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MagyarThe Best Smartphones for Less Than 500 Euros
Upper-class smartphones are located in the price range of between mainstream and high-end models and are targeted towards users who are not willing to pay more than 700 Euros (900 USD) for an expensive high-end phone, but still want good performance, good cameras, and nice build quality.
The price range of up to 500 Euros (600 USD) includes both powerful upper-class models as well as old high-end smartphones. The latter are an interesting alternative, because the specifications are usually still very good and often receive at least one major update. The following rankings might be interesting for you as well:
The Best Premium Smartphones
Position | Total Rating | Date | Image | Model | Height | Weight | Screen-Body Ratio | Size | Refresh-Rate | Resolution | OS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 87.7 % | 02/2021 |  | Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Qualcomm Adreno 650 6 GB Memory, 128 GB | 8.4 mm | 190 g | 86 % | 6.50" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 10 |
| 2 | 86.4 % | 10/2021 |  | Xiaomi 11T MediaTek Dimensity 1200 ARM Mali-G77 MP9 8 GB Memory, 128 GB | 8.8 mm | 203 g | 85 % | 6.67" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 3 | 86.3 % | 12/2021 |  | Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G Qualcomm Adreno 642L 8 GB Memory, 128 GB UFS 2.1 | 6.81 mm | 158 g | 85 % | 6.55" | 090 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 4 | 85.9 % | 05/2021 |  | Xiaomi Poco F3 Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 5G Qualcomm Adreno 650 6 GB Memory, 128 GB | 7.8 mm | 196 g | 86 % | 6.67" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 5 | 85.7 % | 07/2021 |  | realme GT 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Qualcomm Adreno 660 8 GB Memory, 128 GB | 8.4 mm | 186 g | 86 % | 6.43" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 6 | 85.7 % | 05/2021 |  | Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 780G 5G Qualcomm Adreno 642 8 GB Memory, 128 GB UFS 2.1 | 6.81 mm | 159 g | 85.3 % | 6.55" | 090 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 7 | 85.4 % | 05/2021 |  | Motorola Moto G100 Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 5G Qualcomm Adreno 650 8 GB Memory, 128 GB | 9.7 mm | 207 g | 84 % | 6.70" | 090 Hz | 2520x1080 | Android 11 |
| 8 | 85.3 % | 02/2022 |  | Motorola Moto G200 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 Plus 5G Qualcomm Adreno 660 8 GB Memory, 128 GB | 8.9 mm | 202 g | 86.5 % | 6.80" | 144 Hz | 2460x1080 | Android 11 |
| 9 | 84.9 % | 12/2021 |  | realme GT Neo 2 Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 5G Qualcomm Adreno 650 12 GB Memory, 256 GB | 8.6 mm | 200 g | 84 % | 6.62" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
| 10 | 84.9 % | 09/2021 |  | Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G 5G Qualcomm Adreno 642L 6 GB Memory, 128 GB UFS 2.1 | 8.4 mm | 189 g | 83 % | 6.50" | 120 Hz | 2400x1080 | Android 11 |
The table above contains an overview over the best smartphones for less than 500 Euros reviewed by Notebookcheck over the course of the past 12 months as well as still relevant and available older products. In cases of identical score the more recent device is listed first. All prices in above table and price comparisons are updated daily and can thus differ.
Link: all devices in this class reviewed
Editors' Comments
There are no new entries this month. Some worthy smartphones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, Motorola Edge 20 Pro, or Xiaomi 11i, are edging closer and closer to our 500 Euro threshold but simply refuse to stay below it.
1st – Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
Thanks to a price drop to less than 500 Euros the entry-level SKU of Samsung Galaxy S20 with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal storage managed to enter the realm of affordable smartphones. Even though its successor, the Galaxy S21, is already available this Exynos 990-powered smartphone is still better than many newcomers.
The Samsung Galaxy S20 offers optimized battery life, an extremely bright display, and good cameras.
