Best Camera Phone 2025: Take better photos with these top-rated sensors

Every smartphone on the market has some kind of camera system, making the task of finding the best camera phone all the more difficult – but that’s where we at Trusted Reviews come in. Our experts have tested smartphone cameras of all shapes and sizes, and here are our absolute favourites available in 2025.
With so many options on the market, deciding which is best for your needs can be overwhelming but fear not; we’ve tested a range of smartphones and compiled a list of our favourite picks to make your decision easier.
Whether you’re an influencer looking to capture the perfect TikTok or snap everyday moments with friends and family, your smartphone is perfect for the job. With your phone always within reach, it’s easy to snap a photo or record a quick video whenever the opportunity arises. And with the countless editing apps available, you can edit and post your photos and videos without leaving your phone.
While camera phones can’t quite match the capabilities of high-end mirrorless or DSLR cameras, they’ve come a long way in recent years. Many modern smartphones now feature multiple sensors, including ultra-wide, telephoto, periscope and macro lenses, allowing for a more versatile shooting experience. There’s also emerging camera tech like large 1-inch sensors, variable aperture and much more, all to elevate smartphone photography to the next level.
Additionally, advanced camera software allows for features like portrait mode and night mode, making capturing stunning photos in any lighting situation easier than ever.
We at Trusted Reviews take our reviews seriously, examining every aspect of a smartphone, including design, display, specs, battery, and camera. We use each device as our main phone for at least a week, putting them through rigorous lab and real-world tests. We test the camera’s low-light capabilities, portrait mode, and video quality, ensuring we provide you with the most accurate and useful information possible.
So, if you’re in the market for a new camera phone, trust us to guide you towards the best options available. Scroll down to see all our best camera phones right now, or head over to our best phones guide for a more general overview of the best mobiles on the market. Alternatively you can check out our breakdowns of the best Android phones, best mid-range smartphones and the best cheap phones.
Best camera phones at a glance
- Best for video: iPhone 16 Pro Max – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13152506
- Best zoom: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13181247
- Best for stills: Google Pixel 9 Pro XL – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13143809
- Best for low-light: Oppo Find X8 Pro – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13160747
- Best value: Google Pixel 8a – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13143817
- Best for macro photography: Sony Xperia 1 VI – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13047367
- Best for AI: Honor Magic 7 Pro – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13183406
- Best for portraits: Honor 200 Pro – SQUIRREL_TEXT_13153316
How we test
We review a smartphone’s camera based on our experience with it, not a manufacturer’s claims or boasts. We shoot sample images and video in varying conditions to properly test its skills and we include sample images in our review wherever possible.
If a smartphone has a specific camera setting – a night mode, for example – we’ll test it thoroughly, while always comparing it to what else is on the market.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max
The best for video
Pros
- Exceptional battery life
- Larger screen with impossibly thin bezels
- Top-end processing power
- Impressive video quality
Cons
- Apple Intelligence isn’t that smart or widely available
- Camera Control is awkward to use
- Very expensive
If you’re looking for a smartphone that’ll simply deliver a top-notch camera experience, the iPhone 16 Pro Max (or the smaller Pro model) are easy recommendations to make.
Apple’s latest flagship is reliable in all conditions, captures the best video out of any other phone on this list, and boasts three distinct cameras for versatility, with each capturing different focal lengths.
The zoom skills on the Galaxy S24 Ultra still best those of the iPhone 16 Pro Max, offering a way better digital zoom, but the 48MP main and upgraded 48MP ultrawide lens help give Apple’s top-end iPhone the edge in everyday use.
When compared to many of the other phones on this list, the shots from the iPhone are a little more realistic and skin tones feel more natural. There’s a dedicated Night Mode for shooting in darker surroundings, and the effects are great, with plenty of detail retained and dark spots kept mostly free of noise.
The excellent results continue when we look at video capture. While it still doesn’t shoot video in the same 8K resolution as the S24 Ultra, the 4K capture we recorded was well-stabilised without looking fake, and packed the same great colour reproduction as the photos. The Cinematic Mode supports 4K, there’s an Action Mode for upping the stabilisation and Apple’s audio editing features are second to none.
On top of the camera itself, you’ll also be treated to good battery life, a gorgeous display, a well-built titanium body and USB-C – a feature that allows you to plug in SSDs for higher-quality shooting.
Reviewer: Lewis Painter
Full review: iPhone 16 Pro Max review

