What are the best waterproof phones?

What are the best waterproof phones you can buy right now? We round up our favourite water resistant smartphones covering a range of budgets.

Water resistance is already a common feature for smartphones in 2018. A waterproof mobile can be played with in the bath, take selfies in the shower and survive an accidental tumble into the toilet. So while it’s far from an essential phone feature, waterproofing is definitely a reassuring bonus.

Of course, you’ll generally have to pay up if you want the benefit of a water resistant handset. It’s not a feature often found on affordable mobiles, instead usually reserved for flagships. That said, you can find some mid-range phones with waterproof designs. We’ve included these below, in our list of the best water resistant smartphones that you can buy right now.

Sony Xperia XZ Premium

Price:	£550
Release Date:	May 2017
Our Review:	Sony Xperia XZ Premium review

Sony first showed off its shiny new Xperia XZ Premium phone at MWC 2017, with the selling point being the first 4K HDR screen packed onto a handset. Sony’s latest 19-megapixel Motion Eye camera makes it another strong choice for smartphone snappers, but it’s media fans who will get the biggest kick from the Premium.

The Xperia XZ Premium is of course fully water resistant, so you can enjoy some Netflix action on that massive, gorgeous display while reclining in the bath.

Sony Xperia XZ1

Price:	£500
Release Date:	October 2017
Our Review:	Sony Xperia XZ1 review

If the Premium is a little unwieldy for your tastes, Sony’s Xperia XZ1 may well be the answer. This flagship handset offers a more manageable 5.2-inch size, while still boasting HDR visuals, powerful performance and that awesome MotionEye camera. Oh, and it’s fully water resistant again, so you can take some wicked selfies of yourself in the shower.

You can pick up the Xperia XZ1 in a small selection of cool colours right now.

Samsung Galaxy S8

Price:	£679
Release Date:	April 2017
Our Review:	Samsung Galaxy S8 review

Its look and feel herald the next generation of smartphone design, its feature-set is arguably the richest and most diverse on the market (we didn’t even mention Samsung DeX, the new Gear VR and the new Gear 360 it plays nice with) and yet Samsung hasn’t thrown out what made its last flagships so good, only reworking and refining the great camera experience still on offer from the S7 twins.

Of course, at £689 SIM-free the Galaxy S8 is an unsurprisingly expensive way to jump on the waterproof phone bandwagon. There’s something special about the S8 however, enough so that it perhaps justifies its high price tag more readily than Apple or LG’s flagship phones (see later for more on the iPhone 7 and LG G6, which are both water resistant too).

Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus

Price:	£759
Release Date:	April 2017
Our Review:	Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus review

If 5.8-inches simply isn’t big enough for you, check out Samsung’s S8 Plus instead. The Plus model is once again water resistant and sports even stronger specs, not to mention that larger display.

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Price:	£799
Release Date:	October 2017
Our Review:	Samsung Galaxy Note 8 review

Hey, look, another Samsung phone. In fact, the Note 8 is the most expensive Galaxy right now, offering the same beautiful water resistant finish of the S8 and S8+. It’s a little bigger at 6.3-inches, plus you get the benefits of the S Pen stylus. This allows you to sketch up a storm, edit documents on the fly and interact with apps in whole new ways.

There’s none of those spontaneous combustion problems like we saw on the Note 7, either. Although even if there was, at least you could dunk it in the fish tank to put out those flames.

iPhone 8 and 8 Plus

Price:	£649
Release Date:	October 2017
Our Review:	iPhone 8 Plus review

Apple’s last couple of iPhone generations have packed a water resistant design, and the new 8 and 8 Plus are no different. Sure, owners of recent iPhones have no real reason to upgrade, despite the addition of wireless charging and the improved camera tech. However, there’s no denying that these handsets are among the best around. Plus, you can use them to update your Instagram while buggering about in the sea. Nice one.

iPhone X

Price:	£999
Release Date:	November 2017
Our Review:	iPhone X review

For the tenth anniversary of the iPhone, Apple released its most expensive model to date. This gorgeous handset, which is most definitely called the iPhone ‘ten’ and not the iPhone ‘X’, offers some sleek design work – although that notch is still pretty bloody annoying. And as you’d expect given that super steep asking price, the iPhone X is water resistant just like the 8 and 8 Plus.

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

Price:	£599
Release Date:	November 2017
Our Review:	Huawei Mate 10 Pro review

The Mate 10 Pro is one of Huawei’s very first IP67-rated smartphones, so it can survive an accidental swim in the fish tank. That water resistance is far from its only desirable feature, however.

Huawei’s latest flagship promises a lot, and delivers in practically every instance. It’s a great-looking handset and a very capable performer too, with some powerful features for productivity thrown in. On top of that you get one of the best dual lens cameras around, with enough smarts to take gorgeous snaps in almost any conditions.

Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact

Price:	£400
Release Date:	October 2017
Our Review:	Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact review

The XZ1 Compact sports many of the same premium components as the full-sized Xperia XZ1, including the very capable Snapdragon 835 processor and cutting-edge Motion Eye camera. And of course you get the same great water resistance, even though the design has been seriously altered.

Rather than that flagship finish, you get a very lovable miniature device. We particularly approve of the more colourful models, which really stand out from the crowd.

Motorola Moto X4

Price:	£350
Release Date:	November 2017
Our Review:	Motorola Moto X4 review

The Moto X4 offers quite similar specs to the great value Moto G5s Plus on paper, packed inside an attractive and super-shiny glass and metal design. As well as looking nicer, the X4 also boasts full water resistance. Obviously, or it wouldn’t be in this list.

Considering it’s just £350, that makes the Moto X4 one of the most affordable waterproof handsets in 2018 so far.

As well as sleek hardware, this blower boasts a pleasingly vanilla version of Android OS. Motorola has added some genuinely useful features, including one-handed controls, gesture support and a means of replacing all passwords with the fingerprint sensor. All that, and you can drop it in the toilet with no repercussions.

Samsung Galaxy A3 2017

Price:	£300
Release Date:	March 2017
Our Review:	Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 preview

If your wallet isn’t fat with stacks, take a look at Samsung’s Galaxy A3 2017 instead. This compact 4.7-inch phone is a great way to enjoy water resistance on a budget, offering a dinky design that’s easy to handle. You get a 720p HD display, 13-megapixel rear camera and a smooth enough everyday experience.

Samsung Galaxy A5 2017

Price:	£350
Release Date:	March 2017
Our Review:	Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 review

Sure, the Galaxy A5 2017 isn’t a perfect mid-range phone, but it consistently hits all the key notes you’d expect from a device in its class. Happily, you get a distilled version of many of the Galaxy S7 flagship phone’s better features, and that includes full water resistance.

If you’re after premium design, solid camera tech and a fingerprint sensor on a stricter budget, then the 2017 revision of the A5 certainly delivers.