Best Mobile Phones Under Rs 15000 Available In India

Updated in September 2020.

Gone are the days when looking for mobile phones unde Rs 15000 you would see homegrown brands such as Micromax, Karbonn, Spice, Lava etc. These brands offered value for money phones but then most of these phones had average build quality, were imported from China and the after-sales services were really poor. In the past few years, many China-based brands like Xiaomi, OPPO, Vivo, Realme have entered India’s smartphone market. OEMS now offer smartphones packed with powerful specifications at an affordable price tag.  This has led to cut-throat competition in the sub- Rs 15,000 price segment.

So which are the best phones under Rs 15,000? Let’s find out.

This is a list of editorially chosen options and is not sponsored by any brand. Please feel free to ask any questions about these choices and bookmark this page for updates.

 List of Best Phones under Rs 15000

Redmi Note 9 Pro

Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 9 Pro is the successor to last year’s popular Redmi Note 8 Pro. The smartphone features a large 6.67-inch display bearing FHD+ resolution and a centrally placed punch-hole camera cutout. There is a side-mounted fingerprint scanner embedded in the power button. The device flaunts a curved glass back panel housing a square-shaped camera module in the centre. Both the front and back panels are shielded by a triple Gorilla Glass 5 on the top. The Redmi Note 9 Pro can be availed in three colour options – Interstellar Black, Aurora Blue and Glacier White.

In the photography department, the Redmi Note 9 Pro quad-camera setup comprises of a 48MP main sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide lens, 5MP macro shooter and a 2MP depth camera. The camera cutout on the front accommodates a 16MP selfie snapper. The smartphones are backed by AI features for enhancing the images along with support for RAW format. 

Internally,  the Redmi Note 9 Pro is powered by a Snapdragon 720G chipset paired with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. There is a dedicated microSD card slot for expanding storage up to 512GB. The smartphone is backed by a massive 5,020mAh battery unit with support for 18W fast charging. 

Connectivity-wise, the Redmi Note 9 Pro features a USB-C port, Bluetooth 5.0, IR Blaster, NavIC, 3.5mm headphone jack and Dual VoLTE. The smartphones also come with VoWiFi support out of the box.

The Redmi Note 9 Pro 4GB+64GB variant retails at Rs 13,999. 

Realme 7

The Realme 7 is the latest smartphone launched by the Chinese brand. It arrives as the successor to Realme 6 with significant upgrades. The smartphone sports a 6.5-inch LCD screen bearing FHD+ resolution with 90Hz refresh rate panel. There is a punch-hole cutout at the top left corner and the device features a side-mounted fingerprint scanner. On the back, the Realme 7 series houses a rectangular camera module at the top left corner. 

On the imaging front, the Realme 7 is equipped with quad-cameras. The setup consists of a 64MP main Sony IMX682 sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens, 2MP BnW unit and a 2MP macro shooter. The smartphone offers various camera modes and features including pro nightscape, starry mode, expert mode, HDR, ultra macro, slow motion and more. In the front, the Realme 7 features a 16MP selfie camera. The device supports up to 4K video recording at 30fps. 

Under the hood, the Realme 7 is equipped with a MediaTek Helio G95 gaming processor. It also features a carbon fibre cooling system to keep the temperature low. The Realme 7 is offered with up to 8GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage. There is a dedicated microSD card slot for storage expansion. The Realme 7 draws its power from a 5,000mAh battery with 30W fast charging. Software-wise, the smartphones run Realme UI based on Android 10. 

Connectivity options on the Realme 7 series include Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, GLONASS and USB-C port. The Pro variant also features ISRO’s NavIC and comes with dual stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos.

The Realme 7 6GB+64GB variant is priced at Rs 14,999 and can be purchased from Flipkart. 

Samsung Galaxy M21: 

The Galaxy M21 is Samsung’s cheapest offering under Rs 15,000 price bracket. It packs decent specifications but is quite similar to the Galaxy M30s. The smartphone offers a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with Infinity-U notch design and an FHD+ resolution. There is a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner for security purposes. 

