Top 5 BEST Budget Smartphones in 2025 – Affordable Excellence!

★★★★★ Okay Reviewers I ordered this IPhone 11 Pro Max off of my sons prime account.. This is one bad ass phone! And I got a great deal from this amazing company! Shipping was on point! And this phone OMG perfect! Like it came from Apple! If I didn’t know it was refurbished? I would have thought it was never touched! That’s how perfect it is! I felt like a child at Christmas! Stoked! So, definitely would and will buy from this company again! Thank you for your loyalty to your customers! Super excited! Placed it in a case as soon as I looked at it .Okay about the iPhone 11 Pro Max .. outside of it’s beauty . Wish I could take a picture of it , but i can’t . I’m on it..the 11 is holding its value for great reasons .. it really is a bad ass phone !! And the 12’s are nice but the 11’s sit right next to those 12’s ! But cheaper in price but the quality is all the same!The pictures are amazing!!! ( FYI My son has the 12 My sister 12 pro and brother in law has 12 pro Max ) so pictures are not so noticeably different.. cause this 11 pro Max takes great photos also and the battery life is awesome ! 24 hrs no charge and still had life left! I have charged it with the cord charging ( it came with a good charging cord not junk) and I also have charged it with the magnetic cordless charging.. about the same.I have not done the face recognition as of yet.. I use a passcode.. I do miss the finger / thumb recognition button but from what I see with my son ? Face recognition is prob just as fast or faster?The speakers on this is loud! Love it!Now yes this is a bigger device it is a 6.5 in screen but it’s not bulky at all ! The phone is slender not heavy but a case did help tremendously holding it cause it’s so thin.. haha i dont know how to explain that one but I Dont know to drop it haha so a case helps to grip it .. if that makes sense ? LolBut with the cheaper price tag ? I was able to get the highest GB and still save a few hundred’ dollars!I did my research cause I was looking at this phone for a while and then was gearing for the 12 pro Max for it has 3 or 4 better features. But After comparing and deep research? What was being said is true! The 11’s are amazing phones! And unless your a Photographer? You won’t see a inkling of a difference with the camera or video.. the processor in the 11’s are also fast and made right! Apple surly did a great job with the 11’s !!! So again for what you get and with that price tag ? You can’t go wrong with the Iphome 11 pro Max! I’m freaking happy I got one heck of a deal ! I love the look ,the quality, how fast it responds, the pictures, the battery life, the features, and the company that I bought it from! Hope this helps with someone’s research and decision making!

★★★★★ Received a nice clean phone with above 80% battery life.

★★★★★ This is the 3rd iPhone 11 Pro Max I ordered in the last month but not from this company. However it is the 2nd phone overall and both my previous iPhone 6S and this worked as they were supposed to. The other company sent me a phone with a bad head phone speaker that had terrible sound and I had to return it. Of course I didn't find out the speaker was bad until my fist call. I then had to remove all my data before I sent it back and that was a real hassle. The 2nd iPhone I got from a 2nd company wasn't fully unlocked and I had to send it back also! This company had the first phone that actually worked and was like they said in their ad. Good battery life 98%. The only thing I would suggest that this company does before they send their phones out is to charge them! Took me 2 hours to charge the phone up before I could restore it and update the OS. Came with only about 7% battery power left, and when it is that low it takes a long time to charge up. Still this seems to be a good phone after only a week of use.

★★★★★ My phone arrived FedEX SDR (Saturday Delivery) which was completely unexpected. I was blown away by the turn around time from when I pushed Order to Delivered. The which I received arrived in the most pristine condition - such that if it wasn't in bubble wrap I would have thought it was the newest iPhone. Not a scratch nor crack and it started right up. The price point was also under my budget.

★★★★★ The phone had no physical damage. The phone was literally brand new. The cost of the phone saved me hundreds of dollars. Everything works perfectly. Setup was easy. This was the perfect gift for my daughter and she loves it. The speed, app availability, and the fit of the phone is amazing.

