The best OnePlus phone 2023

OnePlus made its name with ‘flagship killers’ – phones that deliver the key specs of top-tier rivals while undercutting them on price.

That’s not really the company’s modus operandi any more, but don’t hold that against it. OnePlus still makes excellent Android phones, and now covers a price range from some of the most expensive around to super-affordable budget handsets.

OnePlus phones tend to excel at pure performance, along with extremely fast charging and a slick software experience that’s still among Android’s best – even if parent company Oppo is exerting more and more influence over the operating system.

Here we’ve ranked the ten best OnePlus phones we’ve tested from across the company’s range, with links to our full reviews for more detailed analysis.

Bear in mind that not every phone in the list will be on sale where you live, as OnePlus launches slightly different phones in different markets. If you’re looking for something high-end, you may also want to wait a little – the flagship OnePlus 11 has just launched in China, and will make its global debut in early February.

Best OnePlus phones 2023

1. OnePlus Nord 2T – Best overall

Pros

• Excellent value
• Great main camera
• 80W fast charging

Cons

• No wireless charging
• No waterproofing
• Only 90Hz

The OnePlus Nord 2T is an updated take on the still-excellent Nord 2, which you’ll find further down this list.

The Nord 2T takes what made the Nord 2 such a good phone and improves on it in two key areas: a more powerful processor and faster wired charging. And despite those upgrades, it’s officially cheaper than the Nord 2 as well.

This is not only the best OnePlus phone right now, but also the best mid-range phone on the market from any company.

Read our full Review OnePlus Nord 2T

2. OnePlus 10 Pro – Best for photography

Pros

• Super-fast 80W charging
• Great battery life
• Powerful specs

Cons

• Inconsistent camera
• No IP rating

The OnePlus 10 Pro is the company’s top flagship phone, and from a photography perspective it is the company’s best device – but for pure value it’s still beaten by the Nord 2.

Still, this is an impressive flagship, with theSnapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, impressive battery life, and nippy 80W wired charging (plus wireless charging to boot).

There are downsides. There’s no official IP rating (though a T-Mobile US variant with the same build quality does have the certification – make of that what you will) and while the camera setup is powerful, it’s also inconsistent – and at this price you’ll still find slightly better photography from Samsung or Apple.

Read our full Review OnePlus 10 Pro

3. OnePlus 10T – Best for performance

Pros

• Great 8+ Gen 1 performance
• Insanely 150W fast charging
• Very good flat 120Hz display

Cons

• No alert slider
• No wireless charging
• No IP rating outside US

The OnePlus 10T is an affordable flagship that sits as a sort of halfway point between the Nord 2T and 10 Pro.

The design is similar to the 10 Pro, though it lacks niceties like the curved display or alert slider. Like that phone it has flagships specs though, and indeed even outpaces the Pro thanks to the inclusion of a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and super-fast 150W wired charging.

Where it falls back is on the camera – it packs basically the same photography setup as the Nord 2T, despite costing a fair bit more. It’s the best OnePlus option for gamers or those drawn to the fastest charging, but photography fans will get more from the 10 Pro.

Read our full Review OnePlus 10T

4. OnePlus Nord 2 – Best on a budget

Pros

• Excellent value
• Great main camera
• Glass build

Cons

• No wireless charging
• No waterproofing
• Only 90Hz

The Nord 2 was for a long time the best OnePlus phone for most people, with a brilliant balance of specs, features, and price – so much so that we named it the best mid-range phone of 2023. It may have been supplanted by the Nord 2T, but if you can find the 2 on sale then it’s an excellent value option.

Powered by a custom MediaTek chipset, the Nord 2 packs in fast 65W charging, a great main camera (borrowed from the flagship 9 series), and an understated glass design.

You won’t get top flagship features like waterproofing or wireless charging, which makes sense for the price. Perhaps slightly more surprisingly the display is limited to 90Hz rather than 120Hz – though this is a sacrifice we suspect few will mind.

Read our full Review OnePlus Nord 2

5. OnePlus 10R – Great Indian option

Pros

• Great performance
• Fast charging speed
• Excellent display
• Good value

Cons

• Mediocre camera performance
• Alert slider missing
• Lacks IP rating and wireless charging

The OnePlus 10R is only available in India, but if that’s where you are then it’s well worth considering.

This mid-range handset is similar to the OnePlus 10T in some respects, with the same 150W charging (though a cheaper 80W model is also available) and similar cameras.

It doesn’t pack the same Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, but the MediaTek Dimensity 8100-Max found here is no slouch. It’s not quite top tier, but it won’t disappoint – and it keeps the phone handily cheaper than the 10T.

Read our full Review OnePlus 10R

6. OnePlus 9RT

Pros

• Fast performance
• Great display
• Excellent battery life

Cons

• No waterproofing
• No telephoto camera
• India & China-only

It’s a shame the OnePlus 9RT is only officially out in China and India, because it’s probably the best phone in 2023’s 9 series.

