The best flagship phones 2026 to buy right now

We've finally reached that point in the year where all of the biggest tech brands have released their flagship phones for the 2025-26 season, so what better time to round them all up in one massive video. We've reviewed all of the latest flagship phones and at this point have spent several months with most of them, so we're pretty confident that we know their strengths, weaknesses and unique selling points. This roundup features big name models from Apple and Samsung as well as some brand spanking new phones from the likes of Oppo and Xiaomi, so strap in for our pick of the best flagship phones of 2026. Let's kick off with a phone you've all seen and heard about already, the iPhone 17 Pro. I've got the regular Pro model here, but everything I'm about to say also applies to the larger Pro Max, though with that phone you do get a larger screen, a slightly bigger battery and 2TB of storage, which is quite frankly ridiculous. On the design front, the iPhone 17 Pro boasts a stunning Super XDR OLED display, an aluminium chassis, a dedicated camera control button and all of the usual bells and whistles that we've come to expect from Apple's best iPhones. This is the only non-Android phone and the only device to use a chipset that isn't made by Google or Qualcomm. But Apple's A19 Pro chipset is just as powerful as the competition and at this price range, it's hard to separate phones by performance alone. Apple has paired that chipset with 12GB of RAM and a dedicated vapor cooling chamber, meaning the iPhone 17 Pro can handle 4K editing and AAA games with ease. One area where we can separate the iPhone 17 Pro from the Android crowd is software, for good and bad reasons. iOS 26 is probably the easiest OS package to master and even if you don't like the look of liquid glass, it features some genuinely life-improving tools like call screening and adaptive power mode. Apple's AI features though, leave a lot to be desired, especially when it comes to things like image editing and voice assistance. At the time of recording, we're still waiting for Siri 2.0, so if you're looking for a true AI companion, you're better off choosing a model from Samsung or Google. The iPhone 17 Pro's cameras meanwhile are among the best of any phone we've ever tested. Our favourite of its three lenses is the 4x telephoto, which also offers access to an impressive 8x zoom by way of a sensor crop. At the shorter zoom lengths, the iPhone 17 Pro is ridiculously good and it's also among the best phones for portrait photography, high-res video recording and selfies. In fact, the iPhone is the only phone on this list to have a front-facing camera that uses subject tracking to automatically keep you in the frame and that lets you switch between portrait and landscape modes. There's also a nice dual capture mode which lets you record from the front and rear camera at the same time, so this is definitely the best phone for content creators. All told then, this is the most technologically advanced iPhone Apple has ever made and if you're already embedded in the Apple ecosystem, it's the obvious choice. Oh, and a special shout-out to the iPhone Air, which, despite making no sense on paper, is definitely the most interesting iPhone you can buy right now. Of all the phones on our list, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra offers the most unique features, with special tools for photographers, artists and even those who just like to scroll through TikTok. Yes, the Ultra uses the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset and yes, it's got more than all-day battery life, so in terms of performance and endurance, it's right up there with the best phones around. But where else can you get a built-in stylus for note-taking and precise video editing? Or a privacy display that stops prying eyes from viewing content on your screen? There's Horizon Lock for stabilising videos even when you turn the phone a full 360 degrees and DeX for transforming your mobile interface into a desktop PC. The Galaxy S26 Ultra offers something unique for every type of user, and although Samsung's One UI software can be convoluted at times, this is a phone that rewards exploration and those willing to dig through its many customisation options. And of course, being a flagship Samsung phone, the Ultra's cameras are some of the best around, which, to be honest, is going to be true in almost every phone in this video, so don't be surprised if I keep repeating that line. The S26 Ultra is as versatile as camera phones get, but it's especially good at night photography and zoom photography. The 200MP