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The best Xiaomi phones have always offered great value for money, but nowadays, they're genuine rivals to the best iPhones, best Samsung phones, and best Pixel phones.
We've tested hundreds of Xiaomi models over the years, so we can help you find the best Xiaomi phone for your needs. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra occupies our current top spot thanks to its exceptional performance and truly unique cameras, but if you're after something more affordable, then the highly capable Xiaomi 15T Pro and Xiaomi Poco X8 Pro Max are worth considering, too.
Best overall Xiaomi phone
The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is among the best camera phones we've ever tested, and as Xiaomi phones go, it's the best model overall.
This all-singing, all-dancing flagship bears all the hallmarks of a top-end Android phone. It's got a superfast Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, a 6.7-inch AMOLED display, an IP68 water resistance rating, and a long-lasting 5,410mAh battery, not to mention 16GB of RAM (that's more than you'll find in many of the best phones, period).
But the real selling point of the Xiaomi 15 Ultra, just like its predecessor, the Xiaomi 14 Ultra, is its absolutely huge rear camera module, which is even bigger than before. A Leica-branded, 1-inch, 200MP periscope camera occupies the entire top half of the phone’s rear module, with a 50MP main, a 50MP telephoto, and a 50MP wide camera sitting below it.
These cameras use a mix of Sony and Samsung sensors, and in our testing of the 15 Ultra, we found that they deliver some of the most authentic-looking images you can muster on a smartphone. Indeed, Xiaomi promises “unparalleled professional-grade photography" with this device, and that proved largely accurate in our experience.
These are all mightily impressive specs that put the Xiaomi 15 Ultra on par with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 17 Pro Max. You'll have to reckon with Xiaomi's bloatware-filled HyperOS interface, but once you've done some spring cleaning, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra's software can offer a truly personal experience.
Incidentally, a successor to the Xiaomi 15 Ultra – the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max – has already been released in China, but it's not likely to land overseas until early 2026.
Read our full Xiaomi 15 Ultra review
Best Xiaomi phone for most people
The Xiaomi 17 stands out as the best-balanced Xiaomi phone for most buyers. Where its Ultra stablemate stretches for phone photography extremes, the Xiaomi 17 focuses on more core features: a comfortable form factor, a great display, solid cameras and a lot of performance from the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset.
In our testing, the Xiaomi 17 delivered consistently brisk performance, never stuttering during heavy use and gaming. This is backed up by strong battery life, with our reviewer getting to most evenings with 30% remaining, even with after moderate camera use and streaming.
When it came to charging, the phone charged from 0% to 65% in 30 minutes using a Sharge HyperTower 170 powerbank to deliver the 100W charging the 17 supports alongside 50W wireless charging.
Photography is another highlight, with a trio of 50MP cameras on the rear, comprising main, ultra-wide, and telephoto cameras. In our testing, the cameras captured natural-looking colors and a gently boosted contrast to make photos look eye-catching, and the 17 did this in a consistent fashion. Video recording performance is also strong. And a 50MP front-facing camera should take care of a your selfie and video calling needs.
The Xiaomi 17’s price is a potential hurdle for value shoppers, with it starting at £899 / AU$1,399. This is in iPhone 17 and Samsung Galaxy S26 territory, so the 17 is rubbing shoulders with some of the best phones around.
Nevertheless, this still sees the Xiaomi 17 being the ideal pick for buyers who want a phone that feels fast, lasts all day, and slips easily into a pocket, but don’t need the extreme cameras or price of the Ultra. If all-day battery, fast charging, and a versatile camera matter more than chasing the lowest price or the very best specs, the Xiaomi 17 is the sweet spot in Xiaomi’s lineup.
Read our full Xiaomi 17 review
Best value Xiaomi phone
If you prefer a large phone with plenty of firepower, but you'd rather not stretch your budget to the aforementioned Xiaomi 15 Ultra, then the 6.83-inch Xiaomi 15 Pro is an excellent option.
Until recently, the previous-generation Xiaomi 14T Pro occupied the 'best value' slot in our best Xiaomi phones guide, but its successor offers a more powerful MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ processor, a larger 5,500mAh battery, and an improved telephoto camera.
In fact, we said the 15T Pro "approaches the current flagship crop" in our review, adding that, "so long as you're happy with some heavily Apple-inspired hardware and software design," it's a "great-value affordable flagship."
This phone's impressive speeds are made possible by the presence of a MediaTek Dimensity 9400+ chipset, which, in our testing, falls just behind the Snapdragon 8 Elite and 8 Elite Gen 5 in terms of the best-performing Android chipsets. The 15T Pro isn't anywhere close to being one of the best gaming phones, but as a day-to-day performer, it feels just as smooth as the best Android phones.
The 15T Pro's 50MP wide, 12MP ultra-wide, and 50MP telephoto cameras punch above their weight, too, with our reviewer noting that "shadows are allowed to be shadows, colors appear rich, and you can still expect detail and decent dynamic range." That flagship-level 5x periscopic telephoto sensor is also a first for Xiaomi's T-series.
Sure, you'll get better battery life from other phones on this list (and by "better battery life" we mean more than a full day of heavy use), and the 15T Pro's design might feel a little too iPhone-like for some hardcore Xiaomi fans. But if you can stomach those concessions, you're getting a whole lot of phone here for not very much money.
If you're willing to concede even more premium features, the standard Xiaomi 15T is cheaper still, and we're currently putting that device through our full review process.