★☆☆☆☆ I rarely write reviews, but in this case, I think people should be warned. I’ve been through four of these phones in a couple months, and they have all had major issues from Camera not working to audio issues, and the worst of all one COMPLETELY DIED after four months.Unfortunately, the Amazon warranty is only three months. (I thought it was one year because other competitors offer that. But it does clearly say on their page that it’s only three months.) During these three months, they to completely refund you no problem or fix the issue that you report. But unfortunately the phone I kept died on month four, while I was on vacation to make matters worse.Seems like the sellers are always different stores, but all amazon approved and they follow some sort of Amazon standards for these phones. But it seems to me that these phones have really severe issues so these Amazon sellers fix the phones to a certain standard, but they are not in good condition.All the sellers are polite and responsive, but the issue is the actual phones and their conditions. Even though these phones are used, they are not cheap, they should function properly.I’ve been an Amazon customer for years and I really haven’t had any issue with them. That was the reason why I decided to buy the used phone on Amazon instead of a competitor. But this is truly disappointing to the point that I think I’m going to report them to the Better Business Bureau. They should not be selling phones in this condition.FULL STORYPhone 1: iPhone 12 mini (Ordered good condition )Received Mid OctoberSeller: Kojak salesWhen I receive the phone physically it seems fine. But as soon as I put a case on it, a lot of little pieces of paint started coming off of it and then you could tell it had a lot of scratches on the case so somebody was trying to cover the scratches, then I put a screen protector on it, and after trying to I could not get rid of a humongous huge bubble, took a third of the screen. So some thing was hinting to me that the screen was not straight. In my opinion, the phone shouldn’t have been sold as good condition with so many scratches but since I don’t care about the look as much as functionality, I move forward. But then, after a few weeks of using the phone, I realized things were not working properly. The camera was very slow at taking pictures if it was dark or if you were using inside the message or WhatsApp. Also, if I received a text while listening to videos or video calls, the speaker would suddenly gets super low, and I could barely hear the video for about two minutes . (usually this lowering of audio feature happens only for five or 10 seconds).This was worrying me so I contacted the seller and told him I wanted to change the phone and he said no problem. Since I was still thinking that this was bad luck, but in general, I liked the iPhone 12 I decided to buy another phone as a replacement, and one more phone as a Christmas gift. I’ll explain below the problems with those phones, but since the problems were actually worse than the current first phone I had in my possession, I never gave back this phone. I kept thinking that maybe the issues would get better with update and also, in my mind, I thought I had a year warranty. Unfortunately, in February while away on vacation the phone one morning, simply never turned on again. My dad is an engineer and he tried helping me connect it to computer and nothing it’s like the battery is no longer connected. I’m sure you can imagine the horrendous time I had the following week without my phone., traveling.. Things got worse when I got home and was able to contact the seller. I then discovered the warranty was only 90 days and that date had passed. After some back-and-forth the seller Kojak sales said they can fix it for $39 and I pay for shipping. I have still not done this since I’m skeptical and don’t understand how they can give me a price if they don’t even know the actual problem or if they need parts. But I really have no other option, or I lose $241 or I pay $60 more. (also, I have to figure out how to erase the phone from a PC if the phone doesn’t even turn on. I’m sad I’m gonna lose all my pictures from the last four months)After I send them the phone, I will update this review.-Phone 2 and 3- iPhone 12 mini (Ordered good condition )Received Mid begging of decemberSeller: WilzeeSo one of these phones was supposed to be replacement for my phone and the second phone was gonna be a Christmas gift. But the first one was so scratch that I didn’t even set it up and I gave it back, no problem and the other phone after giving it as a gift, a little embarrassed with all the scratches, we set it up and realized the camera did not focus at all so I also gave this phone back and received a refund no issue.-4th Phone- iPhone 12 mini (Ordered EXCELLENT condition )Received mid JanuarySeller: PDI MobileThis phone did actually look really good in the outside barely any scratches. I was very happy with the look. But after setting it up again, the camera could not focus so we contacted the seller and sent it back and they fix the camera then after a few weeks of using also, it has audio issues. We’re looking at social media videos suddenly that audio lowers a lot. Since at this my 1st phone died suddenly we decided to give this 4th phone back. I don’t wanna take any chances since the quality of the phones is clearly not good. I don’t expect an issue with the refund. But I will update this review if I do.