It re-uses the broad design strokes of the OnePlus 9 – albeit with a slightly larger, 6.62in display – and also uses the same Snapdragon 888 chipset and 120Hz AMOLED display.

The camera has been chopped and changed, with the 9 Pro’s 50Mp ultra-wide sensor here used for the 9RT’s main camera, but results are solid, especially given the phone’s lower price.

This isn’t the most powerful OnePlus 9 phone, but by aiming for a little less it succeeds a bit more.

Read our full Review OnePlus 9RT

7. OnePlus Nord N20 5G

Pros

• Solid performance
• Good cameras
• Quick 33W fast charging
• Beautiful AMOLED display

Cons

• Only 60Hz display
• Weak vibration motor
• Only one major software update promised

The Nord N20 5G is a good device that provides decent bang for your buck if you’re in the US or Canada, the only countries where it’s on sale.

Despite costing just $300, it doesn’t feel cheap in the hand. The look and feel of the phone are in line with pricier phones like the Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G or Galaxy A53 – a real win for OnePlus.

There’s also the Snapdragon 695 chipset, which delivers solid performance even though it’s not the top-of-the-line chip from Qualcomm.

There are a few downsides of course, including the lack of a high refresh rate on the display, no official waterproofing, a weak vibration motor, and only receiving one Android update, but these won’t be dealbreakers for everybody.

Read our full Review OnePlus Nord N20 5G

8. OnePlus 9

Pros

• Top specs
• Excellent display

Cons

• Thick
• Slow wireless charging
• Unreliable camera

The standard OnePlus 9 is the better buy of the two 9 series phones that launched globally, and is the one to pick if you know you want one of the company’s 2023 flagships – especially since there was no OnePlus 10 to replace it.

You get a Snapdragon 888, 120Hz display, 65W wired charging, and for the first time in a non-Pro phone, even wireless charging too – though it’s capped at 15W speeds.

You also get the firm’s first Hasselblad-branded camera, though lower your expectations: while the camera gets some things right, it still can’t match the best that Apple or Samsung have to offer.

Read our full Review OnePlus 9

9. OnePlus Nord N300 5G

Pros

• Great battery life
• Decent cameras
• Fast wired charging
• Solid looking display

Cons

• Weak vibration motor
• Only one major software update
• The camera doesn’t work well in all conditions

The OnePlus Nord N300 5G, exclusive to the US, is one of the cheapest OnePlus phones around at $229.

Despite that, it doesn’t feel like a cheap phone, with build quality that feels more expensive than it is.

It also benefits from great battery life, easily lasting a day or more and with fast charging once it does wear out.

There are a few negatives to the Nord N300 5G, including a weak vibration motor and the disappointing promise of only one future Android update, but overall there aren’t many better options at this price in the US phone market.

Read our full Review OnePlus Nord N300

10. OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite

Pros

• Solid build
• Strong battery life
• Decent main camera

Cons

• Poor value
• LCD not OLED
• No ultrawide camera

The OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G is another highly competent affordable phone from OnePlus.

It’s solidly built, has a fluid 120Hz display, and runs reasonably smoothly. The 64Mp main camera, meanwhile, is capable of capturing images with real pop.

However, there’s no getting away from the fact that this is one of the least exciting OnePlus phones we’ve seen for some time. In certain ways, it feels downright unnecessary.

For just a little less than the OnePlus Nord CE 2 you’re getting a phone with an inferior LCD display, less powerful performance, slower charging, and a less flexible camera system. Meanwhile, rival efforts from Xiaomi and Realme provide similar or even slightly better specifications for less money.

Read our full Review OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G

OnePlus phone buying guide

1.

What are the different OnePlus ranges?

The OnePlus phone range is relatively simple. At the top end you get its numbered flagship series – currently the OnePlus 10 line, with the OnePlus 11 expected next year. This can include a few models – the 10 Pro and 10T for example.

Below that you find the Nord series. These are cheaper, covering the gamut from budget phones up to the heart of the mid-range. The only complication here is that different markets get different Nord phones – models like the Nord 2T and Nord CE launch in Europe and Asia, while the US gets different phones with names like Nord N300 and N20.

2.

Is OnePlus the same as Oppo?

Sort of. OnePlus originally span off from Chinese phone giant Oppo several years ago, but was mostly ran as an independent company.

That’s now changed, and Oppo has brought OnePlus back into the fold. That means that OnePlus now uses Oppo R&D and software, meaning its products are more similar to Oppo’s than they used to be, and occasionally one company will essentially re-release one of the other’s phones with new branding.

Realme is part of the same family, so you should also keep an eye on Realme phones, which will also be quite similar.

3.

What software do OnePlus phones run?

OnePlus phones all run Android, with the company’s OxygenOS skin on top.

As mentioned above, the company now uses Oppo software, so OxygenOS now shares a code base with that brand’s ColorOS. That means the software from both companies is quite similar, though each retains one or two unique features and a slightly different aesthetic.

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