The £500–£700 range is the sweet spot for phones — near-flagship performance without the eye-watering price. These are the best phones under £700 in 2026.
The Pixel 9 Pro runs clean Android with excellent Google Workspace integration — Gmail, Docs, Meet and Drive all work brilliantly. Good security and long update support.
The Galaxy S25 offers flagship Samsung performance, an excellent camera and Galaxy AI features at a price that sits comfortably under £700.
The iPhone 16 offers most of what the Pro has at a lower price — fast A18 chip, great camera and iOS 18. Now that iPhone 17 is out, prices have dropped making this excellent value.
The Pixel 8a has an excellent front camera and Google's clean, simple Android interface. Video calling on Google Meet or WhatsApp is smooth and high quality.
| Phone | Price | Best Feature | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Pixel 9 Pro | ~£600 / $760-650 / $760-820 | AI & camera ✅ | Camera lovers |
| Samsung Galaxy S25 | ~£650 / $820-699 / $820-885 | Samsung flagship ✅ | Samsung fans |
| iPhone 16 | ~£650 / $820-699 / $820-885 | Apple ecosystem ✅ | Apple users |
| Google Pixel 8a | ~£499 / $630 | Best value ✅ | Budget-conscious |
The Google Pixel 9 Pro offers exceptional camera performance and AI features at around £600-650, making it one of the best phones in this range.
Absolutely. At £600-700 you can get near-flagship performance that handles everything most people need for several years.
Only if you specifically want features like the Samsung S26 Ultra's 200MP camera, S Pen or ultra-premium build. For most people, a phone under £700 is more than enough.