The BEST Smartphones of 2021 🔥

A striking but understated design and a well-rounded benchmark flagship, named a runner-up for best overall phone.

Standout Xiaomi design that is so thin it barely feels real.

Standout design with an even, uninterrupted screen thanks to a decent in-display selfie camera.

Winner for best design and a runner-up for best super phone, with a fun, camera-focused experience.

Boring design, but an honourable mention for delivering about 90% of a big flagship in 60% of the footprint.

Ugly-phone candidate that feels very much like a prototype.

Crowned ugliest phone of the year for its chaotic alphabet-covered design.

Hard to recommend on specs for the price, but premium and fantastic to use, and it fits in a shirt pocket.

Best compact phone of 2021, offering the full latest iPhone experience with a big battery improvement.

The most extreme gaming phone, topping a flagship in almost every spec, but it costs 1500.

Best battery life of the year and a joint best super phone, with reliable day-to-day use and near best-in-class cameras, speakers and screen.

Ridiculous value at 500 with powerful hardware, but the phones feel rushed with half-baked software.

Best gaming phone of 2021, avoiding the Red Magic's software issues while nearly matching the Asus on performance.

Nice looking but with far too many compromises to recommend.

Best foldable of 2021, the only one offering a tangibly expanded experience, if you can live with its compromises.

Honourable mention for extreme price-to-performance.

Honourable mention in the budget category as one of two pretty special phones.

Just-announced budget phone given an honourable mention.

Best budget phone of 2021, shockingly well-rounded for about 250.

Feels like a 700 phone for 400, but reports of exploding units make him hold off recommending it.

Highly recommended at 400 for its flagship feel.

Realme's highest-end phone, stacked with specs for 500, though specs are not everything.

Named smartphone of the year 2021 and best mid-range phone, praised as a delightful phone with a great camera at a very good price.

Honourable mention as an all-round, technically tremendous package.

Had a mixed launch reception due to over-hyping, but updates have made it a really good option.

Not exciting, but a neat, practical and trustworthy phone with a camera that outperforms its hardware.

Best phone in the 600 to 900 bracket thanks to lively software and a good screen, though video recording and battery are not the best.

Built to beat the S21 Ultra, with a handy rear second screen and extreme spec, and a default recommendation for power users.

Basically the same phone as the Pro Max but with excellent rather than extraordinary battery life.