Best unlocked phones

When you buy the best unlocked Android phone, you also get the freedom to switch to any (supported) carrier without having to worry about getting locked into lengthy instalment plans and tedious contracts. In other words, it helps you take better control of your wireless service. As such if you plan on buying a phone unlocked, it makes sense to get a device that offers fuss-free 5G connectivity, solid cameras, and long-term software support, since that'll make it easier for you to keep using it for multiple years down the line.

Although there are dozens of unlocked phones available out there, our top vote goes to the Google Pixel 9. Despite being the base model of the Pixel 9 series, it offers a full-featured flagship experience with top-of-the-line build quality, amazing software experience, class-leading cameras, and much more. And if you're planning to switch to one of the best MVNO carriers soon, you can take advantage of this fantastic Mint Mobile deal that'll take $500 off the Pixel 9, provided you pair the phone up with a full year of wireless service with the MVNO. Of course, there are many other options worth considering as well, such as the blazing-fast OnePlus 12, the top-tier Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, and more.

Patrick Farmer

Patrick is a no-nonsense deal hunter with over 10 years of experience in the eCommerce space. Whether you’re interested in a new wireless carrier, smart home device, or Android phone, Patrick combines hands-on research with practical shopping advice to get you the answers you need.

At a glance

Best overall

Hands down one of the best Android phones currently available in the market, the Google Pixel 9 becomes an even better package when you get it unlocked. Sure, it does cost $100 more than its predecessor, but there are frequent deals and festive-season promotions that you can take advantage of. Moreover, that extra amount gives you a lot of new good stuff.

Featuring a refined, squared-off design with a fully flat frame, the Pixel 9 looks gorgeous. Up front, you get a 6.3-inch OLED screen that can reach up to 2700 nits of peak brightness and comes with a 120Hz refresh rate. The display-just like the back panel-is shielded with a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2-and there's an IP68 rating included in the mix too. You get Google's latest Tensor G4 SoC under the hood, working alongside 8GB/12GB of RAM and 128GB/256GB of onboard storage. The software is Android 14, complete with loads of AI-powered tools (e.g., Magic Eraser) and a guarantee of up to seven years of OS and security updates.

Talking about cameras, the Google Pixel 9 sports a dual-lens primary camera setup with a 50MP primary sensor and a 48MP ultrawide lens. Since this is a Pixel we're talking about, you can expect class-leading photos and incredible videos in all kinds of lighting conditions with little to no effort. Some other noteworthy features include an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint sensor, reliable multi-band 5G connectivity, and a 4,700mAh battery with support for both wired and wireless charging.

Best premium option

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra succeeds the S23 Ultra with the usual improvements to processing power, cameras, and software. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (for Galaxy) SoC and the titanium frame are some of the most important highlights. 

With a starting price of around $1,300, the unlocked Galaxy S24 Ultra is certainly expensive, but we feel you get what you pay for in terms of reliability and premium features. You get seven years of software and security updates making it on par with the Pixel 8 series, while the Gorilla Glass Armor for the display ensures the toughest protection against falls and other kinds of damage.

Samsung is heavily pushing Galaxy AI with the S24 series, which allows you do things like instant slow-motion with any video, get edit suggestions for photos, live translate calls, and lots more. 

Like its predecessor, the Galaxy S24 Ultra comes with an S Pen stored securely inside the phone, which means you can quickly jot down notes or sketch your ideas as they come to you, and then just slip it into its silo when you’re done. As we mentioned in our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra camera review, this phone still has one of the best camera arrays out there (except for when it comes to taking motion shots). Samsung dropped the telephoto range from 10x to 5x on the S24 Ultra, which got us worried a bit initially, but the new 50MP sensor totally makes up for it.

Best compact phone

Although it's about to get a successor very soon, but the Samsung Galaxy S24—for now—remains arguably the best Android flagship that you can use comfortably with one hand. If you detest large and unwieldy smartphones, you're going to love this thing. The front is all about a 6.2-inch LTPO AMOLED panel that looks every bit as stunning as you'd expect it to. The display is surrounded by extremely slim bezels, which definitely help with the device's overall compact physical footprint.

Driven by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, the Galaxy S24 comes with 8GB/12GB of RAM and 128GB/256GB/512GB of internal storage. It goes without saying that the smartphone can make quick work of even the most demanding of tasks without breaking a sweat. The software is Android 14, and Samsung's One UI 6.1.1 custom overlay gives you a plethora of customization features, as well as the full 'Galaxy AI' suite of AI-based goodies. And thanks to the company's fantastic update policy, this is a smartphone you'll be able to use for years to come.

Featuring a triple-lens rear camera system, the Samsung Galaxy S24 packs a 50MP primary module, a 12MP ultrawide lens, and a 10MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom. The trio is backed by a multitude of shooting modes, and support for 8K video recording. The front-facing camera is a 12MP unit and supports 4K video capture. Among other notable additions are wired/wireless DeX compatibility, NFC, an IP68 certification, and a 4,000mAh battery with wired and wireless charging support.

Best flagship

OnePlus's numbered series-devices have rarely failed to impress us, but there has always been something that they missed out on. Not this time though! The OnePlus 12 is possibly the company's most well-balanced phone yet, and it can easily stare all other flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S24, in the eyes. Short of any AI wizardry in the software, the OnePlus 12 is every bit as good, if not better in many areas, as the best from Samsung and Google. 

It all comes down to keeping things simple, with excellent hardware and cohesive software. The design is similar to the OnePlus 11, but there are enough tweaks like the new shade of Green, which help it stand out. The 6.82-inch OLED screen is truly spectacular and can hit astounding levels of peak brightness. There's ample amount of power, RAM, and storage to go about too. OxygenOS 14 is not totally bug-free yet, but it's nothing that a few more software updates can't fix. 

