Best cheap Android phones 2024

The best cheap Android phones are ideal for anyone who wants a well-rounded smartphone without having to spend a fortune. Offering everything from flagship-grade hardware to years of software updates, these devices cost no more than $500. However, most of them can be had for even less during festive season sales such as Black Friday.

Of course, these sub-$500 smartphones lack some features that are usually found in top-tier flagships, but that's to be expected. What's important to know here is that the omission of some 'nice-to-have' features doesn't impact the overall user experience, at least not for the majority of the users out there. At Android Central, we test a truckload of phones every year, so all our recommendations are backed by first-hand experience.

The Google Pixel 8a remains our overall favorite, offering top-of-the-line camera quality, loads of AI-powered features, and a comfortable design. Then there's the OnePlus 12R, which gives you incredible performance, a gorgeous AMOLED screen, and blazing-fast charging speeds, all at an exceptional price. We also quite like the Nothing Phone 2a for its funky glyph lighting, and the Samsung Galaxy A15 5G, which costs less than $200 and yet manages to come with four years of software updates.

Nick Sutrich

Nick grew up in a telecom-savvy household and has been reviewing phones since 2011. Whether it's waxing poetic about Nokia's glory days or flipping open the latest foldable phones, he knows what makes a good phone and can help you understand which one to pick.

At a glance

Best overall

Even in a normal year, the decision between the flagship Pixels and the cheaper A-series models is difficult to put aside, and with the Google Pixel 8a, it's impossible to ignore. Offering almost identical performance—outside the cameras, charging, and screen technology—for $200 less, the Google Pixel 8a makes a very strong case for itself as not just the best cheap Android phone you can buy, but also one of the best Android phones you can buy today, period.

While we usually get minimal year-over-year improvements for Google's Tensor SoC (system-on-a-chip), the Tensor G3 inside the Pixel 8a actually offers a significant performance boost this year. According to the benchmarks we ran, the NPU (neural processing unit) responsible for powering all the fun new AI features performed better inside the Google Pixel 8a, though there was a bit of stumbling while multitasking.

The softer corners and refined design help further solidify the Pixel 8a's position as a flagship in everything but the price and charging speeds, as do the adorable colors like the vibrant-yet-soothing Aloe green and that beautiful bae Bay blue, along with the 6.1-inch, 120Hz Actua display. Google forgoing LTPO technology in the screen means that users sensitive to PWM flicker might need to look elsewhere.

Despite being Google's budget offering, the Pixel 8a is on track to receive the same long-term software update commitment of seven years, just like the rest of the series. I think the cameras are still the highlight here, producing nearly identical results as the last-gen Pixel 7a. And for the shutterbugs and videographers needing more local storage for those TikTok challenge videos, we finally have a 256GB storage option.

Best value flagship

The OnePlus 12R is one of the best unlocked phones you can buy in the US, but those looking for a deal through their carrier are going to be out of luck. If you can plonk down the cash though, you're in for a real treat. With a starting price of just under $500, the OnePlus 12R gets you a flagship chipset, premium design and build quality, a brilliant AMOLED panel, and the quickest charging ever in this segment.

OnePlus' R series of phones is essentially a homage to its roots of making "flagship killer" smartphones, and we're happy to report that the 12R is the first of its kind to finally get a US launch. We're talking Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, a 120Hz LTPO AMOLED display, and 100W wired charging. If that's not enough to get you excited, the OnePlus 12R follows the same design as the flagship OnePlus 12, which means you could easily fool someone with the right case.

In our OnePlus 12R review, we simply loved how the 12R felt every bit as powerful as the more expensive OnePlus 12. Whether it was multitasking or gaming, the phone handled everything without breaking a sweat. Benchmark numbers are a bit lower than 2024's flagships, but that isn't something most people would care about.

The main camera really stands out, delivering flagship-level performance in daylight and low-light situations. The ultrawide is a bit inferior in comparison but is still good enough for this price segment. The software is slick and fluid, and the OnePlus 12R is slated to get three Android OS upgrades. Overall, there's very little to complain here, especially when you consider how much you're paying for this thing.

