The best battery life phone 2023

• Battery test score: 24:52
• Battery capacity: 5,000mAh

This phone is by no means the best overall phone you can buy but if it’s battery life you really want, in a fully capable Android phone with app store, the Sony Xperia 10 IV blows all competition out of the water. In the PC Mark battery test it scored 24 hours and 52 minutes – an utterly mad score that beats the second place phone in this chart by more than six hours.

It means this phone is the only one we’ve tested that could truly stretch to three days between charges if you are a light user.

It’s all the more impressive that the Xperia manages this longevity when it is so slim at 8.3mm. It’s only 161g too. Add to that waterproofing and a headphone jack, as well as an eye catching 6in screen with a tall 21:9 aspect ratio for watching videos full screen and you’ve got a solid mid-range phone. It charges slowly and the cameras aren’t the best, and it’s a little dull overall – but the battery is the best in the business.

• Battery test score: 18:30
• Battery capacity: 5,000mAh

Don’t count out any of the phones on this list just because the Sony there is at the top. At £299 in the UK, this Realme phone is another amazingly long lasting phone to consider.

It has a simple design and software to match but still crams in a high refresh rate 120Hz screen for the money, even though it’s an LCD. As is the case with many long battery life phones, it has less good performance and therefore puts less stress on the battery. The camera isn’t top, and there’s no waterproofing, so you may want to consider spending a little more, but if that doesn’t bother you then this is a very affordable way to leave your charger at home and not worry.

• Battery test score: N/A
• Battery capacity: 4,323mAh

The iPhone can’t run the PC Mark battery test we use, but rest assured, the battery life on the iPhone 14 Pro Max is incredibly good. We couldn’t kill it in one day, no matter how hard we tried.

It’s particularly impressive given this is a huge 6.7in OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, and running Apple’s A16 Bionic chipset that can tackle any mobile game or task with effortless ease. This is the most powerful – and most expensive – phone on this list, but you get what you pay for as it’s also one of the very best overall.

It’s the first iPhone to have Apple’s Dynamic Island, a cut-out that’s actually a pill shape next to a circular camera in the screen but is made to look like a larger pill thanks to clever use of black pixels and software. The Island displays information from apps that are running such as Phone, Music, and other third party apps are building integrations in too.

• Battery test score: 16:49
• Battery capacity: 4,880mAh

The cheapest phone on this list has excellent battery life, and will easily last you well into a second day. The Realme 9i doesnt have 5G and nor is it a very zippy phone, but its plastic build looks good, and it has a generous 128GB storage and surprisingly fast charging.

You also get USB-C for the price, as well as a 3.5mm headphone jack. The screen is Full HD+ and scrolls at a smooth 90Hz, though it’s an LCD rather than the fancier OLED tech in more expensive phones. Don’t expect to be able to play high-end games, but if battery is your number one concern then this is the cheapest way to get excellent battery life on a phone right now.

• Battery test score: 12:43
• Battery capacity: 5,000mAh

The Galaxy S23 Ultra didn’t score as highly in the PC Mark battery test as some phones lower down this list, but we’ve put it higher up because in actual use, the battery life on Samsung’s best phone is phenomenal.

For the first time, all models worldwide are using a Qualcomm chipset rather than countries such as the UK getting stuck with Samsung’s own Exynos chips, which have often had worse battery life. Instead, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 provides exception performance and battery, and we found the Ultra lasted well into a second day even with the (excellent) display set to its highest WQHD+ resolution and at the adaptive 120Hz rate.

Just like the iPhone 14 Pro Max, this is a phone to buy if you want the very top specs on the market but don’t want to compromise on battery. If you don’t need the S-Pen stylus or feel the boxy design with 6.8in curved display is too big, the Galaxy S23 Plus with a flat 6.6in screen and thinner form scored an impressive 15 hours 47 minutes in our tests and lasts nearly as well as the Ultra in day to day use.

• Battery test score: 15:15
• Battery capacity: 5,000mAh

Another great cheaper phone with great battery life along with the Redmi phones on this list is this, the Motorola Moto G82. It’s a solid choice if you prefer a stripped back, plain version of Android compared to the MIUI skin you will find on the Redmi options.

If you don’t mind that the cameras are some what lacking in quality then you’ll find a top phone for the money. It has 5G, a big, bright OLED screen that’s hard to find in this price range, as well as a premium 120Hz refresh rate so everything looks smooth.

It’s not a good choice for gaming, but performance otherwise is top notch. Plus it’ll carry you well into a second day of use off a single charge, which comes via USB-C.

• Battery test score: 14:55
• Battery capacity: 6,000mAh

If you want great battery life to play mobile games, then you might want to get a phone that is specifically designed for gaming. The Asus ROG Phone 7 Ultimate is pricey, but it’s your best option in 2023. It has the largest battery on this list at 6,000mAh – achieved by using two separate 3,000mAh cells.

There’s a fast charger in the box, and the phone can be plugged in via one of its two USB-C ports – there’s one on the long edge so you can comfortably charge while gaming in landscape. There’s also a fan accessory included to keep things cool when you’re hammering that big battery with high-end games.

A downside is the underwhelming cameras. The main sensor is good enough in daylight, but the others are lacking and the phone is well behind the iPhone 14 Pro Max and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra despite costing about the same. But if you want a gaming phone and don’t mind this is a big, heavy device, then you’ll be rewarded with astonishing performance and amazing battery life.

• Battery test score: 13:37
• Battery capacity: 4,300mAh

The Asus Zenfone 9 is a truly compact and truly flagship level smartphone, so we are astounded at how good its battery life is considering its size and power. In our review we found the battery was regularly hovering around 50% at the end of a normal day’s use – that’s mighty impressive.

The two years of update promise aside, this phone ticks all the boxes. Great design with a paper-like rear texture instead of slippy glass, top end specs, great cameras, and Asus’s tasteful take on Android (i.e. it doesn’t change the look and feel unnecessarily).

It overheats a little with intense use but then again if you want to hammer PUBG then you probably already know this isn’t the phone for you. For others, it’s a top battery life phone that actually fits in your pocket.

• Battery test score: 12:46
• Battery capacity: 5,000mAh

Though the battery life of the Pixel 7 Pro is not quite as good as the top iPhone and Samsung picks in this chart, it’s very good and certainly the best battery life we’ve ever encountered on a Google phone. Long gone are the memories of the truly awful battery life of the Pixel 4.

This is also Google’s best ever phone by quite some margin. Yes it’s big, but that’s how it fits the larger battery in there along with a very good looking 6.7in 120Hz display and some of the very best cameras in the business. Truly, this is such a fun phone to shoot with, whether you’re using the capable main, ultrawide, or telephoto lenses. It makes you want to take more photos, which is always the sign of a good camera.

The design is a little divisive and it charges quite slowly, but once it is full at least it’ll last a whole day and then some, even when you’re pushing it hard.

• Battery test score: 14:18
• Battery capacity: 4,500mAh

If we sound a bit repetitive in this article, then forgive us – it’s a good thing when a phone has near to two-day battery life! Just like we can attest for the Oppo Reno 8.

You can buy this attractively designed mid-ragner in black, but the colour changing model pictured above is surely the one to go for. You get a bolk look either way with triple rear cameras, fast charging and a charger in the box (rejoice), and solid performance that isn’t too far off the most expensive phones out there.

Despite those three cameras, it’s the main one that is doing the heavy lifting and there’s only two guaranteed years of software support, which is not very good by 2023 standards. Still – top battery life.