The Best Motorola Phones (2025), Tested and Reviewed

Had its performance been slightly better, this moto would have been a home run. It’s worth considering if money is tight, but definitely buy the Moto G Stylus if you can (even if you don’t care for the stylus). Keep in mind, Motorola will likely announce a new version in early 2026.

Other Motorola phones to consider

I recommend that you stick with the phones above, but here are other options if you’re dissatisfied.

Motorola Edge 2025 for $400: Motorola is one of the few companies still making smartphones with waterfall displays, where the edges of the screen blend into the phone’s frame for a stunning, almost bezel-less effect. This trend, popular a few years ago, fell out of fashion as phones became harder to use (bezels can be nice!). I didn’t have much problems with the touchscreen on this model, and while I think the overall aesthetic with the vegan leather back is nice, the Edge doesn’t impress as much as its stiffer competition with its $550 MSRP. Performance is a bit poor at this price (I noticed a lot of lag in the camera app). The main camera is solid, but the weak software update policy makes it hard to recommend. It’s an even better deal when it drops during major sales events.

Motorola Razr+ (2025) for $650: The Razr+ is identical to the Razr+ (2024), except it uses Motorola’s titanium-reinforced hinge for better durability. The specifications are otherwise the same, but it sits in a weird middle-ground where it doesn’t offer massive improvements over the Razer 2025, but doesn’t sit too far off the Razer Ultra. You may be bummed by the lack of an ultrawide camera, especially for group selfies, and the battery here is the smallest in the current lineup. You can always save some cash and buy last year’s Razr+ (7/10, Wired Recommended), which has good performance and solid cameras, but I’d highly recommend waiting for a sale. The price of this phone has dropped to $580, which is great for a folding phone.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Moto G Play 2026 for $180: Motorola’s cheapest phone is always in a strange position. Yes, at under $200, it’s a useful handset that now features 5G connectivity. You get two days of battery life, a headphone jack, expandable storage, and a pretty nice design. But the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chip with 4GB of RAM is very sluggish – get ready to wait a second or two, sometimes more, to launch an app or load a webpage. Photo quality is satisfactory; The colors in most of my images are dull. I picked up several calls and people on the other end generally complained about my audio quality, which is not good. It’s nice that this ultra-budget phone will get two Android OS updates, but it’s hard to justify the Play when the Moto G Power 2025 is on sale for $190 at Amazon and offers generally faster performance, double the storage, and better camera quality. Motorola also announced the soon-to-be-launched Moto G 2026 ($200), but it’s virtually the same as the Play except with 128GB of storage and upgraded cameras. Given the $20 price difference, I’d be willing to buy at least that model. But really, get the Moto G Power 2025 on sale (or wait a few months for the inevitable Moto G Power 2026).

Which Motorola phones should be avoided?

motorola moto g 2025

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

The price of Motorola phones reduces quite rapidly. You should avoid buying Moto G phones from 2024 or earlier. They probably won’t get many more Android version updates, and prices aren’t much different from the latest models. I don’t even recommend buying the Moto G 2025 now that its successor is almost here. Last year’s Motorola Edge 2024 or the aforementioned Razr+ 2024 are the oldest for me, so don’t consider anything else.

Competition

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Motorola’s top competition is Google, Nothing and Samsung. If you asked me which phone to buy, I’d point you toward the Google Pixel 9a ($499). It has all the features people want in a smartphone, including wireless charging. Nothing also has new devices, the Phone (3A) and the Phone (3A) Pro. They are attractive, elegant and affordable handsets, although carrier compatibility is not so straightforward. Nothing’s sub-brand CMF also has an equally excellent $279 phone, the CMF Phone 2 Pro.