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra
Best for zooming
Pros
- Redesigned chassis feels good in the hand
- Oodles of power under the hood
- Excellent camera performance
- Gorgeous display with super-slim bezels
Cons
- Much of the camera hardware remains unchanged
- Battery doesn’t last as long as 2025 rivals
- New Galaxy AI features are limited
Samsung’s flagship smartphone has held this spot for quite a few years now, and with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra now on the scene, that’s unlikely to change any time soon. There’s a case to be made that the S25 Ultra has the most versatile camera setup of any phone on the market, with a main 200MP lens, 10MP 3x and 50MP 5x sensors, alongside the new and improved 50MP ultrawide, but it’s in zoom photography where no other phone comes close.
When diving into 30x zoom on the 50MP 5x lens, it’s incredible to see just how much detail the S25 Ultra is able to capture. This isn’t just a great phone for trying to photograph something that’s slightly out of your way, but you also ascertain a better look at objects or subjects far off in the distance. Think of moments like trying to photograph a singer at a stadium gig or getting a specific framing on a vista found on holiday, and you’ll understand what we mean.
After those zoomed-in shots are taken, you have plenty of options to play around with your findings courtesy of Galaxy AI. Features like generative fill are available, giving you a more robust AI toolset than most phones which can make it easy to sharpen and reframe pictures before they’re shared.
It’s also worth mentioning that the S25 Ultra’s video chops have been given a boost as you can now shoot footage in LOG format, opening up compatibility with LUTS for filmmakers to get the exact cinematic style they want to achieve.
Reviewer: Lewis Painter
Full review: Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra review

Google Pixel 9 Pro XL
Best for stills
Pros
- Redesigned chassis looks way more modern
- Holistic, genuinely helpful approach to AI
- Amazing photo and video capabilities
- All-day battery life
Cons
- Second price hike in two years
- Can get hot when gaming
- Tensor G4 isn’t much more powerful than the G3
If you’re purely wanting a phone camera for stills photography we think the Pixel 9 Pro XL is the one to go for, just like the Pixel 8 Pro before it – and the Pixel 7 Pro before that.
The way Google’s processing utilises HDR to level out contrast and exposure is fantastic, ensuring photos taken on sunny days are unmatched in the mobile space. It’s almost effortless to capture a great-quality image on the Pixel 9 Pro XL.
But it’s more than just a good snapper; the colours captured are way more true to life than the over-saturated competition, and Google’s skin tone reproduction tech remains the best in the industry. This helps give photos snapped on the Pixel 9 Pro XL a rather pro, high-end look, complete with impressive autofocus tech that nails it every single time.
Google’s Night Mode remains strong – though not the quickest to capture – and does a great job at producing bright and detailed images in low light, though not to the point where it’s unnaturally light. As with daylight photography, it captures something more true to life than its rivals.
The zoom skills of this phone’s 48MP, 5x telephoto are on par with the iPhone 16 Pro, but can’t quite compare to the S24 Ultra and its 100x digital zoom, instead capping out at 30x. The 48MP ultrawide has had a boost with a new, larger sensor that helps improve the image quality of images taken by the auxiliary lens.
The Pixel 9 Pro XL also impressed our reviewer with its numerous AI tricks, from the photo and camera tricks we know and love to new features like on-device support for Google Gemini, Gemini Live, Pixel Screenshots and Pixel Studio, just to name a few. It also didn’t struggle to deliver all-day battery life, making it a great option overall, not just when it comes to photography.
Reviewer: Lewis Painter
Full review: Pixel 9 Pro XL review

