remaining. That's Galaxy S24 Ultra territory, where the phone scored 66% after our battery test. To top it off, the phone supports 25W charging, which is on the fast side in the budget realm.
The Galaxy A54 is the Samsung phone we'd recommend in the budget range.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
The Galaxy A54's excellent battery life pairs nicely with the mid-range Samsung Exynos 1380 processor, which is fairly snappy when running apps, but it can be a little stuttery when opening apps and swiping around the Android operating system. We would expect smoother performance for the price, but it's par for the course with more affordable Samsung phones.
Photo quality from the main 50MP camera and 12MP ultrawide lens can be surprisingly good and easily mistaken for photos taken with a more expensive premium device. At the same time, the Galaxy A54 can also deliver mediocre results where the lighting is excessively brightened. Still, even mediocre photos serve their purpose to capture a memory.
We realize the Galaxy A54's $450 price is high for a budget option, and we feel comfortable in suggesting the Galaxy A15 if your budget is closer to $200. We haven't tested the Galaxy A15 yet, but based on our experience with the Galaxy A14, it should offer a solid experience for the price.
Best camera
With its four camera lenses, the Galaxy S24 Ultra has the best and most versatile camera system among Samsung's latest phone lineup.
Photos taken with the Galaxy S24 Ultra's 200MP main camera don't actually look much better than the Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus' photos taken with their 50MP main cameras. Samsung uses the same 10MP 3x zoom camera for all three models, so photos are identical here.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra and its four cameras offer the best and most versatile camera experience out of any Samsung phone.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
However, the Galaxy S24 Ultra's fourth camera — a 50MP 5x zoom lens — sets it apart. It takes significantly sharper photos of objects and subjects further away at 5x magnification than the 3x lenses common to all the Galaxy S24 models. The 5x lens can also take shots up to 10x in full optical quality without employing digital zoom that degrades quality, thanks to cropping the 50MP sensor's center pixels.
In this regard, the Galaxy S24's Ultra 5x zoom lens is actually an upgrade from the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 10x zoom lens, as it takes sharper photos between the 3x and 10x zoom ranges, where most people tend to zoom, according to Samsung.
Best battery life
The Galaxy S24 Ultra holds the best score of Samsung's phones in our battery test.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
As is the case with most phone lineups, it's the larger model that has the best battery life. The Galaxy S24 Ultra ended our battery test with 66% remaining, while the Galaxy S24 Plus ended with 60% and the base Galaxy S24 with 58%. That's a significant difference that has the potential to change your daily charging habit, especially if you're used to smaller phones.
Our battery test puts phones through four tests designed to simulate a mix of heavy and light use. Five runs of the Geekbench 6 CPU test and two runs of the 3D Mark Wild Life Stress Test mimic heavy use, while two hours of video streaming and one hour of music streaming when connected to a Bluetooth speaker mimic light use. At the end of the test, we record the remaining battery percentage, with higher scores suggesting a phone has better battery life.
At the very least, it should impart more confidence that your phone will comfortably last your entire day, even if you have a lot of screen-on time.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra's score is surprisingly good, considering its 5,000mAh battery is only 100mAh larger than the Galaxy S24 Plus. In addition, the Galaxy S24 Ultra's display is only 0.1 inch larger than the Galaxy S24 Plus. With that in mind, we'd expect better battery life from the Galaxy S24 Plus, but 60% is still an excellent result.
Best small phone
The Galaxy S24's 6.2-inch display and narrow borders make for an efficient use of space and a comfortable, compact phone.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
Those who prefer phones with smaller displays will be pleased to know that the best small Samsung phone is also our top pick for Samsung phones— the Galaxy S24.
The Galaxy S24 has a 6.2-inch display, which makes it easier to reach everything on the display with one-handed use than most Samsung phones that come with larger displays. Being the smallest, the Galaxy S24 is also one of the lightest Samsung phones at 5.9 ounces.
The overall size of the Galaxy S24 is also compact thanks to the efficient narrow borders around the display that waste as little space as possible.
The Galaxy S24's battery life doesn't suffer as much from being a small phone. It scored a 58% in our battery test, which is incredibly close to the Galaxy S24 Plus' 60% score with its large 6.7-inch display. That's an amazing feat considering its 4,000mAh battery compared to the Galaxy S24 Plus' 4,900mAh battery.
If you're looking for a foldable phone from Samsung, we'd recommend the Galaxy Z Fold 5 before the Galaxy Z Flip 5, as the Fold 5's tablet-hybrid design is more versatile and potentially useful than the Flip 5's compact design.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 is the foldable to buy from Samsung.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Business Insider
When folded, the Z Fold 5 has a 6.2-inch exterior screen that runs at a seamless 120Hz and offers the basic functionality of a traditional phone screen. When unfolded, the phone becomes a lightweight tablet with a 7.6-inch display, which also runs effortlessly at 120Hz.
These factors alone separate the Z Fold 5 from the Z Flip 5 and justify the $800 gap in starting price between them.