main camera picks up so much colour and detail that pictures are never grainy even in low light. And you've got two telephoto cameras to pick from here, which can't be said for a lot of phones on this list. Samsung's AI features like Audio Eraser and Object Eraser are also industry-leading, so there's plenty of scope for tidying up your photos and videos once you've shot them. What you don't get with the Ultra is any form of magnetic charging, but if you're not easily overwhelmed by having hundreds of settings and features at your disposal, then Samsung's latest flagship is an absolute beast of a phone. Of all the phones on this list, the Pixel 10 Pro XL is the one that will likely get replaced soonest, but there's still a good few months to go until the Pixel 11 line is unveiled. That means, if you're into Pixels or you want to try out Google's hardware for the first time, the Pixel 10 Pro XL is the best option available now. So, what do you need to know about Pixel phones? Well, firstly, they're on the cleanest version of Android you'll find on any phone, because, well, Android is owned and developed by Google. There's no bloatware or unnecessary apps, and the Pixel 10 Pro XL gets the latest and greatest AI features straight from Google's production line. With genuinely useful tools like Call Screen, Magic Eraser, and Photo Unblur, this feels like a phone that's at the cutting edge of smartphone software, and its built-in Gemini Assistant is leagues ahead of Apple's Siri and Samsung's Bixby. Now, the Pixel 10 Pro XL isn't the performance powerhouse that both the 17 Pro and the Galaxy S26 Ultra are, so this isn't the phone to buy if you're planning on loads of 4K video editing or super high-end mobile gaming. Having said that, Google's Tensor G5 chipset is absolutely powerful enough for most people, and you won't have any problems streaming, scrolling, or gaming on most titles. As for cameras, the 10 Pro XL's lenses are supremely versatile, even when not used in combination with those aforementioned AI editing features. They deliver accurate colours and plenty of detail at every focal range, and you can get some really great zoom shots with the phone's 48MP telephoto lens with 5X optical zoom. In other words, the Pixel 10 Pro XL is a clean, easy-to-use Android phone with the best software around, but it's not a heavy lifter in the same way that other flagship phones on this list most definitely are. The OnePlus 15 is the jack-of-all-trades pick among the best flagship phones. It's not full of flashy AI features and it doesn't look particularly unique, but this phone delivers in pretty much every other way you could hope for. Its display, for instance, is as bright and colourful as the rest, but a refresh rate of up to 165Hz makes the OnePlus 15 extra suited to high-end gaming. Under the hood, the phone's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset can tackle whatever you throw its way, and it's paired with an almighty 7,300mAh battery, which is the biggest and longest lasting of any phone we've ever tested. Honestly, this thing lasts for days and days and days, with our reviewer managing to eke out almost 3 days of use from the OnePlus 15 on a single charge. It can also charge at up to 100W, or 80W if you're in the US, and OnePlus will actually include a charger in the box, which is definitely a luxury these days. On cameras, the OnePlus 15 gets a trio of 50MP snappers, all of which deliver detailed and well-balanced photos. It's not quite as impressive a camera phone as some of the other phones on this list, but the OnePlus 15 is particularly good as an action camera for fast-moving subjects. As for downsides, there are no built-in magnets, and OnePlus' software isn't quite as feature-packed as other OS packages, but as an overall offering, the OnePlus 15 is probably the best value flagship money can buy. Rumours are also swirling that OnePlus is winding down its operations outside of Asia, so this might also be the last OnePlus flagship phone you'll ever be able to buy. The Oppo Find X9 Ultra isn't officially available in the US, but if you're living in Europe, it's probably the best camera phone on the market. I won't spend too much time on the Ultra's other specs, as it really is a device that's but, like the OnePlus 15, it boasts a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset, a gorgeous 6.8-inch display, and a long-lasting silicon-carbon battery. On the back, you'll find four high-res cameras, a 200MP main lens, a 50MP ultrawide lens, a 200MP 3x telephoto lens, and a second 50MP 10x telephoto lens. The last of that quartet is the most exciting, as it's almost