Oppo Find X8 Pro
Best for low-light photography
Pros
- Impressive camera performance across the board
- All-day battery life and then some
- Pearl White finish is rather unique
- Dimensity 9400 performance
Cons
- Thicker bezels than the regular Find X8
- Pre-installed bloatware
- Not the fastest charging around
Smartphones across the board have been getting better at capturing great low-light shots which is why this particular category is quite contentious but for the time being, it’s the Oppo Find X8 Pro that takes the crown.
The main reason why the X8 Pro is able to achieve such a high bar of quality in low light settings is because of Oppo’s HyperTone Image Engine which works by combining nine RAW frames together before the final conversion into JPEG (for uploading and sharing). This, combined with the main 1/1.4in sensor allows for plenty of light to pass through, creating a substantial amount of detail in the final product.
We found that this quality was consistent across almost all of the X8 Pro’s sensors with the 6x lens being the only exception. The 32MP selfie camera isn’t too much to write home about either, but because of how good those rear-cameras are, it’s far more beneficial if you just bring one of the best smartphone gimbals into the mix and use those higher-quality sensors for group shots.
On a separate note, portrait photography is a real joy on the Find X8 Pro thanks to the inclusion of several Hasselblad-inspired modes. Not too dissimilar to the brilliant portraiture captured on the Honor 200 Pro, the X8 Pro can hold its own here, helping you to look your best in the process.
Reviewer: Lewis Painter
Full Review: Oppo Find X8 Pro review

Google Pixel 8a
The best value camera phone
Pros
- Manageable size
- IP rating and Qi charging
- Great camera (for the price)
- Seven years of software updates
- Clever AI-infused software
Cons
- Screen is far from the best
- The battery will never last more than a day
- Slow charging
Google’s Pixel line has consistently impressed us with its camera performance since we reviewed the first generation Pixel all the way back in 2016, and it’s not just the flagship phones. The much more affordable A-series has produced some of the best value camera phones in recent years and the Pixel 8a lives up to its predecessors.
The phone retains the primary 64MP camera and 13MP ultrawide as the Pixel 7a, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t take a great picture. It’s powered by the same Google-made Tensor chip, which lets it offer a few Pixel-specific features including Magic Editor, which enables you to use the AI smarts to completely reimagine elements of your photo, from the sky to the background in general, while Best Take allows you to get the best possible group shots.
Night photos shot using the excellent Night Sight mode retain excellent contrast and remain noise-free, while the speed at which photos are captured is much faster than on the Pixel 7a. Regular photos look realistic, featuring neutral, accurate colours and remain blissfully free of the oversharpening we experience on other phones at this price. This earns it a place in this list as our recommended camera phone for buyers looking for the best value option.
Video maxes out at 4K@60fps and once again our reviewer was impressed, noting how the pleasing colours from the photo capture transferred across to video too.
Our reviewer wasn’t just impressed with the phone’s camera skills but with other areas too. There’s a nice 120Hz display, up from 90Hz on the 7a, pleasingly small dimensions and wireless charging. You can’t go wrong with the boosted seven years of OS upgrades on offer either, blowing out much of the competition at any price point.
Reviewer: Max Parker
Full review: Google Pixel 8a review

Sony Xperia 1 VI
Best for pro shooting
Pros
- Epic battery life
- Grippy, lightweight design
- Camera’s telephoto macro mode is brilliant
Cons
- It’s very expensive
- No US availability
- Zoom camera results can be a bit grainy
It wouldn’t be a camera phone chart without an Xperia present, and the Sony Xperia 1 VI is an easy winner for professional photographers.
Rather than packing in the most pixel-packed sensor or the largest sensor around, Sony has taken a different approach with its Xperia 1 VI rear camera offering. Much like its predecessor, the main 52MP Exmor T sensor has a unique two-layer transistor within the CMOS that allows for a big improvement to low-light capabilities while still retaining a fairly slimline camera bump.
That’s flanked by a 12MP ultrawide and an upgraded 12MP telephoto lens with an impressive 5.2x optical zoom – ideal for close-ups and portrait photography. The latter also produces impressive macro photos with pro-level elements like an adjustable focus and focus overlays to help you really nail the close-up focus. It’s hands-down the best macro camera you’ll find on any smartphone right now.
Macro photography aside, our reviewer was impressed with the quality of the main lens both in well-lit and low-light environments, with decent colour and detail on offer. While previous Xperia smartphones had a bevvy of Pro-level camera and audio apps, that has been rolled (for the most part) into the main Camera app, providing all the tools you need without switching between apps. It’s certainly more user-friendly than it used to be.
Camera chops aside, the Xperia 1 VI is very much a top-end Sony smartphone with its blocky, angular design, a new shorter, squatter FHD+ display and Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 performance. It’s also pretty solid on the battery front, with our reviewer squeezing an incredible three days out of the phone with light usage.
The catch? All that tech comes at a cost, with the Xperia 1 VI starting at £1,299, making it one of the most expensive phones around right now.
Reviewer: Cam Bunton
Full review: Sony Xperia 1 VI review

