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How to Shop for a Google Pixel Phone in 2024
Should you spend $500 or $1,000? We have the answer.
About a decade ago, Google stepped into that horribly crowded 4G smartphone market and made some, in our opinion, lackluster phones. But when you're one of the world's tech giants, with a budget to fit, good product is never too far away. After nearly a decade of tech evolutions, Google has established itself as a top name in an endlessly complicated Android market by making things iPhone simple. Everything works across devices. Google has good wearables. Solid software, with the most popular productivity suite in America. All that with better phone cameras, battery life, and—now—cutting-edge AI features. A larger price range makes even low-end Pixels more affordable on the whole compared with similarly powerful offerings from Apple or Samsung.
So the good news is I've convinced you to get a Pixel phone. The bad news is there's a number of places to start. Google doesn't immediately discontinue previous years' models, a great gesture in our mind. The downside is that there are more options to overwhelm consumers who don't live and breathe tech, which is a majority of them. Everyone needs a phone. Go to Google's Pixel store and you'll find eight different phones to choose from. Where do you start?
Start here, with Esquire's buying guide for Google Pixel phones. We've tested out all the latest models and have hands-on impressions and expert opinions on which ones are actually worth your money—and which ones are worth waiting for a sale.
Pros
- Fast processor and gorgeous display make this the best Pixel so far
- Near-professional-grade camera
- Gemini is the best AI assistant yet
- Battery life nearly doubles competitors'
Cons
- A bit pricey but worthwhile
This is the best Pixel phone you can currently buy. The processor is fast as hell. It's gorgeous and glossy (but I'd still put a case on it). There might as well be a Canon in there for how good its pictures and videos come out. For all this and more, it became a top pick for Android phones in this year's Esquire Gadget Awards.
Seriously, don't take my word for it. I gave the phone to our entertainment editor and Pixel die-hard Brady Langmann to test out, and here's what he had to say:
"The Pixel 9 Pro upgrades every reason to own a Pixel without upending everything that makes the phone great. It sports a damn near professional-grade camera, dreamy battery life, and an impressive amount of health and safety functionalities. You can press a button and live chat with Gemini, which is absolutely as freaky as it sounds. But if chatting about the Steelers' quarterback room with a sports-fluent AI—which is something I absolutely did—is your thing, you will not find a better AI assistant on the market."
| Display | 6.3" Super Acuta |
|---|---|
| Cameras | 50 MP wide | 48 MP ultrawide with Macro Focus | 48 MP 5x telephoto lens | 42 MP Dual PD selfie camera with autofocus |
| Battery Life | 24-72 hours |
| Chipset | Google Tensor G4 |
| Colors | Porcelain, Rose Quartz, Hazel, Obsidian |
| Dust and water resistance | IP68 |
Pros
- All the pros of the Pixel Pro
- It's only $100 extra for a larger display
Cons
- Bigger phone can be clunky
There isn't a whole lot to say about the Pixel 9 Pro XL that we didn't just say about the 9 Pro. That's because, size aside, they are pretty much identical phones. Same AI features, same long-lasting battery life, and, yes, they have the same exact camera (unlike the iPhone 16 Pro vs Pro Max, where the bigger model gets a camera upgrade). For only $100 extra, this is a reasonable upgrade—especially if you use your phone for watching videos or just need the extra-large text.
We are generally not a fan of the large-phone trend, but in this case it remains an inoffensive option. People may find the XL clunky or hard to fit in a pocket, which is certainly true. Aside from that, though, it's still the same damn good phone.
| Display | 6.8" Super Actua |
|---|---|
| Cameras | 50 MP wide | 48 MP ultrawide with Macro Focus | 48 MP 5x telephoto lens | 42 MP Dual PD selfie camera with autofocus |
| Battery Life | 24-72 hours |
| Chipset | Google Tensor G4 |
| Colors | Porcelain, Rose Quartz, Hazel, Obsidian |
| Dust and water resistance | IP68 |
Pros
- Perfomance and screen are amazing for a "budget" phone
- Same great battery life as other Pixels
- Magic Editor is the most useful photo tool phones have
- Call Screen feature is another we use all the time
Cons
- Selfie camera is mediocre
- Advanced AI features limited to the newer phones
We're calling it the best "budget" option because less that $500 is cheap in the phone world. This is a $500 phone, currently $400 from Amazon and Google, and it's a great one at that. But it's also the option we'd be most likely to seriously recommend to anyone. Like if a friend came up to me and asked which Google Pixel they should get, I would say the 8a. In terms of tech and camera specs, it lacks the power of the 9 Pro, but as an everyday phone it performs exceptionally.
First things first: For a $500 phone, this thing has a mighty camera. My partner rocks an 8a and we end up using her camera more than my year-old Pro iPhone. It doesn't have the access to the full Gemini suite of the 9 Pros, but it does have Magic Editor, which is a lifesaver when some rando needs to be edited out of the background of your beautiful selfie.
