Best Camera Phone 2023: Top Photography Smartphones

The Pixel 8 Pro is a refined version of 2022’s Pixel 7 Pro. There are only small changes in the camera department, but it means the best phone for photography just got better.

We still think the Pixel, shot for shot, takes the best looking still images in most lighting conditions. Photos are well balanced with good colour reproduction and detail without oversharpening. The experience in the camera app is great, with great flexibility to shoot with the amazing 50Mp main sensor, 48Mp ultrawide, or a very capable 48Mp 5x optical zoom lens.

The core sensors are great, but it’s the software that improves even further. Zooming up to 10x with Google’s Super Res Zoom smarts means hardly any loss in quality, and the clever Magic Eraser tool lets you (sometimes) successfully erase people objects or even background noise from photos and videos to create a better scene.

But the headline new feature is Best Take, which lets you swap out people’s faces in group shots where you’ve taken more than one photo. It’s far from flawless – especially on the (otherwise very good) 10.5Mp selfie camera. Magic Editor is much more effective, though.

Video is very good too (especially with Night Sight now included), but really the Pixel is all about that 50Mp main lens and just how good images consistently look. You’ll probably take more photos with a Pixel in your pocket, which is the biggest compliment you can give a phone camera.

If you’re looking for a more compact phone, consider the regular Google Pixel 8. But there’s no telephoto lens and the ultrawide is significantly worse.

The most annoying thing about this superlative camera phone is that it is not officially available in the UK or US – but it is on sale in some European countries.

It’s frustrating because this is an absolutely incredible camera – one of the first phone cameras on the market to use a 1in main sensor, which helps improve low light photography and image quality across the board.

Paired with Vivo’s impressive V2 image processing chip, results are stunning. The large sensor creates a naturally shallow depth of field so you don’t always have to rely on a software portrait mode – the shots get a softer background naturally like they would on a DSLR camera. There’s also a Zeiss Natural Colour mode that dials back the saturation for overall colours that we prefer.

Paired with the capable ultrawide and 2x zoom lens you’ll be pleased with all kinds of photos, though Google, Samsung and Apple all offer more than 2x optical zoom on their competing phones.

But the X90 Pro is all about its superb main camera – you’ll just have to be happy importing the phone if it’s not sold in your country, and be OK with the phones less than polished software.

It might be worth waiting for the Vivo X100 Pro, though, which looks set to make the cameras even better.

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is a kitchen sink, every feature ever kind of phone, and that applies to the camera too. It has a 200Mp main lens that uses clever pixel binning tech to produce 12.5Mp images with incredible detail, but you can also shoot in full 200Mp if you want.

The Ultra handles all shooting conditions incredibly well with great low light performance and colour reproduction, though images are more saturated in colour than other phones.

The S23 Ultra has four lenses, with the main, ultrawide, 3x optical zoom and 10x optical zoom all equipped with auto focus. We found that fast moving objects such as pets regularly gave blurry images despite this, so you’ll have to be patient, but this also occurs on other phones such as the iPhone 14 Pro.

A main downside to the S23 Ultra is its sub-par selfie camera. But overall its four lenses are capable of incredible photos and smooth, steady video, making it a top pick.

It might not have our favourite still image lens – we reckon that’s a toss up between the Pixel 8 Pro and the Vivo X90 Pro – but the iPhone 15 Pro has very good triple cameras that we struggle to fault.

While the main sensor is still 48Mp, it’s a small put clear improvement compared to the iPhone 14 Pro version, especially when it comes to portrait and night modes. You can shoot at the full 48Mp in RAW format, or rely on Apple’s pixel-binning software technique that combines four pixels into one larger pixel to improve low-light performance and detail in a final 12Mp image.

Video is still head and shoulders above any Android phone with unparalleled processing and stabilisation that sometimes borders on the scarily good. Just a few years ago, we could never have dreamt of video this good being shot on a phone.

As well as the main sensor there are also 12Mp ultrawide and 12Mp telephoto lenses, the latter with a 3x optical zoom that captures good detail and is great to punch in on scenes that need to be that little bit closer. However, you do miss out on the 5x optical zoom of the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

The 15 Pro is rounded off with a capable 12Mp selfie camera nestled within the useful Dynamic Island. It’s an incredibly good camera set up that will serve you well for years to come.

Just like the Vivo X90 Pro, the Xiaomi 13 Ultra is not an easy phone to buy. It’s only available in limited quantities in Europe, or on full sale in China.

But if you can import a European model to get full Google Play Store integration, you’ll be rewarded with the incredible 1in sensor – the same Sony IMX989 found in the Vivo X90 Pro.

