9 Of The Most Reliable Used Android Phones Under $250

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Every year, smartphone makers come up with new flagship models packed to the brim with new features, gimmicks, and colors, all in the hopes of convincing you to buy the shiny new thing. But the truth is, you don’t have to buy a new flagship. Technology has gotten so good that a few-year-old phone would work perfectly fine, and you’d save a lot of cash. 

Unfortunately, since brands discontinue older models to push more sales, the best place for such deals is the renewed market. Buying from a shoddy seller on Facebook can be a recipe for disaster, but if you play your cards right, marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and  Back Market offer excellent certified-renewed device programs, buyer protection, and even limited-time warranties that’ll help you if something goes wrong. Plus, you help protect the environment by keeping a piece of tech out of a landfill. If you’re in the market for such a deal, we’ve dug through the most reliable used Android phones you can get for under $250 that will last you for years to come. 

The Pixel 7 Pro was part of Google’s second generation of the rebooted Pixel lineup, which launched in 2022. It fixed many of the Pixel 6 series’ problems, like software bugs and subpar battery life, while coming at a price that undercut the likes of Samsung at $899. A few years have passed since then, and today you can grab a decent-condition, renewed 7 Pro from Amazon for just $245. But should you? Yes. 

The 7 Pro’s design is the classic Pixel look, making the phone recognizable and stylish. You get a big 6.7-inch OLED panel with 1440p resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. The display, according to the reviews, produces really pleasing colors, is plenty sharp, and even supports HDR for all your Netflix binge-watch sessions. The best part about owning a Pixel is the clean software experience that’s free of bloat. While obviously not as powerful as the Qualcomm chip from the same year, the Tensor G2 processor can handle just about any task, and even gaming. Battery life, thanks to the 5,000 mAh cell, should be plenty for at least a day of use.

All that said, the biggest reason why we’ve included the Pixel 7 Pro on our list is the cameras. The phone has three of them, including a 50MP primary, a 12MP ultrawide, and a 48MP 5x periscope lens. The photos have excellent details, ample HDR, and Google’s skin-tone management remains one of the best in the business. The Pixel 7 Pro is also guaranteed security updates through 2027.

Samsung’s Galaxy S series flagships are among the most reliable phones on the market, and the Galaxy S22+ is no different. Like the Pixel 7 Pro, it also came out in 2022, and was the awkward middle child between the regular Galaxy S22 and the top-of-the-line S22 Ultra. When new, it had a sticker price of $1,000, but today you can get a renewed unit for as low as $204 on Amazon. This is good value, because when new, the S22+ carried major upgrades like an all-glass aluminum design, which, even in 2025, looks modern and sophisticated. The display is a 6.6-inch FHD+ AMOLED panel that runs at a breezy 120Hz refresh rate and is plenty bright for outdoor viewing.

Unlike the Exynos fiasco in other countries, the S22+ shipped with the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 in the US, which allows the phone to fly through the UI and play modern games at medium to high settings. Samsung’s One UI, while not as stylish as its Chinese counterparts, is very stable and has many features. 

Beyond that, the cameras are another strong point, with a 50MP primary sensor, a 12MP ultrawide lens, and a 10MP 3x telephoto. Experts say the phone captures images that look similar to those from the S22 Ultra, in the sense that they are bright, colorful, and sharp even in low-light conditions. While the S22+ has already received its final Android 16 update, security support should follow until early 2027, making it a handy option for everyone.

OnePlus phones have long had the “flagship killer” title because they deliver top-of-the-line performance at prices that undercut the major players. The OnePlus 10 Pro was the company’s best offering in 2022 and debuted at a retail price of $899. Today, it can be purchased renewed in excellent condition for exactly $250 on Amazon.

