How we chose our winner
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
But before we get to the fun part, let’s go over our selection and voting process.
Over the past year, we tested more than 40 smartphones, putting each smartphone through rigorous performance, battery, and charging benchmarks, in addition to hands-on evaluations of cameras, design, software features, update requirements, and much more.
Our experienced reviewers spend countless hours discovering what really sets each device apart, and while personal preferences of course vary, choosing the best of the year is a collaborative effort. To do that, our senior editors and product testers come together to review and discuss the highest-rated phones, reaching consensus as a panel of experts and narrowing our list to a group of 20 potential winners.
More than 40 phones have passed our tests and critical reviews in 2025, but only one can win our annual top prize…
The class of 2025 represented 12 different smartphone brands, and our jury of 13 editors awarded votes to their top five choices in our typical ranked voting system. A fifth-place vote earns a device one point, fourth-place two, and so on, up to a maximum of five points for a first-place choice.
The phone that received the most points took home the grand prize, and this year that phone was somehow both completely expected and completely bizarre in equal measure…
Android Authority‘s Editor’s Choice Phone of the Year 2025: OnePlus 13
Joe Maring / Android Authority
There is so much to unpack here, but let’s start with the most important thing: after five years of Pixels dominating our awards season, the impasse has finally been broken, and in spectacular fashion too. With almost twice as many votes as the runner-up, and after receiving a vote from every member of our awards team (over 60% of which was a first place!), the OnePlus 13 managed to start the year as a firm favorite and end it as an absolute landslide winner.
In his review, our own Ryan Haines gave the OnePlus 13 a full five-star rating, calling it the OnePlus phone he finally trusts to do it all. It’s not hard to understand why either. Besides introducing massive silicon batteries to the mainstream mobile landscape, the OnePlus 13 also delivered other highlights like crazy fast charging, an impressive camera package with surprisingly excellent zoom, and a sleek design with finish options that will please almost anyone. And with an MSRP of $899, it undercut the elite competition on cost while matching everything else (well, almost – let’s take that update policy to Google/Samsung levels quickly, OnePlus).
The OnePlus 13 started the year as a huge favorite and ended it as an absolute smash winner.
But of course we need to address the giant elephant in the room. Due to the staggered Western release of the OnePlus 13 (landing in early January 2025, two months after the initial launch in China in November 2024), the company found itself in a strange transition period with two OnePlus flagships launching in the US and Europe in the same calendar year. That the first phone released took home our top prize and the second, the OnePlus 15, wasn’t even on the shortlist of 20 devices up for voting speaks volumes about how disappointing the latter was as a follow-up.
We hope OnePlus takes a step back to reflect on the runaway success of the OnePlus 13 before embarking on the next generation in earnest, because it would be a real shame if the sudden, welcome resurgence of that plucky early-era OnePlus energy completely dissipated as quickly as it returned.
OnePlus 13Beautiful design • Smart AI features • Flexible cameras
The killer flagship of the OG flagship killer.
The OnePlus 13 is the company’s most amazing flagship yet, offering a huge battery, fast charging and powerful cameras that Google and Samsung have to worry about.
Second place: OPPO Find X9 Pro
Make that a one-two punch for the OPPO-OnePlus alliance, and a well-deserved one, albeit with a bit of sadness that US buyers won’t have a way to officially experience the brilliance of the Find X9 Pro.
A truly stunning 200MP telephoto lens (supplemented by an optional extender lens!), a massive 7,500mAh silicon-carbon battery and wafer-thin display bezels are all notable highlights of a phone that excels in all areas except availability.
Third place: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7
In third place, with only one point difference from second place, Samsung is the only representative in this year’s top five. That’s right, when the Galaxy S25 series opted to repeat previous successes in such a small way in 2025, it was instead the Galaxy Z Fold 7, the company’s true luxury offering, that surprised us enough to achieve some semblance of glory.
For a foldable device that costs less than $2,000, you have to expect the best, and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is undoubtedly the best the Z Fold series has ever been. A sleek but durable design, a usable outer screen, flexible cameras and more made this the true ultra-tier device in the Galaxy family in 2025, and the best foldable device of 2025 (although props to the Motorola Razr Ultra, which narrowly missed the top five; we love that happy boy!).
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7Thinnest, lightest Z Fold yet • More durable design • 200 MP primary camera • Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy
Thin, light, powerful and foldable!
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 offers an 8-inch OLED display, a 200 MP camera, the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset and a 4,400 mAh battery. The Galaxy AI experience is baked in and offers tools for the camera, Circle to Search and much more. Best of all, Samsung continues to develop its folding hinge assembly, which reduces the visibility of the fold.
Fourth place: Google Pixel 10 Pro XL
The surprising result is that this is the first time a Pixel phone hasn’t placed in the top three since we introduced the Editor’s Choice voting lineup in 2020. However, that says more about the incredible competition than about any potential shortcomings of Google.
Google’s top Pixel packs the best point-and-shoot camera package, comprehensive, constantly updated software, and a host of exclusive features, many of which are made possible by Gemini’s ever-evolving smarts.
It didn’t capture our collective hearts in the same way the resurgent OnePlus 13 gained voice time, but the Pixel 10 Pro XL tops our list of the best Android phones you can buy right now for a very good reason.
Google Pixel 10 Pro XLExcellent build quality • Improved camera flexibility • Smooth software
Ultimate power from the Pixel 10 line
The most powerful option from the Pixel 10 line is the Google Pixel 10 Pro XL. With a 6.8-inch display, Tensor G5 shipset, 16GB RAM, UFS 4.0 storage options, a powerful triple camera setup, and a 5,000+mAh battery, you should be able to tackle any task of the day.
Fifth place: Google Pixel 10 Pro
And four points behind its bigger brother is the Pixel 10 Pro, which brings everything good about the Pro XL into a more portable form factor, along with a slightly cheaper price tag.
All told, the Pixel 10 Pro and Pro XL technically garnered enough votes to take the second spot, but we’ve always treated the Pro and Pro XL as separate models in recent years, and since one of them has won in each of the last five years regardless to date, we’re keeping it as fair as possible by keeping that division in place.
Google Pixel 10 ProPremium specifications with small display • Excellent cameras • Powerful AI tools • Premium software
More power in the smaller form factor
The Google Pixel 10 Pro has everything you could want in a flagship Android phone, crammed into a truly compact body with a 6.3-inch display. Google’s new Tensor G5 chip is more powerful, the 100x Pro Res Zoom is truly impressive and there are loads of useful AI features. Not to mention, you still get seven years of Android updates.
And that wraps up our Editor’s Choice Phone of the Year for 2025. We’ll continue to bring you the hottest news and thought-provoking opinions until the year officially comes to a close, but we’re also already preparing our team for a killer CES 2026 in early January.
Additionally, we’re constantly looking for ways to bring you the best Android coverage in the industry while remaining a proudly independent company. If you’d like to follow us on that journey, make us your preferred source Google Search And Discover – you have no idea how much your continued support means to us.
Until then, from our families to yours, we hope you all have a wonderful holiday!
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