Best smartphones to buy in 2021

By Andrew Williams

Published: Tuesday, 16 November 2021 at 12:00 am

Is your contract about to expire? Have you decided it’s time to buy a new phone? There are loads of great handsets out there, but this will be something you’ll have to use every day, possibly for years. Feeling the pressure yet? 

Don’t worry; we are here to help. Our experts have used many of the best and worst phones around, so here’s our selection of the top models you can buy in 2021.

Looking for more of the latest releases from Apple? Be sure to read our iPhone 13 mini review, iPhone 13 review, iPhone Pro review and iPhone 13 Pro Max review. For more on the latest Android device and how it compares, don’t miss our in-depth Google Pixel 6 Pro review and this iPhone 13 Pro vs Pixel 6 Pro guide.

Jump to:

How to choose the best smartphone

How much should you spend on a new smartphone in 2021? We think they start to get interesting around the £200 mark. But in this round-up, we’re not going to focus too much on the lower end of the market. If that’s what you’re looking for, read our guides to the best budget smartphone for affordable alternatives.

Mid-range phones cost anything from around £350 to £700. Here you get a phone that, in many ways, will feel very similar to the most expensive phones going. If this price bracket is for you, read our best mid-range phone guide.

So why should you pay the big bucks? A few features you just don’t tend to get in mid-tier mobiles include long zoom cameras, which now extend as far as 10x in some phones, and ultra-high resolution screens. Some budget models have slightly lesser build quality, trading aluminium or glass for plastic to lower costs.

When our experts put a handset through its paces, they consider battery, cameras, specs and features, design, set-up, connectivity, storage and more.

So it’s worth spending a little time working out which of these is most important to you when buying a phone. Do you need a large screen to stream films and play games? Or, is a brilliant camera the deciding factor? Try our best 5G phone, best iPhone and best camera phone guides if these factors are important to you.

Read on for the best smartphones to buy in 2021.

Best phones to buy at a glance

Best smartphones to buy in 2021

Apple iPhone 13 Pro, from £949

Best iPhone for most people

"iPhone

Pros

  • Incredible camera setup
  • Sharp, clear display
  • Responsive and fast

Cons:

  • Expensive compared to some rival phones
  • Lacks some of the power of the 13 Pro Max

Alongside the Pro Max, the iPhone 13 Pro is Apple’s premium flagship smartphone this year – and we consider it to be the best iOS handset for most people. Yes, it’s an expensive piece of tech, and the same can be said for the previous model. The iPhone 13 Pro has a stunning display, great software performance, strong battery life, 5G connectivity and a highly-impressive 12 MP triple camera setup. 

As our tech expert wrote in our iPhone 13 Pro review: [The phone] represents the best option of the entire iPhone 13 range because it combines next-level hardware with optimised software, all within a form factor that will suit most people.”

Buy the Apple iPhone 13 Pro: