1. The list in brief
2. Best overall
3. Best value
4. Best 2022 phone
5. Best foldable
6. Best clamshell
7. Best compact flagship
8. Best compromise
9. Best budget
10. How we test
The best Samsung phones offer great features that make them stand out from the crowd, including fantastic cameras, feature-rich software, and some of the best displays you'll see.
It's no wonder that several devices in Samsung's Galaxy range feature prominently in our list of the best Android phones, with the S-series also ranking among the best smartphones, period. These devices command a lot of respect among smartphone fans – and for good reason.
Whether you need a phone with exceptional battery life or one of the best camera phones, the best Galaxy handsets have you covered. Topping our list right now is the recently released Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, which is expensive but has the best camera of any phone on the market.
For the lowdown on Samsung's latest handsets, head over to our Samsung Galaxy S23 review, our Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus review and our Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra review. Only two of the three feature in the below list, but all are impressive devices in their own right.
We've tested thousands of devices over the years, from the best iPhones to the best cheap phones and best gaming phones, so we know what we're talking about.
Read on as we take you through the best Samsung phones, with links to our in-depth reviews included alongside a quick overview of each model.
The quick list
Welcome to our "let's get to the good parts" section, where we give you a quick overview of all Samsung's top phones (up to this moment). Check out each design, a brief description of why we like the phone, the all-important rating, and, naturally, where you can buy it. Scroll down further (or use the jump links) to dig into the details of each Samsung handset.
The best Samsung phone
A groundbreaking camera and bespoke chipset make the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra the best Samsung phone money can buy right now.
The best value Samsung phone
Good looks, an excellent display and impressive cameras combine to make the Galaxy A53 one of the best value options on the market.
The best Samsung phone from 2022
A big, powerful, and attractive Android phone with incredible cameras plus S Pen-enabled productivity smarts. Better value now than last year.
The best foldable Samsung phone
Not just the best foldable Samsung but also the best foldable overall, the Z Fold 4 is a do-everything device with few compromises. Pricey, though.
The best clamshell Samsung phone
The compact Z Flip 4 fixes most of its predecessor's biggest flaws to become without question the best clamshell phone you can buy.
The best compact Samsung flagship
The S23 is small, fast, and offers a reliable Android experience on what is mostly an incremental update. Buy it if you don't need a bigger screen.
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The cheapest once-premium Galaxy
The S22 Plus is a good compromise between the bigger and more expensive Ultra and the smaller base S22. Our S23 Plus review will be out soon, though.
The best budget Samsung phone
The Samsung Galaxy A13 is a seriously cheap smartphone that manages to be good enough in most of the areas that matter. It's not the fastest, though.
The best Samsung phones in 2023
Why you can trust TechRadar Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.
Below you'll find full write-ups for each of the best Samsung phones on our list. We've tested each one extensively, so you can be sure to trust our recommendations.
The best Samsung phone overall
✅ You want the best camera phone: Put simply, the Galaxy S23 Ultra offers the best pocket-sized photography experience money can buy. Here, you're getting an absolutely huge 200MP camera sensor, as well as a veritable smorgasbord of other photo capabilities that no other phone can match.
✅ You need as much power as possible: The Galaxy S23 Ultra delivers some phenomenally good performance. If you need a smartphone that can handle multiple power-hungry tasks at once, there's really no better device on the market.
✅ You want the best Android phone: There's little the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra doesn't do and do well by modern smartphone standards. It has everything you could need as an Android fan, plus a few extras.
❌ You’re on a budget: The S23 Ultra is eye-wateringly expensive, and even pricier than its predecessor in a lot of markets.
❌ You don't like big phones: The S23 Ultra is not just big: the squared silhouette of this mammoth phone means it's especially poorly suited to pockets. One-handed use is a challenge, even if you do have big paws.
❌ You hate One UI: Samsung's take on Android, with its own fonts, additional features and distinct aesthetic, won't be for everyone. It's customisable, but you won't be able to hide the Samsung-specific touches outright.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is the very best of what Samsung can pack into a smartphone. Provided you're not dissuaded by its steep asking price, the phone's tougher build, faster memory, more efficient battery, custom-tuned chipset and new 200MP main camera make the Galaxy S23 Ultra one of the best handsets in the world. ★★★★½
What you need to know
Despite looking identical to the S22 Ultra, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is packed with improvements that help it rank as the best Samsung phone available in 2023. In a nutshell, this phone has a tougher build, faster memory, a more efficient battery, a custom-tuned chipset and a new 200MP main camera that blows its competitors out of the water.
Design: The S23 Ultra offers only subtle refinements to its predecessor's already excellent design. There's a similar pill-shaped top-down profile, with curved front and back glass feeding into a metal frame. One change is the reduced radius of the curved edges of the display, which offers a greater flat surface area.
Display: Aside from that reduced curvature along its edges, the S23 Ultra's display offers a familiar viewing experience to its predecessor. As on last year's Ultra, you get a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel, with a resolution of 1440 x 3088 and a dynamic refresh rate that can scale between 1Hz and 120Hz.
Camera: The Galaxy S23 Ultra’s camera setup is incredibly versatile. It boasts a wide, ultrawide, and two telephoto cameras, giving you optical zoom at 3x and 10x, respectively. Add to that an absolutely huge 200MP sensor for the primary camera, and the S23 is easily the best camera phone money can buy.
Performance: Previously, Galaxy S phones were powered by either Samsung's own Exynos or Qualcomm's Snapdragon silicon, but the S23 series has the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset worldwide. This eliminates performance disparities that previously left users of Exynos-powered phones feeling behind the curve. And it's fast. Very fast.
Battery life: The S23 Ultra keeps the same 5,000mAh battery as its predecessor, as well as the latter's support for 45W wired charging, and wireless and reverse wireless charging. In testing, the phone delivered some of the longest screen-on time per charge (approximately eight hours) of any device we've sampled recently.
Value for money: Naturally, the S23 Ultra's phenomenal hardware comes at a price, and the phone is even pricier than the S22 Ultra in a lot of markets. No handset that demands a four-figure sum can reasonably be described as 'good value' – but if you can afford it, this is the best Samsung phone money can buy.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Double the storage, but even more expensive that the S22 Ultra in most markets | ★★★☆☆ |
| Design | Attractive and well built, but no more pocketable than its predecessor | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | A stunning display with even greater color accuracy than previously | ★★★★★ |
| Camera | Iconic Ultra versatility with a new sensor that improves low light shooting | ★★★★★ |
| Performance | The best-performing Android phone, if not the best-performing phone outright | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | Efficiency improvements deliver far greater battery life | ★★★★★ |
The best value Samsung phone
✅ You take pictures for social media: The Samsung Galaxy A53 takes bright photos that take little time to edit into Instagram- or YouTube- ready packages. That’s as true for macro snaps as it is for selfies or videos.
✅ You want to draw eyes: Usually, you need a foldable phone to draw eyes at a party – not so with the peach or blue Galaxy A53 phones, which are attractive enough to garner heaps of praise.
✅ You watch loads of videos: If the likes of Netflix, Prime Video and YouTube are your most-used apps, the Galaxy’s good-looking screen will suit you well.
❌ You’re a mobile gamer: The Samsung Galaxy A53 doesn’t have the chops to compete with other mid-range phones in the performance department, making it sub-par for gaming.
❌ You need fast charging: Two hours to charge to full is incredibly slow for any smartphone in 2023, and we can’t recommend the A53 if speedy charging is vital.
❌ You need a battery superhero: Some mid-range and budget phones can last for over two days on a single charge. Not the Samsung Galaxy A53, which will generally last you about a day.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy A53 is an attractive phone with a good-looking screen and impressive cameras for the price, the Samsung Galaxy A53 offers good value for money overall; but with its slow charging and stuttery performance, it’s not for everyone. ★★★★
What you need to know
The A53 is essentially a 'lite' version of the Galaxy S22 (full write-up here), bringing lots of 'S-range' features to a lower price point. It's not the absolute cheapest phone Samsung makes by some distance, but it is on the lower end of the mid-range, and definitely worth considering if you're on a budget.
Design: The phone measures 159.6 x 74.8 x 8.1mm and weighs 189g, so we’d call it medium-sized. It’s not so big that it’s uncomfortable to use, so long as your mitts aren’t massive. It's also undeniably attractive; while we were testing the peach version, we were constantly told how good it looks. The white, black and blue versions are similarly pretty.
Display: The Samsung Galaxy A53 boasts one of the best-looking screens you’ll see on a phone for this price. It’s a vibrant, colorful 6.5-inch Super AMOLED panel, with a FHD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate and 800 nits max brightness.
Cameras: The main camera is a 64MP f/1.8 with a wide-angle lens, and it’s joined by a 12MP camera with an f/2.2 123-degree ultrawide, a 5MP f/2.4 macro and a 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor. The snappers take photos that are bright and colorful, which makes shots of wildlife, food, landscapes or people pop. There’s high dynamic range for a phone at this price and pictures are sharp too, as long as you take them on the main camera.
Performance: The Galaxy A53 may lap same-price rivals in the camera and display departments, but it falls behind on performance. The chip here is the Exynos 1280, which is a home-brewed piece of mid-range kit from Samsung – and it leaves a lot to be desired.
Battery life: The 5,000mAh battery is on the big side, though we see lots of mid-rangers pack this kind of power. That bright screen and 5G require a lot of juice and we found that the phone lasted roughly a day between charges.
Value for money: The Samsung Galaxy A53 gives you some surprisingly top-end specs for its price in some departments, but in others it's weaker than its rivals.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy A53
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Some top-end specs for less | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | Surprisingly attractive at the price | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | One of the best displays at its price tier | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | Painfully slow, which could lead to frustration | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Cameras | Better than similarly priced rivals | ★★★★☆ |
| Battery life | You'll get a day, but charging speed is slow | ★★☆☆☆ |
The best 2022 Samsung phone
✅ You’re a productivity junkie: Beyond its successor, you'll be hard-pressed to find a more capable mobile device than the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra.
✅ You’re a compulsive note-taker or artist: If you love to take notes by hand, or you’re an artist who has brilliant ideas on the go, the S Pen is now always with you. It's also versatile enough to support everything from scribble-to-text conversions to fine art creation, simple doodles, and markup.
✅ You love photography: The camera array here is excellent, and the zoom capabilities will finally let you capture what your eyes can see. The S23 offers even more, but this is still a great camera.
❌ You thought you'd get two days of battery life: The phone's 5,000mAh battery is huge, but so is the phone. That screen and the powerful mobile CPU might be a little more power-hungry than expected. You'll still get a very full day (sunrise to well-past sunset) though.
❌ You have tiny hands: This is a big phone. Even the curved edges don’t completely cut down on the size. Also, yes, it’s a slippery device. Want a smaller Galaxy S? Look at the S23 (full write-up here) or the S23 Plus.
❌ You’re a fan of wired headphones: If you still rely on 3.5mm, wired headphones, this isn’t the phone for you. Samsung removed the 3.5mm headphone jack from the device (and does not ship with a wired set of headphones). Naturally, the handset works like a charm with wireless and Bluetooth earbuds.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is a big, powerful, and attractive Android phone (if you like them monolithic). It’s super-versatile, ready for important work, hand-written notes, gaming, and casual big-screen web browsing – and the cameras are a clear highlight, with the Space Zoom capabilities taking you to infinity and beyond. And, yes, you’ll pay handily for all these features. ★★★★½
1. The best iPhones 2022
2. Best Android Phones 2022 (opens in new tab)
3. The best Android apps of 2022
What you need to know
Though it's now been superseded by the S23 Ultra, last year's model remains a fantastic choice for anyone who wants a big, powerful phone - not least because its price has dropped since the 2023 version landed.
Design: The frame is a solid Armor Aluminum that resists bends. Polished on the outside to a near-chrome finish, the metal is sandwiched between Gorilla Glass Victus+ plates. The front glass is high-gloss, and the back is a warm satin finish; both repel fingerprints. It's also waterproof to the IP68 rating.
Display: The 6.8-inch AMOLED screen is another highlight. It supports up to 3088 x 1440 pixels (WQHD+) resolution, which works out to 500 ppi and which matches the S23 Ultra. The iPhone 13 Pro Max, by contrast, has 458ppi on its 6.7-inch 2778 x 1284 screen. It’s worth noting that the S22 Ultra’s default resolution is the lower FHD+, which Samsung says uses less battery life – although we switched halfway through our testing and didn’t notice much difference.
Cameras: The camera is an obvious highlight on the S22 Ultra. There are two 10MP telephoto lenses: one is f/2.4 with a 36-degree field of view (FOV) and the other is f/4.9 with an 11-degree FOV. There’s also a 12MP ultrawide with a 120-degree FOV, plus a 108MP main wide camera (f/1.8) with an 85-degree FOV. The S22 Ultra’s zoom capabilities simply blow away anything we’ve ever seen before from a phone camera. Obviously, the 3x and 10x optical zoom are not only solid but offer clear images of distant objects with enough clarity that you can crop in on details without seeing much pixelation.
Performance: Over almost a week of intense testing, the S22 Ultra never let us down. It’s a fast and powerful phone. The 4nm processor (in our test phone it’s the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset – UK or Australia get Samsung’s own Exynos 2200 chipset) doesn’t outperform Apple’s A15 Bionic in Geekbench benchmarks, but raw numbers never tell the full story. Apple’s numbers are better, but the S22 Ultra didn’t feel any slower across all tasks. Perhaps the only situation where we detected a small stutter was on 8K video playback.
Battery life: Like the Galaxy S23 Ultra, the S22 Ultra features a beefy 5,000mAh battery and wireless charging. In our tests, the battery was good for a full day of varied activity but not much more. We were a little surprised that such a large battery didn’t provide a day and a half of battery life.
Value for money: The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is a premier phone at a premier price, but that price is now slightly lower than it was before the arrival of the S23. Given all that you're getting here, it's arguably better value than the 2023 model - although of course you do miss out on upgrades to the camera, battery life and processor.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Expensive, but there are often great deals | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | Solid, attractive, Note-like design | ★★★★★ |
| Display | Big, S Pen-friendly and high-resolution | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | Not the absolute fastest, but more than enough power for most | ★★★★☆ |
| Cameras | Excellent overall and Space Zoom will blow you away | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | Good but could be better | ★★★★☆ |
The best foldable Samsung phone
✅ Productivity with a difference is key: If you want tablet productivity in a phone form factor, this is the device for you.
✅ You're a bit of a photographer, too: Yes, we’d have liked the S22 Ultra camera array, but this one is excellent, too. We took a lot of great photos in a wide variety of shooting situations.
✅ A clamshell fold is not enough: Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip 4 is easily the cutest foldable on the planet, but it's not ready to truly multitask. The Z Fold 4 has you covered for productivity.
❌ You're on a tight budget: This is an expensive phone. Yes, it has lots of RAM, and two screens, but unless you find a great deal, it's not easy on your wallet. Still, it's a little cheaper now than it was when it first launched.
❌ You want faster-charging: The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 can fast charge at an okay speed, through wired or wireless powering, but most top-end and even mid-range phones power up more quickly.
❌ You just want a stylish folding phone: Do you really need all that the Z Fold 4 can provide? Or would the cute and more affordable Galaxy Z Flip 4 be more your style, and a better fit for your budget?
📱The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 is a do-everything device that presents few compromises. It's good for photography, multi-tasking and watching Netflix - as well as being cutting-edge tech - however the high price might put off some buyers. ★★★★½
What you need to know
With the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4, Samsung hasn’t tried to reinvent the genre or radically alter the foldable’s display and design. Instead, it brings a number of small-but-welcome design enhancements over the Z Fold 3, plus a new processor and upgraded cameras.
Design: At this point, Samsung clearly believes it has a pretty good foundation for its premier folding device, and that's why the Z Fold 4 isn’t radically different from the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. That said, there are small differences, some of which you can plainly see while others are hidden beneath the frame.
Display: The main screen is a 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with 2176 x 1812 resolution and which supports an adaptive refresh rate of 1 to 120Hz. The low end of the range is useful for saving battery life by not refreshing the screen when it’s not needed, while the high end means smoother gameplay and video action. The cover screen, meanwhile, is a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED panel with a 2316 x 904 resolution. It also has an adaptive refresh rate: 48Hz to 120Hz.
Camera: As with the Z Fold 3, which used the S21's camera array, the Z Fold 4 adopts its main camera array from the Galaxy S22. It has the same sensors underneath (though they’re backed by a slightly more powerful CPU here), and the same lenses. There’s also a selfie camera on the cover screen, and a low-grade selfie cam under the main screen.
Performance: We’re happy that the Z Fold 4 has Qualcomm’s top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 CPU, as it needs all the power it can get for the multi-tasking gymnastics it's capable of.
Battery life: The battery lasted approximately 13 hours, which is pretty good, though we would've liked more. Still, getting that far is a testament to the CPU's power-management capabilities.
Value for money: It's an expensive phone – especially if you go for more than the base 256GB of storage. But if you want the best foldable on the planet, that's the current price you'll pay.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Expensive but arguably worth it | ★★★☆☆ |
| Design | A great and still-evolving foldable design | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | Cover display is bigger and better and the main screen is great | ★★★★☆ |
| Camera | A great rear camera array and above-average cover camera | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | Powerful enough for anything you throw at it | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | Battery life is adequate, but not amazing | ★★★★☆ |
The best clamshell Samsung phone
✅ You want the very best clamshell foldable: The design, the price, the functionality… the collective effect of the Z Flip 4's strengths make it the obvious choice for those after a clamshell foldable right now.
✅ You love taking selfies: The external Cover Display, paired with the phone's compact size and the ability to shoot with the phone's main sensors, makes this one of the best smartphones for selfies out there.
✅ You want a compact phone: If you can afford it, the Galaxy Z Flip 4's standout form factor makes it a great option for those in the market for a compact phone, without wanting to compromise on a large display.
❌ You're accident prone: Sure, Samsung's 2022 foldables are more durable than ever and there are a range of official cases to protect the Z Flip 4, but if phones take a beating in your possession, this is still vulnerable compared to a conventional candy bar phone.
❌ You want zoom photography: The camera experience on the Z Flip 4 is pretty versatile, not least because of the inherent benefits that its folding form factor and FlexCam functionality provide. But with no dedicated telephoto snapper, zoomed photos are best avoided.
❌ You need a phone with good battery life: Samsung knew the Z Flip 3's battery life was going to be its biggest shortcoming and despite taking steps to alleviate the issue on the Flip 4, longevity is still subpar.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 addresses some of the Z Flip 3's biggest pain points; mainly by way of a larger battery that fits into a more compact form factor, but there's still plenty of room left for further improvement. Price versus performance remains unmatched in the market, especially when you consider this is still one of the only water-resistant foldables out there. ★★★★☆
What you need to know
Samsung didn't reinvent its clamshell-style foldable, but the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 does all that it needs to do for the company to hold onto its foldable crown.
Design: If you've seen the existing Z Flip 3, the design changes of the new Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 may not even register at first glance. It sports a familiar straight-sided look (with a fraction less rounding this time), with a black 'visor' along the top edge of the back that hosts two rear camera sensors and the external cover display. The rest of the back is comprised of Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, set against a complimentary, color-matched Armor Aluminum frame.
Display: You get a 6.7-inch Full HD+ (2640 x 1080) 'Dynamic AMOLED 2X' panel with a pleasantly smooth 120Hz refresh rate that can scale down to 1Hz to extend battery life. The external cover display, made larger between generations on 2021's Galaxy Z Flip 3, looks to have been carried across to the Flip 4; you get the same 1.9-inch Super AMOLED panel, plus the same 260 x 512 resolution and 60Hz refresh rate.
Camera: You'll find three cameras on the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, which at first blush look very familiar to those on the Z Flip 3. While the apertures remain the same between generations, on the Flip 4 the primary 12MP sensor is fractionally wider and promises brighter stills and videos (by up to 65%), thanks to larger pixels (1.8µm, up from 1.4µm previously). The rest of the hardware appears unchanged from the Flip 3.
Performance: Although the Flip 4 focuses on compact portability over the Fold 4's productivity, it doesn't skimp on performance, with Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 silicon running the show.
Battery life: Despite only a 12% increase in capacity, it pushes the Flip 4 over the line in terms of day-long longevity. This is helped by that adaptive display, intelligent power management that adjusts dynamically based on usage, and a new battery performance profile menu that lets you choose between 'standard' and a new 'light' option.
Value for money: If it weren't for the fact that the Z Flip 3 arrived with an even lower starting price, there wouldn't be any doubt about the value for money the Z Flip 4 offers. That said, it still delivers the most bang for your buck compared to the small crop of rival clamshell foldables now on the market.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Pricey but still the best value clamshell foldable | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | The best-designed clamshell and the only one with water resistance | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | The screen offers a great viewing experience | ★★★★☆ |
| Camera | Lacks optical zoom but great for selfies | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | More grunt than you might expect | ★★★★½ |
| Battery life | The Flip 4 can just about last a day | ★★★★☆ |
The best compact Samsung flagship
✅ You're on a budget: This isn't the cheapest Android phone, but it’s a good deal for a top-of-the-line Samsung S-series handset.
✅ You want a small phone: The 6.1-inch Galaxy S23 is just what smaller hands ordered, so if you find most modern mobiles too big, this is a great alternative. We think it looks great, too.
✅ You need a powerful phone: Qualcomm's bespoke Snapdragon Gen 2 chipset will give you plenty of power for gaming, video editing and other demanding tasks.
❌ You have big-screen dreams: A 6.1-inch display, even an FHD one like this, can feel a little cramped, especially if you've been living with a 6.5-inch or above handset.
❌ Your budget stretches to the Ultra: We’ve not been shy about our preference for the S23 Ultra – if you can afford that super-powered Android phone, we’d recommend you go for it.
❌ You have a recent Samsung S phone: If you’re only upgrading from the S21 or S22, the fact that this is an incremental upgrade might put you off – not too much is new here beyond processing power.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy S23 isn't the biggest handset or best photography phone around, but it does offer a clean and reliable Android experience. It's an incremental update over its predecessor, but upgrades to the phone's design, processor, and selfie camera are welcome. ★★★★
What you need to know
The Samsung Galaxy S23 is the small fry of the Galaxy S23 range, but it's easily one of the most capable Samsung phones ever made and, quite possibly, the best-looking of the lot.
Design: Like its predecessor, the Galaxy S23 is a phone that’s small enough to slip into your pocket and forget about. In today's world of oversized phones (like the larger Galaxy S23 Ultra, detailed above), its 146.3 x 70.86 x 7.62mm chassis feels puny, but Samsung has done a great job of making it look sleek.
Display: The S23's 6.1-inch display remains the same as its predecessor's, which is by no means a bad thing. The 120Hz refresh rate and crisp 1080 x 2340 resolution keep things feeling smooth and looking sharp, while the phone is plenty bright enough to maintain good visibility in sunlight.
Cameras: The S23's rear camera array is identical to that of the S22. You'll get a 50MP main lens, 12MP ultrawide lens and 10MP telephoto lens (with 3x optical zoom), which rivals Apple's iPhone 14 phones. It would have been nice to see Samsung give the S23 a 108MP main lens, but the device does get an impressive 12MP selfie camera that trumps its predecessor's equivalent.
Performance: As with the S23 Ultra, the base S23 boasts Qualcomm's bespoke Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset across the board. Practically, Qualcomm's latest processor delivers exceptional performance for all manner of mobile tasks, so you'll rarely find yourself lacking power with the S23.
Battery life: The Galaxy S23 gets a slightly bigger battery than the S22, with Samsung jumping from 3,700mAh to 3,900mAh. The phone supports the same peak 25W wired charging as the S22, though, along with fast wireless charging and wireless PowerShare.
