Best flip phone 2024: next-gen clamshell phones reviewed and rated

With enough force, almost every phone can fold in half – not even the best smartphones on sale are immune from brute strength. But only a few can do it without suffering terminal damage. From retro revivals to cutting-edge clamshells, these flip phones are perfectly pocketable, yet don’t skimp on top-tier hardware.

By hiding a larger screen on the inside, flip phones are half the size of a traditional smartphone. Their outer screens are getting smarter and smarter, too, saving you from constantly flipping the thing open to reply to messages or check incoming emails. Add in increasingly capable cameras and they’re some of the most versatile phones around. We’ve tested the best, and highlighted upcoming models that might be worth waiting for.

Perhaps you prefer a larger book-style foldable with a little more substance? Read about the best foldable phones here.

The best flip phones you can buy today:

1. Motorola Razr 50 Ultra

This cream of the crop clamshell marks twenty years since the first iconic Razr. Motorola has added the biggest cover screen you’ll find on any foldable, and lets you run any app you like on it, meaning you can go hours without actually opening the thing up. Fresh new colours, a more weatherproof build and built-in Gemini AI smarts only add to the appeal.

Importantly the Razr 50 Ultra also gets two new outer camera sensors. Twin 50MP snappers promise much sharper, more defined shots than the previous generation, which was merely OK on the photography front. Add in the fact that it undercuts Samsung’s current flip phone (something that surely won’t change once the successor lands), and you’re looking at the best all-rounder on sale in the West today.

• Read more: Motorola Razr 50 Ultra review

2. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5

Sorting some its predecessor’s biggest snags while retaining the same pocketable proportions, the Z Flip 5 is a winning foldable for the mainstream. It remains a well-made, water-resistant clamshell – only now the gap between the two halves has been banished, and the much larger external display is a whole lot more useful.

Flipped open, the main 6.7in OLED panel is sharp, detailed and bursting with colour. Its multi-tasking potential mains good with a two-finger swipe opening multi-window. A Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 CPU keeps pace with 2023’s flagships, and battery life is decent for a clamshell foldable.

Camera hardware hasn’t seen any major upgrades, so it remains behind the best traditional phones in terms of image quality – but the gulf isn’t huge. Samsung’s software does a lot of heavy lifting to make up the difference, so can usually be relied on to take a stellar snap.

• Read more: Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 review

3. Motorola Razr 50

Motorola’s two-tier approach to flip phones worked well for the previous generation, bringing the cost of entry down significantly. That’s still the case for the Razr 50, except here you’re getting a significantly improved external display. At 3.6in and with access to any app you want, it’s far more useful than the outgoing model’s compact OLED.

Inside MediaTek silicon provides the power, while an even larger battery than the Razr 50 Ultra should easily deliver all-day longevity. It keeps the ultrawide lens from the Razr 40, but upgrades the main snapper to a 50MP unit that should be very competitive among flip phones. A full review will follow soon.

4. Nubia Flip 5G

It’s not a big name in Europe and the US, but Nubia (formerly a ZTE sub-brand) has been quietly pumping out value champions for a while now. These have largely been RedMagic gaming phones, but the Nubia Flip shows the firm knows a thing or two about foldables as well. A distinctive circular outer screen sets it apart from rivals, and the 4300mAh battery is especially generous given the midrange chipset running the show.

Only one of the two rear cameras is worth talking about, and you don’t get luxuries such as wireless charging or an IP rating. But short of buying second-hand or opting for a previous year’s model, there’s little else out there in flip phone land that’s as light on your wallet.

5. Oppo Find N2 Flip

Oppo’s first Western-bound flip phone looked set to shake up the market, thanks to some very competitive hardware. It didn’t see nearly the same success as the Galaxy Z Flip series, but can now be picked up for peanuts. That makes it well worth a look for anyone on a budget, despite its internals now being a generation behind.

The design is still gorgeous, the rear cameras still decent (if not class-leading) and the battery remains one of the largest of any flip phone I’ve tested. That external display doesn’t feel quite so giant any more, though, and the lack of wireless charging is a bit of a downer. Oppo’s version of Android can also be a little too aggressive when it comes to power management.

• Read more: Oppo Find N2 Flip review

What other flip phones are available?

Foldable phones of any sort are still in the minority here in the West, with the lion’s share of models being released in Asia. These are the best models currently on sale there:

The Huawei Pocket 2 has photographers in mind with its extensive outer camera selection. Only the 50MP main snapper has a high pixel count, with the 3x zoom telephoto making do with 8MP – but both get optical image stabilisation. A 12MP ultrawide and 2MP spectral sensor complete the set. Two-way satellite messaging also sets it apart from flip-style rivals.

The Honor Magic V Flip will almost certainly see a wider launch later down the line, but right now it’s China-only. A 4in cover screen gives the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra competition as the biggest on any flip phone, but its internal hardware is a generation or two behind.

It has seen a wider release than the phones mentioned above, but the Tecno Phantom V Flip is still a grey import away for most of us. It’s a value-minded flip phone, with MediaTek Dimensity innards and a circular outer screen. It doesn’t skimp on camera pixel counts, with a 64MP main snapper, and the 4000mAh battery is big for the category.

Upcoming flip phones

Flip phones are an underrepresented category, but there’s usually a few new models on the horizon worth getting excited about. The following should land within the next twelve months.

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is due in July. It’s expected to largely stick to the same formula as the current model, with some mild design tweaks and the usual set of internal upgrades. New camera hardware may be wishful thinking at this point, but Samsung is sure to double down on its Galaxy AI efforts.

Xiaomi hasn’t committed to releasing the Mix Flip internationally. It hasn’t even confirmed the phone’s existence at home yet, but it should launch by September. A Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset and three rear cameras could put every other flip phone to shame if it arrives sooner rather than later.

• Related: Best camera phones – smartphone cameras for perfect shots tested

Tom Morgan-Freelander Deputy Editor

About

A tech addict from about the age of three (seriously, he's got the VHS tapes to prove it), Tom's been writing about gadgets, games and everything in between for the past decade, with a slight diversion into the world of automotive in between. As Deputy Editor, Tom keeps the website ticking along, jam-packed with the hottest gadget news and reviews.  When he's not on the road attending launch events, you can usually find him scouring the web for the latest news, to feed Stuff readers' insatiable appetite for tech.

Areas of expertise

Smartphones/tablets/computing, cameras, home cinema, automotive, virtual reality, gaming