In contrast, the clamshell-style Z Flip 5, which starts at $1,000, has a 3.4-inch exterior display that offers comparatively limited use as a notification screen, a viewfinder for the main cameras, a means to control music, and write messages. Unfolding the Z Flip 5 to reveal the 6.7-inch display only offers a standard phone experience, and we find it's a hassle to unfold the phone whenever you need to use it in any meaningful way.
The best Samsung phone in 2024 is the Galaxy S24, as it offers the best overall combination of performance and features for the price. It's also our top pick for the best small Samsung phone and among the best Android phones you can buy.
We're aware that many Android users prefer larger displays, and we wholeheartedly recommend the Galaxy S24 Plus, too — it's essentially a larger version of the Galaxy S24. Just be aware that it's $200 more for the extra display size.
We also recommend several other Samsung phones according to specific criteria.
The best Samsung phone for a more affordable price is the Galaxy A54. It has a midsize 6.4-inch display that runs at 120Hz, just like a premium phone. Its cameras can take surprisingly good photos for the price, but they can mess up sometimes, too. Performance is speedy, but animations can seem choppy at times, like during swipes and when opening apps.
The best camera phone from Samsung is the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which offers a stellar four-camera system and is the lone phone from the company to feature a 5x optical zoom lens.
Samsung's best foldable phone is the Galaxy Z Fold 5, a versatile device that can operate as a 6.2-inch phone or a 7.6-inch tablet.
We expect that Samsung's next major phone release will be the Galaxy A55 in March to replace the Galaxy A54 released in March 2023.
Best overall: Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus
Samsung's outstanding Galaxy S23 Plus is our top pick as we have nearly no complaints about it.
Antonio Villas Boas/Insider
Pros: Exceptional battery life, excellent three-camera system, stellar performance, lightweight for its large screen size
Cons: Some bloatware, infrequent shutter lag
Though the Galaxy S23 Ultra is nominally Samsung's top-line phone in 2023, the Galaxy S23 Plus offers a better overall balance of performance, cameras, and features relative to its price.
Indeed, the Galaxy S23 Plus is a supremely well-balanced phone with all the specs anyone would want in a premium phone, and it has a lower price tag and better battery life than the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
The Galaxy S23 Plus obtained the best result in our battery test among Samsung's current lineup while offering a large, 6.6-inch screen that runs at 120Hz. Apps open and run quickly and smoothly, and the phone's performance overall feels buttery smooth thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Optimized for Galaxy processor — the same processor in the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
The three cameras on the back of the Galaxy S23 Plus take high-quality photos, and we saw no reason to upgrade to the Galaxy S23 Ultra's for its 200MP main camera in our testing. The Galaxy S23 Plus' selfie camera — the same one found in the Galaxy S23 Ultra — is also the best in recent memory for a Samsung phone.
There's very little we can say against the Galaxy S23 Plus — not only is it the best Samsung phone overall, we also crowned it the best overall Android phone you can buy.
The Galaxy A14 5G is a surprisingly capable phone for its $200 price tag, and among Samsung's A series phones, it offers the best balance of features and affordability.
While the A14 isn't as quick to open apps as the flagship Galaxy S23 series, or even the $450 Galaxy A54, it still runs apps smoothly on a 90Hz screen — a spec we wouldn't expect on a phone in this price range.
For $200, the Galaxy A14 also comes with a large 6.6-inch display and a surprisingly sharp 1080p resolution, the same resolution offered by the Galaxy S23 Plus. (The Galaxy A14's display isn't nearly as bright as the Galaxy S23 Plus', however, a factor that is especially noticeable in bright sunlight, but it poses no problems indoors.)
You'll see three camera lenses on the rear of the Galaxy A14's textured plastic back, but you'll likely only use one of them, the 50MP main camera. One of the other cameras is a 2MP macro lens for those niche up-close shots of rain drops on a leaf, but it's not sharp at all. The other is a depth sensor to help the main camera take portrait mode shots, and it doesn't take photos.
The 50MP main camera takes photos with solid color, contrast, and brightness. It's a capable camera if your budget is in the $200 range, but if camera quality is a priority and you can stretch your budget, we'd rather recommend the Galaxy A54, which starts at $450, for better photos (and performance).
Like the A54, the Galaxy A14 lacks wireless charging. The A14 supports 15W charging speeds, which is slow, but acceptable in this price range.
Samsung's Galaxy S23 Ultra is the best Samsung camera phone thanks to its unmatched versatility and excellent photo quality.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Insider
Pros: Stellar four-camera system, impressive 10x zoom lens, smooth 120Hz display, S Pen useful for on-device photo editing
Cons: Screen may be too large for some, expensive relative to competition
With its four camera lenses, the Galaxy S23 Ultra has the best camera system among Samsung's latest phone lineup.
All of Samsung's flagship Galaxy S23 phones take similarly excellent photos, but the Galaxy S23 Ultra's exclusive fourth 10x zoom lens gives it the most versatility relative to the company's other phones that top out with 3x zoom cameras. It means you can take significantly better photos of faraway objects and subjects than any other Samsung phone, or any other phone, for that matter.