★★★★★ I was a little worried about ordering based on some of the reviews. I took a chance and am very happy with the phone. It’s in perfect condition with no scratches. It has a good battery life and lasts all day. I have Mint and it was easy to switch to the new phone. Pleased with my purchase.

★★★★★ Phone is in good condiction and works well .

★★★★★ This renewed phone is excellent! It arrived right on time, and when I unboxed it, I noticed only minimal scratches on the chassis and a slight scuff on the bottom right—nothing major, especially since I use a case. The screen is in near-perfect condition with little to no visible scratches and no cracks. Plus, it's the original screen. The battery came at 79%, which isn’t ideal, but it easily lasts me a full day or more, so I have no complaints. If you're unsure about the color, I highly recommend the blue—it looks fantastic! The cameras are also impressive, especially in low light. The package included a working power cord, though the power brick didn’t function, but that’s not a big deal since I have extras. Overall, this refurbished phone is a great buy, and I’d definitely recommend it!

★★★★★ For starters; the price on these phones is great. Between having the reassurance of Amazon buyer protection, and the benefit of knowing the device has been tested for performance, it’s well worth it.I needed a new phone fast after my cat knocked mine into the sink ☹️ Rice fixed it for a while, but it was only temporary before it died altogether.I hate buying phones and avoid it whenever possible. 99% of mine belonged to someone in my family first. And i was good with that. Needless to say, my cat didn’t wait for someone in my family to upgrade. I was on my own this time.Okay.... that’s not entirely true. My grandma had an iPhone 7 sitting around so that held me over in the meantime. Going from an iPhone 11 Pro Max to an iPhone 7 was….bad. It was too dam small, in every possible way. 32 gigs of memory!! I needed an upgrade. Fast. My 11 year old was bullying me relentlessly. And that’s on me. They had my old XR (formerly my dad’s)I scoured FB marketplace. I’d decided upgrade a little, so I could feel better about the switch. I didn’t want to feel backed me into a corner by my cat’s recklessness. I would get a slightly newer model in a fun colour.Marketplace had plenty. Sending message after message from my iPhone 7, I worried. “This person seems too eager”, “this one has been posted so long”, “I want a purple, but the only purple one listed has less storage space” and “the pretty green one has a small crack”, “this guy lives 2 hours from me” and “Battery life? Errr last time I checked it was like 74%?….no, I can’t take a screenshot of it, it’s turned off”…. “cash only please” Etc.So much pressure. What happens if the thing doesn’t work? That’s $300+ down the drain. I knew I couldn’t afford new. But I hated the idea of buying something used from a stranger on Facebook. I didn’t want to get scammed, and I also didn’t want to settle.That’s when I remembered good ol’ Amazon. Maybe I’d check there. Just for funsies. Probably out of my budget, but it couldn’t hurt.Sure enough, refurbished devices selling “like new!” Mostly same cost or less than what I’d found so far. Surely there was a catch? I read through everything, tested by Amazon, includes all the specs, unlocked, I can pick the colour, the storage size, the condition, etc. AND I could have it delivered to me tomorrow??! With a warranty?!!I recovered from my brief stint of disappointment after learning the 12’s don’t come in yellow. Then fought hard to decide between mint and lavender. The lavender would take an extra day to arrive. Mint it was!!As promised, it arrived the next day. It was in beautiful shape. 128g’s, mint green, not a single scratch, 86% battery life. All for less than I would have paid to some stranger for a 64g with some “small scratches”Once my case and screen protector arrived I excitedly set it up and synced my data.Oh no.The FACE ID DIDNT WORK 😭After becoming used to facial recognition, having that yanked away, and dealing with a 7 for over 2 weeks— I was desperate for the convenience of Face ID. I had been using my fingerprint. Like a *caveman*.Not to mention I have Blink 182 tickets, and it specifically states facial recognition is required to access the mobile tickets. Idk if that’s true, but I needed Face ID!!I googled, I contacted apple support. Fixing it could be upwards of $300. That’s almost what I paid for the whole phone!!I realllllly didn’t want to be stuck without a phone again. But I also wanted one fully functioning.So I