Smartphones

Midrange Smartphone Comparisons

Midrange phones give you most of the everyday experience of a flagship for noticeably less money. They usually get a capable chip (sometimes a flagship processor from a generation earlier or a slightly cut-down version of the current one), plus a good OLED screen and a solid main camera. The savings come from specific, predictable places, and knowing them makes comparisons much easier.

Cameras are where most of the difference shows. A midrange phone often has one strong main camera and a weaker ultra-wide, or skips the ultra-wide and telephoto entirely. If you mostly take photos in good light, that main camera may be all you need; if you shoot a lot at night or want zoom, check the lens lineup carefully rather than the headline megapixels.

The display is the second place to look. Some midrange models run at 60 Hz while others offer 120 Hz, and peak brightness varies more than in flagships, which matters for outdoor use. Charging speed, wireless charging support, the water-resistance rating and the frame material also tend to differ: aluminum and glass on some models, plastic on others.

Software support deserves extra weight in this class. Update promises range widely, and a phone with more years of OS updates may outlast a slightly faster one. Base storage is worth a look, too, since the step to a larger capacity can close much of the price gap to a flagship.

If you want a reliable phone with a great screen and a good main camera but can live without long zoom or very fast charging, this is usually the class to compare first.

42 comparisons · 10 products