Our pick for the best Google phone is the top-end Pixel 9 Pro XL. Though the branding is new, this is the follow-up to the 6.7-inch Pixel 8 Pro, putting it up against top-end competition like the iPhone 16 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.

We were impressed with the updated look of the Pixel 9 Pro XL, with curved edges ditched in favour of flat alternatives and a redesigned camera housing that now resembles a pill more than a bar – but it’s more than just a simple redesign.

In a year with massively increased competition in the AI space, Google shows that its Pixel line still has the upper hand. The new Tensor G4 chipset, while not offering major performance gains compared to the G3, offers support for on-device Google Gemini with multimodal functionality, allowing you to have live discussions with Gemini, as well as being able to analyse photos you share.

It doesn’t stop there, of course; like previous Pixels, the Pixel 9 Pro XL offers a boost to AI photo editing smarts with the new Add Me mode and improvements to Magic Editor, but the AI experience permeates practically every corner of the Pixel experience, from Pixel Screenshots that help you search for information in screenshots, Pixel Studio that can generate images on-device, and much, much more.

It also has the same clean approach to Android as the rest of the Pixel collection, and like other recent Pixels, it benefits from Google’s industry-leading seven years of OS upgrades, meaning it’ll continue to improve over time.

Elsewhere, the 6.8-inch Super Actua display is a treat for the eyes, with a pixel-packed 1.3K resolution and a whopping 3000nits peak brightness that makes using the phone a doddle, even in direct sunlight. That’s backed up by a smooth 120Hz refresh rate with battery-friendly LTPO tech, and it plays particularly well with HDR10+ content too.

The Pixel 9 Pro XL, along with the Pixel 9 Pro (essentially a smaller 6.3-inch version of the Pro XL) offer a triple camera array comprised of a 50MP main and matching 48MP ultrawide and 5x telephoto lenses. These lenses continue to deliver some of the best photographs taken on any smartphone, with accurate colours, plenty of detail and Google’s top-notch skin tone reproduction tech.

It’s also capable of all-day battery life with its 5060mAh battery delivering around six hours of screen-on time with charge left to spare, making it a great all-round high-end option for Pixel fans.

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If you’re looking for a small Pixel and want to keep your budget low, the Pixel 9a is a great choice.

For the first time in years, the Pixel 9a doesn’t look like the flagship Pixel 9 collection – but that’s no bad thing. Ditching the horizontal camera bar for a near-flush camera setup provides a nice change, while the flat edges and rounded corners make for a nice in-hand feel.

It’s also better protected than ever with full IP68 dust and water resistance, though it retains the plastic rear and lowly Gorilla Glass 3. The latter, in particular, is a surprise given the protection offered from similarly priced mid-rangers.

Protection aside, the larger 6.3-inch screen is both great and disappointing. The core tech here – an OLED panel with boosted 2700nits peak brightness – is great, and the boosted size means you can enjoy the finer details in games and Netflix movies, but the frankly thick bezels make the phone look unnecessarily dated compared to the competition.

Of course, the headline feature of any Pixel phone is camera tech, and that’s also true of the Pixel 9a. The new 48MP sensor may seem like a downgrade, but with a larger sensor and wider aperture, it continues to deliver impressive mobile photography with accurate skin tones, exceptional low-light performance, and plenty of detail to boot. The inclusion of a dedicated telephoto lens would’ve been nice, though.

Inside the phone, there’s the same Tensor G4 chip as the flagship Pixel 9 collection. While we would like a little more power from the chip in the flagship range, at this price, it is perfectly adequate and a good performer in all of our tests. Tensor also powers many of the AI aspects of the Pixel, like the clever call screening features and excellent voice recorder.

The biggest upgrade the Pixel 9a offers is in battery life. With a 5100mAh battery, the Pixel 9a not only lasted all day without issue but delivered the best battery life of any Pixel phone on our list. That’s pretty impressive for a mid-ranger.

The Google Pixel Fold was a solid first attempt at a foldable, but it wasn’t without its issues. It was thick and heavy, had a notable crease, and struggled to run Android apps full-screen on that larger screen.

Thankfully, the follow-up Pixel 9 Pro Fold fixes practically every issue we had with the original. It’s a complete rethinking of Google’s book-style foldable, with a design similar to the OnePlus Open, complete with flat edges. It’s much thinner and lighter to hold as a result, making it a joy to use in day-to-day life.

Plus, with a 20:9 6.3-inch outer screen, it feels like a regular smartphone when not using the larger 8-inch internal panel. Though it still sports a rather notable crease, the internal panel can now render practically any Android app in full-screen, making it much more capable than its predecessor.

Pixels have a reputation for great cameras, and while the experience is solid here, it’s not the same setup as other ‘Pro’ models in Google’s Pixel 9 collection. The primary 48MP sensor is similar to the Pixel 9a, while the telephoto and ultrawide lenses cap out at 10.8 and 10.5 megapixels, respectively.

Still, even with less advanced hardware, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold can deliver a great photo with Google’s signature colour accuracy – just don’t rely too much on the zoom lens.

It also packs the same Tensor G4 as the rest of the Pixel collection. As we’ve already said, it’s a wholly capable chipset for the phone’s expansive suite of AI features, but it’s not the most performative chipset around.

Still, if you want a book-style foldable with core Pixel features and functionality, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is a good – if premium – option.

If your budget doesn’t quite extend to the most recent Pixel 9 collection, the Pixel 8 is still a fantastic buy, especially at its now-discounted price following the release of the Pixel 9.

The camera, like with other Pixel phones, is the main highlight here, delivering gorgeously detailed and punchy images regardless of whether you’re using it during the day or at night. There are also fun AI smarts that allow you to swap out faces in group selfies for better options and even use generative AI to remove huge swathes of an image, but it’s not the only reason you might feel tempted to make one of these your own.

The 120Hz OLED Actua screen, measuring a slightly smaller 6.2 inches than its predecessor, is plenty capable. The impressive peak brightness and great HDR support make watching Netflix movies a joy, and the design certainly looks sleek and feels premium to the touch as well. It’s a shame that it doesn’t have the same matte finish and flat edges as the newer Pixel 9, but it’s a small complaint when you consider the savings on offer.

It also gets the same long-term commitment as the most recent Pixels, boasting 7 years of OS upgrades that’ll take it through to the release of Android 21, all new features in tow.