The best phone cameras of 2025, tried and tested by a smartphone expert

Telegraph

3 days ago

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Besides placing calls, sending text messages, and playing time-wasting games on the train, the best smartphones have evolved to become the primary means of capturing images and taking video for the vast majority of people.
Handsets such as the iPhone 16 and Google Pixel 9 are now incredibly adept at photography, employing all sorts of high-end technology such as advanced image algorithms, cutting-edge processors, and top-of-the-line sensors to produce a convincing approximation of a classic bulky camera being wielded by a professional.
While it's true that the best camera is the one you have on you, the results will vary between devices. As an experienced tech journalist and smartphone expert, I have spent countless hours assessing the current crop of flagship phones, along with a few cheaper alternatives, to see what they have to offer on the photographic front. You can read my reviews below, followed by answers to some frequently asked questions. But if you're in a hurry, here's a quick look at the top five.
The best camera phones: At a glance
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How to choose the best phone camera
First, the good news: any flagship phone released in 2025 will be able to capture excellent images in most lighting conditions. It's difficult to make a bad decision here. However, each phone has its particular strengths and quirks, if not outright weaknesses.
Your average flagship handset, which typically costs £800 or more, will consist of a multitude of cameras. You'll have a regular main camera for the majority of image-taking tasks, a special ultrawide sensor for landscape shots and usually a zoom lens. You can also expect a modern phone to feature a good-quality front camera for selfies and video calls. All should be capable of shooting 4K resolution video footage at high detail.
While the general standard of phone cameras is high, it's worth establishing your own photographic tastes and habits before deciding what features you need. Do you snap mostly stills or video footage? Are you a selfie fanatic, or do you love zooming in on your subject from afar? Do you like your phone to do all the hard work for you, or would you prefer a degree of manual editing control?
Whatever your answers to these questions, one of the following phones in this guide should be ideal for you.
How we test camera phones
I tested each of these top camera phones by judging them against five key metrics: design and features; display; performance and battery life; software and AI; and crucially, their camera capabilities.
As we are predominantly concerned with the performance of each camera, the following reviews focus on this particular aspect. I used each of the phones featured here as my main handset for several weeks or even months, capturing the same photos and videos on each camera to directly compare how each device performed in various lighting conditions. Nighttime images, in particular, are the trickiest test.
I did, of course, use each phone for more than just photography to make sure it could handle day-to-day tasks like making calls, text messaging and using different apps on the go. Where available, I have also linked to our full reviews of these phones.
The best camera phones of 2025
1. Best Buy Phone Camera: Apple iPhone 16 Pro
Often, people's top photography pick is the best iPhone they can get which this year is the iPhone 16 Pro. While it isn't the best at absolutely everything, Apple's top-of-the-line smartphone offers by far the easiest to use point-and-shoot experience on the market. This is now aided by a physical camera button on the right edge of the handset, though its positioning isn't the most comfortable.
The shots it is capable of capturing, however, are near excellent, with a natural, highly detailed look to images that stand in stark contrast to some of its rivals. If you prefer your photos to have a certain visual style, such as adding colour filters, then Apple provides some of the most sophisticated (though still easy to use) customisation options on the market.
Apple's Night Mode captures arguably the best low-light shots right now, which it handles automatically as the darkness creeps in. When it comes to video, meanwhile, the iPhone 16 Pro is the undisputed champion, capturing broadcast-standard footage at up to 4K resolution at a high frame rate of 120fps.
Away from the camera, the iPhone 16 Pro is an excellent compact handset (the iPhone 16 Pro Max offers the same specifications, but with a larger screen and battery) with some of the fastest processing performance available.
Build quality is impeccable, with a light yet strong titanium body that only the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra (listed below) can match. Apple's 6.3-inch display, meanwhile, looks gorgeous with loads of brightness, and the iOS 18 software is as clean and intuitive as ever, though Apple's AI helper isn't anywhere near as advanced as Google's.
Read our full iPhone 16 Pro review.
Key specifications
Screen: 6.3-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
Cameras: Triple (48MP main, 48MP ultrawide, 12MP 5x zoom), 12MP selfie
Processor: Apple A18 Pro
Storage: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB
Operating system: iOS 18
Dimensions: 150 x 72 x 8.3mm
Weight: 199g
Colours: Black Titanium, White Titanium, Natural Titanium, Desert Titanium
2. Best Value Phone Camera: OnePlus 13
The OnePlus 13 isn't anywhere near as cheap as our budget phone camera pick, the Google Pixel 9a (£499). However, it does cost less than most other phones on this list, despite being much less of a compromise in the camera department.
You're still getting three strong cameras here, including a large 50-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel ultrawide, and a 50-megapixel zoom. The latter can zoom up to 3x, which isn't the farthest on this list, but the quality of the close-up shots is still impressive.
Swedish camera specialist Hasselblad has partnered up with OnePlus, adding a distinctively vibrant look to the OnePlus 13's images. It's not as true-to-life as Apple's pictures, but it's easy on the eye and looks great when sharing on social media.