reached out to Amazon support and explained. The rep was incredibly helpful (as most Amazon reps are) and after bts failed, she advised the ship was a 3rd party seller, and she send a message to them. “If they don’t fix it by (insert date) contact us back and we’ll make this right” she encouraged.I’m ngl. I was nervous. I didn’t have high hopes, having dealt with 3p sellers on Amazon in the past. At least Amazon had my back, ig. The concert wasn’t till July. Even without facial recognition, it was loads better than the 7. I could make do in the meantime.The seller came in clutch though, and my worry was unwarranted. They responded within minutes. They were receptive, apologetic, and more than willing to help.As I’d anticipated, they offered a refund or exchange, as soon as they received the return. I explained my concern with not having a phone for several days or more; and the merchant offered to overnight a replacement as soon as the return was dropped off.I could deal with one day without a phone! I gratefully accepted. That was Saturday night, we made plans to catch up Monday for the return instructions and for them to overnight it.Monday I reached back out; and they were ready to ship, BUT they *had no more green….* 🫢 SHOCK“…do you have purple”No. 🙁 just blue, white, and black.THIS WAS A HUGE BUMMER.It’s silly I know, and the definition of *first world problems “.. but I mean…. My change of heart about this whole phone thing HINGED ON THE FUN COLOUR. Without it, I was just a person…out $350… because my cat was thirsty while I was watching YouTube while washing dishes. I needed a cool colour. Plus, I’d already gotten the matching case! Clear with mint green borders.It wasn’t even a fun blue… it was a dark, serious, navy blue. It was pretty and classy, but I wanted something fun. I even asked if he had any older models in yellow 😭😭 no luck,They told me they’d be restocking in a day or so. Still, no greens or purples came in.Ugh. Reality was setting in. I was going to have to settle. It was fine, I thought. At least it would be a fully functioning phone.No. I wasn’t ready to let go. They assured me I could take my time to decide, and I asked if we could wait another week in case one came in. If it didn’t, *then* I would choose from the options available.I messaged them Wednesday afternoon, bracing myself for the answer…. THEY GOT IN PURPLE! YAY.They sent a label, I dropped it off, sent a photo, and had my new phone the next morning.they’d said overnight shipping… but wow! I’d dropped off the return around 3pm, and had the replacement by noon the next day. I didn’t even have my new case yet 😅Despite the Barney-Esque colour scheme my mint green case created, the lavender is GORGEOUS and I’m actually sort of glad the green didn’t work out.Don’t get me wrong, the green is also gorgeous.. but in the end I’m glad I ended up with the lavender. I was overjoyed when I was prompted to set Face ID during setup. Worked brilliantly, as did everything else.Great packaging, no cosmetic flaws, amazing battery life, customer service was great, and best of all… ITS PURPLE!Can’t wait to pair it with the new case. I’m so glad I went this route where I have some peace of mind as a buyer.I’m grateful to the seller for being so helpful and patient with me as insufferable as I must have seemed making such a fuss over colour preferenceIf you’re nervous buying a phone used or refurbished too, hopefully you can take comfort in knowing- this seller is legit. You receive a good quality product, and, speaking from experience, they’ll gladly help resolve any issues you may run into.

★★★★★ When you find yourself in a situation where you need an immediate solution to a problem, finding the right person or company to help can be overwhelming. When you find yourself in the late of night with no phone to complete tasks for school, work, and medical appointments the following day you're in a way left in a state of delusion. In these situations you can never hang your head and look down, there has to be a solution. I built up the courage to look up, on the search bar of the amazon website; "Overnight delivery I-phones". Low and behold the Iphone 12 popped up for a reasonably good price. This morning I received the phone and I have to say that the quality of these refurbished phones are 10/10. The delivery? Unexpectedly fast. When I woke up today the phone was sitting on my doorstep. I have successfully set it up and have made my first call. If you ever need to make the right call, this is your sign to go ahead and press the "buy now" button. You won't be disappointed, I guarantee it. 