Best on sale

Considering how much we loved its predecessor, the Pixel 6a, Google had some seriously big shoes to fill with the Pixel 7a. Thankfully, not only did they deliver, but actually exceeded our expectations. It's also why we called it the "best Pixel Google has ever built" in our Google Pixel 7a review last year.

With a starting price of just $499, the Pixel 7a offers some truly outstanding bang for the buck(s), thanks to specs like the Google Tensor G2 chipset (the same found in the more-expensive Pixel 7 Pro), glorious haptics, and camera quality that rivals some of the best Android phones that money can buy. Pound for pound, we found that the Pixel 7a performed just as well as the more expensive Pixel 7 (and Pixel 8) in most of our tests.

You also get Android 14 and five years of Pixel updates guaranteed, along with 7.5W wireless charging (limited but a first for its series). The downsides? The Tensor G2 SoC tends to run pretty hot, so folks who do a lot of mobile gaming or handle heavy workloads might find the phone getting pretty toasty regularly. The Pixel 8a is out now and solves those issues, which is why when the two are being sold at the same price, the Pixel 8a is easily the better buy.

But the Pixel 7a is well over a year old now, and with the upcoming snowstorm of savings known as Black Friday just around the corner, it's likely going to be a whole lot easier to find on sale. If you can save up more than $60 over the usual price, we recommend the 7a over the 8a.

Best design

The Phone 2a is Nothing's first-ever budget smartphone, and it carries the same quirky DNA as its pricier siblings. The transparent back panel, meticulous attention to detail, and the Glyph lights are some of the unique features that make it the best-looking phone in this segment.

In our Nothing Phone 2a review, we were mighty impressed at what the company has pulled off here. The 6.7-inch AMOLED display is pretty to look at, and colors and brightness levels are satisfactory. The phone is driven by a MediaTek Dimensity 7200 Pro SoC, which is more than adequate for casual usage. The see-through back panel looks classy and even though it doesn't have the same premium materials as the higher-end models, it still maintains an excellent in-hand feel.

The Phone 2a has a large 5,000mAh battery with relatively quick 45W charging. The camera specs on paper are also quite good, and from what we tested, they perform very well compared to the other phones in its class.

The only catch with the Nothing Phone 2a is that you can't buy it outright in the US. The company doesn't have any plans (yet) to put it on open sale. However, you can try your luck getting it via Nothing's developer program from its website for $349.

Best for Galaxy fans

The Galaxy A Series continues to be one of Samsung’s greatest achievements, with solid specs and nice designs on mid-range and low-end phones. We were massive fans of the Galaxy A53 and the Galaxy A54, but unfortunately, the Galaxy A55 and its prismatically colored beauty did not come to the United States. Instead, we get the Samsung Galaxy A35, but apart from lacking the A55's metal frame, both phones share most of their design and features.

Boasting a typically vibrant 6.6-inch AMOLED screen with a fluid 120Hz refresh rate alongside the ultra-efficient octa-core Exynos 1380 SoC, a big 5,000mAh battery, 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, the A35 sports almost the exact same internal specs as its predecessors. 

The cameras here are a bit weaker than those on the Galaxy A54—the ultrawide and selfie both cameras are both smaller sensors —but they're going to be just fine for daytime use, and you do get many of the tools from Samsung's camera toolbox that we've come to know and love (or hate, at times!). If you're after camera performance in a $400 phone, you'll want to look for deals on the Google Pixel 7a, after all. 

As with all of the best Samsung phones, device longevity and security are the main selling points of the Galaxy A35. The A35 and A55 are the first among the A-series to support Samsung's Knox Vault, the security hardware layer the Galaxy S line has had for the last three years.

