Best Smartphones Under ₹50,000 (2021) Awards

Last Updated on December 30, 2021 by Asif Iqbal Shaik

If you want to buy a high-end smartphone without spending a lot, this article is just for you. We have created the list of the best smartphones under ₹50,000 available in India right now. As we approach the end of 2021, we have a clear idea of the performance of all the phones launched in the ₹30,000 to ₹50,000 price segment. From Samsung to Realme, OnePlus, Vivo, and Xiaomi launched various phones in this price segment. Even iQOO has some strong contenders in the sub-₹50,000 segment.

The fight is quite intense in this price segment. There are a lot of good high-end devices with an attractive design, a 120Hz OLED display, a fast processor, great primary cameras, good battery life, and fast charging. However, to win the best smartphone under ₹50,000 award, smartphones have to offer additional features like a telephoto camera, better ultrawide camera, 4K 60fps video recording, or an IP rating for dust and water resistance.

Without any further ado, let us have a look at all the contenders for the Best Smartphone Under ₹50,000 Awards for 2021.

Best Smartphones Under ₹50,000 (2021) – Contenders

1. Apple iPhone 11 – ₹49,900
2. iQOO 7 – ₹31,990
3. iQOO 7 Legend – ₹39,990
4. OnePlus 9R – ₹39,999
5. Realme GT Neo 2 – ₹31,999
6. Realme GT 5G – ₹37,999
7. Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G – ₹39,999
8. Vivo X60 – ₹34,990
9. Vivo X70 Pro – ₹46,990
10. Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro – ₹36,999

1. Apple iPhone 11 – ₹49,900

While the iPhone 11 was launched two years ago, it is still an excellent device for those who have decided to buy an iPhone. However, we wouldn’t say it’s a better device than some Android smartphones available in the price segment. While its design and build quality are great, and its A13 Bionic processor is faster than many Android phones in this segment, its 6.1-inch display uses an LCD panel with a 60Hz refresh rate and a notch, which ruins the experience. Its camera falters in capturing still images compared to its rivals, but it is still a better video camera than others in this price segment.

It has a 12MP primary camera, a 12MP ultrawide camera, and a 12MP selfie camera, and all of them can record smooth 4K 60fps videos. The phone has an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, stereo speakers, and wireless charging. Its 3,110mAh battery lasts a day, but it is stuck with the old Lightning Port. Moreover, Face ID feels cumbersome in today’s times, where we travel with masks on our faces. Unless you want an iPhone under ₹50,000, we wouldn’t recommend the iPhone 11.

2. iQOO 7 – ₹31,990

The iQOO 7 is an excellent high-end device that doesn’t cost a lot of money. It has a sublime 6.62-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution, HDR10+, and a 120Hz refresh rate. When you combine that with the Snapdragon 870 processor, 8GB RAM, 128GB/256GB internal storage, and stereo speakers, you get a fantastic device for gaming and multimedia consumption. It has a 4,400mAh battery with 66W fast charging. It offers 5G connectivity, too.

In terms of cameras, the iQOO 7 has a 48MP primary camera with OIS, a 13MP ultrawide camera, and a 16MP front-facing camera. It can record 4K 30fps videos using both its rear cameras and 1080p videos using the front camera. Compared to similarly-priced phones like the OnePlus Nord 2 and the Xiaomi Mi 11X, it offers a better ultrawide camera. At its price, the iQOO 7 is quite hard to beat.

3. iQOO 7 Legend – ₹39,990

Spending a bit higher gives you the iQOO 7 Legend that offers you a faster processor (Snapdragon 888) and a 13MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom but a smaller 4,000mAh battery. All other features, including the 6.62-inch 120Hz Full HD+ OLED display, 48MP primary camera with OIS, 13MP ultrawide camera, 16MP selfie camera, stereo speakers, 66W fast charging, and in-display fingerprint reader, remain the same. It is a strong contender for the best smartphone under ₹50,000 award, thanks to its balanced approach, fast performance, and good cameras.

4. OnePlus 9R – ₹39,999

At the same price of ₹39,999, you can also have a look at the OnePlus 9R. It has a 6.55-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. It is equipped with the Snapdragon 870 processor (slower than iQOO 7 Legend’s Snapdragon 888 processor), 8GB/12GB RAM, and 128GB/256GB storage. It has a 48MP primary camera with OIS, a 16MP ultrawide camera, and a 16MP selfie camera. The rear camera can record 4K 60fps videos, but the front camera is limited to 1080p 30fps videos.

It has stereo speakers, 5G connectivity, an in-display fingerprint reader, and a 4,500mAh battery with 65W fast charging. However, the phone lacks a telephoto camera, which you get with the iQOO 7 Legend.

5. Realme GT Neo 2 – ₹31,999

The Realme GT Neo 2 is priced similar to the iQOO 7, and it offers a lot of the same specifications, including the 6.62-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, an in-display fingerprint reader, Snapdragon 870 processor, stereo speakers, and 65W fast charging.