Many users will be drawn to the S20 by its comparatively compact 6.2-inch display that doesn’t seem to follow current oversized displays trends. Accordingly, the device remains both comparatively compact and lightweight. Thanks to software updates most annoyances and bugs have been ironed out by Samsung, and camera performance has been improved significantly compared to when the phone was first launched. It comes with an excellent and extremely bright display with accurate colors.
The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE is not officially sold in North America. Unlocked international models can be found on Amazon with prices starting at slightly below $500.
Pricecompare
2nd – Xiaomi 11T
The Xiaomi 11T features a fast an modern 5G SoC made by MediaTek, a bright 120 Hz AMOLED display, a large 5,000 mAh battery to ensure long battery life, and a triple-camera layout with a 108 MP main sensor accompanied by an additional ultra-wide and a macro lens. In our review, we praised its high build quality as well as its great connectivity. In addition, Xiaomi promises Android updates for three years.
Great performance, long battery life, and a bright 120 Hz AMOLED display – a lot of bang for the buck.
While the 11T allows for wired fast charging with up to 67 W it lacks support for other comfort features, such as wireless charging, an IP certification, expandable storage, or an audio jack. In return, it continues to feature the IR blaster that is so typical for Xiaomi phones.
Xiaomi devices are not available in North America.
Pricecompare
3rd – Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE (New Edition) is a powerful mid-range smartphone and managed to secure a good place on this top list despite its comparatively low price. It comes with a bright and color-accurate OLED display, a fast SoC, plentiful expandable storage, good battery life, and good location service with a wide array of supported GNSS services. Its triple-camera was improved significantly and worked very well overall.
The Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE is a really good mid-range smartphone with a slim outline.
While we criticized it for lacking new features of its predecessor when it was first introduced its price took a nosedive pretty much right away, which makes of the lack of new features. The SoC may be slightly weaker, and it comes with the older Gorilla Glass 5 but none of these are noticeable in everyday use.
Xiaomi devices are not available in North America.
Pricecompare
4th – Xiaomi Poco F3
The Xiaomi Poco F3 offers a great price-performance ratio. Thanks to its Snapdragon SoC and 6 GB of RAM it is capable of running through most tasks very smoothly, and its 128 GB of internal storage are not too skimpy either. It also features fast Wi-Fi 6, LTE and 5G, NFC, a fingerprint reader, and face recognition.
Xiaomi’s Poco F3 offers a high-end display and plenty of performance.
We also liked its extremely bright 120 Hz AMOLED display a lot. Colors are not only powerful but also well balanced. And finally, its camera takes decent photos with its three sensors. Overall, a well-balanced overall packaged at a low price that has just become even more attractive thanks to recent price drops.
The Xiaomi Poco F3 is not officially sold in North America.
Pricecompare
5th – realme GT 5G
According to its spec sheet the realme GT 5G is supposed to offer flagship performance at a low price, and it most certainly does not disappoint in this regard. Smartphones equipped with a Snapdragon 888, dual-speakers, 120 Hz OLED display, 64 MP camera, and a large battery tend to be much more expensive. With prices of around 450 Euros it is a direct competitor to Xiaomi’s Poco F3 with a surprisingly similar concept but a slightly different focus.
The realme GT 5G offers an overall attractive package with room for improvement.
Unfortunately, realme failed to provide adequate cooling for the powerful SoC, which becomes noticeable when playing demanding games. Overall system performance is very good, which cannot be said about its triple-camera. The main lens takes decent photos but is thwarted by the supported lenses. Nevertheless, the reamle GT 5G is a good and, considering its low price, very attractive smartphone.
The realme GT 5G is not officially sold in North American. Unlocked international models can be found on Amazon with prices starting just below $500.
Pricecompare
6th – Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G
The Mi 11 Lite 5G is a very lightweight and thin smartphone with plenty of performance for churning smoothly through everyday tasks thanks to its fast and powerful Qualcomm SoC. It offers 8 GB of RAM as well as 128 GB of internal microSD-expandable storage. Supported communication standards include 5G as well as Wi-Fi 6.
