How good are smartphones under £500 in today's market?
Smartphones under £500 in today’s market are very competitive and can cover most of your needs for performance, camera quality, and battery life.
Many models in this range use mid- to high-end processors from Qualcomm, MediaTek, or Samsung, so you can expect smooth performance in daily tasks and even good results in gaming. They often include 6 GB to 12 GB of RAM and 128 GB to 256 GB of storage, which is enough for apps, photos, and videos.
Cameras in this price range have improved a lot, with some phones reaching multi-lens setups, high-resolution sensors, and advanced image processing that delivers sharp, detailed photos even in low light. Displays are usually AMOLED or high-refresh-rate LCDs, so you get vivid colors and smooth scrolling. You will also find large batteries, often around 5,000 mAh, with fast charging that reduces downtime between uses.
The best available smartphones under £500 (with the highest overall score) are as follows:
- Xiaomi 15T (12GB + 512GB) Overall score: 8.49 points
- Xiaomi 14T Pro (12GB + 512GB) Overall score: 8.44 points
- Motorola Edge 50 Ultra (16GB + 1TB) Overall score: 8.39 points
Which brands make the best smartphones under £500?
The brands with the best smartphones under £500 (with the highest overall score) are as follows:
- vivo Average overall score: 7.9
- Poco Average overall score: 7.8
- Xiaomi Average overall score: 7.8
Note: Only brands with at least 6 smartphone models in our database, released since 2022, were considered.
The chart below ranks smartphone brands offering models under £500 based on their overall scores.
[horizontal-chart-02927245868333036948063611845519980382570238385030]