The trick with the Xiaomi is its 50Mp 1in sensor has a variable aperture that can physically change between a fast f/1.9 or a slow f/4.0 setting. The former is great for indoor and low-light shots, where the latter has an increased depth of field that is better for landscapes or wider shots – just like on a manual camera.

Like a lot of modern phone camera, the 13 Ultra saturates colours in images, but they look spectacularly detailed and well balanced. Crazily, the other three lenses on the phone are also 50Mp, though none are as big as 1in. There’s an ultrawide as well as 3.2x and 5x optical zoom.

Add a decent 32Mp selfie camera and this is a true do-everything camera phone – it’s just expensive and hard to find in many countries. We also don’t have as much faith that Xiaomi will keep the phone’s software updated for at least five years, whereas Google, Apple and Samsung will with their rival handsets.

If the phones above in this list are too expensive or simply have too many camera lenses, go for the Google Pixel 7a. It’s more affordable and has a main camera that is every bit as good as the main camera on the Pixel 7 Pro.

It also has a 13Mp ultrawide lens for wider shots, which is good, but colours aren’t as accurate as with the main 64Mp lens. You get all the same software and image processing smarts as on Google’s more expensive phones, plus the 7a is the first Pixel A phone with a 90Hz refresh rate screen and wireless charging – this is pretty much a flagship phone at this stage, for hundreds less.

Performance is solid, the phone is fully waterproof, and it will get software updates until 2028. If all you want is a point and shoot main camera on your phone, this is the cheapest way to invest in a real quality product.

The regular iPhone 15’s cameras have a big upgrade, with the main rear sensor moving from 12Mp to 48Mp. It’s not quite the same lens as the iPhone 14 Pro or 15 Pro, but still very good.

It performs well in almost all environments, with Apple’s excellent software processing coming to the fore. Portrait mode photos are particularly good, and it’s great to be able to add the background blur after you’ve taken the shot. You can also shoot the full 48Mp RAW image, but most people are better off relying on the usual pixel binning to create a 12Mp image that takes up less storage space.

The 12Mp ultrawide remains and offers good flexibility, though there’s still no telephoto lens. Instead, you’ll be relying on lower-quality digital zoom.

But the 12Mp front-facing camera is class-leading, and it’s great to see the same sensor here as the iPhone 15 Pro. For the best selfies, there’s no need to pay more – even if you want the Dynamic Island, which is now here.

Video is another key strength, and still better than you’ll find on any Android phone. There’s no real difference in the quality of footage compared to the more expensive iPhone 15 models, so you can save some money if that’s the top priority.

If you want a smaller, premium Android phone with great cameras and long term software support, the regular Galaxy S23 is the best one going. It has the same Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and top tier performance as the S23 Ultra but costs less.

It still packs in three lenses with main, ultrawide and 3x optical completely a very capable package. The 50Mp sensor is very solid, handling most shooting situations with ease. IF you enjoy Samsung’s saturated social media-tinged photos then it’s an excellent option, and in 2023 Samsung’s One UI software is constantly improving.

Samsung’s video chops are also great, and you can even shoot in 8K. Normal 1080p video is perfectly good though, and steadier than older models as the company slowly catches up with Apple’s superlative iPhone video quality.

For a small phone battery life is also excellent. We think the phone is a tad overpriced but if you can find a good deal then snap it up.

What a shame that the Huawei P60 Pro does not natively support Google services or the Play Store – a common Huawei issue – because this is one of the best camera phones you can buy otherwise.

The P60 Pro has a ten-stop physical variable aperture on its 48Mp main lens allowing you to manually adjust how much light is let into the lens, just like on a traditional camera. It’s cool, but it is a slight gimmick as results don’t vary wildly.

Thankfully, those results are always incredibly good. Low light and day time shots are stunning, with processing and detail to match the Pixel 7 Pro and the 1in sensors on the Vivo X90 Pro and Xiaomi 13 Ultra.

You also get the obligatory ultrawide with a 3.5x optical zoom lens too. The latter is amazingly good, and one of the best optical zooms on any phone at the moment. It’s officially on sale in the UK and Europe so if you can do without Google, this is a great phone to go for.

In general, the cameras on folding phones are a step down from the absolute best you’ll find on a regular smartphone. But while all the other phones on this list have slightly better cameras, the photography experience on the OnePlus Open is the best we’ve seen on a foldable.

Each of the three rear sensors are flagship level, with the 64Mp ultrawide a particular highlight with its 3x optical zoom. The 64Mp main lens handles both architecture and landscapes well, and can produce some excellent portrait shots.

And unlike many phones the 48Mp ultrawide lens is only a small step down in quality. The cameras here are on par with the flagship OnePlus 11, which is great to see.

However, they’re not perfect. The night mode is largely ineffective at brightening low-light shots, while the cameras above the cover and internal displays aren’t great. At least you can easily use the rear cameras for selfies.