Unlike the newer OnePlus 15, the 10 Pro carries the Hasselblad branding, which adds a lot more character to the whole design with its sweeping camera module. On the front, there’s a curved 6.7-inch AMOLED 2K display that can toggle its refresh rate from 120Hz all the way down to just 1Hz. Combined with the large 5,000 mAh cell, the 10 Pro’s battery life is really good. You also get support for 80W fast charging. The cameras, of which there are three, are decent. Our 10 Pro review at the time highlighted the primary 50MP sensor’s ability to shoot excellent daytime photos. However, the same praise didn’t carry over to the 150-degree ultrawide lens, which fell short of some expectations.

Nevertheless, the best reason to get the OnePlus 10 Pro, or any OnePlus phone for that matter, is performance. The 10 Pro is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, and despite the three years since its release, the phone is plenty powerful. Users say it breezes past the UI, shows no slowdowns when opening heavier apps, and even supports high-refresh-rate gaming. While OnePlus initially promised just four years of support, the company recently expanded the Android 16-based OxygenOS 16 rollout to the 10 Pro as well.

With the Pixel A series, Google cuts down on the quality-of-life features from the flagships to deliver a phone that tries to nail the basics. For many, the 8A was the last phone to do the same. It launched in 2024 at a retail price of $499, and it was so good that our review of the Pixel 8A questioned the need to spend an extra couple of hundred dollars on the flagship Pixel 8. Just over a year later, you can pick up an unlocked unit on Swappa for just under $230.

At this price, the value proposition of the Pixel 8A is hard to beat. It’s the last Pixel to feature that beloved rounded design, with corners that don’t dig in your palms when doomscrolling. The display, while not exactly edge-to-edge, is a 6.1-inch FHD+ OLED panel that stays crisp and bright even when standing directly under the midday sun and refreshes at 120Hz, keeping content and animations fluid. The good news continues in the performance department as the Tensor G3 is capable of handling every task and even gaming. While cameras retain the same sensors as the previous 7A, the newer image processing makes the setup hard to fault. 

Still, the best reason to go with any Pixel is the software experience since it’s clean and packs many helpful AI features like AI Translate, Pixel Call Assist, and image editing tools. With the Pixel 8 series, Google also decided to extend its software support to 7 years, meaning the 8A will receive major Android updates until 2031.

When the 2025 version of the Moto Edge debuted a few months back, its reviews weren’t great. Most reviewers concluded that it lacked the performance and features to justify its high mid-range price of $549.99, especially compared to competitors like the Nothing Phone 3(a). The Moto Edge 2025 is already up on eBay at just $249 in renewed condition, albeit locked to T-Mobile. At that price, it suddenly becomes a far more compelling option. 

For starters, it’s one of the few phones to still feature a curved display, which some people love. The screen itself is a 6.7-inch pOLED panel that supports a 120Hz refresh rate and an eye-watering peak brightness of 4,500 nits. There are a few new colors to choose from, including a PANTONE Forest Green variant that does look stunning.

Performance disappointed experts the most, since the Dimensity 7400 isn’t a flagship chipset. For context, the device scored 1,027 and 2,947 in Geekbench’s single-core and multi-core tests, respectively. This is a far cry from the likes of the OnePlus 13R, which scores more than double. That being said, the Moto Edge is not slow. Apps open quickly, the animations are smooth, and the phone can handle some light gaming. Also, Motorola gave the new Edge’s triple camera setup a major upgrade. The sensors use PANTONE’s color tuning for aesthetic photos in all lighting conditions. Then there’s the massive 5,200 mAh cell, which can easily last more than a day. Couple that with 68W fast charging, and battery anxiety becomes a thing of the past.

Before the arrival of the iPhone in 2007, flip phones were king. These neat devices could be closed when not in use, thus saving space and also adding that cool factor. After Motorola resurrected the flip phone genre, Samsung struck back in 2020 with the Z Flip, which could be opened to use its folding display. The Z Flip 4 is the fourth iteration of this lineup and debuted in 2022, retailing at $1000. Today, the phone is available in excellent condition for $219 on Best Buy. 

