We all take selfies from time to time (some far more than others, as we can all see on social media), and there’s nothing wrong with wanting the very best front-facing camera to take them with. Of course, sheer image quality isn’t always the only thing that matters; wide-angle lenses and software tricks can help liven up your selfie game, too. We think the Pixel 3 XL is the best overall phone for taking selfies, but there are plenty of other great options to choose from with different features and price points.
Best overall
Google Pixel 3 XL
Staff pick
The Pixel 3 XL is known for its amazing rear camera quality, but those high marks extend to the front-facing cameras too. You can pick between fantastic standard selfies or wide-angle group shots, and the software automatically corrects lens distortion to prevent that stretched look around the edges. And Night Sight mode takes everything to a whole new level.
$780 at B&H
Rear cameras come up front
ASUS Zenfone 6
Rather than use a smaller and lower-quality front-facing camera setup, ASUS has a smart solution: flip the rear cameras to the front when you need them. The Zenfone 6 lets you take selfies with both rear-facing cameras: a 48MP primary shooter that produces excellent shots by front-facing camera standards, and an ultra-wide 13MP camera that’s wider than the Pixel 3 XL.
$550 at Amazon
Consistent quality
Samsung Galaxy S10+
The S10+ is another flagship phone with two front cameras, though the secondary sensor is just for measuring depth to improve portrait mode selfies, rather than giving a noticeably wider shot. The S10+ takes great-looking selfies consistently though and has autofocus, which isn’t as common with front-facing cameras as you might expect.
$900 at Amazon
Good on a budget
Nokia 7.1
If you don’t want to spend a lot but want to take the best possible selfies, the Nokia 7.1 is your jam. On top of being a tremendous overall budget phone with Android One, its 8MP front camera with an 84-degree field of view is reliable for selfies even with multiple people. You can also use the “Bothie” mode in the camera to take a picture from the front and rear cameras at the same time.
$300 at Amazon
Pixel selfies for less
Google Pixel 3a
The Pixel 3 and 3 XL take fantastic selfies, but they’re also expensive. For hundreds less, you can get most of that selfie experience in the Pixel 3a. You lose the flexibility of a pair of standard and wide-angle lenses and instead get a single camera in the middle. But the resulting shots — including Night Mode — are still excellent, particularly for this price.
$400 at Amazon
Good resolution and flash for less
Moto G7 Play
The Moto G7 Play isn’t going to blow away any of the other phones on this list. But it gets the job done with an 8MP front-facing camera accompanied by an LED flash to help it out in darker scenes. For $180, that’s a good pair to have for selfies.
$180 at Amazon
For consistently great selfies, it used to be Samsung, Samsung, Samsung every year. But these days, even though Samsung still has a solid setup with the Galaxy S10+, Google owns the selfie game.
The combination of a wide-angle secondary lens, software correction against lens distortion and Night Sight makes the Pixel 3 XL our favorite selfie-taking phone ever. And better yet, you can get nearly the same selfie quality from the Pixel 3a for hundreds less, which makes it even more appealing on the whole.
On the budget side, the Nokia 7.1 has many virtues for the price, and the selfie camera is one of them considering the lower-end price point.
