Ranking: Best smartphones for under 500 dollars/euros

The 14T delivers strong performance and extensive features at a competitive price. It is powered by MediaTek's Dimensity 8300 Ultra, paired with 12 GB LPDDR5x RAM and UFS 4.0 flash storage. The 6.67-inch AMOLED display impresses with a peak brightness of 4,000 nits and a 144 Hz refresh rate, ensuring excellent image quality.

Overall, the Xiaomi 14T is an appealing option for users seeking solid features and a capable camera without the cost of a true flagship.

The camera system includes a 50 MP main sensor with an f/1.7 aperture (Sony IMX906), a 50 MP telephoto lens with a 50 mm focal length, and a 12 MP ultra-wide-angle sensor. While the 14T Pro offers a more advanced setup, the 14T still delivers good camera performance.

The 14T supports fast charging at up to 67 watts; however, a compatible power adapter is not included (in the EU, at least).

The Poco F6 from Xiaomi is a solid offer. It features a 6.67-inch AMOLED display with a crisp resolution and a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. Powered by a fast Snapdragon chipset, it comes with either 8 or 12 GB of RAM and offers storage options of 256 or 512 GB. A 5,000 mAh battery, fast charging, an IR blaster, and Wi-Fi 6 complete the feature set.

While the Poco F6 delivers strong performance, its camera setup is less impressive.

Yes, the F6 delivers strong performance; its cameras are not as impressive, however. The main sensor of the dual-camera system provides decent image quality in good lighting conditions, but the ultra-wide-angle sensor falls short. Additionally, the device lacks eSIM support and does not support 6 GHz Wi-Fi meaning it is not as future-proof.

The Motorola Edge 60 Pro is a slim, lightweight curved smartphone with high-quality materials and a pleasant feel. It weighs just 186 g and has an elegant design with a leather/textile look and IP68/IP69 certification. The 6.67-inch POLED display impresses with its high resolution, 120 Hz frame rate and extreme brightness of over 4,000 nits. Performance is provided by the MediaTek Dimensity 8350, paired with 12 GB RAM and 512 GB UFS 4.0 storage.

The Motorola Edge 60 Pro is an excellently equipped mid-range smartphone that impresses with its bright curved display, powerful camera, outstanding battery life and fair pricing.

The camera equipment includes a triple camera setup with a 50 MP main sensor, 50 MP ultra-wide angle and 10 MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom - the image quality is particularly impressive in daylight.

In terms of features, the device offers modern standards: Wi-Fi 6E, eSIM support, numerous Bluetooth codecs, albeit without a micro SD slot. An battery with 6,000 mAh guarantees outstanding runtimes. Charging is quick with 90 W, although the charger is not included in the scope of delivery. Updates are guaranteed until 2029 (3 Android version updates, 4 years of security patches).

In our testing, the Pixel 9a proved to be a successful mid-range smartphone with excellent battery life and a compact body. It has a 6.3-inch pOLED display with a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, which has good brightness but is somewhat unevenly lit. The device is IP68-certified and therefore protected against water and dust.

The Pixel has a lot to offer with only a few (bearable) weaknesses, especially considering the comparatively low price.

The Tensor G4 processor powers the whole deal, with 8 GB of RAM and 128 or 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage at its disposal. Day-to-day performance is very good, but there is noticeable throttling under prolonged high loads. Thanks to pixel binning, the main camera with 48 megapixels delivers sharp and color-balanced images, even in difficult lighting conditions.

Other features include dual SIM with eSIM support, Wi-Fi 6E and a fresh enough Bluetooth version, NFC and a reliable fingerprint sensor in the display. The phone's stereo speakers are loud, but sound pretty bad at higher volumes.

The Poco X7 Pro is a powerful smartphone that packs a number of impressive features at an attractive price. Equipped with MediaTek's Dimensity 8400 Ultra processor, it delivers strong performance for both everyday tasks and gaming. Its 6.7-inch OLED display boasts a resolution of 2,712 x 1,220 pixels, a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, and a peak brightness of 3,200 cd/m².

The X7 Pro offers excellent value thanks to its good performance, high-quality display, and solid battery life, though it has some drawbacks, particularly in the camera department. There is also no wireless charging here.

Its dual-camera system includes a 50-megapixel main camera with optical image stabilization and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera. While the main sensor delivers good results in daylight, it struggles with zoom and wide-angle shots. The 6,000 mAh battery gives the user over 16 hours of usage, and with 90-watt fast charging supported, it can fully charge in about an hour. However, wireless charging is not available.

The Honor 400 shaped up to be a sophisticated mid-range smartphone with an impressive price-performance ratio in our testing. The phone has a 6.55-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,736 x 1,264 pixels, 120 Hz refresh rate and up to 5,000 nits peak brightness. The display also supports eye protection features such as high-frequency PWM dimming, low blue light mode and a special motion sickness mode.

The 400 left us impressed. This is a modern mid-range model with premium aspirations that deserves praise for its first-class display, powerful camera with AI features, large battery capacity, fast charging and long-term software support.

