The best Samsung phones in 2024: our 8 favorite Galaxy handsets

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Samsung is 1 of nan astir recognizable names successful modern smartphones. It has a well-deserved estimation for offering an expansive lineup of awesome phones pinch thing for conscionable astir everyone. This intends if you're looking for an Android phone, you'll easy find a Samsung exemplary that's worthy considering based connected your needs and budget. In fact, nan number of choices tin beryllium a spot overwhelming, but nan bully news is that we've explored nan full scope and highlighted nan champion Samsung smartphones you tin bargain successful 2024.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus gets nan motion for nan champion wide Samsung phone, and while it's overseas it's not nan ultra-premium S24 Ultra that takes nan prize, that's because Samsung has outdone itself this clip astir pinch nan Plus model. The large telephone has nan aforesaid power, display, and Galaxy AI features arsenic its larger sibling, pinch only a fewer mini downsides that are easy balanced retired by nan $300 value difference. But if this year's Plus doesn't tickle your fancy, we person truthful galore different awesome Samsung smartphones that 1 is judge to beryllium cleanable for you.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus

The champion Samsung telephone overall

Why you should bargain this: It's a astonishment contender for nan champion telephone of nan year.

Who it's for: Anyone who wants nan champion Samsung telephone around, pound-for-pound.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus:

So, this was decidedly a surprise. We were each group to crown nan Galaxy S24 Ultra arsenic this year's champion Samsung phone, but past nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus came steaming into our lives. While you whitethorn expect nan Plus introduction to beryllium nan awkward mediate child, 2024's S24 Plus is simply 1 of nan champion phones you tin buy, pinch a sublime design, powerful processor, phenomenal artillery life, and gorgeous display.

Samsung has made immoderate large tweaks to past year's already awesome formula, and that's nan guidelines of this year's success. The astir evident changes are those made to nan phone's design. The S24 Plus' level sides person made nan telephone much comfortable to hold, added grip, and don't prime up fingerprints. Samsung has besides upgraded nan phone's display, and nan 120Hz move refresh complaint now goes down to 1Hz, boosting artillery life. It's besides brighter than before, and is tin of going up to 2,600 nits. The solution has been upgraded too, going up to 1440p now.

Performance is arsenic awesome arsenic ever, acknowledgment to nan Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Qualcomm's flagship CPUs are arsenic accelerated arsenic ever, and are moreover a noticeable betterment complete past year's chip, giving nan S24 Plus stupendously accelerated processing speeds. It doesn't get hot, moreover erstwhile moving punishing games for illustration CoD: Mobile, and it's besides partially responsible for nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus' unthinkable artillery life.

We're utilized to flagship phones lasting astir a time connected a afloat charge, but nan S24 Plus blows consecutive past it. After a demanding time pinch complete 4 hours of surface time, nan S24 Plus went to furniture pinch 38% still successful nan tank. A much reasonable time saw it beforehand beautiful happily into nan 2nd day, moreover pinch almost 3 hours of surface time. Pair this lengthy artillery life pinch 45W accelerated charging, and you've sewage a telephone that won't walk a batch of clip connected nan charger.

The large caller summation this twelvemonth is Galaxy AI, and while these features are interesting, they're surely not a logic to bargain into nan newest procreation of Galaxy flagships. Many of them reflector akin AI-powered features connected nan Google Pixel 8 Pro, for illustration nan Magic Editor-like Generative Edit, and nan Live Translate function. The connection suggestions are conscionable hilariously bad, pinch nan offered changes coming retired location betwixt an awkward robot and a flirty Mr Darcy.

The camera is 1 of nan weakest parts of nan phone, which is simply a large compliment to nan telephone arsenic a whole, arsenic it's still very good. A 50-megapixel main camera joins a 12MP wide-angle camera and a 10MP telephoto pinch a 3x optical zoom, and it's a awesome combination. Samsung seems to person tamed its saturation filters, truthful stills travel retired very well. But "stills" has ne'er been much literal a description, arsenic nan camera really struggles pinch moreover nan smallest magnitude of movement.

That reasonably communal rumor being nan astir superior antagonistic to a telephone tells you everything you request to know: The Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus really is an fantabulous portion of technology, and nan champion wide Samsung smartphone. With prices starting from $1,000, it's not arsenic bank-breaking arsenic nan S24 Ultra, but offers nan aforesaid level of precocious performance, and adjacent to nan aforesaid level of premium features.

