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16 Jul 2025

Which mobile phone brand to buy in 2025

Exclusive Which? data can help you choose a mobile phone from a brand that lasts. We surveyed owners of Apple, Google, Samsung and other mobile phones to find out which ones develop the fewest faults over time

Adam SpeightSenior Researcher/Writer, Product Testing

In this article

Smartphone brands rated
The most common smartphone faults
Which smartphone brand is seen as the best value for money?
Which smartphone manufacturers are the best at repairs?
How we calculate the best and worst smartphone brands
Head to our smartphone reviews

In our unique customer survey, we've asked 15,644 Which? members and the public to tell us whether they're happy with their smartphone and if they've experienced problems, so you can see which brands are worth investing in.

Performance and reliability of a range of popular smartphone brands – including Apple, Google, Honor, Motorola, Nokia, OnePlus, Samsung, Sony and Xiaomi – were analysed, revealing how satisfied customers are, how they rate value for money and more.

One key finding from our survey was brands that experienced the most faults. Within five years and eight months of ownership, Huawei and Sony phones fared the worst, with the most common problem being a significant decline in battery life over a short period of time, or the phone quickly losing charge. Some owners also reported their devices becoming slow or sluggish or phones freezing or crashing unexpectedly – more often than with some other brands.

Other issues included software update problems and the occasional camera failure. Read on for the full results of our fault analysis and the other findings from our survey.

See our pick of the best mobile phone and Sim-only deals, and best iPhone deals
Or check our guide to the best smartphones to discover which models aced our lab tests

Choosing a phone from a brand that’s reliable and has high customer satisfaction will help you avoid problems developing over time, such as a struggling processor or shortened battery life. It can also save you money by delaying your next upgrade.

Adam SpeightMobile phones expert

Smartphone brands rated

The table below summarises this year’s results, based on phones bought in the past seven years.

Which? members can log in to see the scores and star ratings each brand earned in our latest survey. Not yet a member? Join Which? now to get instant access to all of our reviews.

Brand	Customer score	Proportion of faults in the first 68 months	Proportion repaired or replaced due to a fault	Proportion of Best Buys	Average test score
Sign up to reveal Get instant access to this and all our scores and recommendations Unlock table Full Access first month £5, then £11.99 per month, cancel at any time. Already a member? Log in	82%	15%	4%	75%	78%
	80%	13%	2%	27%	70%
	79%	11%	2%	60%	75%
	78%	11%	1%	22%	76%
	74%	15%	4%	17%	69%
	72%	11%	0%	n/a	n/a
	71%	18%	3%	19%	69%
	70%	23%	6%	33%	68%
	70%	22%	2%	0%	64%
	68%	31%	5%	50%	75%
	64%	27%	7%	0%	58%
	61%	29%	7%	0%	56%
	59%	26%	4%	n/a	n/a
	58%	21%	2%	88%	78%

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Unlock table

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The customer score, proportion faulty and proportion repaired or replaced are based on a survey in March 2025 of 15,644 people who own products, of which 16,037 were smartphones, conducted. Sample sizes: Alcatel (84), Apple (6606), Doro (43), Google (801), Honor (157), Huawei (287), Motorola (904), Nokia (198), Oppo (189), OnePlus (142), Realme (47), Samsung (5787), Sony (153), Xiaomi (310). Phone brands are ranked by customer score. Where n/a is reported, there is not enough data. The proportion of faulty and the proportion of products repaired or replaced is based on products bought in the past 68 months. Customer score rates how happy the respondent is with their smartphone brand and how likely they would be to recommend it to a friend.

Smartphones can last a long time, but this can vary between manufacturers. Also, brands don't often support devices for this long with important security updates. While Apple iPhones tend to receive six years of updates, and flagships from Samsung and Google have recently been released with seven, some Android phones stop receiving them after two or three years. Using a phone that no longer receives security updates poses a risk to your personal data.

Using a phone that's no longer receiving security updates is a risk. Read our guide to Mobile phone security: check how long a phone will receive security updates.

The most common smartphone faults

Which? members can log in to unlock the results of our survey and read the full results below. Not yet a member? Join Which? now to get instant access to all our reviews, or read on for a preview of what our survey uncovered.

Our survey collected data on more than 20 faults that can plague smartphones.

We reveal the most common faults – worsening batteries, faulty charging ports, overheating and software problems – along with tips and tricks on how to resolve these issues.

Which smartphone brand is seen as the best value for money?

Which? survey data has been used to calculate which brands are seen as the best value for money, and the results might surprise you. Some brands sell cheaper phones without the fanciest camera features or high-resolution screens, but they might be considered better value.

Which smartphone manufacturers are the best at repairs?

When something goes wrong with your phone, getting it repaired by the manufacturer can be a quick and convenient option. In our survey, we asked smartphone customers who went back to their manufacturer for a repair how satisfied they were with the process – whether this was done under warranty or they paid for it.

How we calculate the best and worst smartphone brands

Which? has a wealth of information on the UK's favourite brands. Every year, we ask Which? members to tell us about the tech they own – from how likely they would be to recommend a brand, to how reliable the products are once they get them home.

This year, 15,644 Which? members and members of the public told us about more than 58,586 individual products. We calculate our customer score based on whether customers would recommend each brand and their level of satisfaction. We also calculate which brand developed the most faults, based on products up to 68 months.

Our surveys, combined with our extensive lab tests, enable us to recommend the best smartphones to buy. Find out more about how we test smartphones.

Head to our smartphone reviews

We independently test more than 65 smartphones a year at all prices, from £80 to nearly £2,000. Our extensive scientific tests mean each phone is tested under identical conditions, so they're directly comparable. Our scores take into account what’s important to consumers. We remove Best Buy recommendations from phones that will run out of security updates within one year, so you don't end up with one that will soon be out of date.

Know which smartphone you want? Use the links to go straight to our reviews and find the model that works best for you:

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