Besides offering an accomplished trio of cameras, the OnePlus 13 is a fabulous all-around smartphone. With a Snapdragon 8 Elite chip inside, it's as fast as any other handset on this list, while its 6.82-inch screen can rival any with its sharpness and high brightness.
This is the phone I recently picked out as having the best battery life, thanks to its enormous 6,000mAh battery and speedy 100W wired charging. It's also well-built, with the same IP68-rated water resistance as its rivals (meaning it can be submerged for up to 30 minutes), a fancy faux leather finish option and a physical alert switch on the side that can be used for silencing your phone in a hurry.
Key specifications
Screen: 6.82-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
Cameras: Triple (50MP main, 50MP ultrawide, 50MP 3x zoom), 32MP selfie
Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite
Storage: 256GB, 512GB
Operating system: Android 15 with OxygenOS 15
Dimensions: 163 x 77 x 8.5mm
Weight: 213g
Colours: Black Eclipse, Arctic Dawn, Midnight Ocean
3. Best Phone Camera for Selfies and AI: Google Pixel 9 Pro
Google's current flagship, the Pixel 9 Pro, is probably the closest Android alternative to the iPhone 16 Pro. It's another compact, flat-edged phone with perfectly aligned hardware and software. Like Apple, Google makes both of these elements in-house.
Also like the iPhone, the Pixel 9 Pro takes consistently fabulous photos without any tinkering required on your end. Google's image processing is some of the best out there, producing beautifully rich HDR (high dynamic range) shots, which means that they convey bright highlights and darker areas (such as shade) equally well within a single image.
While it's a fine all-rounder, the Pixel 9 Pro's cameras stand out from the opposition in two areas. First, its 42-megapixel front camera captures the best selfies of any phone that I've used. Like the main camera, these shots are sharp, vibrant and full of contrast.
Where the Pixel 9 Pro camera truly excels, however, is its AI image editing tools. Google lets you fundamentally adjust the entire look of a shot, removing or adding objects and people with just a simple tap of the screen. You can even add yourself seamlessly to a group shot, with great results.
It is also a generally excellent smartphone with a bright, sharp and compact 6.3in display and a clean design. Google's Android software is one of the most refined, with advanced AI and a class-leading seven years of future updates planned. Google's Tensor G4 processor, meanwhile, isn't as fast as the other phones on this list, but it does the job well enough for everyday use.
Read our full Google Pixel 9 Pro review.
Key specifications
Screen: 6.3-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
Cameras: Triple (50MP main, 48MP ultrawide, 48MP 5x zoom), 42MP selfie
Processor: Google Tensor G4
Storage: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB
Operating system: Android 15
Dimensions: 153 x 72 x 8.5mm
Weight: 199g
Colours: Porcelain, Rose Quartz, Hazel, Obsidian
4. Best Phone Camera for Landscape Shots: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
If you find yourself shooting as many landscape pictures as regular snaps or selfies, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is the best choice. It's not just that the phone's 50-megapixel ultrawide camera takes sharper or even downright superior shots to the other phones on this list, but it is also able to keep a more natural-looking tone in images.
In most smartphones, the ultrawide camera tends to be the worst of the collection, where shots look noticeably cooler or warmer, or even a little dimmer and lacking in quality. No phone mitigates those differences better than the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.
This is also a solid all-around camera setup. Samsung's punchy colours aren't to everyone's taste, but the shots it captures are always well-lit and rich in colour, so they stand out on a social media feed. The Galaxy S25 Ultra also offers excellent zoom performance, thanks to a pair of telephoto cameras allowing you to zoom as far as 100x.
More generally, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is a brilliant phone with a robust titanium design, top-level performance, a big and beautiful display, as well as extensive AI features and software support. It also offers an integrated S Pen stylus, which can be accessed via a little slot in the bottom left corner of the handset. This enables you to scrawl out digital notes and doodles on the phone's screen.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review.
Key specifications
5. Best Budget Phone Camera: Google Pixel 9a
While we are generally considering the best of the best here, it is possible to get a reliable phone camera while spending considerably less money. The Google Pixel 9a costs half the price of the Google Pixel 9 Pro above, but the photos it captures are often comparable.
The Pixel 9a's 48-megapixel main camera isn't as advanced as the Pixel 9 Pro's. However, it employs the very same Google image processing features, driven by an identical Tensor G4 processor, resulting in shots with a recognisable 'Pixel look'.
That involves extremely clear and well-detailed shots that land somewhere in the middle between Samsung's punchy vibrancy and Apple's more natural tone. They're extremely easy on the eye and when shooting on an incredibly sunny day, I was shocked at how close the Pixel 9a's main camera got to its big brother.
The difference is more obvious when you shoot as the light dims. The Pixel 9 Pro's larger sensor is capable of capturing more light in the environment. The sensor in the 9a gives more of a fuzzy look. The phone's other cameras, consisting of a 13-megapixel ultrawide and 13-megapixel selfie camera on the front, are also less capable than their Pro counterparts, though still rather splendid for the price.
It's a similar story in general use, where the Pixel 9a offers a comparable experience to its big brothers. Its 6.3-inch display is clear and sharp, while performance is snappy and battery life is good enough to last a full day of picture taking. Google's Android 15 is one of the best around, and you get the same seven-year update promise as the rest of the Pixel 9 range.