like having an external teleconverter for the Find X9 Ultra built in, though Oppo does actually sell a 300mm teleconverter lens for the phone, should you want to extend its zoom capabilities even further. Regardless of which lens you use, you can expect exceptional detail and clarity from the Find X9 Ultra in all lighting conditions. Its default image processing gives you vibrant and contrasty images, but if you want photos to look more like they were shot with a DSLR, you can switch to the phone's Hasselblad Master Mode, which is not something you'll find elsewhere. Oppo even throws in a 50MP selfie camera for good measure, so the Find X9 Ultra really is at the top of the pile when it comes to smartphone photography. Is it heavy? Yes. Is it expensive? Yes. But this phone wears its USB on its sleeve, and it's worth considering if you're serious about cameras. Like the Oppo Find X9 Ultra, the Xiaomi 17 Ultra is another photography-focused smartphone from China. It too is available in Europe, though US buyers aren't so lucky once again. The 17 Ultra rivals the Oppo Find X9 Ultra with a 50MP 1-inch main lens, a 50MP ultrawide lens and a single 200MP telephoto lens. But don't be fooled by the Xiaomi's smaller number of cameras compared to its compatriot. I say that because this phone's telephoto lens features a mechanical optical zoom, giving you a continuous optical zoom of between 3.2x and 4.3x. The 17 Ultra will also maintain optical quality zoom up to 17.2x, so this really is another champion when it comes to zoom photography. Xiaomi's partnership with Leica means colours captured with this phone are vivid without looking cartoonish, skin tones are well-produced and there's minimal noise even in low-light scenarios. The 17 Ultra isn't quite so adept at video as the iPhone 17 Pro or the Oppo Find X9 Ultra, but only when it comes to very specific features like lens switching in 4K and using that mechanical zoom lens for specific frame rates and video codecs. As for the phone's non-camera specs, the 17 Ultra sports a Snapdragon 880 Gen 5 chipset, a 6.9-inch OLED display and a 6,000mAh silicon carbon battery. In our testing, we managed to use the phone for two days on a single charge, which is in line with most other models on this list, save for the stupidly long-lasting OnePlus 15. All told then, the Xiaomi 17 Ultra is another extremely impressive phone for a very specific type of user. But hey, that might be you. Lastly, we have the Honor Magic 8 Pro, which rounds out our trio of Chinese phone options that unfortunately aren't available in the US. Honor's latest flagship doesn't put quite so much emphasis on crazy camera hardware as the Xiaomi or the Oppo and should instead be thought of as a great all-rounder like the OnePlus 15. There's the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset for lightning-fast performance, the long-lasting 6,270mAh battery in regions outside of China and the 6.7-inch OLED display that makes the health of your eyes a priority. On that last point, the Magic 8 Pro features high-frequency PWM dimming for reduced eye strain and can intelligently adjust the colour temperature of its display according to your local sunrise and sunset times. These features might sound gimmicky, but they make an already good-looking display even more enjoyable to use and you might feel a bit less guilty about scrolling for hours on the Magic 8 Pro. This phone is also awash with AI features, though they vary wildly in quality. There's a dedicated AI button, but it's essentially a dupe of Apple's camera control button. And while the AI Photos agent lets you upscale images and remove reflections with ease, the AI Settings agent and AI Memories apps are pretty much useless by comparison. Still, these tools are there to be used or not used, so you can still enjoy the benefits of the Magic 8 Pro without engaging in its hit-and-miss software. And a quick word on the phone's cameras, its three rear lenses deliver plenty of colour and detail, particularly in night-time environments, though Honor is guilty of some rather aggressive AI processing if you zoom in much further than the Magic 8 Pro's 3.7x optical capabilities. So, the Honor Magic 8 Pro is a strong Android contender that performs well in most areas, though it's not as specialised as some of the other phones on this list. And there you have it, our roundup of the best flagship phones you can buy in 2026. For our full reviews of each device, head over to techradar.com and check out the description box below for the latest deals on every phone featured in this video. Which model is your favourite? Let us know in the comments below.