Pick a device with the best phone battery life, and you’ll never need to worry about having to find a place to recharge your handset ever again. And fortunately, there are a lot of phones out there today that can deliver when they promise you all day battery life.
How long a phone can hold out on a full charge remains a major consideration when you’re buying a phones, even as the sizes of those power packs continue to grow. Handsets from Samsung and Motorola feature massive 5,000 mAh batteries, offering the promise of phones that can go all day on a single charge. But which devices can really boast that they provide the best battery life on a single charge?
In our battery test, we have phones continuously surf the web over LTE or 5G until they run out of juice. The average phone lasts around 10 hours, but the phones we’ve highlighted here held out for at least 11 hours. The kind of endurance where you’re less reliant on one of our best portable charger picks.
Last year’s Moto G Power is our reigning battery champ, though the follow-up, the Moto G Power (2021), is a long-lasting device in its own right. Both of those Motorola handsets rely on 5,000 mAh batteries to last at least 14 hours on our battery test. In fact, Motorola phones tend to do very well on our test, as they make up six of the top 15 devices, and the Motorola Edge Plus just missed out on making the best phone battery life list.
Here are all the top performers we’ve tested in the last year-and-a-half.
Best phone battery life at a glance (hours:minutes)
- Moto G Power: 16:10
- Moto G Power (2021): 14:04
- Nubia RedMagic 6: 13:20
- LG V60 ThinQ 5G: 12:46
- Kyocera DuraForce Ultra 5G UW: 12:29
- Asus ROG Phone 5: 12:23
- Samsung Galaxy A52 5G: 12:19
- Moto G Fast: 12:17
- Cat S62 Pro: 12:16
- Moto G Stylus: 12:13
- Motorola Edge: 12:12
- Motorola One 5G Ace: 12:03
- Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra: 11:58
- OnePlus Nord N10 5G: 11:48
- Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra: 11:25
The best phone battery life in 2021
1. Moto G Power (16:10)
Last year’s Moto G Power remains our long-lasting champion, despite a stiff challenge from its successor. Pick up the older Moto G Power, and you’ll discover a budget phone with a 5,000 mAh battery that gets you through the day without needing a charge. In our test, the Moto G Power lasted more than 16 hours, beating its predecessor by a half-hour.
Don’t expect fast charging from this phone. After 30 minutes of charging a depleted battery, the Moto G Power’s battery indicator only showed a reading of 21%. Then again, 5,000 mAh is a mighty big power pack to fill, and it’s not like you’re going to need to charge this phone frequently.
The Moto G Power debuted at $249, which is a pretty attractive price. Hopefully, the arrival of a new version means you can pick up this long-lasting phone for even less.
Read our full Moto G Power review.
2. Moto G Power 2021 (14:04)
A new version of the Moto G Power is back for 2021, and it’s brought that long-lasting 5,000 mAh battery with it. While last year’s model outperformed the Moto G Power (2021) by two hours in our test, this remains a long-lasting phone available for a very cheap price.
And the 2021 version is actually cheaper than ever. While you can buy the Moto G Power (2021) for $249, getting you a model with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of memory, if you opt for the 3GB/32GB version, you can bring the price down to $199. You’ll still get the same long-lasting battery but for even less.
Read our full Moto G Power (2021) review.
3. Nubia RedMagic 6 (13:20)
We can argue about whether you really need a gaming phone, but one thing we have learned is that gaming phones generally deliver great battery life. The Nubia RedMagic 6 is no exception to that observation.
As impressive as the RedMagic 6’s nearly 13.5 hour result on our battery test was, we’re even more hearted by what happened when we enabled the gaming phone’s fast refreshing display. Yes, the time dropped since faster refresh rates consume more battery, but the RedMagic 6 still held out for 11 hours and 49 minutes at 120Hz and 11 hours and 16 minutes at 165Hz. Both of those times would have been good enough to land on this list.
Other features on the Nubia RedMagic 6 aren’t nearly as impressive — look elsewhere if you want good cameras to go with your handset — but you’ll never have to fear running out of power with this gaming phone.
Read our full Nubia RedMagic 6 review.
4. LG V60 ThinQ 5G (12:46)
It’s a shame LG is exiting the smartphone business. Because recent devices from the phone maker, including the LG V60 ThinQ 5G, really delivered on the battery front.
LG went big with the battery, putting a 5,000 mAh power pack inside the V60. That helped the phone last nearly 13 hours on our battery test, making it the longest-lasting flagship phone since last year’s Huawei P30 Pro.