It has a 64MP primary camera and a 16MP selfie camera with 4K 60fps video recording from the rear camera. However, it comes with a bigger, 5,000mAh battery. But it also features a downside in the form of its 8MP ultrawide camera when compared to the iQOO 7’s 13MP ultrawide camera. You need to decide whether you prefer a better ultrawide camera or a bigger battery.

6. Realme GT 5G – ₹37,999

The Realme GT 5G is a slightly beefed-up Realme GT Neo 2, featuring a faster Snapdragon 888 processor. However, it comes with a smaller, 4,500mAh battery. All other features, including a 6.43-inch Super AMOLED display with Full HD+ resolution, HDR10+, a 120Hz refresh rate, and an in-display fingerprint reader. It has stereo speakers, a 64MP primary camera with 4K 60fps video recording, an 8MP ultrawide camera, and a 16MP front camera with 1080p 30fps video recording.

Do you need to spend ₹6,000 more for the slightly faster Snapdragon 888 processor? That’s up to you to decide.

7. Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G – ₹39,999

If you are a fan of Samsung’s more polished software and more extended software update support or an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, you should have a look at the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G. It even features wireless charging and reverse wireless charging.

Its Snapdragon 865 processor is slightly older than the Snapdragon 888 processor found in similarly-priced phones, but it is still fast enough to offer smooth performance while playing high-end games. Moreover, it comes with a telephoto camera with 8MP resolution and 3x optical zoom. It can record 4K 60fps videos using all its cameras, including the 12MP primary camera with OIS, 12MP ultrawide camera, and 32MP selfie camera. It has stereo speakers and a microSD card slot as well.

8. Vivo X60 – ₹34,990

The Vivo X60 is yet another good affordable high-end phone. It has a 6.56-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, and an in-display fingerprint reader. It is equipped with the Snapdragon 870 processor, 8GB/12GB RAM, and 128GB/256GB internal storage.

The Vivo X60 has a 48MP primary camera with OIS and 4K 60fps video recording, a 13MP ultrawide camera, a 13MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom, and a 32MP selfie camera with 1080p video recording. The phone has a 4,300mAh battery with 33W fast charging. The features that it lacks are an IP rating for dust and water resistance and stereo speakers.

9. Vivo X70 Pro – ₹46,990

The Vivo X70 Pro is one of the strongest contenders in the best smartphones under the ₹50,000 price segment. It has great looks, excellent cameras, fast performance, good battery life, and fast charging. It has a 6.56-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and an in-display fingerprint reader. It is powered by a 4,450mAh battery with 44W fast charging.

The Vivo X70 Pro has a 50MP primary camera with OIS, a 12MP ultrawide camera with autofocus, a 12MP telephoto camera with 2x optical zoom, and an 8MP telephoto camera with 5x optical zoom and OIS. The rear cameras can record 4K 60fps videos. It has a 32MP selfie camera with 4K 30fps video recording. It is equipped with the MediaTek Dimensity 1200 processor, which offers performance equivalent to the Snapdragon 870 processor.

10. Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro – ₹36,999

The Xiaomi Mi 11X Pro is the best Xiaomi smartphone under ₹50,000. It has a 6.67-inch OLED display with Full HD+ resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and HDR10+. The phone has a 108MP primary camera with 8K video recording, an 8MP ultrawide camera, a 5MP tele-macro camera, and a 20MP selfie camera with 1080p 30fps video recording. The phone’s primary camera can also record 4K 60fps videos.

The Mi 11X Pro is equipped with the Snapdragon 888 processor, 8GB RAM, 128GB/256GB internal storage, and stereo speakers. It is powered by a 4,520mAh battery with 33W fast charging. It lacks additional features like an IP rating, telephoto camera, OIS for the primary camera, or wireless charging.

Winners Of Best Smartphones Under ₹50,000 Awards (2021)

1. Gold Award Winner: Vivo X70 Pro – ₹46,990
2. Silver Award Winner: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G – ₹39,999
3. Joint Bronze Award Winner: Vivo X60 – ₹34,990
4. Joint Bronze Award Winner: iQOO 7 – ₹31,990

1. Gold Award Winner: Vivo X70 Pro – ₹46,990

Thanks to its sublime 120Hz OLED display, excellent all-around cameras, fast performance, good battery life, and fast charging, the Vivo X70 Pro gets our Gold Award in the sub-₹50,000 price segment.

The Vivo X70 Pro+ is Vivo’s best high-end smartphone in years to be launched in India. It has a great and distinguishable design with uncompromising build quality. Its cameras capture great images and videos even in low-light conditions. Thanks to its Snapdragon 888 chipset and generous amounts of RAM and storage, the phone performs great. Plus, it has a sharp and smooth OLED display with HDR10+, an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, 8K 30fps and 4K 60fps video recording options, and stereo speakers.