The Mi 11 Lite offers competitive hardware housed in a slim case.
Its great display features a 90 Hz AMOLED panel with great picture and, thanks to support for HDR10, also excellent color representation. Its camera takes decent photos, and the device’s battery life as well as its support for fast charging ensure proper power delivery at all times.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite is not officially sold in North America.
Pricecompare
7th – Motorola Moto G100
Motorola’s Moto G100 is a fast smartphone with 128 GB of fast storage. Its performance is adequate enough for smooth gaming at 60 FPS on its large and capable 6.7-inch display. Performance remained consistent over time.
In addition to being a very fast smartphone the Moto G100 also offers a unique desktop mode.
Its highlight is the support for a docking station and desktop mode. It worked great in our tests, and can be a useful alternative should a PC not be available. The device also supports 5G connectivity.
The Motorola Moto G100 is not officially sold in North America. Unlocked international GSM-only models are listed on Amazon starting at $500.
Pricecompare
8th - Motorola Moto G200 5G
The Motorola Moto G200 5G started out with a very attractive price-performance ratio to begin with, and it features a number of high-end features that make it particularly attractive. For example, it is powered by a Snapdragon 888+ SoC with access to 8 GB of RAM. Its 6.8-inch IPS display runs in FHD+ resolution at a high refresh rate of 144 Hz. Unfortunately, it turned out to be somewhat dim overall. The triple-camera’s main lens sits atop a 108 MP sensor with a comparatively poor ultra-wide-angle and macro lens.
The Motorola Moto G200 5G offers good performance and a 144 Hz display.
Due to its limited cooling capabilities the G200 cannot maintain the SoC’s high initial level of performance over time. That being said these limitations were practically unnoticeable at the time of writing. And while the device lacks a number of premium features its large battery allows for excellent battery life.
The Motorola Moto G200 5G is not sold in North America.
Pricecompare
9th – realme GT Neo 2
The realme GT Neo 2 can easily keep up with more expensive smartphones. Its connectivity is plentiful, and its performance is more than adequate for everyday use. It offers a long battery life and extremely fast charging, thanks to which it is ready to in no time.
The realme GT Neo 2 offers a very high performance, long battery life, and affordable price.
In addition, you get a well-made and robust case made of a copper ally, internal speakers with clean sound, and a very fast Wi-Fi modem. Given that it uses DC dimming for brightness regulation sensitive users should not encounter any problems.
Like all realme smartphones the GT Neo 2 is not sold officially in North America. Unlocked imported GSM-only models are available among others on Amazon with prices starting at just shy of $500.
Pricecompare
10th – Samsung Galaxy A52s
The Galaxy A52s 5G does not have any drawbacks in the areas of case, cameras, display, speakers, and battery life. Its processor is very fast, and its GPU performance has been increased. Fast Wi-Fi, 5G, and expandable storage are also available.
The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G is a slightly more expensive upgraded model with a decent performance boost over its predecessor.
Other benefits include its bright display and IP-certified case. The display is not only very bright but also very colorful thanks to its underlying OLED technology. A high 120 Hz refresh rate makes for buttery smooth animations and images.
The Galaxy A52s 5G is not officially sold in North America. Imported international GSM-only devices are available on Amazon starting at $450.