The casing has a high-quality finish, including a matte back that hardly collects any fingerprints and a flat frame. This Honor phone also has IP65 certification for moderate protection against dust and splashes of liquid. An integrated infrared blaster is onboard, too.

Other key features include a 200 MP main camera with OIS and a 12 MP ultra-wide-angle camera with macro capability. The front camera has a resolution of 50 MP. Overall, image quality is good here, with AI tricks such as converting photos into short videos, AI zoom and object removal as some icing on the cake.

The battery has a capacity of 5,300 mAh and needs less than an hour to go from zero to hero. Please note we are referring to the European version here and the optional 66 W charger.

The Galaxy A56 5G is a strong upper mid-range contender. It impressed us with its slim and light housing (7.4 mm, 198 g) made of Gorilla Glass Victus+ and aluminum that has IP67 certification, a highly modern visual design and slim display edges. The 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display offers a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz and peak brightness of up to 2,000 cd/m².

The A56 5G delivers a balanced mid-range experience: Elegant looks, bright display, long enough runtimes, years of guaranteed software support and some basic AI features. There are also limitations; those who like optical zoom may not like this Galaxy model. There is no micro-SD card slot here, either.

Its battery has a capacity of 5,000 mAh and supports 45 W wired fast charging for the first time (with only 25 W available on previous-gen models). Runtimes look good to us but wireless charging is still not available. On the software front, the Samsung makes use of Android 15 with One UI 7.0 and some AI features such as circle-to-search, object eraser and best face for group photos which are features that are not commonly found in mid-range phones. Samsung also promises 6 years of Android OS updates and security patches.

While there is no micro-SD slot, 6 GHz Wi-Fi or UWB here, dual e-SIM, NFC, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 are all available.

The Phone (3a) Pro has a 6.77-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,392 x 1,080 pixels, a refresh rate of 120 Hz and a peak brightness of up to 3,000 nits. Both the front and back are protected by Panda Glass. The case is IP64-certified, which is a basic but welcome nonetheless protection against dust and splashes of non-aggressive liquids. The Phone (3a) Pro is powered by a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3, supported by 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. The 5,000 mAh battery enables a long enough battery life and can be charged via USB-C at up to 50 watts; wireless charging is not supported here.

The Phone 3a Pro is notable for its striking visual design and powerful cameras. Compared to the base (non-Pro) model, it offers perks such as eSIM support and an improved camera system.

Cameras. These include a 50 megapixel main sensor, a 50 megapixel periscope telephoto camera with triple optical zoom and an 8 megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera. The front camera also offers 50 megapixels. Both the main and telephoto cameras have optical image stabilization.

The Essential Key, an extra button on the right-hand side of the product, is one of its highlight features. Do a short press to take a screenshot, while a long press starts a voice memo recording by default. There is also "Essential Space", an AI-enabled app that organizes and categorizes user data.

The Note 14 Pro+ 5G is a mid-range smartphone equipped with a 6.67-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2,712 x 1,220 pixels. The display can get pretty bright at around 3,000 cd/m² and supports a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz. It is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 serves as this phone's brains, supported by 8 GB or 12 GB of RAM. The internal storage is either 256 GB or 512 GB, depending on the model; it's not expandable.

The Note 14 Pro+ 5G has a lot to offer despite what its modest price might suggest, including an IP certification and a 200 MP camera.

The main camera's lead sensor is a 200-megapixel affair with optical image stabilization baked in. There is also an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera and a 2-megapixel macro camera here. A 20-megapixel front camera is available for selfies. The phone's battery has a capacity of 5,110 mAh and supports wired charging at up to 45 watts. The smartphone is IP68-certified, meaning it is not allergic to dirt, dust or liquids like water. Dual SIM and eSIM tech is supported, along with Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC and stereo speakers.

The Edge 60 impresses with its slim, lightweight casing - 7.9 mm and 179 g, respectfully. It seems well-made enough and comes with IP68/IP69 certification as well as a military protection standard compliancy. Its 6.67-inch P-OLED display with 2,712 × 1,220 pixels, adaptive frame rate of up to 120 Hz and extremely high brightness of up to 4,500 cd/m² is a spotlight stealer. The whole deal is powered by MediaTek's Dimensity 7300, providing plenty of performance for everyday use, gaming included.

While Wi-Fi 6 is supported here, the Moto only delivered moderate Wi-Fi data transfer speeds in our testing.

Motorola's Edge 60 is a successful mid-range smartphone with a bright display, impressive battery life, versatile triple camera set-up including optical zoom, a micro-SD slot and nice build quality.

The camera system is made up of a 50 MP primary lens, 13 MP ultra-wide-angle lens and an 8 MP telephoto lens for 3x optical magnification. This ensemble delivers good results overall. With its 5,200 mAh battery, the Edge offers very good runtimes while also supporting fast charging at up to 68 watts; wireless charging isn't supported, though. The software is based on Android 15 with a few Moto AI functions baked in. Updates will keep coming for a while but the reader should expect no miracles in this department.