The best value-for-money phone is not the same for everyone: it depends on what you are willing to pay, what you expect from the device and how you feel about refurbished phones. Rather than a list of models whose prices change every week, this guide explains how Picksly calculates the value for money of a smartphone, what that calculation sees and does not see, and which phone it picks for your profile: Budget, Smart or Premium.

What "value for money" means at Picksly

Picksly does not test phones itself. It scores each smartphone from 0 to 100 on nine criteria, from public sources detailed on the smartphone method page:

  • Performance: the chip's Geekbench 7 multi-core score (AnTuTu as a fallback, then the GSMArena page), on a single scale shared by iPhones and Android phones.
  • Camera and screen: the Camera and Display scores published by DXOMARK.
  • Battery life: the Battery score measured by DXOMARK when it exists, otherwise the battery capacity announced by the manufacturer.
  • Memory: the RAM, from 6 GB (score 0) to 16 GB (score 100).
  • Storage, fast charging, peak brightness and promised updates: values announced by the manufacturer (GSMArena page), which weigh little.

These criteria make up the model's overall score, with weights that change by profile. For the "Market" score, without price: battery life 22%, performance 22%, camera 18%, screen 12%, memory 10%, then storage 6%, charging 5%, updates 3% and brightness 2%. Value for money is derived from it: Picksly divides this score by the model's verified price, then ranks every smartphone in the same market that has both a score and a price. The best ratio is worth 100, the worst 0. It is a rank, not an amount: it only makes sense within one market and one currency, and it is not calculated when fewer than five models can be compared.

In practice, a cheap phone does not automatically offer good value for money. If it scores poorly, a slightly more expensive model with a clearly better score overtakes it.

What matters before you look at the price

  • RAM: according to the published formula, 8 GB is worth 20 out of 100, 12 GB is worth 60 and 16 GB is worth 100. This is the RAM, not the storage.
  • Battery: when DXOMARK has not measured battery life, Picksly scores the announced capacity. A battery of about 3,350 mAh or less is worth 0, one of about 6,000 mAh or more is worth 100, and 5,000 mAh scores about 62. A capacity is not a measured battery life: the model's page states which of the two was used.
  • Camera and screen: the scores come from DXOMARK. A model DXOMARK has not tested shows no camera or screen score; in its overall score the missing criterion counts at the median of the phones in the category, and the score only exists if more than half of the criteria weight is measured.
  • Announced values: storage, fast charging, peak brightness and the number of promised updates come from spec sheets, not from measurements, hence their low weights (2 to 7%). The storage scored is the largest capacity offered: always compare prices at equal capacity. For updates, only a promise counted in system versions is used.
  • What Picksly does not score: screen smoothness (60 or 120 Hz), panel type, megapixels, 5G, weight, build quality. Check them on the manufacturer's page.
On each model's page, the "At a glance" block sums up these scores: a criterion is listed as a strength from 75 out of 100, as a weakness at 25 or below. Only measured scores count, never an estimate or the price. A phone with 8 GB of RAM (20 out of 100) therefore shows memory as a weakness, even though it is enough for many uses.

Which phone for your profile

In a comparison of two to four models, Picksly picks one choice per profile, according to public rules. On the smartphones page, you can also rank every model by Budget, Smart or Premium score.

🟢 Budget profile: €350 at most, new or refurbished

The Budget profile only keeps smartphones whose price, new or refurbished, does not exceed €350, and among them the one with the best Budget score; without a score, the cheapest. Value for money counts for 35%, the heaviest criterion, ahead of battery life (18%) and performance (12%); the camera weighs only 8%. The price used is the lower of the new offer and the refurbished offer. This is the profile where a refurbished former flagship can overtake a new entry-level phone, provided its score and its price justify it. To see this ranking, open smartphones at €350 or less, ranked by Budget score. Our guide to smartphones under €350 shows what you really give up below this ceiling, and refurbished or new helps you choose the seller and the grade.

🟣 Smart profile: the best balance, new

The Smart profile is the default profile, and the one closest to the idea of "best value for money". It sets no price range: it only looks at new offers, rules out models whose Smart score is below 50 out of 100, and keeps the best. Value for money counts for 20%, alongside battery life (20%), performance (13%), camera (13%), screen (8%) and memory (10%). A more expensive phone can therefore win if it scores clearly better, and a cheaper phone if it comes close in quality. When Picksly suggests a model outside your selection for this profile, it never picks one more expensive than the most expensive phone you are comparing. See smartphones ranked by Smart score.

🔵 Premium profile: the best quality, recent

The Premium profile ignores price. It only keeps new phones released within the last 24 months, with a Premium score of at least 60 out of 100 (performance 22%, camera 22%, screen 15%, battery life 12%, memory 10%, the rest in announced values), never refurbished ones. A former flagship, even if still sold new, therefore drops out after two years: that is why our iPhone 15 vs Galaxy S24 comparison no longer suggests them for this profile. See smartphones ranked by Premium score.

How to find yours with Picksly

  • Open the smartphones page and choose a price range or your profile.
  • Rank the models by profile score or by criterion, for example by camera score if the camera matters most to you.
  • Select two to four models: Picksly picks one choice per profile and says why, or says that none fits ("nothing under €350", "no recent high-end model").
  • Check on the retailer's listing what the score does not see: storage capacity, battery condition when refurbished, warranty, length of updates.

To go further, see what smartphone chips are worth in 2026 and which screen size to choose.

FAQ

What is the best value-for-money phone in 2026?

There is no single one: the ranking changes with prices, and it depends on your profile. Picksly recalculates it from the verified prices in your market. Rank smartphones by Smart score to see which one comes first new, or by Budget score under €350 if you accept refurbished.

Is refurbished a good option?

For the Budget profile, yes: it is the only profile that accepts it, and the price used is the lower of new and refurbished. Choose a professional seller who gives a written warranty, a clear grade and the battery condition; our guide refurbished or new details what to check. The Smart and Premium profiles only compare new phones.

Should you buy the very latest model?

Not necessarily. For the Budget and Smart profiles, an older model is judged on its score and its current price, against recent models: it can win. For the Premium profile, however, a model released more than 24 months ago is no longer kept.

Is Picksly paid by retailers?

Picksly may earn a commission when you buy through one of its links, at no extra cost to you. The scores come from public sources and do not depend on affiliation; what affiliation can change is explained on our transparency page.

Install the Picksly extension: it recognises the phone you are looking at, searches for verified alternatives suited to your profile — Budget, Smart or Premium — and tells you when the listing on screen is not the best choice for you.

---

Picksly may earn a commission on purchases made through its links, at no extra cost to you. What affiliation can change is explained on our transparency page.