Which Android phones have the best camera quality?

Our top picks for smartphones with the best camera quality in 2023 are: the Samsung S23 Ultra , the Google Pixel 7 Pro , the OPPO Find X5 Pro , the Xiaomi 12 Pro and the HONOR Magic4 Pro . Check out their best camera features and see what suits you best.

The best camera phones

Q: Which Android phone has the best and clearest camera quality?

Our top pick for 2023 is the Samsung S23 Ultra . It’s a versatile camera phone, with a great range of lenses and built-in features. With its diverse range of photography tools, it can handle many different situations, from close-ups, to night photos to ultra-zoom distances. For clear photos, the Samsung S23 Ultra also comes out on top – its Portrait mode offers crisp shots, and is supported by the AI-powered Single Take, which picks out the best images from each lens based on a video you take of a subject.

What should I look for when buying a camera phone?

When choosing a camera phone, think about the types of photos you want to take. If you want to photograph wildlife, or subjects that are in the distance, you’ll probably want a telephoto lens. If you’re a landscape photography fan, you’ll want a good ultra-wide lens.

Check out our reviews to see which smartphone has the best camera for you, and try them out in your local store

Which phone has the best camera?

Smartphone manufacturers update their cameras all the time, so the best camera phone will change regularly. Keep reading to find our current top picks for 2023.

Best Samsung camera phone

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Our pick of the best Samsung camera phone is the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. Its quad-lens setup boasts a head-spinning 200MP Ultra High Resolution Rear Camera, for unprecedented detail in every picture.

Shoot to your heart’s content in low-light conditions with Nightography boosting and brightening your shots. Plus, Adaptive Pixel technology adapts and switches from 200MP high-resolution mode to 12MP high-sensitivity mode, or shoots in both modes simultaneously, combining frames to create a highly detailed and bright photo. Best camera features:

200MP lens
Nightography
Adaptive Pixel technology

	Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra	Samsung Galaxy S23+	Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5	Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5	Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
Rear camera	Triple Rear Camera: Ultra Wide 12MP lens, Wide 200MP lens, Tele1 10MP lens, Tele2 10MP lens, Laser AF sensor	Triple Rear Camera: Ultra Wide 12MP lens, Wide 50MP lens, Tele1 10MP lens	Triple Rear Camera: Ultra Wide 12MP lens, Wide 50MP lens, Tele1 10MP lens	Dual Rear Camera: Ultra Wide 12MP lens, Wide 12MP lens	Quad Rear Camera: Ultra Wide 12MP lens, Wide 108MP lens, Tele1 10MP lens, Tele2 10MP lens, Laser AF sensor
Front camera	Wide 12MP lens	Wide 12MP lens	10MP Cover Camera; 4MP Under Display Camera	10MP Front Camera	40MP Selfie Camera
Video	8K at 24 fps, 4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	8K at 24 fps, 4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	8K at 24 fps, 4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	8K at 24 fps, 4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps
Photography tools	Nightography, Night Portrait, Adaptive Pixel, Adaptive Vision Booster, Super Slow-mo	Nightography, Night Portrait, Adaptive Pixel, Adaptive Vision Booster, Super Slow-mo	iDCG (Intra-scene Dual Conversion Gain), Nightography, Scene Optimizer	FlexCam, Scene Optimizer, Night mode, Portrait mode	Adaptive Pixel, Scene Optimizer, Detail Enhancer

Best Google Pixel camera phone

Google Pixel 7 Pro

With its powerful Macro Focus which makes the smallest details magnificent and triple rear camera system, the Pixel 7 Pro boasts Google’s most advanced camera yet².

Make strangers and distractions disappear with Magic Eraser³ and use Real Tone which represents skin tones accurately in photos and videos, so you and your friends can be your authentic selves. Plus, enjoy 4K recording, 10-bit HDR video, and Cinematic Blur, for epic footage.