Honor Magic 7 Pro
Best for AI
Pros
- Highest-resolution telephoto lens around
- Plenty of power under the hood
- Top-end display experience
Cons
- AI Super Zoom leaves much to be desired
- Smaller battery than its predecessor
- Quite similar to Honor Magic 6 Pro
From Galaxy AI to Apple Intelligence, there’s now no shortage of AI tricks to be found on smartphones nowadays, and we anticipate that the competition is only going to become more fierce in this area over the next few years. For now however, it’s the Honor Magic 7 Pro that’s leading the pack at the point where AI and photography converge.
One of the phone’s big new features is AI Super Zoom, which can be impressive or misguided depending on how you use it. The feature is supposed to use AI to overhaul the quality of a zoomed in shot where clarity has been lost, but in actuality, the mode uses AI to create an entirely new image based on the picture you’ve taken.
By the company’s own admission, the feature is designed to be used for landscape photography and in this regard, it performs its task quite well. When testing the camera at a mountain range in Slovenia, AI Super Zoom turned a blurry shot into one that was sharp, in focus and far more picturesque. However, when shooting a collection of trees, the AI would add flowers and fauna that simply weren’t there before, taking away from the original intent of the shot. There’s definitely some promise here, but the feature’s efficacy depends entirely on how you use it.
Luckily, there are areas where the implementation of AI is far more seamless, including the Magic 7 Pro’s AI-enhanced portraits, which uses the technology to make sure that either you, or your subject, look incredible.
All of the usual AI editing features are here too, with an AI-powered eraser that can remove unwanted objects, alongside ‘AI Outpainting’ which can add generative fill around your photo to expand its borders.
Reviewer: Lewis Painter
Full review: Honor Magic 7 Pro

Honor 200 Pro
Best for portraits
Pros
- Stunning portrait effects
- Speedy performance
- Bright, vivid display
- Speedy charging
Cons
- The design is a little odd
- Curved edges are prone to accidental swipes
- MagicOS 8.0 is an acquired taste
If you’re looking for a great phone to shoot portraits in particular, you should definitely consider picking up the Honor 200 Pro.
The Honor 200 Pro is Honor’s first Pro phone to enter the European market, standing out thanks to the company’s recent partnership with Parisian portrait studio, Studio Harcourt.
Design-wise, the phone has a unique oval-shaped camera bump and a velvety-felling matte glass back that isn’t dissimilar to the Vivo X100 Pro. The phone has curved edges around its rear and is rated IP65 for dust and water resistance.
The display is a 6.8-inch OLED screen with a 1224 x 2700 resolution and a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. HDR content looks gorgeous, with vibrant colours and great shadow detail, while text is sharp and videos crisp and detailed.
The Honor 200 Pro takes advantage of three cameras – a 50-megapixel main camera, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide angle camera and a 50-megapixel telephoto camera with 2.5x optical zoom. The main and telephoto cameras include three exclusive Studio Harcourt portrait effects, including the impressive black-and-white Harcourt Classic, the warm Harcourt Colour, and the more typical-looking Harcourt Vibrant.
There’s also a 50-megapixel selfie camera on the front, though the Studio Harcourt effects are only supported through the rear cameras.
Moving on to performance, the Honor 200 Pro is powered by Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, a more affordable version of the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor that we found to be plenty quick and snappy.
Finally, the phone packs a large 5200 mAh battery, offering 1.5 to 2 days of use, along with support for 100W fast charging and 66W wireless charging.
Reviewer: Luke Baker
Full Review: Honor 200 Pro
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We also considered…
FAQs
Optical zoom is a camera phone feature that allows you to take images of your subject from afar without allowing the quality to suffer as you might see with digital zoom.
Having a telephoto lens on your phone lets you get very close to your subject without reducing the quality of your image.
OIS – or optical image stabilisation – uses a gyroscope to compensate for shake, keeping your videos stable and your images crisp even in low light.
Specs Comparison
Trusted Reviews test data
You can see all the test data for the smartphones in this list in the below chart.