Pricecompare
Best Smartphones for Less Than 500 Euros in Comparison
Test Results
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G Adreno 650, SD 865, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Xiaomi 11T Mali-G77 MP9, Dimensity 1200, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE Adreno 642L, SD 778G 5G, 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | Xiaomi Poco F3 Adreno 650, SD 870, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | realme GT 5G Adreno 660, SD 888 5G, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G Adreno 642, SD 780G 5G, 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | Motorola Moto G100 Adreno 650, SD 870, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Motorola Moto G200 5G Adreno 660, SD 888+ 5G, 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | realme GT Neo 2 Adreno 650, SD 870, 256 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G Adreno 642L, SD 778G 5G, 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Response Times | ||||||||||
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 2.8 ? | 2.8 ? | 3.6 ? | 3.6 ? | 3.2 ? | 4 ? | 40 ? | 32 ? | 6 ? | 10 ? |
| Response Time Black / White * | 2.8 ? | 2.8 ? | 3.2 ? | 2.4 ? | 2.4 ? | 3.2 ? | 24 ? | 28 ? | 6 ? | 8 ? |
| PWM Frequency | 227.3 ? | 120.2 ? | 373.1 ? | 490.2 ? | 242.7 ? | 367.6 ? | 89290 | 532 | 231.5 | |
| Screen | ||||||||||
| Brightness middle | 714 | 781 | 797 | 889 | 605 | 863 | 562 | 512 | 767 | 736 |
| Brightness | 721 | 782 | 800 | 902 | 606 | 860 | 535 | 488 | 767 | 751 |
| Brightness Distribution | 95 | 94 | 97 | 95 | 97 | 93 | 90 | 87 | 97 | 96 |
| Black Level * | 0.57 | 0.36 | ||||||||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 1.8 | 2 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 3.2 | 3.99 | 3.42 | 3.47 | 2.18 |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 5.1 | 2.9 | 2 | 1.9 | 3.1 | 5.2 | 9.74 | 5.9 | 9.23 | 5.69 |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 3.9 | 6.5 | 3.7 | 5.9 | 2.1 |
| Gamma | 2.16 102% | 2.28 96% | 2.26 97% | 2.26 97% | 2.25 98% | 2.33 94% | 2.174 101% | 7154 0% | 2.275 97% | 2.27 97% |
| CCT | 6588 99% | 6852 95% | 6397 102% | 6614 98% | 6372 102% | 7299 89% | 6882 94% | 1.944 334362% | 7800 83% | 6563 99% |
| Contrast | 986 | 1422 | ||||||||
| Heat | ||||||||||
| Maximum Upper Side * | 33.2 | 37.1 | 33.4 | 36 | 37.7 | 39.1 | 42.3 | 43.7 | 44.8 | 45.4 |
| Maximum Bottom * | 35.1 | 35.6 | 33.1 | 35.9 | 37.1 | 39 | 41.4 | 46.2 | 41.8 | 45.2 |
| Idle Upper Side * | 29.4 | 32.3 | 29.4 | 30.5 | 32.4 | 31.7 | 37.2 | 29.6 | 22 | 24.9 |
| Idle Bottom * | 26.9 | 28.9 | 27 | 28.7 | 30.3 | 30.2 | 34.6 | 28.5 | 22.4 | 25.4 |
| Battery Runtime | ||||||||||
| Reader / Idle | 2010 | 2244 | 1648 | 1562 | 1509 | 2846 | 2695 | 1897 | ||
| WiFi v1.3 | 763 | 813 | 705 | 805 | 755 | 734 | 1049 | 905 | 962 | 721 |
| Load | 255 | 267 | 233 | 329 | 223 | 302 | 229 | 309 |
* ... smaller is better
Benchmarks
| PCMark for Android - Work 3.0 (sort by value) | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| realme GT 5G | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| realme GT Neo 2 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
| Antutu v9 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| realme GT 5G | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G100 | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
| WebXPRT 3 - --- (sort by value) | |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| realme GT 5G | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G100 | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
| Networking | |
| iperf3 Client (receive) 1 m 4M x10 Netgear AX12 (sort by value) | |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| realme GT 5G | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G100 | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| realme GT Neo 2 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
| iperf3 Client (transmit) 1 m 4M x10 Netgear AX12 (sort by value) | |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| realme GT 5G | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G100 | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| realme GT Neo 2 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
| PUBG Mobile - HD (sort by value) | |
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G | |
| Xiaomi 11T | |
| Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE | |
| Xiaomi Poco F3 | |
| Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G100 | |
| Motorola Moto G200 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G | |