Best under $300

The Samsung Galaxy A25 5G gets a much-needed upgrade from the Galaxy A24, and that's the addition of 5G network support. The phone is now powered by Samsung's Exynos 1280 SoC, and is offered is various RAM and storage configurations (location dependent). It comes with a large 6.5-inch Full-HD+ AMOLED panel having a 120Hz refresh rate. You also get expandable storage, but the microSD slot is shared with the second SIM slot.

The Galaxy A25 5G runs One UI 6 which is based on Android 14, and Samsung has promised four years of OS updates. It has a large 5,000mAh battery, but charging is limited to 25W. One big inclusion is optical stabilization for the main 50MP camera, which is good to see at this price. You also get an 8MP ultrawide and a 2MP macro camera on the back, along with a 13MP selfie camera.

Best under $200

Samsung offers a lot of smartphone for $200 with the new Galaxy A15 5G, making it an amazing budget option for your kids' first phone. A lot has been improved from the Galaxy A14 5G which used to be on our list, such as a better AMOLED display, the latest version of Android, quicker wired charging, and upgraded cameras.

The visual aspect has also been overhauled as the A15 5G looks more modern, and from the rear, it looks a bit similar to Samsung's pricier A-series or even the S-series smartphones. However, you can't expect anything more than a plastic build at this price, and the Blue Black colorway tends to look a bit cheap in our experience.

Coming back to the positives, the 6.5-inch AMOLED display has a Full HD resolution which means icons and text end up looking decently sharp. Colors are also vibrant and punchy, making the panel great for binge-watching videos. The MediaTek SoC can handle basic apps well enough, but the problem is the stingy 4GB of RAM which tends to make app-launching and multitasking painfully slow. Thankfully, a microSD card slot is supported for expanding the 128GB of storage.

The cameras on the Galaxy A15 5G pleasantly surprised us. The main 50MP snapper captured more than passable photos, as did the macro camera for a change. The ultrawide was quite underwhelming, but at least it's there when you absolutely need it. Battery life is one of the main highlights of this phone. The 5,000mAh battery can easily get you through one full day, and maybe more depending on your usage.

For more options in this price range, check out our guide to the best Android phones under $200.

Best stylus phone

It can be challenging to keep track of all the value phones Motorola has in its line-up, but one that manages to stand out is the Moto G Stylus 5G (2024). Along with being one of the few Android phones that come with a built-in stylus, it's also just a near-perfect combination of specs, features, and overall value.

You're getting a large 6.7-inch P-OLED screen that looks incredible, and thanks to the 120Hz refresh rate, feels a lot more premium to interact with as well. That premium feel is further enhanced by the vegan leather back which w love. There's also ample performance thanks to Qualcomm's Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 chipset, along with 128GB of built-in storage and a very large 5,000mAh battery. Given the affordable price of the Moto G Stylus 5G (2024), these are all impressive specifications.

As the name implies, the main draw for the Moto G Stylus 5G (2024) is its integrated stylus. It's certainly not the most premium stylus we've ever used, but it works quite well enough for drawing, note-taking, and similar tasks. It can be stored seamlessly at the bottom of the phone when not in use, which is a nice touch that ties the whole experience together.

In addition, this is the only phone on our list to feature fast 15W wireless charging, as Samsung's Galaxy A-series is missing it entirely and the Google Pixel only offers 7.5W wireless charging.

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Other products we tested

Between the tens and sometimes hundreds of devices we extensively test each year, the competition gets real tough, real fast. As such, there are many other cheap phones that we have tested but couldn't include here, simply because they didn't make the cut for our top rankings.

However, some devices still deserve shoutouts. These smartphones deserve honorable mentions because they're just that good, but didn't get ranked by us due to one or two small (but important!) reasons.

For example, Xiaomi, Vivo, Honor, and OPPO phones are so good, but very difficult to recommend to North American residents as they don't work on CDMA networks and aren't officially sold in the region. This doesn't take away from the fact that these brands still make awesome cheap Android phones!

How to choose

What is the best cheap Android phone to buy?

Without a doubt, the Google Pixel 8a is the best phone under $500—but fortunately—we're living in the day and age that's full of excellent and affordable smartphones.