There’s a big drop-off in battery life if you keep the V60’s second screen attachment plugged into the phone, though that’s probably not something a lot of people are going to do. Even then, getting 7 hours, 34 minutes of battery life when you’re powering a pair of 6.8-inch screens is a pretty impressive feat. We only wish the LG V60 ThinQ 5G’s charging capabilities were as impressive, with LG’s phone reaching a 51% charge after 30 minutes.
Read our full LG V60 ThinQ 5G review.
5. Kyocera DuraForce Ultra 5G UW (12:29)
As a durable phone that caters to people on construction sites, the Kyocera DuraForce Ultra 5G UW has to work a long time between charges. And that’s exactly what this phone does, thanks to a 4,500 mAh and a power-sipping Snapdragon 765G chipset. Kyocera’s durable phone lasted a minute shy of 12.5 hours when we put it to the test.
That result is particularly impressive given that the phone offers 5G compatibility. However, that UW in the DuraForce’s name implies that this device is built to work with Verizon’s super-fast Ultra Wideband 5G, meaning you’ll have to look elsewhere if you want a long-lasting phone that works on networks other than Verizon’s.
Read our full Kyocera DuraForce Ultra 5G UW review.
6. Asus ROG Phone 5 (12:23)
We knew the Asus ROG Phone 5 was going to last a long time on a charge — the only question was how long. After all, you put a 6,000 mAh battery inside a phone, you’re going to get a device that lasts a very long time even if it is a premium gaming phone designed to play demanding titles.
In the end, the ROG Phone 5 held out for nearly 12.5 hours on our battery test, with the screen set at a 60Hz refresh rate. Even upping the refresh rate to 120 Hz and re-running the test produced an impressive 10 hour, 53 minute result. In everyday use, we enjoyed lengthy gaming sessions with no dent in the battery.
Even with a 6,000 mAh battery, the ROG Phone 5 charges quickly, thanks to support for 65W charging. A half-hour of charging a drained phone got us back to a 70% charge.
Read our full Asus ROG Phone 5 review.
7. Samsung Galaxy A52 5G (12:19)
The latest midrange phone from Samsung may pack in 5G connectivity, but that doesn’t put a crimp in the Galaxy A52 5G’s battery life. The phone managed to last 12 hours, 19 minutes on our test. Note that we got that extraordinary time when the phone’s screen was set to refresh at 60Hz. The A52 also lets you adjust refresh rate to a very fast 120Hz, a rare feature among phones under $500. Unfortunately, that does cut down the A52 5G’s longevity, but the 10 hour and 19 minute result on our battery test is still better than the average smartphone.
Don’t expect fast-charging from this device, unless you spring for a faster charger. While the Galaxy A52 5G can support 25W fast wired charging, Samsung only includes a 15W charger in the phone’s box. That yielded a fairly ho-hum 31% charge after half-an-hour.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy A52 5G review.
8. Moto G Fast (12:17)
It’s no Moto G Power, but what is these days? Instead, the Moto G Fast rides its 4,000 mAh battery to a 12 hour and 17 minute result on our test — nearly four hours behind its Moto G sibling but still among the Top Ten for best phone battery life of the devices we’ve tested in the last 18 months. That’s terrific for a phone that’s available for less than $200
Don’t expect fast charge times from this budget phone. After 30 minutes, the stock charger that came with the Moto G Fast only got the drained phone up to 26%, according to its battery indicator.
Read our full Moto G Fast review.
9. Cat S62 Pro (12:16)
Like the Kyocera DuraForce above, the Cat S62 Pro is a durable phone built to go a long time on a charge. And the Cat S62 Pro delivers, lasting for 12 hours and 16 minutes on our battery test. It manages to grind out that time with only a 4,000 mAh battery, though unlike Kyocera’s phone, the Cat S62 Pro doesn’t connect to 5G. As a result, there’s no power-hungry 5G modem.
You won’t get the fastest charge times when you do need to top off the Cat S62 Pro’s battery. After 15 minutes of charging, the phone got back to 17% of its charge, reaching 37% after half-an-hour. That’s not terrible, but you’ll find faster charging phones on this list.
Read our full Cat S62 Pro review.
10. Moto G Stylus (12:13)
Motorola keeps cranking out Moto G Stylus models — first, the Moto G Stylus (2021), a $299 phone that led Motorola’s midrange lineup this year, and a newly released Moto G Stylus 5G. While we expect those phones to do well when we test their batteries, they’ll have a long way to to top the battery life of the original Moto G Stylus from last year. Equipped with a 4,000 mAh battery, the older Moto G Stylus lasted 12 hours and 13 minutes on our test — impressive, even if it’s not Moto G Power-level endurance.
