Choosing a new smartphone isn’t as simple as it used to be. Nowadays, they come in lots of different sizes, with plenty of different features and, critically, at plenty of different price points.
For some, the camera is important, but others may prioritise battery life, size or biometric identification.
Thankfully, it isn’t just the very best flagship smartphones that offer these features, either. There’s another breed of smartphone - the mid-range models - that offer great specs at a lower price.
Here, we’ve rounded up the best devices we’ve reviewed that sit around the $200 - $400 mark - or £200 - £400 / €200 - €400, for those in the UK and Europe.
Want something even cheaper? Then head on over to our guide to the best budget phones.
Best mid-range phone: Our top pick
For
- Great-looking design Pixel cameras as strong as always Powerful and fast
Against
- Display only 60Hz 128GB storage limit
The Pixel 6a has a lot of things going for it. Firstly, it’s a really good looking compact phone, and it offers a lot of power for the price. It virtually gives you that full Pixel 6 experience, but at a more accessible price point.
Build quality is super, and IP67 water and dust resistance, ensures it’s a lot more capable of surviving daily accidents than most other phones on this list. It also features the same Tensor processor as the Pixel 6 and features a strong dual camera system that enables you to take great photos really easily.
Even the display is a strong asset of the phone. It’s bright and vibrant, and - while it tops out at 60Hz - for the most part you won’t see that as a problem unless your eyes are used to the sharpness and fluidity of 90Hz/120Hz displays.
With all of that, a pure Android experience, and up to five years of updates, it’s a phone that will always be up to date, and continue to be for some time.
Mid-range phones we also recommend
To our minds, the Pixel 6a is the phone that offers the best of everything in this price range as a whole experience. It may not have the most drool-worthy specs, but with its combination of speedy performance, great display and brilliant cameras packed into a very good-looking device, it’s very easy to recommend to most people.
Quality design Glyph LED lights are unique Great display Bloat free software
Brand has no historical track record Auto brightness isn’t great
Carl Pei’s new company - Nothing - launched a phone that looks very different to the usual mid-range smartphone. It has a strong aluminium frame, an intricate transparent design on the back as well as the LED Glyph interface that flashes to alert you of various notifications.
It’s safe to say, it looks nothing like any other phone in its price range, although it does bear a resemblance to the iPhone. It’s a great phone to use though, thanks to its bloat-free software and the display which outperforms most others in this category.
If there’s anything that goes against it, it’s the lack of history. We don’t know just how timely software updates will be, and if Nothing really can support the phone as long as it says it will.
Snappy performer Really fast 80W charging Bloat-free software
Weird camera layout The ultra-wide camera isn’t great
The OnePlus Nord 2T is similar to its predecessor in many ways, but that’s no bad thing. We loved almost everything about the Nord 2 and this one bumps up the charging speed and houses a newer processor. Easily making its way into our top spot.
Day-to-day performance feels flagship level, as does the smooth software experience and lack of bloatware.
The main camera is super and while the ultrawide isn’t quite so impressive, it’s undeniably useful from time to time.
With Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2 and 5G connectivity on board, it’s pretty future proof. Meanwhile, a solid battery and fast charging make it an ideal daily companion.
Fast and fluid performance Strong battery life and fast charging Display is very bright and vibrant Very competitive price
MIUI software is heavy handed Not much changed from the Poco F3 Weak ultrawide camera
If you’re looking for a lot of power, and a brilliant display for as little money as possible, the Poco F4 is definitely up there. It may not have changed its specs much from the Poco F3, but the Snapdragon 870 inside is almost certainly the most powerful, fastest chipset you’ll see on any phone in this list.
What that means is you get very responsive, speedy reactions and great gaming action. In fact, it’s near-as-makes-no-difference a flagship performer in that regard. Likewise, the display is a very strong panel.
There are two things that go against it though. First, MIUI is a very heavy Android skin that changes some key elements so that they’re more cumbersome and frustrating. Secondly, the design is arguably worse than the Poco F3 before it.
Still, if you value speed above all else, the F4 has that in buckets. Even the charging - at 67W - ensures your battery won’t ever stay empty for long, giving you a full charge in under 40 minutes.
