The best small phone 2023

Easily the best small phone around – considering the size-to-performance balance it strikes – with its (still 60Hz) 5.4in Super Retina XDR OLED display.

The 13 Mini runs on the same cutting-edge A15 Bionic chipset found in the rest of the series and it also benefits from more base storage and a bigger battery, compared to its predecessor (even if longevity is still behind that of rivals).

The dual rear 12Mp camera also enjoys improved stabilisation, better sensors and new shooting abilities – like Cinematic mode, while the selfie snapper is among the best in the business.

The screen might feel a little cramped to type on, so try one out in an Apple Store before you buy, if you can, and think hard about the price, as 2020’s iPhone 12 Mini is still a superb small phone offering that now costs even less.

The Pixel 7a is Google’s smallest smartphone with a 6.1in that isn’t strictly tiny, but compared to the rest of the market it is. That’s bolstered by the company’s superb flavour of Android 13 with decent customisation options but a good-looking and welcoming layout for buyers of all ages.

The 7a has the same Tensor G2 chipset as the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro, so it’s also a very good performer for the price. You’ll be able to comfortably enjoy videos and games on the 90Hz screen, the first Pixel A-series phone with a high refresh rate display. Add IP67 dust and water resistance to the mix, and this is a great all-round phone.

Where it excels is with its camera – this is one of the best phone cameras full stop, let alone one that is specifically small. It’s nigh on impossible to tell the difference between photos on this and the $899/£899 Pixel 7 Pro thanks to an upgraded 64Mp main sensor.

The phone charges quite slowly and has a plastic back, but apart from that, this is an exceptional smaller phone.

Asus has continued to make smaller phones when the trend has been to supersize, and we are eternally grateful. In 2023, the Zenfone 10 is not only the best Zenfone model ever, it’s also one of our favourite small phones, and the best small Android flagship you can get.

It has the top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, which has enabled outstanding power efficiency from the necessarily small battery – this phone has very good battery life, lasting well over a day of use.

The punchy OLED display is 5.9in and has a 144Hz high refresh rate screen (for games only, 120Hz max otherwise), and on the other side is a grippy plastic finish – with no glass, you can rock the phone without a case, but there is one in the box if you want.

You might prefer another phone if you want more than two years of Android updates, which is all Asus promises, but if you aren’t bothered (there’s four years of security patches) then this is one of the best phones – small or otherwise – you can buy.

Because it’s a folding phone, the Galaxy Z Flip 5 is technically the smallest phone on this list. When shut it’s a small solid square block that won’t stick out of the top of most pockets.

It’s so refreshing to have a smartphone not be enormous but the advantage here is the Flip unfolds to become a normal size phone when you need it to be. That inner screen is a 6.7in 120Hz AMOLED that looks very sharp and bright while the outer screen is much larger than previous generations – it now displays tons more information and can even run full apps so you don’t have to open the phone at all sometimes.

If you don’t mind the crease and plastic feel to the display then you’ll be rewarded with a very premium device that has clever software features such as propping up the phone half open to watch videos or take a video call or using the outer screen as a selfie viewfinder to take snaps with the superior main camera. You sacrifice battery life (it hits a day but no longer) and the cameras aren’t as great as ‘regular’ phones at this price but if you want a small folding phone, this is the one to buy.

The Sony Xperia 5 IV is a beautifully unique phone – it has a narrower and taller display than other phones thanks to its 21:9 aspect ratio. It means you can fit a lot of text on the screen in portrait orientation or watch films and TV shows in full screen when in landscape – 21:9 is used in the film indsutry.

Its dimensions mean the phone is comfortable to hold and scroll one-handed, though you may need two to reach the top. It’s also very slim, with an attractively angular utilitarian feel that you don’t find on other phones. It’s a phone that feels like a tool, which is reflected in the camera system – Sony has decided to push the manual controls of the phone so it feels as though you’re using one of its Sony Alpha cameras.

It means this is not the best phone for point and shoot photography but if you want to get granular control and use several dedicated camera and video apps you can’t get on other phones, the Xperia 5 IV will be the small phone for you. It even has a headphone jack!

The iPhone 12 Mini serves as the smallest of the four handsets from Apple’s 2020 line-up and still boasts an impressive size-to-performance ratio.

On the front, you’ll find a beautiful 5.4in display that extends across the entirety of the phone’s front (save for the Face ID-capable notch).

It also packs in a pair of stellar cameras, MagSafe for iPhone-compliant wireless charging and what is still one of the most powerful SoCs out there, in Apple’s own A14 Bionic. 5G is included too, if that’s what you’re looking for.

This is pushing what we would call a small phone given its width and weight, but the choices are few and far between these days as smartphones have generally got huge.

The 14 Pro is still relatively small with its 6.1in display, particularly if you have larger hands. It helps it is one of the best quality screens on any phone, with 120Hz refresh rate and Apple’s clever and accurate Face ID hidden in the Dynamic Island – a mix of camera holes and black pixels that the software uses to expand widgets and controls.

The new 48Mp main camera sensor also means this is the best camera system ever on an iPhone, paired with a solid ultrawide and 3.3x telephoto lens. iOS is slick as ever, and the battery life is stellar, if not improved from the iPhone 13 Pro.

If you want a small but powerful Android phone with more a little more kick than 2020’s Pixel 5, 2022’s Xiaomi 12 is a brilliant alternative.

Provided you’re happy to contend with its more convoluted MIUI-based user experience, the Xiaomi 12 packs in the latest flagship chipset, great cameras and impressive 67W fast charging; addressing one of the frequent shortcomings of smaller phones – weaker, shorter battery life.

Size-wise, its 6.28in 120Hz Full HD+ AMOLED display isn’t to be sniffed at either.

Still available from resellers for considerably less than its retail price, the Z Flip 3 is very close to the experience you get with the newer Z Flip 5.

The Z Flip 3 is a beautiful expression of the evolution of foldable smartphone tech and somehow manages to incorporate water resistance into its design. As such, you get a phone with a pretty sizeable 6.7in 120Hz Full HD+ AMOLED that folds in half, making it much more pocketable.

Battery life and the dual cameras could be better but despite flagship-class performance in a groundbreaking design, the Flip 3’s pricing also proves that foldables can tango in the same space as conventional high-end smartphones without any major sacrifices. It also gets software support until 2026.

The iPhone SE is one of Apple’s smallest iPhones – only the two Mini models are more petite – but it’s not our first choice.

That’s mostly because Apple’s has stuck to its old iPhone design here, meaning that while the SE is small, a lot of that space is wasted by a big black bezel and Home Button. That means the display is absolutely tiny and still low resolution – other small phones will feel bigger.

Still, you get the same processor as the iPhone 13 series, along with wireless charging and water-proofing. And while there’s only one rear camera it is pretty good – though not at night.

Buy this if you can’t afford either of the Minis, but otherwise it’s better to stretch your budget if you can.