Read our full Google Pixel 9a review.
Key specifications
Screen: 6.3in AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
Cameras: Dual (48MP main, 13MP ultrawide), 13MP selfie
Processor: Google Tensor G4
Storage options: 128GB, 256GB
Operating system: Android 15
Dimensions: 155 x 73 x 8.9mm
Weight: 186g
Colours: Obsidian, Porcelain, Iris, Peony
6. Best Phone Camera for Enthusiasts: Xiaomi 15 Ultra
Score: 8/10
We like: Excellent cameras across the board, optional Photography Kit add-on, large battery and fast charging
The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is the best Android phone camera for those who want to go the extra mile with their photography. It has four fabulous cameras to play around with, including Xiaomi's powerful image processing, but it also offers something extra.
If you opt for the additional Photography Kit, which costs an additional £169, you'll receive a special case that effectively turns the Ultra into a high-end camera. There is a satisfying two-stage shutter button, a manual zoom control, a dedicated video recording button and a small dial to change the exposure (effectively altering the brightness of the final image).
Once fitted, I found that it's easier and more satisfying to spend that extra time framing my shots, thanks to the large hand and thumb grips. The hand grip even contains a little extra battery capacity, which meant that it didn't run dry on intensive shoots.
That's not all the Xiaomi 15 Ultra has going for it. The main 1-inch 50-megapixel sensor is one of the largest around, which means it's excellent at capturing more light. This results in sharp, beautifully presented images.
If you like to get up close and personal without stifling (or even alerting) your subjects, the Xiaomi 15 Ultra is your best choice. With a 50-megapixel 3x and a 200-megapixel 4.3x telephoto camera, it captures the most detailed zoomed-in shots I've ever seen from a phone, and excels even at 30x zoom and beyond – a high level of zoom that trips up most smartphone cameras.
The downside is that this is an incredibly large and heavy smartphone to deal with day to day and Xiaomi's operating system is messy and a minefield to navigate. Xiaomi will only support the phone with four years of updates, too, which places it at the back of the pack on this list. Performance and screen quality are unimpeachable, however, and I had no qualms with the battery life.
Key specifications
Screen: 6.73-inch AMOLED, 120Hz refresh rate
Cameras: Quad (50MP main, 50MP ultrawide, 50MP 3x zoom, 200MP 4.3x zoom), 32MP selfie
Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite
Storage: 512GB
Operating system: Android 15 with HyperOS 2
Dimensions: 161 x 75 x 9.35mm
Weight: 226g
Colours: Black, Silver Chrome, White
Also consider:
The Sony Xperia 1 VI is about due for an update, but it still offers some of the most extensive manual camera control options around, including the best physical shutter button on the market and a unique 3.5x-7.1x variable zoom. Sony's low-intervention approach to image processing means you won't get the best point-and-shoot results, but it rewards extra care and attention if you take the time to edit the pictures after they are captured.
7. Best Phone Camera for Action Shots: Honor Magic 7 Pro
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The Honor Magic 7 Pro is a relative unknown, but it has a couple of interesting camera features that force it into the reckoning. If you take a lot of pictures with fast-moving subjects, whether that's a fidgety child or your local sports team, Honor's smartphone has a powerful feature it calls 'Smart Capture'.
Activate this in the camera app and the phone will lock on and monitor your subject. When it detects quick movement, it will automatically capture the optimal shot, freezing them in motion. I put this to the test by performing star jumps in front of the camera, and the Honor Magic 7 Pro captured me perfectly mid-jump without so much as a hint of motion blur or lack of detail.
Another neat camera trick is what's known as a 'variable aperture' on the main lens, which lets you switch between f/1.4 and f/2.0 on the fly. This allows for some extra level of control over the background depth of field effect (known as bokeh, the amount of blur behind your subject).
Honor's flagship phone goes big on the zoom, too, with a 200-megapixel 3x lens. Using AI, it can create sharp zoom shots up to 100x, though in testing, this worked better on non-organic subjects, with zoomed-in faces and foliage looking rather mushy.
Outside of photography, the Honor Magic 7 Pro is another highly capable smartphone, with the same Snapdragon 8 Elite chip that powers several of our top picks. Its 6.8-inch display gets extremely bright, and this is the rare Android phone to include a secure face unlock system like Apple's Face ID. Honor's customised Android interface is sadly as unappealing as Xiaomi's, but it's sufficiently customisable and works well enough.
Key specifications
Best phone camera FAQs
Is the camera on the latest iPhone Pro or Samsung Galaxy S Ultra better?
The iPhone 16 Pro has the better all-round camera system, with more natural-looking shots and greater quality video capture, but the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra takes superior zoomed images.
What phone camera performs best in low-light conditions?
I found that the iPhone 16 Pro provided the best balance between brightening up my pictures and retaining the shadowy areas of the image.
The Xiaomi 15 Ultra is capable of zooming the farthest at 120x zoom, but it also takes the sharpest images at lower, more practical zoom levels such as 30x.