Best Samsung phones 2024

I am always happy to recommend the best Samsung phones to anyone who asks, since the company's range of handsets is so wide, there's something to suit everyone.

And as we come to the end of 2024, the Galaxy lineup is stronger than ever. Currently I and my TG colleagues rate the Galaxy S24 FE as the number one pick due to its balance of features and value. But if you prefer having all the latest features, then I would direct you to the Galaxy S24 Ultra, or alternatively the Galaxy A55 if keeping to a tight budget is the most important thing.

Read on for our best Samsung phone picks, as well as some insight into some honorable mentions and our testing process so you can fully understand why we believe these Galaxys are the ones that'll likely suit you best.

Richard Priday

Samsung launches dozens of phones every year, but fortunately I am able to try them out, test and review them. Before becoming a professional phones guy, I was a faithful Samsung user, eking out every last drop of life from my Galaxy S7 before my job required me to swap devices more regularly. So I've seen how Samsung's phones have changed and improved over a long period of time, and can hopefully steer you toward the right device in the company's spacious portfolio.

The quick list

Best Samsung phone overall

Normally, the latest standard Galaxy S model is the model I'd recommend to people first. But in his review of the Galaxy S24 FE, TG phones editor John Velasco found it was "one of the best values you'll find in a phone this year," beating the other S24 models to this top position.

John's review highlights the fact that there's no difference in the software or Galaxy AI features between the Galaxy S24 FE and the other models, including the seven years of promised software support. Test data also showed that the S24 FE had a brighter, more colorful and more accurate display than the Galaxy S24 Plus, which is impressive for a phone $350 cheaper.

The Galaxy S24 FE isn't as good for performance or photography due to Samsung's decision to downgrade the chip and cameras. But the fact it still has a 3x telephoto camera still impressed us, and helps reinforce what John concluded - this is all the phone you need for a surprisingly low price, making it an easy no. 1 pick for us.

Looking to the future, the Galaxy S25 series is expected to turn up in early 2025. However, Samsung doesn't launch the FE version of Galaxy S models at the same time as the standard, Plus and Ultra ones. So this could remain the top Galaxy S model, or at least the best FE, even after that rumored January launch.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy S24 FE review.

Best value Samsung phone

This is my pick for a Samsung to buy if you want to save some money. But it comes with a major caveat - it's not sold in the U.S.

While we evaluate the Galaxy A35, which is available in the States, here's why I still recommend finding an A55 if you can. First up, it's a surprisingly good photography phone, even compared to tough competition like Samsung's other phones. Its battery life was also quite impressive, outlasting phones with much larger batteries in my own YouTube-based testing. Plus the phone feels more premium than ever thanks to an aluminum frame and glass back and an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate.

The one possible deal breaker for me is the low-powered chipset, which makes gaming and similarly demanding apps run at disappointing speeds and quality. However there are many users out there who won't be bothered by this, and I'd be more than happy to introduce them to this particular Samsung.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy A55 review.

Best premium Samsung phone

One of TG's best phones overall, the Galaxy S24 Ultra is a phone I've kept close to hand since it launched. Its dual telephoto cameras, anti-glare display, and strong performance make it the best choice for all kinds of tasks.

Samsung's big new feature for the S24 series is Galaxy AI, a suite of features including translation, photo editing and text generating and summarizing tools. I love the power of the translation tools, but find the others less useful for how I use my phones. That could be different for you though.

Aside from its cost, we at TG do miss Samsung's old 10x zoom camera, that's now been replaced with a higher-res 5x one. But there's really very little I can find fault with on the Galaxy S24 Ultra, so anyone with the funds to do so - hit the buy button.

Just be aware as you read this in December 2024 that the next-gen Galaxy S25 Ultra could be with us in just over a month. So make sure you don't hit the buy button on the S24 Ultra without seeing what the S25 Ultra could be capable of.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review.

Best sub-$1,000 big-screen Samsung phone

If you have a hard budget limited of a grand, then I think the Galaxy S24 Plus is still worth your time even if it sits in an awkward middle spot in the S24 line-up.

The S24 Plus' big screen and battery mean you can use the phone for longer while enjoying games and content in larger and higher-definition style. The phone also chargers a fair bit faster than the basic S24 thanks to 45W charging, and gets more RAM to help with your various apps and AI needs.

You still get the same chipset as the cheaper S24 though, and the Galaxy S24 FE has launched more recently for users who want a big screen for less. But I still think the Galaxy S24 Plus will suit a lot of people, and for a long time to come thanks to Samsung's generous software update plan.

As with the Galaxy S25 Ultra above, make sure you know what's rumored for the Galaxy S25 series before buying an S24 model. You could be better off waiting for the new model, since it's possibly only a month or so away from launch.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus review.

