Top 5: The best smartphones under 50 euros – inexpensive and without a contract

Smartphones come in many price ranges. We therefore offer regularly updated leaderboards up to 100 euros, up to 150 euros, up to 200 euros, up to 300 euros, up to 400 euros, up to 500 euros and up to 750 euros. Who strikes here, gets the best for the money – promised! We not only pay attention to technology, but also to price and topicality. Smartphones that appear in these top lists are therefore usually not much older than a year – this is the only way to ensure that there are a few security or even major updates to a new operating system version.

But what if you want to spend as little money as possible on a smartphone and how up-to-date is only secondary? Then you’ve come to the right place in this top 5 of the best smartphones up to 50 euros! However, we would like to point out clearly that interested parties should think very carefully before buying whether they really want to strike. Later in the article we will explain why this is so.

In general, there are fewer smartphones up to 50 euros than you might think. This is because most manufacturers and dealers simply take old models out of the range at some point due to a lack of demand. So if you’re hoping for a six-year-old former top model for the price of two crates of beer, you’ll usually be disappointed. We wouldn’t want to go back to used smartphones of this age anyway – the battery of such a classic car should already show clear signs of wear, even if used very carefully.

It’s different with new models. There shouldn’t be any problems here since the battery performance primarily decreases over time as a result of charging and discharging, but new models should not be used regardless of the production date. However, such models have not received any support from the manufacturer for quite some time – this should also be kept in mind. In addition, there is the potential security risk that such outdated software versions can pose. Especially with outdated Android versions and security patches, it is likely that security gaps are not closed and that attackers can get hold of the users’ personal data. Those interested in particularly cheap smartphones should not ignore this important aspect.

Honestly: If you really expect hints at this point about which technology you can “look forward to”, you are rather wrong here. For less than 50 euros, interested parties – as hard as that may sound – have to take what they can get. If a 720p resolution display or Snapdragon processor pops out of a phone in this price range, it’s pure luck.

Of course, the question arises as to whether it even has to be a smartphone with as little output as possible. If you only want to make calls or simply be reachable, you should look out for so-called feature phones. Our guide Nokia, Doro & Co. shows such mobile phones mainly for making calls: Mobile phones for making calls & for emergencies from 12 euros. These mobile devices are available for less than 15 euros, as you can see in our price comparison:

Smartphones can do much more – at least in theory. If you are still looking for a portable mini computer for making phone calls, navigating, surfing the Internet or listening to music for as little money as possible, you will get help from us in this list of the best.

The best-equipped smartphone in this leaderboard is the Vodafone Smart N8 – and that comes from 2017. The model is the only one that offers 720p resolution for the small 5-inch display, plus a main camera with 13 megapixels and a front camera with 5 megapixels . In addition to Micro-USB, there is even LTE and NFC as well as Wifi 4. The reason for this is the built-in Mediatek MT6737 with at least four Cortex-A53 cores. There is also 1.5 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal memory, which users can expand using a micro SD card. At 128 GB, however, it’s over again. The built-in battery is 2400 mAh and the 151 gram model is controlled by Android 7. At around 43 euros, the Smart N8 is even one of the cheapest smartphones under 50 euros.

The Alcatel 1X 5059D is even more “current” and dates from 2018. It “even” offers Android 8.1 in the Go edition. The 5.3-inch screen only has a resolution of 960 × 480 pixels. After all, the main camera also offers 13 megapixels and there are again 5 megapixels at the front. LTE and 16 GB of expandable internal memory are also on board, but NFC is not. A quad-core chipset from Mediatek serves as the drive.

From here on, prospective buyers have to reckon with clear cuts compared to the first-placed models. The Mobistel Cynus E4 dates back to 2015. Accordingly, it’s no wonder that the even older Android version 4.4 is installed here and the hardware turns out to be quite a bit weaker. Content on the 4-inch IPS LCD appears anything but sharp with 854 × 480 pixels. The camera is 8 megapixels at the back and 2 megapixels at the front. In addition, there is only 512 MB of RAM and 4 GB of internal memory, which can be expanded to 32 GB. There is no LTE here and NFC is also foreign to the E4. The battery is only 1350 mAh, but can be changed without tools if buyers have a second one ready.

And it’s even less: The Mobistel Cynus F5 comes from 2013 and therefore only offers Android 4.1. There are only a meager 800 × 480 pixels, the main camera only has 8 megapixels and the front camera is really dark with 1.3 megapixels. Drive is a dual-core chip from Mediatek – that’s just old, not even LTE is on board.

And it gets even easier. The Imperius 2 has nothing more to offer today apart from a martial name. The smartphone, also from 2013, offers a display similar to the F5 in 4th place. The cameras only offer 5 megapixels at the back and a measly 0.3 megapixels at the front. Here, too, there is only an old dual-core processor from Mediatek and 4 GB of internal memory. 3G is the end.

A lot of technology for little money – if you are looking for that, you should switch to the leaderboards in higher price regions linked below. The best thing to do as a buyer is to budget several hundred euros. The models shown here are all particularly cheap, but due to the weak electronics they are more suitable for emergencies. This list shows: a smartphone for a maximum of 50 euros is possible, but then you just have to live with a lot of restrictions. When in doubt, any smartphone is of course better than no cell phone at all.

Or you spend more money: In our leaderboards up to 100 euros, up to 150 euros and up to 200 euros, we present great smartphones that do significantly more than smartphones up to 50 euros.