7 Best Phones You Can’t Buy in the US (2026)

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There’s a world of excellent flagship smartphones that push photography to new levels and budget buys that confound expectations, but you won't find them in the US, for various reasons. Some Chinese phone manufacturers are banned, while other brands prefer to focus their efforts in countries where Apple doesn't have a massive market share. Whatever the reason, I've tested these global handsets for years—these are the best phones you can’t officially buy in the US.

Many of these phone makers like to release multiple devices under sub-brands, so here are some basic facts to know: Xiaomi is the brand behind Poco and Redmi; Nubia came from ZTE; Honor was a Huawei subsidiary but separated after Huawei was banned; and Realme spun out of Oppo. Before diving in, it’s worth noting that folks in the UK and elsewhere in Europe can also buy many of the phones in our Best Android Phones, Best iPhones, and Best Cheap Phones guides on sale in the US.

Updated March 2026: I added the Xiaomi 17 Ultra as my new top pick, the Poco X8 Pro as my budget pick, mentions for phones from Honor, Oppo, and Xiaomi, removed several discontinued models, and updated impressions and prices.

Other Good International Phones

These phones are worth considering if you have yet to see something you like.

Oppo Find N6 for $1,959: Touting a creaseless 8.12-inch display, the Find N6 is a beautifully engineered folding phone that’s impossibly slim and light. Despite the promise, the crease is still discernible, but you’ll hardly notice it when the screen is on, though you’ll feel it if you use the optional stylus. Performance is impressively slick, with enough stamina to see you through a busy day, and the camera system is excellent. It’s a big step up over last year’s N5, with a 200-MP main shooter, 50-MP telephoto, and 50-MP ultrawide, though it can’t quite compete with the Xiaomi 17 Ultra above. The global model has all your familiar Google apps, but you’ll have to import if you want it, as the phone is not going to be officially released in the West. That’s the main reason it fails to edge out Honor’s foldable above.

Infinix Note 60 Ultra for $750: Designed with the help of Pininfarina, famous for iconic cars from Ferrari and Maserati, the Note 60 Ultra looks interesting, with a distinctive curved glass section over the camera module that also houses a small matrix display. The phone arrives in a grand box with a curvy car-shaped wireless charger. The specs are solid, apart from the distinctly not “Ultra” chipset (MediaTek’s Dimensity 8400 Ultimate), but availability appears to be very limited for now.

Xiaomi 17 Pro Max for $1,033: With a refreshing design featuring a second, smaller screen on the back that encompasses the camera lenses, the Xiaomi 17 Pro Max and 17 Pro are a little different. Xiaomi came up with various cute ways to employ this auxiliary display, including selfie preview for superior selfies with the main camera, music controls, customizable themes, and virtual pets. There’s even a retro gaming case that lets you play Angry Birds on there, though it feels a bit silly when there’s a 6.7-inch screen on the other side. Aside from the second screen, the 17 Pro Max is a typical Xiaomi specs beast, and the 17 Pro isn’t far behind, but neither has been officially released outside of China yet.

Oppo Find X9 Pro for £1,099: Photography fans must check out the Oppo Find X9 Pro. The 200-megapixel telephoto lens supports 3X optical zoom and can take excellent shots at 6X zoom by cropping images down to 50 megapixels. But to kick things up a notch, you’ll need the detachable Hasselblad Teleconverter Kit. This enormous lens slots into place on the case and adds another 3.28X zoom, though it’s tricky to use without a tripod. An additional trio of 50-MP lenses, with all four supporting 4K video recording at 60 fps with HDR, makes this a great pick for creatives. Impressive specs include a 6.78-inch flat display, IP66/68/69 ratings, and a 7,500-mAh silicon-carbon battery that’s good for two days.

Xiaomi Poco F8 Ultra for £749 and F8 Pro for £549: Xiaomi’s cheaper, fun, youthful brand Poco gives it room to experiment, but the company’s own 15T Pro is a better buy in this price bracket. What the F8 Ultra offers that you won’t find elsewhere is a fun or awful (depending on your tastes) denim finish on the back. There are also Bose-tuned speakers, an excellent 6.9-inch display, and an enormous 6,500 mAh battery. It also has a flagship-level Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and generous RAM and storage. There’s even a trio of 50-MP lenses in the camera. The F8 Pro is slightly smaller, but drops little from the spec sheet, making it the better bargain.

Honor Magic 7 Pro for $990 (£899): Honor’s Magic 7 Pro was 2025’s excellent flagship phone, featuring a solid triple-lens camera, a gorgeous 6.8-inch screen, speedy performance, good battery life, and a dual IP68 and IP69 rating. Honor’s Magic OS boasts polished AI features, and Honor announced an increased commitment to seven years of Android version and security patch updates with this phone. On the downside, the Magic 7 Pro has a large camera cut-out on the front, the camera processing is sometimes heavy-handed, and the ultrawide camera struggles to match the other two lenses.

Honor 400 Pro for $715 (£656): A solid alternative to the 15T Pro above, Honor’s sleek and slick 400 Pro is packed with goodies ordinarily reserved for flagship phones. The rounded edges and soft finish feel lovely in-hand. Honor has bet big on AI features, including a debut for Google’s image-to-video AI. The triple-lens camera comprises a capable 200-MP main shooter with a 50-MP telephoto lens and a weak-link 12-MP ultrawide that also handles macro photography. There’s a 50-MP selfie cam too. The 6.7-inch screen is very bright when you need it to be, there’s a relatively snappy Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, Wi-Fi 7 support, and the 400 Pro scores an IP68/69 rating. The 5,300-mAh silicon-carbon battery provides plenty of stamina and charges fast, at up to 100 watts wired and 50 watts wireless. Honor promises six years of Android updates for this phone.

Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro for $399 (£349): Xiaomi’s Poco X7 Pro is a compelling bargain that combines a lovely 6.67-inch display with relatively fast performance, good battery life, speedy wired charging, and IP68 water resistance. The 50-megapixel main camera is decent. The Poco X7 Pro runs Android 15 with HyperOS on top, and Xiaomi offers three Android version updates and four years of security patches. This was my budget pick, but the Poco F7 (discontinued), then the X8 Pro unseated it.

Xiaomi 15 Ultra for £995: Last year's Xiaomi 15 Ultra is still a top-notch phone in every regard, and you can a decent discount on it now. The quad-lens camera is as versatile as they come, a 50-megapixel primary, 50-megapixel ultrawide, 50-megapixel 3X optical zoom, and a 200-megapixel periscope sensor with 4.3X optical zoom. You also get a 6.73-inch screen, generous storage, solid battery life, and fast wired or wireless charging.

Doro Aurora A20 for £230: Doro is a Swedish company focused on providing devices for older folks, mostly phones, but also a decent video doorbell. The Aurora A20 is an odd spin on the flip phone that may help some people transition to a touchscreen device. It’s like an old candybar HTC Android phone with a flip-out keypad attached to the bottom. There are lots of thoughtful features, including an alarm button, a spacious keypad, and simplified software. It’s also fairly cheap, but I found the performance sluggish, the camera poor, and the design a bit chunky and heavy.