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The champion premium Samsung phone

Why you should bargain this: It's nan pinnacle of Samsung's smartphone creation.

Who it's for: Someone who wants nan astir awesome Samsung smartphone, sloppy of cost.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra:

The S24 Plus whitethorn apical this list, but there's nary measurement we're going to time off nan Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra out. The Ultra is thing of a testing crushed for caller features, and that makes nan Ultra nan biggest and astir technologically precocious smartphone Samsung offers — moreover if that intends it comes astatine a precocious price.

Like nan Plus above, nan S24 Ultra has had a fewer mini creation tweaks, but it's still mostly nan aforesaid telephone arsenic past year. The Armor Aluminum framework has been replaced pinch titanium, and nan sides and surface person been flattened slightly, making it easier to grip and usage nan S Pen on. It's still a beast of a device, though — a existent pocket-stretcher that you'll request hefty forearms to usage for a agelong play of time.

The screen's highest brightness is now group astatine 2,600 nits, making it exceptionally bright. Not that nan 6.8-inch show is difficult to see, arsenic nan Dynamic AMOLED 2X tech intends it's agleam and vivid, pinch immoderate of nan deepest inky blacks you tin find connected a smartphone. A 1440p solution is disposable (though you person to alteration to it manually), and nan move refresh complaint intends your acquisition is buttery soft erstwhile it needs to be, but not erstwhile it doesn't. As pinch nan S24 Plus above, capacity is highly swift acknowledgment to nan Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. It's joined by 12GB of RAM and 256GB of retention arsenic standard.

The camera strategy seems to person had a downgrade this year, dropping from a 10x optical zoom to 5x, but it's really amended because of nan change. Since a 5x zoom is really a zoom level astir group use, it's a overmuch amended inclusion connected nan whole. The full strategy comprises a 200MP main camera, a 12MP wide-angle camera, 10MP telephoto camera pinch a 3x optical zoom, and nan aforementioned 50MP telephoto lens pinch a 5x zoom. It's arsenic fantabulous a camera strategy arsenic you'd expect. Galaxy AI is present too, and it's astir arsenic useful arsenic it is successful nan S24 Plus — i.e., don't expect excessively overmuch of it.

There's a 5,000mAh artillery wrong nan monolithic frame, and it's highly long-lasting. During our clip pinch it, it would regularly execute 5 hours of surface time, and extremity nan time pinch 50% remaining. You'll person to usage it for astir a week for nan telephone to accommodate to your usage, but erstwhile it has, it'll present immoderate fantabulous powerfulness efficiency. Charging times are good, pinch 45W accelerated charging available. It's not nan fastest charging available, but it's besides acold from nan slowest.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is nan astir costly telephone successful Samsung's S-range lineup, but it's besides nan astir premium 1 you'll find extracurricular of foldable phones. As such, it has a value tag to match. The Galaxy S24 Ultra will group you backmost $1,300, and that's earlier you grow your retention astatine all. On nan positive side, you get an S Pen, which is kept wrong nan phone, but it's still an costly telephone to buy. But if you want nan best, this is it.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy S24

The champion mini Samsung phone

Why you should bargain this: It's everything astonishing astir Samsung's phones, but smaller.

Who it's for: Someone who wants a much compact smartphone, but doesn't want to discuss connected performance.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy S24:

We tin support this 1 a small briefer than nan different entries because a batch of what makes nan Samsung Galaxy S24 awesome is besides what makes nan S24 Plus great. Well, isolated from for 1 thing, of people — and that's that nan S24 is downright svelte erstwhile compared to its siblings.

It benefits from nan aforesaid level sides arsenic nan S24 Plus, pinch nan added prize that nan assemblage itself is moreover smaller, truthful moreover easier to handle. The 6.2-inch show uses LTPO tech successful nan Dynamic AMOLED 2X display, meaning it should beryllium much powerfulness businesslike than ever before, particularly pinch an always-on display. Unlike nan different entries successful nan range, though, it tops retired astatine a 1080p resolution. However, it still has a 1-120Hz move refresh complaint and a highest brightness of 2,600 nits, truthful it's easy capable to forgive nan little resolution.

It has nan aforesaid Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 you'll find successful nan 2 larger phones, truthful capacity is conscionable arsenic good, and it besides contains nan caller Galaxy AI. Once again, effort these out, play pinch them a small bit, but don't expect them to toggle shape your smartphone acquisition forever. It's conscionable not location yet.

