Best entry-level smartphones 2023 - buyer’s guide

Xiaomi has struck a pretty nice balance with this year's Redmi Note 12 4G. The handset has an excellent display, long battery life, sufficiently fast charging, adequate performance, the latest MIUI + Android combo (unlike its siblings) and, although largely unimpressive camera performance, it's still rather decent for the price bracket.

We wish more work went toward optimizing the dedicated Night mode. We also wonder why Xiaomi removed the stereo speakers and the NFC. That last bit may be a deal-breaker for some of you who use the phone for contactless payments.

Still, no other smartphone can offer such feature-rich package at about €150-€160 and that's why the Redmi Note 12 4G is our top pick for the entry-level class.

The Moto G13 is our current top pick for the entry-level category just because it features the most features for its €150 price. The G13 packs a 90Hz LCD screen, more than adequate performance for the price with high-performance CPU cores and good graphics. There is also a good three-camera setup, and a large 5,000mAh battery.

The Moto G13 comes with clean Android 13, which is always a nice thing to have. And there are also NFC, microSD expansion, stereo speakers, audio jack. In fact, it is the best phone in this category with the only con being the lack of an ultrawide-angle camera.

The Moto G22 is for those who want to have an ultrawide camera and are ready to deal with the drop in performance. The G22 packs a 90Hz LCD screen, a versatile four-camera setup, and a large 5,000mAh battery.

The Moto G22 comes with clean Android 12, there are NFC, microSD expansion, audio jack. The performance is the only thing that is unimpressive on the Moto G22 but the lower screen resolution does help for smooth enough browsing.

The Redmi 12C is a nice update over the older Redmi 9C bringing improved performance thanks to the Helio G85 chipset – there are two high-performance CPU cores and snappier GPU. WE also appreciate the doubled base storage and increased RAM.

The Redmi 12C has a large display, but it’s limited to 60Hz refresh rate. We do appreciate the improved chipset, increased storage and the newer main camera. A rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, NFC and microSD are area always welcome, too..

The Redmi 12C is an affordable smartphone with good performance and popular MIUI launcher, so if it make sense for you, you should definitely check it out..

The Redmi 9C impresses with a large battery and a large LCD screen and its price is quite low at €135.

The Redmi 9C’s base version comes with just 2GB of RAM. This, with the weak Helio G35 may and will lead to some system-wide bottlenecks.

Still, the Redmi 9C is one of the cheapest smartphones around (about €100) and it will do just fine for calls, emails, chats, social networks and web browsing. It's a bit sluggish, but if you won't be playing games, you'd be fine with it.

If you need NFC, there is a Redmi 9C NFC version across some markets, too.

The Redmi A2 is one of the cheapest smartphones around at €90. It has sluggish performance, but may give you the screen estate and battery life you need. It runs on the most basic Android and MIUI versions.

If you need a fingerprint scanner, there is a Redmi A2+ version across some markets, too.

Finally, note that the Redmi A2+ is available as Poco C50 on some markets – it’s the same phone under different name.

The Nokia G11 costs about €120 and it is a solid smartphone. The G11 packs a 90Hz HD LCD screen and runs on the Unisoc T606 chip with powerful processor and okay GPU. The G11 also comes with a triple camera on the back and a large 5,050mAh battery with fast 18W charging via the USB-C port.

The Nokia G11 is one of the cheapest mainstream smartphones you can buy and that’s why we can forgive (and understand) its 720p resolution and the so-so graphics.

The Realme C31 costs about €130. The phone has a large but low-res screen, a triple-camera on the back, a 5,000mAh battery and runs on Android 11 with realme UI 2.0.

The Realme C31 has a good chipset with adequate processor but weak graphics. It's coupled with 3GB or 4GB of RAM, so it will do fine for everything but games.

The Realme C31 is good for calls and social networks and will probably last you for days on those. And it has a fingerprint scanner. It's an ideal first smartphone for students or seniors, but not the best daily driver for busier lifestyles.

We have another good offer on our shortlist here and this one comes from Realme. It's the Narzo 50A that is replacing the Narzo 30A.

So, this cheap (INR 11,500) yet attractive Narzo 50A offers a large HD screen, an adequate Helio G85 chip and a triple camera on the back (50+2+2). It comes with 64GB storage in its base trim and 4GB of RAM. We do appreciate the beefy 6,000mAh battery with 18W charging and the fingerprint scanner on the back.

The Narzo series are currently available in India only hence the India Special tag.

The Realme C25Y is another India special and it’s sort of a cheaper Narzo 50A version of you are on a budget. You get the same phone but with a slightly smaller battery and slower charging.

If you don’t mind these downgrades, you may save yourself some money and get this one instead.

The Samsung Galaxy A04s is a cheap entry-level device - quite possibly the cheapest Galaxy smartphone you can get. It has a high-refresh-rate screen, an okay primary camera, and very good battery life, so it is a solid upgrade to last year's Galaxy A03s.

The phone's performance is subpar, and the storage space provided by the base memory configuration is inadequate. It could work for someone who is mainly interested in staying in touch by mostly making calls and the occasional messaging.

It sure isn’t the best phone in this price tag, but it comes from a popular maker with strong hardware and software support, which often means a lot.

The Nokia C32 is the first C-series device by Nokia to use a glass rear panel. There's a grooved texture running the entire width of the panel, making it a pleasure to the touch, and less slippery. And the display is a 6.5-inch 720x1600px IPS LCD. It has nice upfront brightness and contrast, and colors are punchy and lively.

There are two cameras on the rear - a 50MP main camera - a first for any C-series phone - and a 2MP macro sensor. On the other side, there's an 8MP selfie camera. The Nokia C32 packs a 3.5mm headphone jack and there's also wireless FM radio. You also get a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, but you can use the front-facing camera for face unlock, which works with a mask too.

Battery-wise, you get an ample 5,000mAh pack that charges a bit slowly at just 10W. The Android 13 is as clean as it gets. The phone offers rather slow chipset, but it could be the right fit for those looking for an affordable daily driver, one that can do good photos.