Independent · sourced · Updated June 2026

Best Smartphones (2026)

The cheapest smartphones is Nothing Phone (3a) at $379. Best by the numbers — Nothing Phone (3a) (lowest price), Nothing Phone (3) (newest). This page compares 15 smartphones across 8 brands on price and key specs — every figure sourced, updated June 2026.

15 smartphones compared on the specs that matter and US price — ranked cheapest-first. Every spec and price links to its source and the date we captured it.

Key takeaways

  • Lowest price: Nothing Phone (3a) at $379 (US price $379 via Nothing's US Beta/Developer Program; global base 8GB/128GB).
  • Typical price: from $379, median $799, up to $1299.99 — across 12 priced.
  • Tracked: 15 products across 8 brands, current through 2026-06-15.
  • Compared on: display in, display type, refresh hz, chipset, ram gb, storage gb.

Best by the numbers

Objective winners — each is the leader on one measured spec, with the figure. No subjective ranking.

Comparison

US price = launch MSRP for the base configuration. Sourced per row.
#SmartphonePricedisplay indisplay typerefresh hzchipsetram gbstorage gbSource
1 Nothing Phone (3a) $379 6.77LTPS AMOLED120Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 38128 gsmarena.com
2 Google Pixel 9a $499 6.3OLED120Google Tensor G48128 gsmarena.com
3 Motorola Edge (2025) $549.99 6.7pOLED120MediaTek Dimensity 74008256 gsmarena.com
4 Apple iPhone 16e $599 6.1Super Retina XDR OLED60Apple A188128 gsmarena.com
5 Apple iPhone 16 $799 6.1Super Retina XDR OLED60Apple A188128 gsmarena.com
6 Google Pixel 9 $799 6.3OLED120Google Tensor G412128 gsmarena.com
7 Nothing Phone (3) $799 6.67LTPS AMOLED120Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 412256 gsmarena.com
8 Samsung Galaxy S25 $799.99 6.2Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X120Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy12128 gsmarena.com
9 OnePlus 13 $899 6.82LTPO AMOLED120Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite12256 gsmarena.com
10 Apple iPhone 16 Pro $999 6.3LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED120Apple A18 Pro8128 gsmarena.com
11 Google Pixel 9 Pro $999 6.3LTPO OLED120Google Tensor G416128 gsmarena.com
12 Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra $1299.99 6.9Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X120Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy12256 gsmarena.com
13 Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra 6.78LTPO AMOLED144Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite12256 gsmarena.com
14 Samsung Galaxy A55 5G 6.6Super AMOLED120Exynos 14808128 gsmarena.com
15 Xiaomi 15 6.36LTPO OLED120Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite12256 gsmarena.com

Specs are as published by the manufacturer (or a reputable spec source where the official page was unavailable); prices are US launch MSRP. Full per-product records and all spec columns are in our open dataset.

Popular comparisons

Frequently asked questions

What is the cheapest smartphones?

Nothing Phone (3a) is the cheapest at $379 (US price $379 via Nothing's US Beta/Developer Program; global base 8GB/128GB), as of 2026-06-15.

How much does smartphones cost?

Across the 12 smartphones with a published price, the median is $799, ranging from $379 to $1299.99, as of 2026-06-15.

Which smartphones is best by the numbers?

Lowest price: Nothing Phone (3a) ($379). Newest: Nothing Phone (3) (2025-07). Fastest refresh: Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra (144 refresh hz).

How many smartphones are compared here?

15 smartphones across 8 brands, with US price and key specs, current through 2026-06-15.

All hardware categories →

How we compiled this

Specs were read from GSMArena spec pages (primary, machine-readable) and corroborated against official manufacturer pages, manufacturer newsrooms, Wikipedia, and reputable launch coverage (9to5Google, Android Authority, fonearena, Optus device help). Numbers are stored unit-free; units are implied by the spec key (display_in = inches, refresh_hz = hertz, ram_gb/storage_gb = gigabytes, main_camera_mp = megapixels, battery_mah = milliamp-hours, charge_w = watts, weight_g = grams). display_in is the diagonal screen size. refresh_hz is the maximum panel refresh rate (for the Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra this is the 144 Hz gaming ceiling over a 120 Hz everyday LTPO mode). ram_gb and storage_gb are the lowest globally announced base configuration, which may differ from the lowest US-sold config. os is the OPERATING SYSTEM AT LAUNCH, not the current shipping version (GSMArena and Apple now show post-launch updates such as iOS 26 / One UI 8). main_camera_mp is the primary rear sensor only. priceUsd is the US launch MSRP in USD for the base configuration noted in priceNote. GSMArena's on-page price rows are EUR-converted estimates and were NOT used as MSRP; US MSRP came from official manufacturer pages or launch press. Fallback policy: where a phone was never officially sold in the US (Xiaomi 15, Samsung Galaxy A55, Asus Zenfone 12 Ultra), priceUsd is null and the reason is given in priceNote and provenance rather than reporting a grey-market import price. Where an official spec sheet omits a number (e.g. iPhone 60 Hz panels, Apple wired wattage), the well-established hardware figure is used and flagged in provenance. A null is preferred over any guess. accessedAt is 2026-06-15 on every source.

Last verified 2026-06-15. We re-check published specs and prices on a recurring cadence and update this page when they change.

Open data & methodology → · Queryable via MCP

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