Best foldable phone 2022: the top folding smartphones

With enough force, almost every smartphone can fold in half. But only a few can do it without suffering terminal damage. Think folding phones are just a hinged gimmick? Think again: the best foldables are about as versatile as handsets get in 2022.

From retro clamshell revivals to smartphones that transform into sizeable tablets, the blowers below all feature bendable screens. And besides the obvious wow-factor, each offers innovative flexibility that could change the way you use your mobile.

But with price tags that make other flagships look cheap, is it worth buying a folding phone in 2022? Or should you wait for a next-gen foldable which might iron out some of the compromises? We’ve tested the top options to find out, as well as highlighting the upcoming foldable models to look out for.

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Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3

Samsung’s latest folding flagship is easily the best foldable to date – and the first that makes a truly convincing case for the genre. In fact, it’s one of the most compelling smartphones you can currently buy. But it’s also absurdly expensive, which massively limits its audience.

One of the Z Fold 3’s neatest tricks is its usability: despite the thickness and weight, it’s easy to handle, whether you’re swiping on the 6.2in external OLED or the 7.6in screen inside. And while the central crease remains, you soon learn to look past it while enjoying the spacious display.

Its feature set is similarly generous. You get 5G connectivity, solid stereo speakers and an under-screen selfie camera (in addition to the one on the cover). Build quality is stellar as well, with aluminium sides and Gorilla Glass Victus shielding the front. Under the hood, a Snapdragon 888 chip runs everything pretty much seamlessly.

The cameras are the only major compromise. They’re good, but not Samsung’s best, especially when it comes to the secondary sensors. You can definitely get more for your money from a flagship that doesn’t fold. But if you’re shopping for a foldable, this should be top of your list.

• Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 review here

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3

An attractive design, robust build and more affordable price tag make the Z Flip 3 the most accessible foldable yet. You can still get more performance from a standard handset for the same price, but the Flip 3 truly captures the fun essence of folding clamshells.

Improved materials make it one of the sturdiest folding phones to date: whether flipped open to resemble a normal smartphone, or neatly folded like a Nintendo Game Boy Advance SP, it feels as solid and premium as you’d expect.

The main 6.7in AMOLED display is a beaut, while the external 1.9in screen is twice the size of the original Flip’s, making it genuinely useful for showing notifications.

The camera setup is unchanged from the first Flip. Its dual 12MP sensors are perfectly capable, but there are handsets which cost a lot less and do a lot better. More impressive is the blistering performance delivered by the Snapdragon 888 processor, while the battery is good enough for a full day’s usage.

It’s not cheap and not without compromise, but if you want a blower that nails the basics and offers a bold design to boot, the Z Flip 3 is the one to go for.

• Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 review here

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2

Successor to the original Fold, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 gave hope that folding phones could be great – and it’s still a solid option in 2022. Ditching much of what made the first Fold a fun but flawed phone, Samsung refined the formula to create a much more convincing device.

Gone is the dinky front display, in favour of a frame-filling 6.23in AMOLED panel that does a stellar impression of standard smartphone. Engage the smooth hinge mechanism and a bold, notch-free 7.6in screen is revealed, complete with 120Hz refresh rates and HDR10+ support – although there’s still a crease.

Performance is punchy, courtesy of a Snapdragon 865+ processor and 12GB RAM, while the 4500mAh battery comfortably lasts a day. Plus there’s 5G connectivity.

It’s still not perfect: not all apps work seamlessly with the foldable setup, while the camera array can’t rival the show-stopping sensors on Samsung’s non-folding Galaxy flagships. But there’s nothing it does badly – and everything it does do, the Z Fold 2 does well. In truth, the biggest stumbling block continues to be the cost.

• Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 review here

Huawei Mate Xs

Unlike its X2 successor, Huawei’s first foldable made it out of China and over to the UK. And if you can find one, it remains a tempting proposition – albeit with some notable limitations.

The Huawei Mate Xs adopts a different design approach to dual-display devices: it features just a single wraparound screen on its exterior. So you can use a 6.6in portion when it’s folded shut, or unfurl it to reveal the full 8.8in panel. It’s a neat solution that feels very natural.

Power comes from a capable Kirin 990 processor and 8GB of RAM. The Xs also benefits from a 4500mAh battery, 5G connectivity and a subtle quad-lens camera setup with Leica smarts. All specs which measure up well against today’s flagships. And the main 40MP sensor also doubles up as the selfie shooter.

So what’s the catch? There are two: the whopping cost and the absence of Google apps and services. The former is the price of early adoption. The latter, a problematic omission that doesn’t look likely to change any time soon.

• Read our Huawei Mate Xs hands-on review here

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

When it launched in 2020, Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip became our top foldable pick: it was nicely designed, nippy and delightfully novel. Two years later, it still offers plenty for those who’d like a folding smartphone with a clamshell form factor.

Its specs hold up well enough: a Snapdragon 855 processor and 8GB RAM mean it’s no slowpoke, while its dual rear cameras have the edge over those of its Motorola Razr rival. Look past the plastic coating and the 6.7in AMOLED display inside also offers a respectable resolution. Plus Gorilla Glass protection gives its glossy shell a welcome dose of durability.

Downsides? The dinky external display is properly low-res, while its 3300mAh battery isn’t the biggest by modern standards. But more than that, the only thing which truly goes against the Galaxy Z Flip is the same thing that holds back almost every foldable: its prohibitively high price tag.

• Read our full Samsung Galaxy Z Flip review here

Motorola Razr 2020

Motorola’s first effort at reviving the iconic Razr handset in 2019 had its fair share of foibles. The second-gen does plenty to address those: besides adding 5G connectivity, it streamlines the throwback design while retaining the nostalgia value of an all-screen smartphone that you can flip shut.

A slimmer chin, repositioned fingerprint sensor and restyled camera are the most obvious physical changes. More significant are the internal tweaks: there’s twice as much storage space, 2GB more RAM, a speedier Snapdragon 765G processor, slightly larger battery and a 48MP sensor (versus 16MP on the first Razr reboot).

Frustratingly, there are still plenty of niggles: the plastic OLED display inside has a relatively low resolution, while performance doesn’t come close to the latest flagships. And you can’t partially unfold the device. The Razr’s biggest selling point remains its satisfying flipping action – and its price tag only makes sense if you value that.

• Read our Motorola Razr 2019 hands-on review here

Are there any other folding phones available?

The foldables above aren’t the only models in production – but most of the alternatives aren’t officially available in the UK. Several impressive folding smartphones have been released in the last year, but most are only available in China at the moment.

We got hands-on with the landmark Huawei Mate X2 last year. Conclusion? It’s a seriously special smartphone – one which proves that foldables can be both awesome and durable. It’s well-made and features stellar camera kit, but it’s also crippled by a lack of Google software support. It looks unlikely to ever make it outside of the Chinese market.

It’s a similar story with Honor’s first foldable, the Magic V. Equipped with a creaseless 7.9in OLED main panel, it looks to be a proper performance powerhouse. Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor runs the show, with the help of 12GB of RAM. It also features three 50MP rear cameras, two 42MP selfie cameras and 5G connectivity. There’s still no word on international rollout.

Xiaomi’s Mi Mix Fold is likewise China-only, as is Oppo’s first foldable – the Find N. Which is a shame, because the spec sheet and early impressions suggest it’s a competent alternative to the big-money folding flagships.

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