Having a 10x zoom camera not only means you can take crisp, clear, fully detailed photos at 10x zoom, but it also means you can take acceptable, even decent, photos beyond 10x. Apart from older Galaxy Ultra phones with 10x zoom lenses, no other Samsung phone can compete in this regard.
Samsung was mindful that micro jitters from shaky hands will result in a blurry photo at such high-zoom ranges. The Galaxy S23 Ultra has excellent optical image stabilization (OIS) that greatly reduces the micro jitters from your hands. Just note you still need to be quite still — the Galaxy S23 Ultra's OIS is impressive, but it's not miraculous.
You might be wondering whether the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 200MP main camera offers better photos than the 50MP main cameras on Samsung's other Galaxy S23 flagships. We actually couldn't see any improvement in the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 200MP main camera over the 50MP main cameras from the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Plus, even in low light photos where so many megapixels could be a benefit.
That's great news for those who find the Galaxy S23 Ultra too expensive for their budgets, and for those who don't necessarily want a 10x zoom lens.
The Galaxy S23 Plus has the best battery life in the Galaxy S23 series, and it supports up to 45W charging speeds.
Antonio Villas-Boas/Insider
"The larger the phone screen, the longer the battery life" is a maxim one can typically apply to newer smartphones. However, that's not the case with Samsung's latest lineup.
The Galaxy S23 Plus with its 6.6-inch screen finished our battery stress test with 67% remaining, while the 6.8-inch Galaxy S23 Ultra finished with 61%.
It's a surprising result, as the Galaxy S23 Plus has a smaller 4,700mAh battery than the 5,000mAh battery in the Galaxy S23 Ultra. Still, when each phone performed five runs of the Geekbench 5 CPU test, two runs of the 3DMark Wild Life Stress Test, two hours of video streaming, and one hour of music streaming with Bluetooth headphones, the Galaxy S23 Plus came out on top.
The Galaxy S23 Plus also supports the same 45W charging speeds and 15W wireless charging speeds as the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which means it's among the fastest charging models in Samsung's contemporary lineup.
Cons: Slower charging speed (25W) than other S23 models, some bloatware, infrequent shutter lag
The Galaxy S23 is basically a smaller version of the Galaxy S23 Plus, our top pick for the best Samsung phone overall. It runs on the same processor and has the same triple-lens camera, and its display runs at the same silky-smooth 120Hz.
It does all that while sporting a smaller 6.1-inch screen and a lighter weight that some may find more comfortable.
Apart from size, the only major difference between the standard S23 and the S23 Plus is battery life, where the former scored lower in our battery stress test (56% remaining). However, that's expected in a smaller phone.
It's also worth mentioning the Galaxy S23 only supports 25W charging speeds while the Galaxy S23 Plus supports 45W, which is baffling, but not a deal breaker if you prefer smaller phones.
If you're looking for a foldable phone from Samsung, we'd recommend the Galaxy Z Fold 5 first thanks to its full-size exterior display and greater versatility, which make it worth its hefty $1,800 starting price, and it's available now for $500 off at Amazon. The Z Flip 5's larger cover display means it's more versatile than previous models, but ultimately, you still need to unfold the Z Flip 5 to do anything meaningful on the device.
When folded, the Z Fold 5 has a 6.2-inch exterior screen that runs at a seamless 120Hz and operates as a stellar (though thicker-than-usual) small-screen phone. When unfolded, the phone's interior display acts as a lightweight, 7.6-inch tablet that also runs effortlessly at 120Hz.
These factors alone separate the Z Fold 5 from the Z Flip 5 and justify the $800 gap in starting price between them.
In contrast, the clamshell-style Z Flip 5, which typically starts at $1,000, has a 3.4-inch exterior display that essentially acts as an always-on display for notifications, as a viewfinder for the main cameras, to control music and other media, and even reply to a text. Still, the phone needs to be unfolded, which becomes a tiresome requirement very quickly, and it feels like a compromise compared to regular phones.
Worthy of note, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 has an updated hinge design that allows it to fold completely flat. It's a welcome evolution to hinges from previous Fold models, which left a gap at the hinge and not only looked less sleek, but also increased the risk of display scratches from dirt and debris.
The best Samsung phone in 2023 is the Galaxy S23 Plus, in our assessment, as it offers the best overall combination of performance, features, and price. It has the best battery life of any Samsung phone we've tested and has the widest potential appeal.
We also recommend several other Samsung phones according to specific criteria.
The best Samsung phone you can get for a low cost is the Galaxy A14 5G, a capable budget phone that outperforms its $200 price tag.
The best camera phone from Samsung is the Galaxy S23 Ultra, which offers a stellar four-camera system and is the lone phone from the company to feature a 10x zoom lens.
Samsung's best phone with a small screen is the 6.1-inch Galaxy S23, the smaller sibling of our top overall pick, the Galaxy S23 Plus.
Samsung's best foldable phone is the Galaxy Z Fold 5, a versatile device that can operate as a 6.2-inch phone or a 7.6-inch tablet.
What is the latest Samsung phone?
Samsung's newest phones are the latest additions to its foldable lineup, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Galaxy Z Fold 5, which hit stores in August 2023.
