Best Budget Phone 2024: Top 10 Cheap Phones Today

In 2023, the regular Galaxy A14 was a slightly better buy than the A14 5G. But this year, the A15 5G’s better performance and 5G connectivity gives it the edge, and there’s no competition in the US – the A15 (4G) featured below isn’t sold there.

Essentially, what you’re getting here is a sub-£200 phone that excels in the fundamentals of a great smartphone. It boasts a well-designed, premium build that rivals more expensive devices. The battery life is excellent, lasting up to two full days with light usage. Additionally, the 90Hz display offers a delightful user experience.

While the A15 5G may lack the AI features or seven years of updates found in flagship models, One UI software remains the best choice for a budget phone. Samsung’s commitment to four OS updates and five years of security patches surpasses that of its budget competitors.

If you can overlook average performance, lack of official water resistance rating, and mediocre charging speeds, the Galaxy A15 5G is the budget phone to consider.

The Moto G84 is undoubtedly one of the best budget phones you can buy. The only reason it isn’t top is the lacklustre software support, with Motorola offering just one Android version update and three years of security support.

You’ll also have to put up with average cameras and a back that’s prone to getting dirty, but that’s about where the negatives end.

The 120Hz OLED display is the finest on any budget phone, while the Snapdragon 695 delivers solid performance and 5G support. Battery life from the 5000mAh cell is solid, and you even get relatively quick (for a budget phone) 30W charging.

If you don’t like the look of the Galaxy A15 5G, this is the cheap phone to get.

Given how good the Galaxy A15 5G is, why would you pay extra for the A25 5G?

There are a few reasons, especially as it still costs under £250/$250. A shift to Samsung’s Exynos 1280 chipset boosts performance, while the display is even more impressive with a 120Hz refresh rate. You also get an improved 8Mp ultrawide camera and stereo speakers.

Throw in the already-solid battery life, decent main and selfie cameras and those five years of updates and you’re on to a winner.

The only real reasons not to buy the A25 5G are the limited storage options and a design that won’t be to everyone’s tastes. Or if you’d prefer one of the two phones above.

Can you really get a good phone for under £100? As it turns out, the answer is yes, and the phone to get is Motorola’s Moto G04.

It costs just £89.99 in the UK (not available in the US), yet still delivers all the fundamentals of a great smartphone. Performance is absolutely fine for the basics, and the display delivers a decent viewing experience, albeit with limited brightness.

Battery life is a real highlight, with two full days of everything except heavy usage. And the Motorola software is reassuringly familiar, even if it only gets two years of security updates.

There’s no 5G support or official water resistance rating and the cameras aren’t great, but these can easily be excused at this price. The Moto G04 still offers incredible value for money.

Read our full Motorola Moto G04 review

The Note 13 5G isn’t quite the cheapest phone in the Redmi Note 13 range – that award goes to the Note 13 (4G) – but this is the one we recommend to budget buyers.

At £279, it’s slightly more expensive than our usual £250 limit, though it makes more sense to consider it a budget phone than a mid-range handset.

And you still get a lot for your money here. A premium design makes the phone feel a lot more high-end, as does the excellent display. It’s also nice to see expandable storage in addition to 256GB on board, and Xiaomi is offering a generous four years of security updates.

Battery life, software, and cameras could all do with work, but the big disappointment is that the Redmi Note 13 5G isn’t available in the US. Despite its flaws, it’s one of the finest cheap phones around.

As mentioned above, the Galaxy A15 5G is a better buy than the 4G model. But the latter is still worth including here, and it might be worth you saving £30 in the UK, though there’s no US availability.

Basically, the only things you’re losing out on are a bit of performance and 5G support. Everything else we said about the A15 5G still applies here, including the attractive display, strong battery life, and long software support.

If you only use your phone for the basics and don’t live in an area with good 5G support, the regular A15 is definitely worth considering.

The Moto G23 is another great choice from Moto that can regularly be found for less than its already-decent £199.99 RRP. Unfortunately, it’s not available.

The G23 looks and feels more expensive than it is and delivers where it matters. The screen is bright, its main camera will do the job fine, it has loud, clear dual stereo speakers, and it charges at 30W with the included charger.

It has a dual SIM slot and storage is expandable via microSD, though the built-in 128GB storage is very generous for the price.

The ultrawide and macro cameras aren’t much cop, there’s no 5G support, and the processor is only fast enough to play quite basic mobile games – you won’t want to fire up Fortnite on this phone. But if you want an affordable smartphone that nails the basics and is running a nice plain version of Android 13, this is it.