So, the question is, how should you choose a cheap Android phone?

Most people have a budget to stick to, and that’s where deciding the right budget-minded phone comes into play. You want to pick a phone that’s not just in your budget, but one that will last a while, too. That way, you won't end up spending even more on yet another phone upgrade shortly down the road.

But before you even think about a phone’s hardware, cameras, or storage space, you need to think about connectivity. All modern phones support Bluetooth earbuds and Wi-Fi, but not all phones support all cellular networks. Make sure the phone you’re looking for supports your network of choice, especially if you are picking an unlocked phone from the list.

Next, keep a phone's SoC in mind before clicking that buy button. The quickest way to end up with a phone that feels sluggish and old is to undersell yourself on the phone’s chipset.

Lots of phones feature Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chipsets, but that doesn’t mean all of them are worthwhile. Unless your budget absolutely doesn’t allow for anything faster, you probably want to avoid any phone powered by a Snapdragon 400-series or lower processor. Those phones are really only good as communication devices and for browsing the web or social media.

Likewise, MediaTek’s Dimensity series of processors are the only ones you want to consider from the company. Phones like the TCL Stylus 5G—which is only available with T-Mobile—sports the excellent MediaTek Dimensity 700 5G, which is powerful enough for just about anything you throw at it.

You’ll also want to make sure your new phone has at least 6GB of RAM if you’re ever planning on doing more than one thing at a time on it. Less RAM means the phone has less memory to store opened apps, creating a scenario where apps take a long time to load and often have to reload if you switch back and forth between apps.

Storage isn’t much of a concern these days, thanks to excellent cloud storage services like Google Photos, which can offload the photos and videos you’ve taken to a safe and secure cloud storage. That means they not only won’t be taking up the precious space on your smartphone, but they’ll also be securely backed up in case something happens to your smartphone.

Services like Google Photos also archive your photos and make it easy to search for even the most minute details, like your old black and white cat or the blue shoes you wore to that wedding several years ago.

Cameras on smartphones have become increasingly important over the years, and, with a few exceptions, the phones above will all deliver a good experience in most lighting conditions. As these are less expensive phones, you’ll need to be aware that most models will only take great pictures in adequate light. Phones like the Google Pixel 8a or OnePlus 12R offer great low-light support, and that function is becoming more common on phones even under $300 these days.

No phone on this list has poor battery life, but some folks might have a unique need for a smartphone to last more than a single day on a full charge. We’ve noted that several options above will offer that but specifically highlight one phone as having the best battery life of them all.

The bottom line on cheaper Android phones

Most Android phones these days are pretty good, but a few stand above the rest. We've outlined many of our favorites here but if you want a few more options and are on a tighter budget, we've got picks for the best phones under $300 and the best phones under $100. Each of these categories comes with a few concessions, but if you're looking for a specific niche—like a stylus—you'll find a few more options there.

Just remember, though, that you're paying hundreds less than what it costs to buy a Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus or Pixel 9 Pro. While those phones might offer faster hardware, better cameras, or brighter displays, they're also extremely expensive to replace if they accidentally get broken. Splurging on the best overall phone that has everyting, and the kitchen sink isn't always the ideal solution — especially when you're looking to cut costs.

How we test

We don't just turn on a phone, set it up, and make sure it works while testing it. Android Central goes the extra mile to properly review a device, whether that requires taking pictures in heavy rain or testing cellular reception in remote areas.

Our reviews involve putting a device to a proper test, recording performance benchmarks and making sure that those benchmarks and numbers translate to a matching real-world user experience. We're not just testing devices, we're using them as any other person would in their day-to-day lives.

This is why you can rely on us when we recommend a cheap Android phone that's priced below $500. You best believe that several of our team members have spent hundreds of hours using each of the phones that we recommend with all our hearts. We even check consistency, taking months to review a single phone if that's what it takes to fully understand the value of the device.

If you're more interested in finding out about how Android Central tests and reviews phones, you can read up on it.

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