★★★★☆ I love this PHONE !!! It came scratch free no marks or blemishes .The screen is crystal clear and it was compatible with my phone company. It took about a hour to switch over phones but after I did MY PHONE WORKED AMAZINGLY!!!!🥰 the only thing is my ringer is low and it’s up on the highest level. That’s why I only gave 4 stars . But other than that the phone is great so far!! Thank you for being true to your words and I will be ordering again soon .

★★★★★ I had my phone for a couple of years I ordered it off here and I was a little worried at first but took a chance and I’m so glade I did it was a perfect phone that lasted for years and would probably still be going had I not dropped and busted it 🫤 it was definitely my favorite phone !! The color was beautiful it worked very well it’s great quality and worth the money never had a problem with scratches or signal !!

★★★★★ Update: I'm back with an update on our journey with the iPhone 11, and let me tell you, it's been quite the rollercoaster. Initially, I bought one for my daughter from a different seller, and it was, to put it mildly, a bit of a disaster. We had issues left and right – Face ID not working, the phone overheating – you name it. So, we returned it, feeling a bit skeptical about the whole refurbished scene.But here's where the plot twists: we decided to give it another go, this time purchasing from the Amazon resellers store, specifically from a shop called Hybrid IT. And oh boy, what a difference! The iPhone we received this time around was nothing short of impeccable. It arrived with all the essentials – a charger, a charging cable, and even a SIM card tool, all neatly packed. The phone itself? It could've fooled me for brand new.This experience really hammered home the lesson that when it comes to refurbished goods, the "who" is just as crucial as the "what." The quality and condition of the product can vary wildly depending on the seller. Hybrid IT sent out an excellent product that exceeded our expectations in every way.For those of you wary about diving into the world of refurbished electronics, let this be a testament. With the right seller, you can get your hands on a device that feels brand new, without the hefty price tag. We're over the moon with our iPhone 11, and I'll be sure to keep you all posted if anything changes. But for now, it seems like we've struck gold.--------------------I recently found myself in need of a quick replacement after my daughter accidentally broke her phone. The Apple iPhone 11, 64GB in black, seemed like a promising choice, primarily because we needed something that could be set up swiftly and would perform seamlessly as a backup.Out of the box, the iPhone 11 felt like a brand-new device despite being a model released a few years back. The sleek black finish and the familiar design immediately caught my eye, reassuring me that this choice would not disappoint.Setting up the iPhone 11 was mostly straightforward, especially with the unlocked version making it easy to switch from the old device. The transfer of data and settings from the previous iPhone was seamless, thanks to Apple's ecosystem. However, we hit a slight snag with the Face ID setup - it took a bit longer than expected to get it working properly. Despite this hiccup, once configured, Face ID has been working flawlessly.The iPhone 11's performance has been impressive. The touch screen is responsive, making navigation and typing a breeze. Wi-Fi connectivity is fast, ensuring that browsing and app downloads are efficient. Although it's not the latest model, it handles everyday tasks with ease, from streaming video content to gaming, without any noticeable lag.The main issue we encountered was the initial difficulty in setting up Face ID. It required a few attempts to configure, which was a minor inconvenience in an otherwise smooth setup process. After overcoming this challenge, the phone has been working perfectly.Overall, this refurbished Apple iPhone 11 has proven to be a reliable and efficient backup phone. Its ease of setup, fast Wi-Fi, and responsive touch screen make it feel like a new device. The hiccup with Face ID setup was a small obstacle that, once overcome, didn't detract from the overall positive experience. I would recommend the iPhone 11 to anyone in need of a quick replacement or a dependable backup device

★★★★★ I had ordered it in good condition and it came and excellent condition the phone looks great and operate great my daughter was so happy even though the delivery was a day late and I ordered fast shipping overall the product was great....

★★★★★ This phone is the best, cheap, super-fast shipping, amazing quality for being refurbished. I got it delivered and it was already pre-charged at 80% with an 87% battery capacity. Solid for a refurbished phone. I was skeptical at first when reading bad reviews on the phone, but when it got here nothing bad happened. There are the occasional scratches but nothing to complain about. It also came preinstalled with a screen protector and it has 0 scratches on it. Along with insane speakers. I tested everything once I got the phone and everything worked perfect. Highly recommend to everyone.

