If you're on the hunt for the best Android smartphone around, you've come to the right place. We've put all the major Google-powered handsets through their paces to give you our best Android phones round-down.
There's one key way in which Android is massively different from its Apple-branded smartphone competition – the number of phones out there running Google's hot mobile OS.
- Best smartphone: the 15 top phones we've tested
- Best cheap phone: head here if you need a device under £200
Update: The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus, Galaxy S10 and S10e have all been through our in-depth review process and they've managed to nab a place in our best Android phone list. Read on to find out where they place.
The big names are all here. The many variations in screen size, processor power, software features and design makes finding the best Android phone for you extremely tough.
And it's set to get tougher, with the Nokia 9 PureView, Huawei P30 and Huawei P30 Pro all set for a full review soon, plus with the launch of the Sony Xperia 1, LG G8, LG G8S and V50 ThinQ our best Android phones list could witness more changes over the coming weeks.
To help find the most fitting Android phone for you, we've rounded up the best Android handsets out there today, rating the phones on hardware performance, OS upgrade potential and, of course, how shiny and nice they are to have and boast about to work colleagues.
So here they are – the best Android phones money can buy today.
The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus is the best Android phone you can buy right now, packing the best of what Samsung has to offer.
It's a big phone that's designed for big hands – and it takes the very best of what's on the smartphone market and puts it together in a compelling package that we've loved testing.
The Super AMOLED 6.4-inch display has been measured as the very best around, with super colours, plus there's a fingerprint scanner embedded in the display.
Battery life is an improvement over the S9 Plus, thanks to the larger 4,100mAh battery inside and you also get Samsung's new Wireless PowerShare, allowing you to wirelessly charge other devices on the rear of the handset.
The trio of cameras on the rear of the Galaxy S10 Plus are among the best on the market, offering more features, shooting modes and overall clarity.
Read more: Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus review
Image Credit: TechRadar
It's close at the top, with Huawei snapping at Samsung's heels it's never been tougher for the South Korean firm, but its latest flagship duo just about sneak in a one-two positioning.
The bigger S10 Plus is by far Samsung's best phone, but the standard S10 backs almost all the same top-end features into a more compact form factor and slightly lower price tag (but still steep).
The Samsung Galaxy S10 gets proper under-the-hood upgrades. You’ll like all of these powerful features, while your friends will like the new Wireless PowerShare perk – it helps them out more than you.
Read our in-depth Samsung Galaxy S10 review
Image Credit: TechRadar
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is the best phone from the Chinese firm to date, offering up a heady mix of design, power and performance with a party piece in the form of an in-display fingerprint scanner thrown in too.
The Mate 20 Pro packs a huge 6.39-inch display giving you a lots of space for gaming and movies, and its QHD resolution and HDR10 support ensures everything looks great.
It also comes with three rear cameras, nabbing the excellent 40MP wide-angle and 8MP telephoto lenses from the P20 Pro – but the third sensor is new. It's an ultra-wide 16MP snapper allowing you to cram even more of your surroundings into each shot.
The Mate 20 Pro is a full-featured phone for a full-featured price – it even has a few tricks you won’t see elsewhere, and more powerful specs than most of its competitors.
Read more: Huawei Mate 20 Pro review
Image Credit: Samsung
It's a Samsung one-two, and the South Korean features again with Galaxy Note 9 in at four in our best Android phones lists.
The Galaxy Note 9 boasts a huge screen and a huge amount of power under the hood, plus there's the iconic S Pen stylus which slides into the body of the phone for safe keeping.
It means the Note 9 offers a huge array of productivity functions few phones can compete with, but the overall package isn't quite as finessed as the Galaxy S10 Plus – not to mention its high price tag.
For power users who want a phone that will doing pretty much anything they ask of it, the Galaxy Note 9 is a top choice.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy Note 9
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What's this? Another Huawei phone in the top five? Your eyes do not deceive you, the Huawei P20 Pro really is fifth in our best Android phone rundown.
After years of threatening the top players in the smartphone game without really worrying them, 2018 saw a significant uptick from the Chinese firm and the beautiful P20 Pro.
The triple camera setup on the rear of the P20 Pro provides great flexibility – and an excellent low-light mode – while the battery life comfortably gets through a day.
Then there's the eye-catching, two-tone finish on the rear which really sets the P20 Pro apart from the competition.
Read our full review: Huawei P20 Pro
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If you're looking for a the best camera phone on the market, look no further. The single rear snapper on the Google Pixel 3 XL (and the smaller Pixel 3) is the best we've come across.
You also get a big screen, decent battery life and plenty of power under the hood, making the Google Pixel 3 XL a great all-round flagship smartphone.
The Google Pixel 3 XL marries the best camera phone we’ve ever tested with a sizable OLED screen. It’s the right fit for people who don’t mind the notch cut out at the top and have already adjusted their grip for bigger smartphones in the past.
Read more: Google Pixel 3 XL review
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Like the look of the new S10 and S10 Plus, but not a fan of their lofty price tags? Well fear not, as Samsung has catered for you with the Galaxy S10e.
The Galaxy S10e has many of the flagship features of its pricier siblings, while offering a more palm-friendly size and a few compromises to help keep the cost down.
It’s hard not to recommend the S10e to anyone who prefers a smaller phone. Size queens, look elsewhere – this smartphone is for folks who want to text and browse apps one-handed without compromising performance.
Read our in-depth Samsung Galaxy S10e review
Image Credit: TechRadar
The price of flagship phones are rising every year, but you don't need to pay top dollar for a top-notch experience.
OnePlus offers flagship phones at a lower price point and while its first few handsets didn't trouble the established names, its more recent efforts have really pushed the likes of Samsung, Apple and co.
You get the latest flagship power under the hood, a huge screen, dual rear cameras and an in-display fingerprint scanner included with the OnePlus 6T.
The OnePlus 6T is a good-looking and powerful smartphone that can compete with handsets from the larger and more established brands on the market while undercutting them in price.
Read more: OnePlus 6T review
The Honor View 20 is the best phone to come out of the Chinese brand, with a striking rear design (which may divide opinion), plenty of power under the hood, an impressive 48MP camera and a 'punch-hole' display which ushers in the post-notch revolution.
There's a huge 6.4-inch display on the View 20, giving you plenty of space to play with. It's the location of the front-facing, 25MP camera within the screen which is the real talking point though, as rather than appearing in a bezel or a notch which juts into the screen, it's surround by screen.
The Honor View 20 has a big 4,000mAh and the result is a battery which will comfortably last through an entire day and into the next on a single charge. It's also the world's first smartphone to boast a 48MP rear camera, as the firm has used Sony's new sensor to provide a camera which really packs a punch.
An ultra-high-resolution camera and punch hole screen are the highlights on the Honor View 20, and they set a standard this year’s more expensive phones will need to match.
Read more: Honor View 20 review
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The Google Pixel 3 is the smaller sibling to the Pixel 3 XL, with a smaller screen and battery, but the same power and excellent camera under the hood.
This is a great handset for those looking for a top-flight phone that can be used comfortably with one hand (although those with smaller palms may need both still).
If you're looking for a compact flagship smartphone with a class-leading camera experience the Google Pixel 3 is the best Android phone for the job.
Read more: Google Pixel 3 review
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