From Google and Samsung to Xiaomi and more, I ranked all the major Android brands according to their performance in 2025!
2025 was an eventful year for the Android phone ecosystem. Between the full-blown adoption of silicon-carbon batteries, Qualcomm’s Apple-rivaling Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, and more phones with integrated Qi2 magnets, there was a lot to get excited about.
Which manufacturers excelled this year and which ones had a bad time, though? Well, I decided to rank major Android brands from worst to best, based on how well their year went. I took into account their products, innovations, software/updates, overall strategies, and more to create this best-to-worst ranking. Disagree with my list? Then post your own in the comments below!13. HMD Global
HMD still stands out in 2025 as one of the only brands consistently offering phones with a microSD card slot. It also released another repairable device this year in the HMD Aura 2, as well as the cool OffGrid accessory, which brings satellite connectivity to any device. The firm also released the HMD Fusion X1 for teenagers (seen above). So you absolutely can’t fault it for trying different things.
Unfortunately, that’s where the good news generally ends. HMD decided to stop selling phones in the US earlier this year, depriving the market of sorely needed competition. Its output in 2025 also consisted almost entirely of low-end phones, so the few fans clamoring for an HMD Fusion 2 or Skyline 2 were left in the lurch.
Finally, the company still offers an extremely stingy update pledge for most of its phones. In fact, the HMD Fusion X1 is only expected to receive roughly two years of quarterly security updates. What are OS upgrades anyway?12. realme
It really feels like realme had an anonymous year. It wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t amazing, either. The company started the year well enough with the realme 14 series, and I thought the realme 14 Pro Plus in particular stood out as one of the few mid-rangers with a periscope camera. It also offered the GT7 as a great upper mid-range phone, taking the fight to devices like the OnePlus 13R and Galaxy S25 FE.
However, the realme 15 series was a bit of a damp squib for the company due to the lack of a Pro Plus variant and limited availability. It didn’t help that the firm devoted an inordinate amount of time and marketing resources to the realme 15 Pro Game of Thrones edition, some five or six years after the show’s final season. The company also released a sea of budget devices with impressively large batteries but little else. Thankfully, the realme GT8 Pro helped end the year on a high, and it’s a phone I’ve enjoyed using in the last few weeks.11. Sony
Sony’s 2025 was perhaps emblematic of its recent, frustrating existence. The company continues to admirably march to the beat of its own drum with the Xperia 1 VII. The flagship maintains a 3.5mm port and a microSD card slot. But we criticized the handset for its €1,500 (~$1,760) price tag, average cameras, and reluctance to embrace fast charging.
The Japanese manufacturer’s only other 2025 release was the mid-tier Xperia 10 VII. It continues to stand out thanks to its 3.5mm port, microSD card slot, and IP68 rating, but falls behind rivals in terms of camera hardware, charging speed, and processing power.
The good news is that Sony is finally offering much-improved update policies for its phones, with four major OS upgrades and six years of security patches. That’s much better than spending flagship money for a phone that only gets two major OS upgrades.10. Motorola
Motorola would be ranked much higher if we were judging the company purely on its Razr foldables. We thought the 2025 models outclassed Samsung’s Flip phones due to more versatile cover screen software and a standard model that was cheaper than the Galaxy Z Flip 7 FE. In saying so, the Ultra model was pricey at $1,300.
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The firm’s bread-and-butter Moto G series was a tale of two halves, as we slated the $200 Moto G 2025 but praised the $400 Moto G Stylus 2025. We also found the $300 Moto G Power 2025 to be a frustrating release as it had some great features, but was hamstrung by a significant lack of performance. What’s more frustrating is that Motorola’s budget phones are still subjected to a terrible update policy, which includes only two OS upgrades and three years of security patches.
It also didn’t help that Motorola didn’t offer a full-blown Edge flagship in 2025. So those looking for a super-powered Moto phone with all the bells and whistles were left disappointed this year.9. vivo
Camera-focused brand vivo delivered some fantastic hardware in 2025. The vivo X300 is still one of the few relatively compact flagships on the market, while I thought the X300 Pro was a great camera phone.
Meanwhile, the vivo X Fold 5 proved to be a compelling alternative to the Galaxy Z Fold 7 thanks to its huge battery and polished cameras. Furthermore, the X200 Ultra delivered one of the best camera phone experiences of 2025, while offering a crazy add-on lens.