The Galaxy M21 is equipped with the Exynos 9611 chipset, coupled with up to 6GB of RAM and up to 128GB of native storage. There is a dedicated microSD card slot onboard for additional storage. The device runs Android 10 along with the custom One UI 2 on the top. The phone draws its power from a large 6,000mAh battery that supports 15W fast charging technology via USB Type-C.

The Galaxy M21 features a triple camera setup of 48-megapixel main lens accompanied by an 8-megapixel ultrawide lens with 123-degree field-of-view and a 5-megapixel depth sensor. Upfront, the device is fitted with a 20MP selfie shooter. 

The Galaxy M21 carries a price tag of Rs 13,999 for 4GB+64GB variant and is available for purchase on Amazon. If you are looking at a top end manufacturer like Samsung offering a smartphone under Rs 15000 in India, the M21 is your best choice.

Motorola One Action

The Motorola One Action is an Android One device under sub Rs 15000 price segment. It comes with a unique action camera lens that lets users record landscape videos vertically. The smartphone comes with a 6.3-inch punch-hole display bearing an FHD+ resolution. In terms of audio, the smartphone is equipped with Dolby Atmos sound for immersive entertainment. Design-wise, there is a vertically stacked triple camera setup located at the top left corner. The Moto logo on the back panel doubles up as a fingerprint scanner.

The triple rear camera module on the Motorola One Action comprises of a 12M primary sensor, a 16MP ultra-wide Action Camera lens, and a 5MP depth camera. Up front, the Motorola One Action is fitted with a 12MP snapper with f/2.0 aperture for clicking selfies. The smartphone comes with enhanced video stabilisation to record smooth videos. The smartphone is capable of recording videos in 4K at 30fps and in 1080p at 60fps. 

In terms of performance, the Motorola One Action houses an octa-core Samsung Exynos 9609 processor clocked at 2.2GHz. It is coupled with 4GB RAM and 128GB onboard storage expandable up to 512GB via a microSD card slot. The Motorola One Action runs Android 9 Pie out of the box. Being an Android One device, it offers a clean and stock UI experience. The smartphone is guaranteed to get three-years of security updates and Android OS updates for the next two years. 

The Motorola One Action is backed by a 3,500mAh battery with support for 10W charging via USB-C port. 

The Motorola One Action costs Rs 13,999. With Android One, we can be rest assured that the Motorola One would be one of the most consistent phones under Rs 15,000 in terms of getting software updates.

Nokia 6.2

The Nokia 6.2 debuted in India last year as an Android One offering. The smartphone boasts of a 6.2-inch waterdrop display bearing an FHD+ resolution and HDR10 support. The back of the phone sports a circular camera module housing three sensors. There is also a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner. The device features a dedicated Google Assistant button. The Nokia 6.2 is offered in Ceramic Black and Ice colour options.

On the optics front, the Nokia 6.2’s triple camera setup consists of a 16MP main camera, 5MP depth sensor and an 8MP ultra-wide lens with 118-degree FoV. On the front, the device is fitted with an 8MP shooter for selfies. The Nokia 6.2 also offers 4K UHD video recording support. 

Under the hood, the Nokia 6.2 houses the Snapdragon 636 SoC. It is paired with 4GB RAM and 64GB onboard storage. For additional needs, the internal storage is expandable up to 512GB via a microSD card. Software-wise, the Nokia 6.2 is an Android One offering and runs Android Pie out of the box. Users can expect guaranteed and timely updates over the next two years as well. The Nokia 6.2 draws its power from a 3,500mAh battery unit and can be topped up via USB-C port. 

The Nokia 6.2 can be purchased from Amazon at Rs 12,499. If you are an old time Nokia fan and looking for something below Rs 15,000, then then Nokia 6.2 is your best bet.