You have a spotless Benjamin Franklin ready to buy a new Android phone. Where are you going? What are you looking for? When it comes to finding something under $100, you really have three big pools to dive into: carrier-locked phones from reputable brands, underpowered products from random six-letter labels, and mid-range models and very old flagships from resale markets.
Everyday tasks like doing quick searches, reading web pages, and watching videos aren’t a chore even on $200 devices, but these small jobs can bog down a $100 phone. Worse yet, you may also have to deal with intrusive adware pre-installed by the manufacturer or carrier the phone is linked to. With these factors taken into account, you might be surprised to hear us recommend checking out places like Swappa or, more shockingly, Facebook Marketplace before moving on to other options. We’ll break down what you can expect when looking for an Android phone you can actually afford.
What to look for when buying an Android phone under $100
Facebook Marketplace and other shopping platforms like Gazelle tend to offer more iPhones than Android devices, but you can find good deals from time to time. When it comes to smartphones specifically, our first stop tends to be Swappa. From the home page, select PhonesSO Unblockedand finally All phones unlockedthen sort by price to see all your options. Prices shown here are the lowest among the available listings by model.
Wherever you go as a thrifty electronics buyer, you’ll want to keep an eye out for model names as an indication of age. During a recent Swappa run, we found a Galaxy A15 from two generations ago for $100 and a higher-spec Galaxy A52 from five generations ago for $92. Keep in mind that most devices have been used and will likely show at least some weathering – the Galaxy A52 we saw had minor burn-ins on its LCD screen.
On a physical level, open box products are among the most overlooked transactions in the electronics industry. Best Buy offers discounted items that were either returned within their policy time frame, displayed or opened while still in stock. However, the pickings are slim, as are the savings, because the company requires you to pick up your purchases in person at the store holding that item. Aside from that, refurbished phones are also a valid option, although you should ask a few questions about them before committing.
What to avoid in an Android phone under $100
Most of the newer phones you’ll see on the market for under $100, like the Moto G Play 2026, are usually locked to specific carriers. Some retailers, like Walmart and Family Dollar, even sell phones with a year of built-in service, but usually with extremely limited data allowances. We tend to avoid these options on the basis that if you don’t like trying a new service, you should always be able to use that phone on another provider – which isn’t the case with these phones. That said, if you find one that fits your existing network preferences, you’re certainly free to do so.
We’re also generally wary of bloatware, especially when it comes to low-spec Android phones where storage space is precious and one slowdown can make another worse. Carrier-locked devices tend to have system-level services that automatically install apps on your phone. On the unlocked side, budget brand Blu has been selling phones loaded with adware for years, garnering numerous customer complaints and even a Federal Trade Commission investigation in 2018 that it’s unsafe. That’s why we rated it as the worst cheap phone brand.
If you are still looking for anonymous unlocked phones on Amazon and AliExpress, you should at least look for a minimum of 4 GB of dedicated RAM. Look beyond the larger numbers which include “virtual” RAM where the system uses some of your limited storage space for RAM-like usage.
