Dual-SIM phones used to only commonly be found in other parts of the world, but now there are a number of them available in the UK, with ever more arriving, including some high-end and high-profile handsets.
Having a dual SIM card slot in your phone has a number of potential benefits. For example, you might have one work SIM and one personal one. Or one for use in the UK and one with better international rates for use abroad.
They won’t be useful to everyone, but if you carry two phones now or can think of situations where a different number or network would be helpful, then a dual-SIM phone is well worth considering. With that in mind we’ve created this guide to the best dual-SIM smartphones currently available in the UK.
Note: Some phones are sold in both dual and single-SIM versions, so before buying any double check that you’re getting the right model.
The Xiaomi Mi 8 comes from a company that’s only just starting to break into the UK, but it could soon become a household name, as Xiaomi is a brand that makes great phones at great prices.
The Xiaomi Mi 8 is an example of that, with a big, high-quality 6.21-inch Super AMOLED screen, a 1080 x 2248 resolution, and high-end power, thanks to a Snapdragon 845 chipset and 6GB of RAM.
It also has a pair of 12MP cameras on the back and a 20MP camera on the front, plus facial recognition and a fingerprint scanner, all wrapped up in a premium shell, with a glass back and a metal frame. It’s a flagship through and through, yet it vastly undercuts rivals. And of course, it has a dual-SIM card slot too, which is something most rivals still don’t.
You’ll find the Honor 10 elsewhere on this list, but if you want a dual-SIM phone on a tight budget then the Honor 10 Lite is the phone for you.
It has a 6.21-inch 1080 x 2340 screen, a stylish all-screen design, a dual-lens rear camera with 13MP and 2MP lenses, a 24MP front-facing camera, a 3,400mAh battery, 64GB of storage, and a decent amount of power, thanks to an octa-core Kirin 710 chipset and 3GB of RAM.
This is nowhere near as good a phone as most in this list, but it’s also nowhere near as expensive and you’re getting a lot of tech for your money.
The Samsung Galaxy A70 is a bit more expensive than the Honor 10 Lite, but it’s still comfortably on the affordable end of the spectrum.
What you get, other than a dual-SIM, includes a massive 6.7-inch 1080 x 2400 Super AMOLED screen, an in-screen fingerprint scanner, and a triple-lens rear camera, with a 32MP main lens, an 8MP wide-angle lens, and a 5MP depth sensor, making this a great phone for photography.
The Samsung Galaxy A70 also has an enormous 4,500mAh battery so it can keep going for a long time, and there’s a hefty 6GB of RAM, an octa-core Snapdragon 675 chipset, and a substantial 128GB of storage, all for a mid-range price.
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The Honor 10 is the full fat version of the Honor 10 Lite above and while it’s no longer brand new, it’s still very impressive.
It's a phone that would stand out even if it wasn’t a bargain, as it has a shimmery glass finish which in certain shades can shift between two colours, making it far more eye-catching than most handsets.
But its specs are no less impressive. As well as a dual-SIM slot the Honor 10 has a 5.84-inch 1080 x 2280 screen with slim bezels and a notch. It also has a high-end Kirin 970 octa-core chipset and 4GB of RAM. Plus, there’s up to 128GB of storage, so there’s plenty of space, and there’s a dual-lens camera on the back, with both 16MP and 24MP lenses.
Those are joined by a 24MP lens on the front, and the phone also has facial recognition and a fingerprint scanner. Give it a try and you might wonder why anyone would spend twice as much on a phone.
The Huawei P20 Pro was one of the best phones of 2018 even before you factor in its dual-SIM credentials.
It stands out in large part thanks to its triple-lens rear camera, which can take better photos than most other smartphones and excels even in the dark.
The P20 Pro also has a 6.1-inch 1080 x 2240 screen and it uses AMOLED, offering better contrast than LCD and vibrant colours.
The phone is also water-resistant, packs flagship power, masses of storage and a stylish design similar to the Honor 10, with a metal and glass build and the option for a back that can shift between colours.
The Huawei Mate 20 Pro might just be the best phone of 2018. It’s definitely up there. Of course, it wouldn’t make this list if it wasn’t also a dual-SIM phone.
Aside from taking two SIM cards, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro stands out thanks to a super powerful and super smart Kirin 980 chipset. This was the first 7nm Android chip and outmatched any other Android chipset from 2018 – though a couple of 2019’s chips have it beat.
The Mate 20 Pro also has a mammoth 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage and a class-leading triple-lens rear camera. Plus, there’s a huge 6.39-inch 1440 x 3120 Super AMOLED screen and a massive 4,200mAh battery, delivering two days of life.