While the G Stylus will go a long time between charges, don’t expect that 4,000 mAh battery to refill quickly. After 15 minutes of charging a completely drained phone, the Moto G Stylus’ battery indicator was back up to 15% and just shy of 30% after half-an-hour. Still, it’s nice to know that for $300, you can have a phone that will last you throughout the day and come with a pretty clever stylus for jotting down notes as part of the bargain.
Read our full Moto G Stylus review.
11. Motorola Edge (12:12)
Motorola’s less midrange 5G phone delivers better battery life than its more expensive counterpart. The Motorola Edge rode its 4,500 mAh battery to an average time of 12 hours and 12 minutes on our test, beating out the Motorola Edge Plus by an hour and 17 minutes. That, plus the $300 price difference between the two phones, makes the Motorola Edge a compelling option.
Note that we recorded that time when the phone’s display was set to a 60Hz refresh rate. Enabling a 90Hz refresh rate on the Motorola Edge reduced its battery life to 11 hours, 35 minutes, which still would have been good enough to land the phone on this best phone battery life list. (We also tested the phone on Verizon’s network, as it had the stronger signal where our reviewer was located. Results may vary on T-Mobile’s network, but not enough to remove the Motorola Edge from this list.)
We wish the Motorola Edge charged faster, as the drained phone only got back up to 36% after a half-hour of using the included 18W charger. Still, if you want a 5G phone with a fast refreshing screen that doesn’t run out of juice as quickly as similar devices, the Motorola Edge is a good option at $699.
Read our full Motorola Edge review.
12. Motorola One 5G Ace (12:03)
Motorola’s dominance of our longest lasting phone list continues with the Motorola One 5G Ace, though this device’s 12 hour-plus result on our test is significant. The new Motorola One phone is a 5G device, and 5G can consume a lot of power. The Motorola One 5G Ace deals with those demands by using a 5,000 mAh battery. That’s more than enough to get you through the day on a charge.
It will take some time to recharge your phone. The Motorola One 5G Ace only got back to a 25% charge after 30 minutes. But this is a fairly inexpensive 5G phone at $399, so you can pick up a long-lasting phone that connects to the faster network for less than $400.
Read our full Motorola One 5G Ace review.
13. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra (11:58)
As with many phones that feature a fast refresh rate for their displays, it was a tale of two battery test results when we put the Galaxy S20 Ultra and its 5,000 mAh battery to test. Running our test on Samsung’s flagship phone with the display set to the default 60Hz refresh rate, the phone turned in an average time of 11 hours, 58 minutes — a better result than Apple’s iPhones.
But one of the marquee features on the Galaxy S20 lineup is the screen’s faster 120Hz refresh rate, which allows for smoother scrolling. When we turned on that feature and re-ran our test, the S20 Ultra’s result dropped by 3 hours.
The Galaxy S20 Ultra charges up quickly, thanks to the 25-watt charger that comes with the phone. After 30 minutes of charging, we got the battery back up to 63%.
Read our full Galaxy S20 Ultra review.
14. OnePlus Nord N10 5G (11:48)
The OnePlus Nord N10 5G is another phone that doesn’t let the demands of 5G impact its battery life. But unlike the other 5G phones on this list of long-lasting devices, the OnePlus Nord N10 5G doesn’t cost very much, selling for $299 now that it’s debuted in the U.S. That makes this OnePlus device the most affordable 5G device to hold out for more than 11 hours on our battery test.
Specifically, the OnePlus Nord N10 5G only ran out of battery at the 11 hour and 48 minute mark, an impressive result for any phone. That we got this result with the display’s faster 90Hz refresh rate enabled on the Nord N10 display suggests that OnePlus does a great job getting the most out of the phone’s 4,3000 mAh battery. Charging’s quick, too, thanks to support for the OnePlus Warp Charge 30T technology that gets the phone back to 68% after 30 minutes.
Read our full OnePlus Nord N10 5G review.
15. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra (11:25)
The Galaxy S21 Ultra makes the most of the 5,000 mAh battery and the Snapdragon 888 processor powering Samsung’s latest flagship. On our battery test, the device lasted 11 hours and 25 minutes. That result occurred when we turned off the phone’s dynamic display and tested the S21 Ultra with a 60Hz refresh rate. When we turned that mode back on, the test result dropped to 10 hours, 7 minutes. (Of course, that drop wasn’t as severe as what the S20 Ultra experienced last year.)
With a 25-watt charger, you can get your Galaxy S21 Ultra to a 56% charge in half-an-hour. Just be prepared to supply your own charger — following Apple’s lead with the iPhone 12, Samsung doesn’t include a charger with the S21 Ultra.
Read our full Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra review.
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