★★★★★ I ordered my new to me iPhone 13 Mini from Amazon renewed recently. This device was advertised to be in excellent condition with a battery health greater than 80%. When I took delivery of my device it was in pristine condition with a battery health of 86%. I was very pleased with my experience buying form Amazon renewed and will be doing this again soon... highly recommended if you're looking to get a great iPhone at a great price. I have a few pictures showing my iPhone 13 Mini next to my iPhone Air. The Mini is an amazing iPhone.

★☆☆☆☆ Bought what was supposed to be Amazon Renewed Certified Excellent IPhone 13. Was that an absolute lie!! Got the phone and the battery was dead completely, then it won’t stay on longer than 10 minutes!! Shows fully charged but once the charger is removed it just shuts off after no more then 10 minutes, sometimes sooner or immediately even though it shows battery left. When it does decide to stay on the battery goes dead in 30-40 min not even using it. That’s not even the worst part…yeah, it gets even worse!! It literally has NO/ZERO volume. The speakers have major issue! It won’t ring, won’t make any sound when playing videos or music but will randomly make a noise if you mess with the volume adjustment in the menu or if you flip the side volume lock a bunch! Randomly will make a quick sound then it goes right back to mute mode!! I bought a mute phone without knowing or intending to. It absolutely will not make sound or ring when you need or want it to but sure will just randomly spit a sound out for a millisecond!! Get this though, it will ring when called off FaceTime, then if I don’t use Bluetooth earbuds people can’t hear me when I answer or call somebody. Literally not a peep. This was supposed to be an Excellent condition Amazon Renewed IPhone according to this sellers listing!! Guess that tells you what kind of person this is selling people lies and garbage apple products claiming to be Amazon Renewed…so my opinion is steer clear from buying any electronics from this one!! Now I requested a return after paying $293.57 for this junk and basically the seller wanted me to send them images/proof the phone wasn’t working. Had to contact Amazon to get a return approved then the seller had the nerve to offer me a 10% partial refund to keep this junk phone. The nerve!! 10%?? After having the phone a few weeks and getting by with it how it is because I went a month without a phone after my previous IPhone was stolen! This was the replacement and I had to save to get it, a month without a phone is terrible and like I lost a hand…I was excited to finally get this phone and have totally dreaded sending this one back, waiting for it to be received, then wait on refund and then hope to find another phone and purchase it, then wait for it to ship, receive it and activate it. I’d be weeks again without a phone. I pondered this and drove myself nuts worrying about not having my phone again. This brought me hesitantly to the conclusion that I’ll get a partial refund and keep it…then when I can get it fixed or fix it myself and not be without a phone. After I decided this I contacted the seller and explained this and asked for 20% partial refund which would help pay for the repairs not even a small portion of what I’m sure it will actually cost me plus the headaches but 20% is all! I got a message back within a few hours and was told NO!! Said 10% is most they will refund! After all the inconvenience headache and stress this purchase has caused me this “uuuuggghhhhh!!” (Sure you know what that says) doesn’t even have the decency to give me $57 back on a garbage phone I paid $300 for! SO, PLEASE TAKE MY ADVICE AND MY OPINION AND STEER FAR AWAY AN CLEAR Of THIS SELLERS ELECTRONIC STORE OR ANYTHING THEY SELL! SCAMMER in my book and I sincerely hope this review helps somebody else avoid going through anything even remotely like my experience with this seller because the listing sure sounded convincing. But got convinced to buy trash for $300 and a terrible overall experience and a self who has zero compassion, sympathy or morals. 20% was super reasonable to me, I was gonna ask for 50% because that’s about how much of a working IPhone. Needless to say the Phone is getting returned now! They have scorned me and I’m almost to the point of never buying from Amazon again period because they will not help me other then forcing seller to accept return…no compensation for time, stress, inconvenience or losses concurred for being without my phone again. Worst consumer customer experience I’ve ever had in my entire life and I won’t forget it!