The camera strategy uses nan aforesaid 3 lenses arsenic nan S24 Plus, and a batch of our criticisms of that telephone use to this one, too, pinch nan further downside that low-light photos tin beryllium a small spot underwhelming. But, still photographs look great, and Samsung has fixed its oversaturation problem, meaning photos nary longer person an over-the-top colour popular that's conscionable not realistic.

Charging speeds are little than nan S24 Plus and S24 Ultra, though, being constricted to 25W. Thankfully, nan artillery is likewise good, pinch a coagulated day's usage from 1 charge.

Ultimately, a batch astir this telephone is very akin to nan S24 Plus, pinch nan objection of nan size and nan price. It's nan Samsung flagship to drawback if a compact telephone is simply a must, arsenic nan mini size really doesn't mean compromises person been made. Rather, it's conscionable arsenic powerful, good-looking, and technically awesome arsenic its larger siblings, and it's a bargain astatine $800.

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6

The champion foldable Samsung phone

Why you should bargain this: The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is simply a productivity buff's dream, pinch its dual display, up to 1TB of storage, and robust, yet ray Armor Aluminum frame.

Who it's for: Anybody who wants a productivity punch and top-notch specs bundled into a foldable format.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6:

The Galaxy Z Fold 6 is nan champion Samsung telephone for productivity, pinch a foldable shape facet and dual screens. Its beforehand show measures 6.3 inches, conscionable somewhat larger than nan Z Fold 5. Once you unfastened it up, you get nan afloat 7.6-inch main show pinch nan series' astir seamless crease yet. Both screens scope up to a 120Hz refresh rate, too. You almost hide you’re utilizing a smartphone alternatively of a mini tablet.

The Armor Aluminum framework and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 connected nan screen surface and backmost heighten durability while maintaining a sleek, comfortable hold. The IP48 standing besides adds an further furniture of protection from particulate and water. You tin besides adhd a typical lawsuit for nan S Pen, which you request to bargain separately, but useful wonderfully if you want to usage nan Z Fold 6 arsenic a notepad.

The Z Fold 6 upgrades its processor to nan Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, which provides a ray capacity boost and powers Samsung's Galaxy AI. Many of its specs for illustration its 12GB of RAM and up to 1TB of retention transportation complete from nan past generation. Meanwhile, AI now assists pinch tasks from translations to note-taking and shows up arsenic generative AI successful nan camera and photo-editing apps. Speaking of which, nan Z Fold 6 features nan aforesaid 50MP main camera, a 12MP wide-angle lens, 10MP telephoto lens pinch 3x optical zoom, and 4MP Under Display Camera arsenic its predecessor. It's not a camera strategy that'll dethrone nan Galaxy S24 Ultra's, but it's still very, very good.

The Z Fold 6’s productivity is simply a double-edged sword. While it tin juggle demanding tasks and seamlessly process them connected a bright, foldable screen, those processes return a toll connected its 4,400mAh battery. Two and a half hours of mundane usage already saps nan power down to 50%, moreover without playing games. It isn’t overmuch of a problem, though, if you person portable batteries aliases replacement ways to complaint while you’re extracurricular of nan house. It supports 25W wired charging and 15W wireless charging, but nary charger successful nan box.

Samsung is group to support nan Z Fold 6 pinch astatine slightest 7 years of Android OS and information updates. The instrumentality runs connected Android 14 OS pinch Samsung’s One UI 6.1.1, including nan improved Taskbar that now displays up to 4 caller apps alternatively of two. The Taskbar is peculiarly useful for multitasking connected nan Z Fold 6, allowing users to resistance apps onto nan main screen. You tin usage up to 3 apps connected nan unfolded surface and adhd a 4th app arsenic a floating window. You tin besides easy change nan style and size of each app model and activate multitasking.

If you already person nan Z Fold 5, it’s difficult to urge upgrading to a telephone that’s almost nan same. However, if you’re caller to nan foldable telephone world, it offers plentifulness of pros arsenic a smartphone that tin fundamentally double arsenic a tablet.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6

The champion Samsung flip phone

Why you should bargain this: If you tin spend a folding telephone that costs complete $1,000 correct now, nan Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is nan 1 you should buy.

Who it's for: Those who simply must person nan latest and astir celebrated foldable.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6:

There are respective reasons why tech enthusiasts are buzzing astir Samsung's latest folding phone, nan Galaxy Z Flip 6. For starters, it boasts an improved camera, a sturdier hinge construction, a newer and faster processor, and extended package support. On apical of that, it features an wide sleek and elegant build that's judge to move heads. The Z Flip 6 offers a divers palette of colors, including yellow, mint, blue, gray, peach, white, and “crafted black” — a black, textured colorway that makes monotone cool again.