In terms of privacy, keeping your files organized, and detecting spam calls, this baseline Pixel is still superior to most other Android offerings, as well as to the Apple lineup. On the whole, there isn't much to complain about with this one.
| Display | 6.1" Acuta |
|---|---|
| Cameras | Optical zoom quality at 0.5x, 1x13 and Super Res Zoom up to 8x13 | 13 MP selfie camera |
| Battery Life | 24-72 hours |
| Chipset | Google Tensor G3 |
| Colors | Aloe, Bay, Obsidian, Porcelain |
| Dust and water resistance | IP67 |
Pros
- Again, great cameras
- Display is still an OLED
- Brighter color options than the Pro
Cons
- None of the component parts are quite as good as the Pro's
- A bit slower at multitasking
At full price, you wouldn't find me recommending this phone. It's a very good Android phone, but for an additional $200 you can get in the 9 Pro range. Over the course of a couple years (how most of us pay for our phones) that's a pretty minuscule price increase for a pretty major benefit. For $650, however—the price currently listed on Google's store and Amazon—this might be the best Google-phone deal of the season.
It's got all the benefits of all Pixels (great battery, cameras, and AI, as well as an OLED screen) but is just slightly worse than the Pixel 9 Pro across the board. The display is not nearly as crisp, the camera lacks a telephoto lens, and it has less RAM, making slowdowns and hiccups more likely. Will most people notice these differences? Probably not.
| Display | 6.3" Acuta |
|---|---|
| Cameras | 50 MP wide | 48 MP ultrawide with Macro Focus | Super Res Zoom up to 8x13 and optical quality at 0.5x, 1x, 2x13 | 10.5 MP Dual PD selfie camera with autofocus |
| Battery Life | 24-72 hours |
| Chipset | Google Tensor G4 |
| Colors | Peony, Wintergreen, Porcelain, Obsidian |
| Dust and water resistance | IP68 |
Pros
- Book-like vertical fold is superior to horizontal flip-phone folds
- A genuinely good buy if you can make the case for a phone-tablet hybrid
- Has all the same guts as Pro 9
Cons
- Nearly twice as expensive as the Pro 9
- Slightly worse camera than the Pro 9's and XL's
- Still not a fan of the crease
I haven't been able to try this one personally, but it's been pretty well received as far as folding phones go. The vertical fold and large size combine to make it more of a tablet-phone hybrid than anything else out there right now. When it comes to processing power, display, battery life, and cameras, this is a Pixel 9 Pro. It's just a super-large one with a crease in the middle. So yeah, there are compromises.
Of course, the biggest barrier to entry is that elephant-in-the-room-sized price tag. Currently down to $1,500, this phone launched at $1,800. For that, you can literally get an Android phone and a tablet.
| Display | External: 6.3" Actua Internal: 8" Super Actua Flex |
|---|---|
| Cameras | 48 MP wide | 10.5 MP ultrawide with Macro Focus | 10.8 MP 5x telephoto lens | Super Res Zoom up to 20x13 and optical quality at 0.5x, 1x, 5x13 | 10 MP Dual PD selfie camera |
| Battery Life | 24-72 hours |
| Chipset | Google Tensor G4 |
| Colors | Obsidian, Porcelain |
| Dust and water resistance | IPX8 |
Google Pixel Phones Not Worth Getting
Pixel 7a: You can currently buy a 7a from Google for the same price as an 8a. Technically, at the time of this writing, it's more expensive due to the 8a dropping $100 for the holidays. So yeah, avoid this one. There's no reason not to get the newer model.
Pixel 8 Pro: Once again, you can still technically buy this phone new from Google directly, but you shouldn't. This last-gen Pro hasn't got an official price drop, so it's currently the same price as the Pixel 9 Pro. It makes no sense to get this one instead.
Pixel 8: Another old phone that, due to holiday pricing, is more expensive than its newer counterpart. Google is currently selling the Pixel 9 for $649—a great deal, as we noted. If you can find an 8 for less than that, it may be worth it, but otherwise stick to the 8a or the discounted 9.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I know which Pixel I need?
It depends on what you use your phone for. For the most part, if you just need something to text, browse, and use Google Maps on, the 8a will be more than sufficient. If you care about exploring the cutting-edge AI tech or want a video camera capable of shooting a feature film, you might want to go with the 9 Pro or 9 Pro XL. If you fall somewhere between those camps and can't decide, maybe the Pixel 9 is right for you after all.
How long is my Pixel supported?
The same as any smartphone really. Whichever Google Pixel you get today will be able to support OS updates for up to seven years in the future. Phones don't become obsolete after two years, despite what manufacturers would have you believe.
Is it worth it to get an older Pixel phone?
If you can find a good deal (we're talking the $300 range), it might be worth it. These phones are supported for a number of years, and frankly a Google 6a isn't that out-of-date. It came out in 2022. Even going back further than that you can find decent refurbished old Pixel phones for reasonable prices.
How much storage do I need?
This is important, since all the prices on these phones start with the lowest amount of storage you can get. Some start with 128GB, others with 256GB, with options going up to a terabyte. Here's a tip: Don't pay for the extra gigs. With a Pixel, all your stuff is going to be stored in Google Photos, Drive, and the like. Invest in cloud storage instead.
Why Trust Esquire?
At Esquire, our testing process and combined expertise allows us to recommend the best tech for your hard-earned money. We compile our guides by performing heavy research and testing, and the gadgets we choose to award are what we'd spend our own money on. We've tried it all and, simply, we know what works best.
We had hands-on time with the Pixel 8a, Pixel 9, and Pixel 9 Pro in the lead-up to writing this buying guide. And we didn't just let me bumble around with them—we gave them to our native Pixel users at Esquire and asked them what they thought.
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