Want the Pixel 10 Pro? 5 phones I recommend buying instead – and why

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ZDNET’s key takeaways

• Pixel 10 Pro faces tough competition at $999.
• Samsung, Apple, and OnePlus offer strong alternatives.
• Last year’s Pixel 9 Pro still delivers great value.

Google’s latest flagship, the Pixel 10 Pro, is finally here, bringing its Pixelized blend of AI smarts and photographic intelligence to the premium Android space. I’m always excited for the release of a new Pixel, but now more than ever, it faces some tough competition at $999.

Also: I’ve tested every major foldable phone on the market – here’s why Google is suddenly winning

If you’re on the fence about whether to pick up Google’s newest Pixel, you should consider that several other phones offer equal or greater value for your money, each with its own unique spin on speed, battery life, cameras, and software. Let’s take a look at a few key alternatives.

1. Samsung Galaxy S25

Samsung continues to offer the most direct alternative to the Pixel with the Galaxy S25 series. The base S25 starts at $799, two hundred dollars less than the Pixel 10 Pro. Even at the lower price, it runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, a beast of its own. 

Just before the Pixel event, leaked Reddit benchmarks suggested the Tensor G5 lagged behind Qualcomm’s chip, and possibly even the Pixel 9’s GPU. Whether you buy that or not, it’s worth waiting for official comparisons now that the phone is unveiled before pulling the trigger.

Also: I’ve tested every single Galaxy S25 phone – and my favorite isn’t the flagship model

Cameras remain my favorite use of Samsung’s flagships, and the base model has a respectable triple camera array, including an excellent 10-megapixel telephoto. The Ultra is a steep upgrade, but going big means you get Samsung’s impressive 200-megapixel main sensor paired with dual telephotos with a choice between 3x and 5x optical zoom. Google’s 5x telephoto is excellent, but the Ultra offers more flexibility for photographers.

The S25 ships with One UI 7 on Android 15 and comes with seven years of software and security support, matching the promise made by Google for its Pixel family. Samsung adds its own AI touches too, from on-device image generation to handy contextualization with the Now Bar. If you’re not going with a Pixel 10, Samsung’s Galaxy S25 is undoubtedly its closest counterpart.

2. Apple iPhone 16 Pro

If you’re willing to brave an ecosystem change, the iPhone 16 Pro is a solid alternative. It starts at the same $999 starting point, but its A18 Pro chip is around 52% faster than Google’s Tensor G5, according to leaked benchmarks. Apple’s flagship iPhones are known for their efficiency as well, which means squeezing all-day battery life from smaller battery cells than rivals.

Photography on the iPhone 16 Pro keeps pace with the Pixel 10 Pro in still images while continuing to pull ahead in video. Apple also added a 5x telephoto to both Pro models this year, not just the Max, making the camera array more versatile.

Also: iPhone 16 review: Why I’m recommending this model over the Pro this year

In low light, Apple’s Photonic Engine delivers strong dynamic range, and in video, the iPhone 16 Pro models support 4K video at 120 fps, including ProRes when paired with external storage. That’s something other mainstream smartphones don’t yet match.

Add in the polished titanium design, deep integration with Apple’s ecosystem, and the unique Action Button, and you have a phone that competes with the Pixel 10 Pro in areas Google usually dominates while offering strengths of its own.

3. OnePlus 13

OnePlus continues to push performance and charging speed to the limits, and I’m here for it every time. 

The OnePlus 13 undercuts the Pixel’s price slightly, yet it runs on the latest Snapdragon 8 Elite silicon, has a generous amount of RAM, and packs a massive 6,000 mAh silicon carbon battery. A full charge takes around 40 minutes to complete, and that new battery technology stretches battery life to almost two days under moderate use. For people who forget to charge their phone at night, like me, that’s a huge benefit.

I found the phone to be incredibly fast as well, thanks to all that internal horsepower. Camera operation feels snappier, games load quicker, and the lightweight OxygenOS software keeps things bloat-free but still interesting and custom. The camera array, co-engineered with Hasselblad, may not quite equal Google’s computational magic, but it is versatile enough. It’s also a lot of fun to use, and I rarely regretted the camera’s output looking at it later.

Also: OnePlus’ flagship phone is a solid alternative to the Galaxy S25 Ultra – here’s why

The real compromises come in software longevity, maxing out at four years of major updates. It’s not nearly as strong as Google’s seven-year commitment, which will rightfully matter for some users. For those who upgrade every few years, the OnePlus 13 hits a sweet spot of price, speed, and endurance.

4. Google Pixel 9 Pro

It might sound strange to suggest last year’s Pixel as an alternative, but the Pixel 9 Pro is a surprisingly smart buy. Google’s 2024 flagship shares most of its hardware with the Pixel 10 Pro, including the same triple rear camera array, 16GB of RAM, and a 120 Hz OLED display. The Pixel 10 Pro has a slightly brighter display, a slightly larger battery, and the new Tensor G5 chip that is only modestly faster than last year’s G4, according to leaked benchmarks.

Also: I still prefer my Google Pixel 9 Pro over the expensive flagships — and it’s not even close

The Pixel 9 Pro often sells for hundreds less now, which makes it an easy recommendation for Pixel fans who want most of the software perks without paying top dollar. You still get the seven years of software and security updates, features like Call Screen and Magic Editor, and you still capture photos and video that rival Google’s newest flagship.

5. Google Pixel 10

Hear me out, sometimes the best alternative is hiding in the same lineup. 

The base Pixel 10 cuts the price down to $799 while keeping much of what makes the Pixel 10 Pro appealing. It has the same Tensor G5 processor, almost all of the same AI features, Qi 2 wireless charging with Pixelsnap support, and for the first time, a triple-camera array with a telephoto lens included in a non-Pro Pixel. You sacrifice a bit of RAM, display resolution, and camera sensor quality, but the overall experience is very close. The slightly larger battery in the base model even means you may get better endurance than the Pro.

Also: I tried the standard Google Pixel 10 and didn’t miss the Pro models one bit

The only AI features missing from the baseline Pixel 10 include an enhanced version of Best Take that automatically suggests a composite image for you, and Pro Res Zoom up to 100x. Neither of those features is a showstopper for most buyers, making the Pixel 10 deliver a far more reasonable entry into Google’s ecosystem for a few hundred bucks less.

The Pixel 10 Pro is an excellent smartphone, but it is not the only game in town. Whether you want Samsung’s raw power and ecosystem, Apple’s top-tier performance and video, OnePlus’s speed and charging magic, or Google’s own discounted 9 Pro XL or base Pixel 10, you have plenty of alternatives.

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