When you flip nan telephone open, you'll spot nan 6.7-inch AMOLED 2X show and its bright, pixel-perfect 2640 x 1080 screen. Its 2,600 nits of brightness tin outshine daytime glare and nan 120Hz refresh complaint pinch VRR seamlessly plays videos and games. The screen surface is simply a 3.4-inch Super AMOLED that's much much useful than erstwhile models — it moreover allows you to tally afloat Android apps. It almost makes up for nan truth that its sluggish 60Hz refresh complaint and fuzzy 720x748 solution demystify nan magic a bit.

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 upgrades to nan Snapdragon Gen 3, nan caller modular successful Samsung phones. However, that’s not nan biggest betterment successful this model. The Z Flip 6 ramps up nan RAM to 12GB (the Galaxy Z Flip 5 had 8GB) and offers up 512GB of storage. Finally, it has nan aforesaid magnitude of processing powerfulness arsenic its larger foldable cousin, nan Galaxy Z Fold 6. It besides boasts nan privilege of being nan first Z Flip telephone pinch a vapor enclosure 50% larger than that successful nan S23 Ultra. As a result, it’s cool to touch, moreover nether stress.

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 has a 4,000mAh battery, which is technically much than nan Z Flip 5 but still isn’t capable to telephone it a two-day flip phone. If you’re good pinch charging overnight, you’ll person much than capable juice to make it done an early greeting to a precocious evening. It offers aggregate charging options, including 25W wired charging, 15W wireless (including MagSafe), and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. It’s serviceable, but still nan aforesaid arsenic nan Z Flip 5.

The 12MP ultrawide camera pinch a 123-degree section of position and 10 MP selfie camera connected nan Z Flip 6 lucifer nan specs connected its predecessor. However, it does make a important jump to its 50MP main camera from nan 12MP connected nan Z Flip 5. It’s nan aforesaid camera utilized successful Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus phones, hailed arsenic immoderate of today's champion camera phones.

Other than that, it's fundamentally identical to past year's model. To Samsung’s credit, nan Z Flip 6 does characteristic upgrades to its cameras. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2’s improved image awesome processor provides amended colour reproduction, while nan main and ultrawide cameras person a caller "clear lens coating" to forestall lens flares. Its Android 14 OS and Samsung’s One UI 6.1.1 support are a beardown commencement to its 7 years of updates.

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy A35

The champion worth Samsung phone

Why you should bargain this: It costs importantly little than nan Galaxy S24 while still delivering a beautiful display, decent cameras, and bully performance.

Who it's for: Anybody who wants a dependable smartphone for nether $500.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy A35:

Samsung's Galaxy S24 bid is outstanding, arsenic are its folding phones. But nan truth is that a batch of group can't spend those costly handsets — and that's why nan Galaxy A35 is truthful important. You get galore of nan aforesaid features recovered connected Samsung's much costly phones astatine a fraction of nan price.

For starters, nan Galaxy A35 still looks for illustration its pricier Galaxy counterparts, moreover though its framework is made from integrative alternatively of aluminum. It only weighs 209g and measures 8.2mm thick, truthful it’s ray and comfortable to clasp and bladed capable to gaffe into nan mean pocket. The IP67 standing besides safeguards it from particulate and water, though you shouldn’t return it for a dip astatine nan excavation anytime soon. It still features Gorilla Glass Victus complete nan front, but it has regular solid connected nan rear. I wouldn’t driblet nan telephone connected intent to trial nan difference, but astatine slightest 1 broadside still benefits from nan higher-quality material.

The Galaxy A35 sports a somewhat larger surface than its predecessor, nan Galaxy A34. The 6.6-inch Super AMOLED show delivers crisp matter and strong, vibrant colors and reaches up to 1,000 nits of brightness pinch 2340x1080 resolution. Even much awesome is nan 120Hz refresh complaint that enables everything to consciousness accelerated and smooth. It's mostly acknowledgment to nan Exynos 1380 processor and 8GB of RAM. The Galaxy A35 isn't nan fastest telephone you'll ever use, but it's much than tin for thing you'd want to propulsion astatine it.

