Best Android Phones of 2019 (September Update)

Another month and a few updates to our lists of the best Android phones across a number of different categories. We are also introducing a new list, best budget flagships which we’ll explain further below, but it’s a market segment that doesn’t get enough attention.

• Best Android Smartphone

• Best Budget Flagship Smartphones

• Smartphones with the Best Battery Life

• Smartphones with the Best Camera

• Best Rugged Smartphones

• Best Cheap Android Smartphones

Our primary guide is simply the best Android phones, with this list, we try to weigh every factor and come up with the top 10 devices that are currently available. In working on this list I was struck with what a great time it is to be in the market for a new smartphone, there are so many awesome options. Top to bottom I’d be happy using any of the devices on this list as my daily driver. Along with the current Top 10, this list also includes upcoming phones to be sure you aren’t picking up a phone with something just right for you on the horizon.

As I mentioned in the intro, we are debuting the best budget flagship smartphones list this month and it will be updated along with the others going forward. In reviewing our lists from last month we felt this was an area that was falling through the cracks as while they can’t quite stand up to the top tier flagships, they come awfully close for hundreds less. These are going to be devices that have a top-end processor (Snapdragon 855 level currently) and come in below $600.

Our next guide is on the best cheap Android phones, not everyone wants or needs a high-end flagship and the good news is that the mid-tier options are pretty fantastic right now too. We set a cap at $400 for these smartphones, in part because leaving the Pixel 3a out of this list seemed impossible, but most are below $300 and will still deliver an excellent user experience.

The best battery life guide takes a look at the smartphones that will get you through even the heaviest day of use and beyond. A dead smartphone isn’t doing anyone any good, so if carrying an external battery or getting to a charger during the day isn’t an option for you then these are the smartphones to put at the top of your list.

Cameras have become one of the biggest battlegrounds for smartphones, so our list of smartphones with the best camera was one of the hardest to determine. Much like the best overall smartphones guide there simply isn’t a loser in this collection, they have some different strengths which we highlight in the guide, but each one has a fantastic camera that can yield amazing results.

Last up we have the rugged smartphones guide, definitely the most niche list we have, but as most smartphones have gotten increasingly fragile the market for truly rugged smartphones has become even more critical. These smartphones will survive almost anything you can throw at them and some offer unique capabilities that could be tremendously valuable on a job site.

So take a look at the new guides if you or anyone you know is in the market for a new smartphone and we’ll be constantly working to keep them up-to-date so you always have a resource where you can find the best android smartphones on the market.