Value for money: The vanilla S23 is a (relatively) affordable way to get in at the top of the Galaxy line. Naturally, you don't get everything the Ultra offers, but that's why this phone is far cheaper.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S23 (opens in new tab)
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Samsung boosted the power but held the line on price | ★★★★☆ |
| Design | It's a clean look that holds onto all that's good about the S22 | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | Gorgeous, bright, and smooth; all you can ask for in a smartphone display | ★★★★★ |
| Camera | A great camera array backed by better image processing, but we wanted more | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | The best silicon a Galaxy S phone has ever had | ★★★★★ |
| Battery life | All-day-and-more battery life that won't let you down | ★★★★★ |
The cheapest premium Galaxy phone
✅ You’ll buy a case for it: We didn’t like the way the Galaxy S22 Plus felt in our hand, but this obviously won’t be an issue if you buy a case.
✅ You like taking portrait shots: Samsung phones are generally great for portrait shots, so if you take this kind of photo often then you’ll appreciate the S22 Plus.
✅ The Galaxy S22 or S23 are too small: The Samsung Galaxy S22/S23 are quite a bit smaller than the Plus, so if you like a big screen for social media, photography or entertainment, this might be a better device.
❌ You’re on a budget: The S22 Plus is far cheaper than it initially was, but the S22 is cheaper still. Given that the Plus doesn't offer that much more beyond a bigger screen, the base model may be a better bet for you.
❌ You need fast charging: Whether or not the Galaxy S22 Plus hits 45W charging, that’s still not a great speed for a premium phone like this, and devices from Motorola or OnePlus will cost less and charge quicker.
❌ The S22 Ultra or S23 range appeals to you: The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is a better device and doesn’t cost too much more than the Plus, while the S23 range offers various improvements.
📱 The Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus was always a slightly hard sell compared to the cheaper Galaxy S22 or the bigger and more powerful S23, but price drops since the arrival of the S23 range make it more attractive. That said, all of the S22 models are now cheaper - and we'd still suggest that the S22 Ultra will be a better phone for most people. The S23 Plus, meanwhile, offers more power and several other useful upgrades. It's well worth a look if you find a good deal on it, though. ★★★½
What you need to know
It's hard to get excited about the Galaxy S22 Plus, the awkward middle child in Samsung’s 2022 family. It mostly has the same specs as the S22, and a similar design, but with a bigger screen and battery. Oh, and its price is a significant step up, too. That said, if you want a more premium experience than the base S22, it's a lot cheaper than the S23 Ultra - and indeed than the S23 Plus, which we are currently reviewing.
Design: We love the way it looks. The Contour Cut camera bump is fairly distinct and chic, as far as smartphone lens mounts go at least, but it certainly makes the phone look distinct. But it just doesn’t feel comfortable. This is partly because of its palm-stretching size, but also thanks to its angular edge.
Display: While the resolution is average, the S22 Plus wins points in other display areas. Its max brightness is very high at 1,750 nits, and thanks to the AMOLED screen, contrast is similarly impressive.
Camera: The Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus has the same four cameras as its non-Plus counterpart: that’s a 50MP f/1.8 main, 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide and 10MP f/2.4 telephoto for 3x optical zoom on the back, and a 10MP f/2.2 front-facing camera on the other side. The S23 Plus has the same setup other than getting an improved selfie cam.
Performance: For our full review, we used the Exynos-powered phone, and it ran well. When we put the device through a multi-core benchmark test using Geekbench 5, it returned a score of 3,431. That’s very high - in fact one of the highest we’ve seen from a Samsung phone - but not the absolute best you can get from a phone in 2023. We expect the S23 Plus to beat it.
Battery life: Many Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus reports criticized the phone’s battery life, but we won't go that far. From our time testing the phone, the 4,500mAh battery saw the phone through a day of use just fine. Sure, the mobile didn’t last long into a second day, but most premium phones don’t.
Value for money: The Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus launched at $999.99 / £949 / AU$1,549, but is considerably cheaper now. That makes it far better value for money than it initially was, and worth considering if you don't want to shell out for the Galaxy S23 model.
Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus
| Attributes | Notes | Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Price | In line with other premium phones | ★★★☆☆ |
| Design | Great looks but a little unweildy | ★★★★☆ |
| Display | Big, good looking but not exceptional | ★★★★☆ |
| Camera | That 50MP camera is a welcome upgrade | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | Good performance, without being the best | ★★★★☆ |
| Battery life | A full day of battery life | ★★★★☆ |