The Z Flip phone has two screens. The outer cover display measures 1.9 inches and can be used to check notifications and toggle quick settings. The inner folding display is a 6.7-inch AMOLED Full HD+ panel that can run from 1Hz to 120Hz. With this generation, Samsung also restructured the hinge mechanism, making it more durable for long-term use. While the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip still works like a charm, heavy gaming could result in thermal throttling. One UI on top of Android 16 runs the show here, and the UI is the same as on any other Samsung phone, with some fold-exclusive features added. While the dual rear cameras are not as capable as the slab counterparts on this list, they are by no means bad and take decent photos, especially when you use the primary sensor for selfies. Most importantly, the Z Flip 4 will continue to receive security patches for at least one more year.

Like the Pixel A series, Samsung’s FE lineup retains the essentials from the flagships, like the performance, but removes the extra features to hit a price point that caters to more budget-conscious buyers. The Galaxy S23 FE falls into the same category and debuted in 2023 at a retail price of $600. Today, the same phone on Back Market can be found for just $211 renewed. The device retains the same design as its flagship brothers but swaps the S21 FE’s plastic back for Gorilla Glass 5. It looks modern and fits in quite well, considering Samsung hasn’t redesigned its newer phones. The 6.4-inch FHD+ 120Hz AMOLED display looks good and gets plenty bright at 1,450 nits.

Under the hood, you get the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor (only in the US) that packs a fair punch to keep up with all modern tasks and games like PUBG Mobile and Genshin Impact. The S23 FE will get the same 4 years of software and 5 years of security updates, meaning it should be good until 2027. Although the telephoto sensor is smaller at just 8MP, the 50MP primary and the 12MP UltraWide lens capture really pleasing images in both daytime and nighttime conditions, with crisp details and vibrant colors. Battery life is another strong point, as the 4,500mAh cell can comfortably last a full day of use.

If you liked the S23 FE but want more premium features like better cameras and a more compact form factor, the Galaxy S23 could be for you. The phone came out in 2023 at a sticker price of $799, but you can get it used from Back Market in good condition for just $227. At this price, the S23 is hard to ignore, thanks to its super handy design and premium materials like Gorilla Glass Victus 2. Then there’s the display, which measures 6.1 inches and is an AMOLED 120Hz panel with FHD+ resolution. It’s sharp, gets super bright at 1,750 nits, and is great for watching content.

The S23 runs on the much more efficient Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy processor. It scores 1,651,142 points in the AnTuTu benchmark and can run even the most demanding games, like Genshin Impact, without overheating. One UI is super reliable, and the S23 is set to get updates through Android 17. While the camera hardware is largely unchanged from the S22+, new image-processing pipelines make the S23’s triple-camera setup really capable. Colors have the typical Samsung vibrant look that a lot of people love, along with clean details in all conditions. Due to the smaller footprint, the phone packs a 3,900 mAh battery. While it may sound small on paper, the efficient chip yielded several hours more screen time over the S22 in multiple tests. 

Motorola started the flip phone craze with the original Moto Razr in 2004. It was so popular that Motorola revived the lineup in 2019, complete with an inner folding display and an outer cover screen. The Moto Razr+ 2024 brought significant improvements while keeping the same $999 price tag. On Back Market, though, you can pick one up renewed for just $250. At that price, the Moto Razr+ makes sense not only for folding phone buyers but also for anyone looking for a really good deal.

For starters, you get an inner 6.9-inch FHD+ pOLED display with a 165Hz refresh rate. The LTPO panel can dynamically adjust the refresh rate based on content and hits a peak brightness of 3,000 nits. The real star of the show here, though, is the outer 4.1-inch screen that stretches corner-to-corner (even around the camera lenses) and also refreshes at 165Hz. The outer screen, coupled with Motorola’s excellent software, allows you to use the phone closed all the time since all apps, games, and tools will run on it. 

The good news continues in the performance department since the Razr+ houses the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor, which can run all games on the Play Store without taking a beating. Beyond that, the 4,000mAh battery helps the Razr+ last a day easily. The dual cameras, while not the best for indoor photography, do benefit from the added versatility of the folding form factor. Motorola has promised three years of software updates until Android 17.