Its battery usually lasts the whole day, and when it doesn’t, you can use its 55W fast charging to top up the battery within 30 minutes fully. It even features fast wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, and reverse wired charging.

2. Silver Award Winner: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G – ₹39,999

Even though it was released last year, the Galaxy S20 FE 5G is still a brilliant product. It has the same consistent cameras and mature software that we’ve come to expect from Samsung. The combination of its buttery smooth 120Hz OLED display, HDR10+, and stereo speakers makes the phone an excellent multimedia consumption device. The smartphone has a simple design and high-quality build.

Its Snapdragon 865 processor, although a last-year product, still offers excellent performance and battery life. The phone also has premium features like an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, wireless charging, and reverse wireless charging. It even comes with a microSD card slot and 5G connectivity.

The Galaxy S20 FE 5G’s cameras capture high-quality images even in challenging conditions. It has a proper telephoto camera, which many other gaming phones and affordable high-end phones lack. Plus, all the cameras on the phone can record 4K 60fps videos, which is a rarity in this price segment.

Had it not been using a processor released last year, it would’ve won our Gold Award. Samsung should have also bundled a faster charger in the box.

3. Joint Bronze Award Winner: Vivo X60 – ₹34,990

The Vivo X60 is yet another smartphone from last year to have made into our Best Smartphones Under ₹50,000 (2021) category. At its price, the Vivo X60 offers an excellent set of features and performance. It has a plastic frame, but its front and rear are covered using tough Gorilla Glass panels. The phone has a 120Hz OLED display with HDR10+, great for gaming and watching videos.

It has a 32MP selfie camera, a 48MP primary camera with OIS, a 13MP ultrawide camera, and a 13MP telephoto camera. All of Vivo X60’s rear-facing cameras can record 4K 60fps videos, but the front-facing camera is limited to 1080p 30fps videos.

The Vivo X60 is powered by the Snapdragon 870 processor, which offers excellent performance for day-to-day as well as demanding tasks such as gaming. Its battery lasts a day and offers 33W fast charging. The phone lacks some premium features like stereo speakers, an IP rating, and wireless charging. Hence, it didn’t win our Gold or Silver awards.

4. Joint Bronze Award Winner: iQOO 7 – ₹31,990

Another smartphone tied with the Vivo X60 for the Bronze award is the iQOO 7. At just ₹31,990, the iQOO 7 is more affordable than the Vivo X60 but still offers a similar performance (using Snapdragon 870 processor), stereo speakers, and faster charging (66W). It uses the same 48MP OIS primary camera and 13MP ultrawide camera as the Vivo X60 but lacks a dedicated telephoto camera. So, if you are more interested in gaming and multimedia consumption than taking zoomed-in shots, you should prefer the iQOO 7 over the Vivo X60.

How Did We Choose The Best Smartphones Under ₹50,000 (2021)?

There are a lot of high-end smartphones in the sub-₹50,000 price segment, and to choose the contenders, we set some benchmarks that the phones need to reach. All the contenders satisfy the criteria we listed, allowing users to have a good user experience. The phones that offer additional features and a more consistent performance stand a chance to win the best smartphone under ₹50,000 awards. Let us see our baseline expectations from a good sub-₹50,000 smartphone in 2021.

1. Build Quality: The phone should have good build quality and a glass-based screen protection panel. Phones get higher marks for featuring metal frame and IP rating for dust and water resistance rating.
2. Display: 6-inch (or bigger) IPS LCD or OLED panel with Full HD resolution and 600 nits (or higher) of brightness. Phones with a high refresh rate and HDR10 content playback are preferred.
3. Processor: A high-end octa-core 64-bit processor with powerful graphics to be able to play casual games at high settings and popular e-sports games at low or medium graphics.
4. RAM: 6GB or more
5. Storage: 128GB or higher
6. Front Camera: 8MP or higher resolution with Full HD video recording at 30fps.
7. Rear Camera: 12MP (or higher resolution) primary camera with OIS and an ultrawide camera with 4K recording at 30fps. Phones with bigger sensors, a telephoto camera, and 4K 60fps video recording are preferred.
8. Connectivity: GPS, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0 (or newer), NFC, and USB Type-C port.
9. Battery: 4,000mAh (or higher) capacity. Devices with higher battery capacity are preferred.
10. Charging: 18W (or faster). A smartphone should be able to charge its battery fully in around an hour. Phones with wireless charging and faster charging are preferred.
11. Software: Running Android 11 (or newer) or iOS 15 at the time of writing the article with the promise of two more Android OS update or three more iOS updates.
12. Extras: Fingerprint Reader, Secure Face Unlock, Wireless Charging, Reverse Wireless Charging.

Most smartphones in our contender list pass all the criteria listed above. Some phones go above and beyond and offer additional features like a high-refresh-rate display and HDR10, IP53 rating for dust and water resistance, stereo speakers, 48MP/64MP primary cameras with 4K video recording, and 5G connectivity.