Read our full Xiaomi 15T Pro review
Best budget Xiaomi phone
Xiaomi's Poco X8 Pro Max is the phone we recommend for true budget-conscious buyers. While a little higher than the X7 Pro it replaces on this list, a starting price of $469 / £469 (about AU$940, but Xiaomi doesn’t sell its Poco phones in Australia) is still excellent for all the specs this phone offers.
You'll find the pair of rear cameras deliver solid photos, including some impressive low-light ones, with plenty of detail and clarity for smartphones at this budget. Sure, it can't compete with some of the best camera phones, but that's to be expected.
The combo of a Mediatek Dimensity 9500s chipset, 12GB of RAM and a hefty 8,500mAh battery, means you'll get plenty of performance for all but the most demanding of smartphone tasks. and a battery life that'll last for two to three days depending on how the phone is used.
While the phone runs Android 16 with HyperOS 3 out of the box, an annoying amount of bloatware blights the experience. But this can be deleted, it's just a setup chore one has to swallow.
The Poco X8 Pro Max can hold its own against other phone you'll find on our best cheap phones list and is worth your time if you're after an affordable Android phone that offers mid-range specs for a budget price.
Read our full Xiaomi Poco X8 Pro Max review
Best foldable Xiaomi phone
Xiaomi has long been experimenting with the foldable form factor (see the Xiaomi Fold series), but the Xiaomi Mix Flip marks the company's first internationally available foldable, as well as its first flip-style foldable.
Packing a vibrant 6.86-inch 120Hz display, as well as the supremely powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset and a long-lasting battery, the Mix Flip rivals the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Motorola Razr Plus (2024) in all the areas that matter – though those are no longer the best foldable phones to beat, with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 and Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) bringing even faster chipsets and even bigger batteries to the table.
Its cameras, mind, are still some of the best we've ever tested on a foldable. You'll get a 50MP wide lens and a 50MP telephoto lens, which makes a change from the wide-plus-ultra-wide combo we're used to seeing from phones with only two lenses.
If we've two criticisms of the Mix Flip, it's the phone's misguided software choices (or rather, Xiaomi's) and its lack of protection against dust and water ingress. That said, if you're already looking through this list, you're clearly familiar (and comfortable with) Xiaomi's cluttered HyperOS interface.
Read our full Xiaomi Mix Flip review
FAQs
How to choose the best Xiaomi phone for you
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Xiaomi makes a wide range of handsets, so there will almost certainly be at least one model that you'll be happy with, but there are a number of things you should consider when making your choice.
The first is how much you want to spend – obviously, with a bigger spend, you'll get more consistently high-end specs, so if you're spending less, then you need to work out what you can live without.
In terms of specs, the main things to look out for include power, which is especially important if you plan to play many games on your phone. Cameras are obviously important if smartphone photography matters much to you, and good battery life could benefit anyone – but if the phone charges fast, that could go some way to making up for worse endurance.
Screen size is more subjective – some people want a large screen, as this is better for watching videos on, and gives you more space to interact with apps. But it also makes the phone bigger, heavier, and harder to use with one hand. Regardless of size, though, a high resolution and refresh rate can be beneficial.
So, weigh up which of those things matter most to you, and choose accordingly. Or, go for a flagship and potentially tick every box – at a price.
Are Xiaomi phones better than Samsung phones?
Each year, Xiaomi's flagship phones feel more and more like Samsung rivals – the Xiaomi 17 is the best example yet, as it's a compact flagship like the Galaxy S26.
Samsung and Xiaomi flagships have slight differences, though – for instance, Xiaomi phones offer faster charging while Samsung phones have more powerful software – so your preferences will depend on what you're looking for.
That's the case for budget phones, too. While Samsung's Galaxy A phones give you great displays on a budget, we'd say Poco devices are more powerful and Redmi handsets are better for photography.
Is Xiaomi a good brand to buy?
We've been big fans of Xiaomi phones since the brand started selling them in the West, and if you're looking for a new phone, we'd definitely recommend checking out their offerings.
Like all brands, Xiaomi has misses as well as hits, and not all of their devices are great. There are sometimes duds in the flagship line, with handsets that are too expensive for their own good, or in the low-end, models with features that don't totally work.
But, on this list of the best Xiaomi phones, you're obviously going to find the best ones we've tested.
Do Xiaomi phones have Google apps?
Good question – yep, all Xiaomi phones come with Google Mobile Services, so they have Maps, Pay, the Play Store and more installed. That also means you can download plenty more apps – you're getting a decent Android experience here.
In fact, Huawei and Apple are the only companes which sell phones without the Play Store – and obviously Apple has the App Store, so it's fine.
One thing to note, though: even Android phones don't use Google apps in China, where other options are preferred by consumers. So, if you an import a Xiaomi phone from China, you might find it doesn't have the Google Mobile Services – saying that, this list only includes devices that are on sale in the West, so you don't need to worry about that.
How we test
To come up with this list of the best Xiaomi phones, we tested every included model, in most cases using them for a week or more. That testing included using the camera, pushing the processor with high-end games, multitasking, seeing how long the battery lasts – and how fast it charges – and living with each phone as our main handset during the test period.
So, all that leaves us with an excellent idea of exactly how each Xiaomi phone performs, and it also allows us to compare each model to other Xiaomi handsets and the wider smartphone market.
Using that information – and factoring in the price, too – we then worked out which phones were worthy of inclusion and how they should rank.