Best foldable Samsung phone

Samsung's been evolving the Z Fold line slowly since it first arrived, but the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is still one of my favorite phones of the year despite that sluggish progress.

An upgrade I was glad to see this year are better resistance against water and dust and tougher exterior parts - because nobody wants their expensive foldable to break because of an unfortunate drop in a sandbox or puddle. But the display, chipset and cameras have all been tweaked since last year too to keep things up to date, and the addition of Galaxy AI features are quite a bonus too. Features like Sketch to Image work especially well on the big 7.6-inch inner display, and even more so if you get the optional stylus.

If you like your photography, or value for money, the Z Fold 6 isn't the phone for you. But it's still a solid choice for those who want to go foldable.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 review.

Most affordable Samsung foldable

If you like your phones truly pocket-size, allow me to introduce you to the Galaxy Z Flip 6. It's taken a lot of cues from the Z Flip 5 last year, but upgrades like a 50MP main camera and a new chipset mean photography and performance are better than ever.

Galaxy AI is here in all its glory too. The new Interpreter mode is a particular favorite of mine, transcribing and translating speech on both screens at once to help you converse face-to-face with someone speaking a different language.

More expensive than before, plus it was disappointing to see the new larger battery barely make a difference to the Z Flip 6's battery life. It's still a charming phone though, and one that you can fairly easily afford if you have a typical flagship phone budget.

Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review.

Also tested

If these options don't suit your needs, then fortunately we have other recommendations that aren't necessarily the top choice for a given niche, but could still be excellent for particular users.

For instance, last year's Galaxy S23 series bear a lot of hardware similarities to the Galaxy S24 series, but now sell for a fair bit less since there are newer models out there. There's also the Galaxy S23 FE, which offers users a larger display and a telephoto camera for less than the Galaxy S24 FE, albeit at the cost of some older components in some areas.

Also, for users unable to find the Galaxy A55 on sale in their region, the Galaxy A35 offers similar specs and features. Its chipset is less powerful though, and its cameras aren't quite as capable, but for the money it remains a great value.

How to choose the best Samsung phones

Picking which Samsung phone to buy is primarily driven by budget considerations. You're not going to spring for a Galaxy S24 Ultra, for example, if you're not prepared with at least $1,199 even if you opt to spread those payments out over time. But other factors need to be taken into consideration as well.

Start with how you use your smartphone. If it's primarily a productivity device, the Galaxy S24 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold 6 are appealing, despite their high price tags, because they both support the S Pen. (Like the S23 Ultra before it, the S24 Ultra comes with an S Pen; the stylus is an optional add-on for Samsung's foldable.) If you turn to your phone for photography, the Galaxy S series is usually first in line for Samsung's camera innovations, and all three S24 models offer impressive camera features — particularly the 200MP main camera on the Galaxy S24 Ultra.

Budget-minded shoppers have a plethora of options, from the reduced price tag of the Galaxy S22 to the midrange Galaxy A series. The Galaxy S23 FE is also another older Samsung phone with a low starting price. Additionally, you can find discounts on Samsung phones by buying directly from the phone maker and trading in your current device. Check out the best Samsung phone deals for the latest savings.

How we test the best Samsung phones

In order for a smartphone to make our best phone list, it needs to excel on several tests that we run on every handset. We perform some of these tests in our labs and some in the real world. See our detailed explanation on how Tom's Guide tests and reviews smartphones for more information.

When it comes to performance, we rely on such synthetic benchmarks as Geekbench 6 and 3DMark to measure graphics performance. These tests allow us to compare performance across iPhones and Android devices. (Note that some phones in the chart below are still showing their Geekbench 5 numbers.) We also run a real-world video transcoding test on each phone using the Adobe Premiere Rush app and time the result. (We unfortunately have to skip this test on some phones due to app compatibility issues, but we attempt this benchmark with each device we get in to review.)

To measure the quality of a phone's display, we perform lab tests to determine the brightness of the panel (in nits), as well as how colorful each screen is (DCI-P3 color gamut). In these cases, higher numbers are better. We also measure color accuracy of each panel with a Delta-E rating, where lower numbers are better and score of 0 is perfect.

One of the most important tests we run is the Tom's Guide battery test. We run a web surfing test over 5G (or 4G if the phone doesn't have 5G support) at 150 nits of screen brightness until the battery gives out. In general, a phone that lasts 10 hours or more is good, and anything above 11 hours makes our list of the best phone battery life.

Last but not least, we take the best phones out in the field to take photos outdoors, indoors and at night in low light to see how they perform versus their closest competitors. We take shots of landscapes, food, portraits and more, and also allow you to be the judge with side-by-side comparisons in our reviews.