Best phone 2022: the top smartphones you can buy in the US right now
This year, we can't ignore the high price of a new smartphone. Our top pick is the iPhone 14 Pro, a phone that is polished, reliable, and expensive. We think the price is justified by Apple's service and support, as well as the high trade-in value this phone retains after a year or two.
Our previous top pick, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, is simply too expensive, with too many features that most users won't need. We can't keep it at the top, but you can find much of Samsung's innovation and technology in the Galaxy A53, a phone that is such a tremendous bargain that we are pushing it near the top of our best phones list.
We've spent the last 15 years pushing hundreds of smartphones to their limit to find which truly live up to the manufacturers' claims. We've subjected them to multi-day testing. We run down the battery, we examine the camera, and most importantly, we live with the phones exactly the way you live with yours.
So, whether you're looking for the best iPhone, the best Android phone, or the best budget phone, we're just the phone experts to find you the right match. Our phones guide below should help narrow down your choices as well.
It's dominated by models from Apple and Samsung. We have confidence in these brands, not only because they make great phones, but because they support devices well with software updates and easy hardware repairs. Google is also a familiar face on this list, and you'll even find OnePlus phones make an appearance.
Of course, your particular cell phone plan may sway your preference, especially since certain carriers often provide great cell phone deals while others don't. Part of choosing the best phone is picking a phone that you can trade later and retrieve much of its value.
We've had a strong phone launch season and we don't expect to shake up this best phone list again before the end of the year. Early next year we'll start to see launches from Samsung, OnePlus, and others, so be sure to check back when you're looking for something new
Why it's ranked 1st: Apple's iPhone 14 Pro is the most intuitive, well-designed smartphone, packed with every feature we'd want. Apple's continued service and support, with high trade-in value, make this our top pick.
Screen: The iPhone 14 Pro has the brightest screen of any smartphone, capable of an outdoor boost to 2000 nits. It's super sharp and very fast, with a 120Hz refresh rate. Instead of the familiar 'notch,' Apple now uses a punch-hole for cameras it calls the Dynamic Island.
Battery life: The iPhone 14 Pro has a larger battery than its predecessor, but we can't say that battery life has been significantly improved, and we wonder if Apple's iOS is to blame. We're hoping to see improvements in future OS updates.
Camera: The Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max has the highest-resolution camera in any iPhone, as well as a 3x optical zoom camera and ultra-wide camera that can handle macro photography. Shooting is very easy and automated.
Read more: iPhone 14 Pro review | iPhone 14 Pro Max review
Today's best Apple iPhone 14 Pro and Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max deals
Samsung's Galaxy S phones represent the cutting edge best phones around, but today we need a phone that gives us the most features for the least money, and the Galaxy A53 is best bargain phone you can buy. Between the advanced cameras, the great screen, and the premium design, the Galaxy A53 is an easy phone to recommend.
Why it’s ranked 2nd: We are prioritizing our budget, and the Galaxy A53 has all of it's priorities straight. It has a huge camera array, with four different lenses, giving you tons of options. It has a great screen, solid battery life, and it's water resistant. For the price, what you get is truly remarkable.
Screen: The A53 comes with an attractive screen that has the same resolution and refresh rate as the S22. In fact, apart from the size, most people aren't likely to see that big of a difference between this budget phone's display and that of the S22. If you're particular about the specs, you're getting a 6.5-inch panel with an FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, and 800 nits max brightness.
Pixel 7 Pro isn't just the best Pixel, it's one of the best phones you can buy all around. Google improves on many of the basics, with promise of more to come. Android finally feels like a mature, thoughtful system that is easy to use, and the Pixel 7 Pro does much of the work for you in every task.
Why it’s ranked 3rd: We think the Google Pixel 7 Pro is the best Android phone you can buy right now, but it is still expensive, even though Pixel phones are priced less than the competition. It has amazing cameras and some advanced software features you won't find on any other phones, making it a top choice.
Screen: The Google Pixel 7 Pro uses a fantastic 6.7-inch display. Like the iPhone 14 Pro, it uses LTPO OLED technology, so it can remain always-on without draining much battery. It has a 1440 x 3120 resolution, with a 512ppi that is even sharper than the iPhone or Galaxy S22 Ultra. It can reach 1500 nits peak brightness.
Battery life: The Pixel 7 Pro uses a 5000 mAh battery, as large as any of our best phones, and it can last a full day in our tests, but not more than that. It charges at 30W, which is slower than we'd like. You can charge it wirelessly up to 23W, and it can even reverse power to wirelessly charge other devices.
Camera: There are three cameras on the back of the Google Pixel 7 Pro: a 50MP f/1.9 main camera, a 48MP f/3.5 telephoto with 5X zoom, and a 12MP f/2.2 ultra wide lens with larger sensor pixels, capable of macro photography. The real photo magic happens in software, as the Pixel 7 Pro can use Google Photos to unblur your old images, even photos the Pixe
OnePlus 10 Pro is the top choice for OnePlus fans. This fairly new release has a fantastic display, plenty of power under the hood, and fast charging capabilities. The best part is that it's more affordable than rival Pro phones.
Why it's ranked 8th: One of the most powerful Android phones right now, the OnePlus 10 Pro is also an affordable way to get into the pro-level smartphone market. It has amazing cameras and performance specs that can go toe-to-toe with some of its best rivals – like the Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus, for example.
Screen: The phone’s 6.7-inch 2K Fluid AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate makes streaming TV shows, playing games, or devouring social media content such a pleasure. That's especially thanks to its high max brightness of 1,300 nits and the OnePlus' LTPO 2.0 tech for automatic refresh rate changing. The phone also supports a billion colors and HDR10+.
Battery life: There’s a big 5,000mAh battery here, but that bright and fast screen – not to mention a powerful processor – keeps the battery life middle-of-the-road. It should give you a whole day of use, however, and fast-charging is on hand when you do run out of battery. That 65W charging (US only) should let it go from zero to full in no time.
Camera: Taking photos and videos is among the OnePlus 10 Pro's greatest strengths, thanks to the 48MP f/1.8 main, 50MP f/2.2 ultrawide and 8MP f/2.4 telephoto (for 3.3x optical zoom) camera trio that delivers great performance. Your photos will come out well-lit, vibrant, and detailed – even the wide-angle ones.
Read more: OnePlus 10 Pro review