Other highlights include an in-screen fingerprint scanner, a stylish design and clever features, like the ability to use the Mate 20 Pro as a wireless charging pad for other devices.
There isn’t much this phone doesn’t have. It’s basically a bigger, better, smarter alternative to the Huawei P20 Pro.
The Samsung Galaxy S10 is one of the highest profile phones of 2019, but one thing that doesn’t get much attention is its dual-SIM card slots.
Their presence make it eligible for this list, but it wouldn’t appear if it wasn’t also a great phone in all the ways you’ve probably already heard.
This is a true, modern flagship, with a superb 6.1-inch 1440 x 3040 Dynamic AMOLED screen, complete with HDR10+ support for stunning visuals.
It also has an in-screen fingerprint scanner, and a premium, polished design with a curved display, a punch-hole camera, a glass back, and water resistance.
Then there’s its triple-lens rear camera, and its top-end power, achieved using an Exynos 9820 chipset (which is the best available from Samsung) and 8GB of RAM. This isn’t quite the best flagship around – and most of the better ones are also dual-SIM, which is why the S10 isn’t ranked higher in this list, but it’s still a brilliant phone.
The iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR are all dual-SIM phones, but they’re a bit different to most, as while one slot takes a standard nano SIM card, the other is an eSIM. That’s an electronic SIM that you can’t remove, rather it can simply change networks without changing the physical card. This could be the future of SIM cards, though right now not all networks support it.
Beyond its high-tech SIM, the iPhone XS is just an all-round great phone. It’s so famous you probably already know all about it, but if not, know that highlights include a stunning, slim design with an all-screen front, one of the most powerful processors around, and a top-class 5.8-inch 1125 x 2436 Super AMOLED screen.
The iPhone XS also has arguably the best facial recognition on a phone, through Face ID, and a brilliant dual-lens rear camera.
Plus, it’s water-resistant, and runs iOS, making it an instantly appealing option for anyone not into Android.
If you want something bigger though, consider the iPhone XS Max, while for something a bit cheaper take a look at the iPhone XR. They’re all great phones.
The Huawei P30 Pro is Huawei’s best phone, just edging it over the Huawei Mate 20 Pro. Of course, like so many Huawei handsets it’s dual-SIM, but that’s not why it sits so high in our ranking.
The Huawei P30 Pro also has a 6.47-inch 1080 x 2340 OLED screen with almost no bezel at all. There’s a beautiful glass back design – optionally with a gradient colour scheme, there’s water resistance, an in-screen fingerprint scanner, a huge 4,200mAh battery, and perhaps most excitingly of all a quad-lens rear camera.
This includes a 40MP main lens, a 20MP ultra-wide lens, an 8MP telephoto lens and a Time-of-Flight (ToF) depth-sensor, combining for arguably the best camera setup on a phone at the time of writing – especially as there’s also a 32MP camera on the front.
The Huawei P30 Pro is also very powerful – though not quite the most powerful – with its octa-core Kirin 980 chipset and 8GB of RAM. With a bit more power and a slightly sharper screen, this would be topping our list.
The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus is arguably the best phone on the planet and almost certainly the best dual-SIM phone.
It’s basically a bigger, better version of the Samsung Galaxy S10, with a top-quality 6.4-inch 1440 x 3040 Dynamic AMOLED screen, a top-end octa-core Exynos 9820 chipset, up to a mammoth 12GB of RAM and 1TB of storage, three rear cameras (a 12MP main one, a 12MP telephoto one, and a 16MP wide-angle one), and two front-facing ones (a 10MP main one and an 8MP depth sensor).
The Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus also has a big 4,100mAh battery, an in-screen fingerprint scanner and basically the same great design as the standard S10. There are no major weak points here, making this a top choice – just as long as you can afford it.
So there you have it. While these ten handsets aren’t the only dual-SIM phones they are arguably the best.
They’re all high-end but suited to different tastes and budgets. The Xiaomi Mi 8, Honor 10 Lite, Samsung Galaxy A70 and Honor 10 are surprisingly affordable, making them good options if you can’t justify a full flagship price tag. The Huawei Mate 20 Pro, Huawei P20 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S10 meanwhile are great Android flagships but not quite the best.
The iPhone XS is arguably even better and certainly a better choice for iOS fans – though also consider the iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR if you want something bigger or cheaper respectively.
Then there’s the superb Huawei P30 Pro in second place and in first place there’s the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus. This is a phone with more features packed in than you’ll know what to do with and importantly it does a great job of all the basics as well. Just be sure you want a big screen and can stomach the high price.
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