Solid design and IP67 water/dust resistance Impressive display Better value than the Galaxy S22 range
No 3.5mm headphone port UI can stutter/lag sometimes The Ultrawide camera isn’t as strong as the primary
While it’s not a massive upgrade on its predecessor, the A53 does an excellent job of following on from the Galaxy A52.
The display is vibrant, the battery life is very good and overall speed and performance are as good as you’ll find. Plus, it has one decent camera in that array of lenses on the back.
At this price point, it has lots of competition from the likes of Redmi, Realme and OnePlus (some even cost less). However, few of those offer the same speedy and consistent software and security updates.
If you want a modern Samsung experience without the price tag required to get an S22 Series phone, the A53 is a superb pick that does well in all the key areas.
Flagship-level power 5G support Great battery life
Design is very tired No MagSafe Camera performance is mixed
The third-gen Apple iPhone SE represents a bit of a quandary for those interested in an iOS smartphone. While it’s a much-improved version of the device that launched in 2020, now coming with 5G support and the same A15 Bionic chip housed inside the iPhone 13 range, it does also feel like a bit of a missed opportunity.
Apple hasn’t really moved the design of this phone on in five years, and though there will be some users out there who enjoy the familiarity of the two-bezel design and Touch ID, it would have been good to see a tweak - perhaps MagSafe charging, at the very least.
Still, considering the price tag, the SE delivers a powerful, smooth experience. Some of the photography features that come with the iPhone 13 are on board (Photographic Styles and Smart HDR 4), and the zippy performance and all-day battery life ensure you won’t massively feel like upgrading any time soon.
Ok, it’s a little over the $/£/€400 mark - but it’s close.
Lovely 120Hz display Great performance across the board 1000Hz touch sampling
Not the most impressive cameras Bloatware included
The Realme GT Neo 3T is a bit of a performer, and its standout feature is the luscious 120Hz display. Using this phone feels fluid and snappy, and if it wasn’t for the presence of some bloatware you could easily mistake it for a top-tier flagship.
Gamers shouldn’t be put off by its slightly older processor, it’ll still handle the majority of games with ease and some nice software integrations really elevate the gaming experience. The blisteringly fast 1000Hz touch-response rate is a real rarity too.
The cameras are, unfortunately, a bit of a weak area. The primary camera is good but could benefit from OIS. While the other lenses are just unimpressive.
If you’re not too bothered about camera performance, the 3T has a lot to offer. With a big 5,000 mAh battery to keep you going all day and a speedy 80W charger to top you up, the Realme GT Neo 3T is an excellent mid-ranger.
How to choose a mid-range phone
Buying a phone is a delicate business, with a lot of different elements to be considered, but there are some key questions to ask yourself.
What’s your budget for a mid-range phone?
While the phones we’ve included in the list you’ve just browsed should all come in around $400 / £400 / €400 or below, that doesn’t mean that’s a figure you have to spend. As you’ll have seen, there are plenty of price points to be found.
Therefore, it’s certainly a helpful first step to work out what your budget is so that you can see what your exact price can fetch you.
Mid-range phone cameras
A big variable between different phones at the moment comes down to the approach to photography. If you want it, you can easily find quad-camera arrays at this price, giving you loads of options for shooting in different ways.
Equally, though, if you’re happy with fewer lenses of higher quality, that’s something you can keep an eye out for. We think that a standard shooter and an ultra-wide are both nice to use, but aren’t always won over by macro or telephoto lenses at this price.
Mid-range phone operating system
You might notice that we’ve only got Android phones on this list - that’s because you still can’t find a new iPhone for a truly budget price that we think is good enough for this list.
Of course, you can buy used if you want iOS over any alternative, but you’ll have an easier time of it if you’re happy to use Android.
Mid-range phone display size
Another big variable is around the size of phone you want - it’s increasingly difficult to find truly small phones, but there’s still variation in how big they are.
Check out the photos in our reviews to see how big a phone is if you’re interested and compare their dimension to make sure you don’t accidentally end up with something way too big for your hands!