Despite nan price, nan Galaxy A35 besides features a respectable 5,000mAh battery. One 30-minute YouTube video eats astir 6% of artillery life. Based connected that, nan artillery tin past complete 8 hours pinch conscionable mundane use. It supports nan USB Power Delivery 3.0 modular of 25W wired charging, which tin return it from “flat to full” successful 1 hr and 25 minutes aliases up to 50% successful 40 minutes. Unfortunately, it doesn’t support wireless charging aliases accelerated charging.

What astir nan cameras? Well, nan 50MP main camera isn't nan champion we've ever seen, but for speedy and casual photography, it gets nan occupation done. It besides tends to nutrient very agleam and overly saturated photos, much truthful than its S24 cousins. It besides has an 8MP wide-angle camera and fixed attraction 5MP macro camera connected nan back, and a 13MP selfie camera is connected nan front. These cameras don't return astir arsenic elaborate photos arsenic nan main one, but they still return respectable photos erstwhile utilized pinch their strengths successful mind. As a plus, nan editing suite successful nan Gallery app is easy to use.

Does that mean pictures look lifelike and 1:1 meticulous to nan existent world? Not exactly. But if you for illustration your photos to person a existent punch to them, nan Galaxy A35 surely delivers.

If you person much money to burn, a telephone for illustration nan Galaxy S24 aliases Galaxy S24 Plus is going to present a amended acquisition successful each department. However, if $400 is nan astir you tin spend, you'll find very small to beryllium disappointed astir pinch nan Galaxy A35.

Christine Romero-Chan / Digital Trends

Samsung Galaxy A14 5G

The champion inexpensive Samsung phone

Why you should bargain this: It has nary business being this bully erstwhile it costs conscionable $200.

Who it's for: Anyone looking for a Samsung telephone that doesn't break nan slope but still performs very well.

Why we picked nan Samsung Galaxy A14 5G:

The $200 telephone marketplace is usually wherever you'll find phones afloat of compromises. A debased value often intends harsh cost-cutting, and arsenic a result, you're improbable to find thing that tin beryllium described arsenic "good". That's not nan lawsuit pinch nan Samsung Galaxy A14 5G, which is simply a existent gem successful nan rough.

You'll struggle to specify nan A14 arsenic a stunner, but it's not a bad-looking smartphone. The assemblage is made from plastic, but it has a unsocial texture that feels bully and adds grip, thing glass-bodied phones tin struggle with. The show is worthy pausing over, though. It's a 6.6-inch LCD pinch a 1080p resolution, which isn't bad by itself — but nan inclusion of a 120Hz refresh complaint decidedly pushes this telephone into a higher grade. There isn't immoderate h2o resistance, but hey, you can't person everything, particularly astatine this price.

It's modestly powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 700 processor, nan aforesaid spot from nan A13. We recovered it stuttered a small during use, which reduced nan smoothness of nan 120Hz refresh rate, and it was sometimes sluggish to unfastened apps, truthful make judge to clear retired those moving apps erstwhile successful a while to support it speedy. Storage starts from 64GB, which is comparatively debased these days, but there's nan action to usage a microSD paper to grow that by 1TB. It comes pinch Android 13, and Samsung has committed to 2 awesome Android updates and 4 years of information updates — a beardown committedness for a fund smartphone.

The main camera is awesome for a $200 smartphone. The main lens has a 50MP sensor, and it consistently took good, crisp images that are much than bully capable for societal media. Surprisingly for a inexpensive phone, it moreover takes clear nighttime mode shots too. The 2nd lens, a 2MP extent sensor, is location to assistance nan main camera successful image shots, truthful it's really technically a dual-lens system. Unfortunately, nan 3rd lens, a 2MP macro lens, continues nan beardown contented of macro lenses being a spot rubbish, and it's not 1 to trust connected astatine all. Stick pinch nan 50MP main lens instead, you'll astir apt beryllium pleasantly amazed by really bully your shots are for a $200 smartphone.

The A14 has a 5,000mAh battery, and it's tin of going for 2 days connected a azygous charge. That's helpful, arsenic nan charging complaint is constricted to 15W, truthful you'll beryllium wanting to time off it for a small while erstwhile charging. There's nary wireless charging, which makes consciousness connected a telephone this cheap.

The Samsung Galaxy A14 5G is disposable now, pinch prices starting from $200. As always, support an oculus connected nan sales, and you could snag this fantabulous telephone for moreover cheaper. It's disposable connected each awesome U.S. carriers, though nan U.S. only gets nan alternatively boring plain achromatic color.