5 of the Best Gaming Smartphones Available Right Now
While it’s still a niche market to operate in, specialist gaming smartphones are continuing to see sales growth globally. Indeed, sales are expected to grow at a steady clip, somewhere in the region of 12.4% CAGR over the next six years.
Often, however, gaming phones are seen as a luxury item, something for committed gamers who require high-end performance. As with the wider smartphone market, there is a wide variety of styles and price points.
Below, we look at five great smartphones for gaming. Some are specialist gaming phones, whereas others are big hitters among general-purpose smartphones:
1. Best Overall: Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro
The Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro remains one of the most complete gaming phones around, especially for players who want a handset built specifically for long sessions. It packs the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, up to 24GB of RAM, a 5,800mAh battery, a 6.78-inch display, and, quite handily, a second USB-C port that makes landscape charging much less awkward. It is quite expensive, though, so if your idea of gaming entertainment is simple puzzle games or social casino slots, you probably don’t need so much power. But if you are a hardcore gamer or esports player, this is the benchmark.
2. Best for Most Gamers: RedMagic 11 Pro
The RedMagic 11 Pro is arguably a good option for gamers who want elite performance but want to pay a little less for the privilege, though not by much going by current prices. The phone comes with a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, RedCore R4 gaming chip, LPDDR5T RAM, UFS 4.1 Pro storage, a 7,500mAh battery, and an AMOLED full-screen display. One of the main drawbacks, though, is that RedMagic can compromise the general phone performance – cameras, etc. – so its not the best option if you also want to use it as an everyday phone.
3. Best Budget Gaming Phone: RedMagic 10 Air
The RedMagic 10 Air is a great budget pick because it looks and feels like a ‘proper’ gaming phone and not just a mid-ranger that happens to be decent at handling games. The specs include a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, 6.8-inch display, 6,000mAh battery, and a choice of 12GB or 16GB of RAM. It’s got a good it of muscle then, but, once again, it should probably only be bought for gaming rather than use as an everyday device.
4. Best iPhone for Gaming: iPhone 17 Pro Max
Not the most leftfield choice, but the iPhone 17 Pro Max is the obvious choice for Apple users who want the best gaming experience without switching ecosystems. Apple describes the A19 Pro chip as its most powerful and efficient iPhone chip yet, built for next-level mobile gaming as well as advanced camera features. It’s got other great stuff going on, including a vapor cooling system, strong battery life, and the growing number of console-quality games available on iOS. Obviously, it’s going to work well as your everyday smartphone, too.
5. Best Mainstream Android Gaming Phone: Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra
The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is the best fit for readers who want a premium Android phone that is excellent for gaming but don’t want to compromise on the phone for other activities. In terms of specs, it’s got the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chip and strong performance gains over the previous generation. There’s also a 6.9-inch QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with 120Hz adaptive refresh, a 200MP main camera, and high-end memory/storage options. Again, not the most leftfield choice, but it can handle some serious games, and it’s a great all-around device.