Best camera features:

Magic Eraser
Real Tone
Photo Unblur

	Google Pixel 7 Pro	Google Pixel 7	Google Pixel 6 Pro
Rear camera	Triple Rear Camera: 50MP, 48MP Telephoto lens, 12MP Ultra-wide lens¹	Dual Rear Camera: 50MP, 12MP Ultra-wide lens¹	Triple Rear Camera: 50MP, 48MP Telephoto lens, 12MP Ultra-wide lens¹
Front camera	11.1MP lens	10.8MP	10.8MP
Video	4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps	4K UHD at 60 fps, Full HD at 60 fps
Photography tools	Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser, Portrait blur, HDR effect, Sky suggestions, Cinematic Blur	Magic Eraser, Cinematic Blur	Photo Unblur, Magic Eraser, Portrait blur, HDR effect, Sky suggestions

Best budget camera phone

Google Pixel 6a

Still want high quality snaps but you’re on a budget? The Google Pixel 6a is available to purchase outright on Pay as you go. Enjoy the intelligent camera technology like Face Unblur - making faces look sharper even in motion, so you can capture the moment¹. Make background distractions disappear with Magic Eraser² so you can get the clean shots you want, and make sure your portraits are vibrant even in low light, with Night Sight³.

Best camera features:

Face Unblur
Magic Eraser
Night Sight

How to choose the right smartphone camera for you

Whether you're new to camera phones and digital photography or already an expert, there are plenty of hints and tips here to help make the best of your smartphone's camera.

If you're not sure what a certain word means, our Glossary has been designed to help you make sense of technical terms. Discover what megapixels are (and why they matter), read more about Optical zoom and Image stabilisation, and see how HDR will change how you view content forever.

You can even find out more about Portrait mode and Night mode, and how to use these two features to make your pictures pop.

Not one, not two, but now some phones are showcasing cameras with up to four lenses on the back (the main camera) - here's why.

Smartphones with four lenses tend to have a primary camera lens, a telephoto lens, an ultra wide angle lens and a depth sensor. They work together to give your pictures depth, richness, enhanced colour and texture.

The primary lens helps the camera take a picture in different lights, ranging from bright indoor and outdoor light to night time, and the clarity of the resulting picture is directly related to its megapixel strength.
The telephoto lens allows you to zoom in on your subject. Once you've zoomed in and taken your picture, you can then use 100x or 20x Zoom Lock to see even greater details.
An ultra wide angle lens lets you capture more background with wide-angle pictures, widening what you can see in the picture. It's great for landscape and group shots.
The depth sensor enhances portrait and bokeh photos. It takes a black and white image and blends it with the RGB image taken by the primary camera, packing in more colour vibrancy and detail.

If you're keen to take great pictures but you're not sure you need a smartphone with up to four lenses, a dual lens will give you the best of both worlds. One lens is the main shooter, while the other captures the depth. This gives you the ability to separate a foreground subject from the background, meaning you can refocus or recolour either part of the image.

It's not as simple as 'more megapixels = better quality photos'. A lot of it depends on the size of your mobile phone camera's sensor and having the right amount of pixels squeezed into it. The images you take with a 12-megapixel smartphone camera could be just as good as 42-megapixel photos. However, more megapixels can help with zoom viewing.

Ultimately, we recommend you compare the phones you're looking at before you buy. You could also ask tech-savvy friends and family members for their advice, and which phones they recommend with great cameras.

Alternatively, you can contact one of our customer advisors for help and support.

There's an amazing spectrum of flattering digital filters, effects and shooting modes available with today's camera phones, such as portrait mode, selfie mode, lighting effects such as natural bokeh, zoom and even night mode to take the perfect picture in low light.

It's always better to apply filters after you've taken an image, not before - however, don't forget you can always add a filter in your favourite social media app before you publish. It's also worth remembering that you can make a colour image black and white, but not the other way around.

If you're in search of the perfect picture and you don't want to get caught out with a low battery, browse our accessories page to find charging packs and wireless chargers so you're always ready to shoot.

Do more with Google Photos

Now you've decided which camera phone is perfect for you, it's time to think about where to store your photos.

You can store up to 15GB of images online for free, thanks to Google Photos.

Frequently asked questions

Our top picks for smartphones with the best camera quality in 2023 are:

Check out their best camera features and see what suits you best.

OPPO has teamed up with Swedish camera manufacturer Hasselblad for the OPPO Find X5 Pro, resulting in high quality shots with vivid colours and low aperture fast shooting.

The Hasseblad filters add a film-like quality to your images, so if you’re into photography - this could be the phone for you.

Our top pick for 2023 is the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

It's a versatile camera phone, with a great range of lenses and built-in features. With its diverse range of photography tools, it can handle many different situations, from close-ups, to night photos to ultra-zoom distances.

For clear photos, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra also comes out on top - its Portrait mode offers crisp shots, and is supported by the AI-powered Single Take, which picks out the best images from each lens based on a video you take of a subject.