Battery life is one of the 12's strongest suits. The massive 5,400mAh capacity should easily give most users up to two days of runtime on a full charge. There's also 80W wired charging and 50W wireless charging (with the proprietary charger), so you can juice it up in minutes. 

There are massive cameras sensors all around the OnePlus 12, starting with the superb 50MP Sony LYT-808 sensor for the main camera. Image quality is outstanding no matter if you're shooting during the day or at night. Plus, the Hasselblad filters let you add unique artistic touches to otherwise boring shots. 

Best value

For the first time, OnePlus has brought its "flagship killer" smartphone to the global markets, which has dethroned the Pixel 7a from its position on our list. At the same starting price as Google's mid-range phone, the OnePlus 12R gives you the top-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, and up to 16GB of RAM. You also get all the OnePlus staples like the smooth and feature-rich OxygenOS 14 software, alert slider, and that fabulous 120Hz AMOLED panel. 

As we've noted in our OnePlus 12R review, you can think of it as a OnePlus 11 but with a better display, more refined camera tuning, and a larger battery. And you get all of this for a starting price of just $500, which is simply tremendous value. 

Of course, there are some minor compromises you'll have to make. The ultrawide camera for instance, isn't as good as the one on the OnePlus 12 as colors generally looked a little washed out and there's aggressive smoothening to hide the noise. Games also seem limited to 60fps. Apart from these shortcomings though, it's really hard to complain about this phone at this price point. 

The display on the OnePlus 12R is definitely one of its highlight features. The 6.78-inch 120Hz LTPO AMOLED panel produces rich and vibrant colors and can get really bright up to 4500 nits. The phone comes in two striking colors, and the design and build quality is every bit as premium as you would expect from its more premium sibling.

Best cheap

Want a feature-packed Android smartphone that doesn't cost a fortune? Look no further than the Google Pixel 8a. With a modest starting price of $399, it's at the top of the mountain as far as cheap Android phones are concerned. Compared to the last-gen model, there are quite a few upgrades that make this thing a well-rounded package.

The Pixel 8a features a 6.1-inch OLED panel that now supports a 120Hz refresh rate and is protected by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 3. Overall fit and finish are more-than-decent, and the smartphone has a compact design that makes one-handed use a sheer joy. It's powered by Google's Tensor G3 chipset and comes with 8GB of RAM, along with 128GB/256GB of onboard storage. Running Android 14 out of the box, the Pixel 8a is covered by the same industry-best software update policy that its pricier siblings come with. Of course, you also get access to all of Google's AI-enhanced goodies, including Gemini.

In terms of cameras, there's a dual-lens rear camera setup with a 64MP primary sensor and a 13MP ultrawide module. And as you'd expect from a Pixel, image and video continue to be simply awesome. Although the Google Pixel 8a doesn't have a 3.5mm audio port like some of the other affordable Android phones, it does come with a pair of stereo speakers, NFC, and an IP67 rating. Rounding off the spec sheet is a 4,492mAh battery which supports both wired and wireless charging.

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How to choose

There you have it—the best unlocked Android phones you can buy in 2024. There's a wide range of great unlocked Android phones available, depending on your needs. In fact, the vast majority of the best Android phones can be purchased unlocked.

When it comes to picking just one, our testing confirms that the Google Pixel 9 ticks nearly every box there is to tick. It has a higher price than last year, but its improved performance and best-in-class cameras still make it a strong pick. You also get a refreshed design, seven years of updates directly from Google, and more AI features than you can count.

Alternatively, you can take a look at the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra if you want a top-of-the-line Android smartphone that has every feature under the sun. It comes with a built-in stylus, has an immersive anti-reflective display, and is a one-of-a-kind when it comes to productivity. You also get a laundry list of 'Galaxy AI' features, years of OS and security updates, and more. Then there's the Samsung Galaxy S24, which stands out as the most powerful compact Android phone currently in the market. Ideal for one-handed use, it includes an awesome triple-lens rear camera system, an amazing design, and all the connectivity features you could possibly want.

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Carriers have all but eliminated contracts but, in their places, they've come up with something that can be even worse if you're not sure what you're signing up for. AT&T, Verizon, and even US Cellular have moved to 36-month payment plans for their phones with T-Mobile offering some 24-month and some 36-month plans. These carriers will pull in customers with the promise of free phones, but these customers end up stuck with the carrier or need to pay off the full amount.

This is even worse if you've signed up for a buy one, get one free program as the free phone is made so with monthly payments for 36 months. That means if you want to switch carriers, you could be on the hook for hundreds or even thousands of dollars to get your phones unlocked. Buying these phones on a payment plan can make them seem cheaper than they are. The truth of the matter is that most people don't need a $1,500 phone with so many solid budget options available.

If you buy your phone unlocked, you can bring it with you to a new carrier with a simple SIM swap or eSIM download. That means you can take advantage of new customer promotions with some of the best MVNO carriers for example. That also means if you sign up on a carrier that isn't giving you the coverage you need, you can switch when your month is up instead of waiting for 36 months of payment credits.

Another thing to consider is that you don't have to give up payment plans entirely to buy unlocked. Phones are expensive and not everyone can reasonably cut a multi-hundred dollar check when they need a new phone. If you buy from Samsung's web store, for example, you can choose between a one-time payment, four bi-weekly payments, a 24-month payment plan, or a 36-month payment plan. And with this option, you can take your phone to any carrier you want without paying it off.

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