Best Phones for Astrophotography 2024 (Amazing Night Pics!)

You can easily take amazing pictures of the Milky Way or the moon with your smartphone in 2024. But what phone has the best camera for this?

We believe that the Google Pixel 9 is the best phone for astrophotography in 2024. It is the only top-range smartphone to feature an astrophotography mode that makes it extremely to capture amazing night photos.

For astrophotography, the Google Pixel 9 is exactly as good as the Pixel 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, and 9 Pro Fold.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is also excellent. It has the highest resolution at 200 megapixels and great in-built camera modes that give you the capacity to take amazing photos of the starry night sky.

For Apple fans, the iPhone 16 Pro is the latest and best iPhone for astrophotography, with its brilliant night mode.

These are the three best smartphones for astrophotography in 2024. See below for quick links, or read on for more detailed pros and cons.

Top Pick	Highest MP	Best iPhone
Make & Model: Google Pixel 9	Make & Model: Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra	Make & Model: iPhone 16 Pro
Resolution: 50 MP	Resolution: 200 MP	Resolution: 48 MP
Modes: Astrophotography, Night	Modes: Night, Pro	Modes: Night
Buy on Amazon	Buy on Amazon	Buy on Amazon
Buy at Best Buy	Check All Stores	Buy on Best Buy

Top Pick

Make & Model:

Google Pixel 9

Resolution:

50 MP

Modes:

Astrophotography, Night

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Highest MP

Make & Model:

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Resolution:

200 MP

Modes:

Night, Pro

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Best iPhone

Make & Model:

iPhone 16 Pro

Resolution:

48 MP

Modes:

Night

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Google Pixel 9

Best Smartphone for Astrophotography

The Google Pixel 9 Pro features one of the best cameras on the market and has a brilliant astrophotography mode.

It was released in 2024 alongside four other models in the Pixel 9 range – the Pixel 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, and 9 Pro Fold.

Note though that for astrophotography purposes, the rear camera is exactly the same in all four of these smartphones which is why we are recommending the Pixel 9 instead of the more premium options.

The main camera itself has a massive 50 MP (megapixels), a fast F/1.85 aperture, and a pixel width of 1.25 μm (this is the physical size of the pixels on the camera sensor – the higher the better for astrophotography as it means that more light is gathered per pixel).

There is also a separate ultrawide camera that operates at 48 MP that can work great for wide field-of-view landscape astrophotography images.

Google Pixel 9 Astrophotography Mode

The in-built Pixel Astrophotography Mode is fantastic. It takes multiple 16-second images, stacks them, and processes them for you all in one go, usually taking about 4 minutes in total from one press of a button.

You can see the images below where I have tested the Pixel astrophotography mode on an older Pixel phone and compared it with an image taken with a good DSLR camera of the same scene on the same night.

The first image on the left below shows a picture taken of the Milky Way core with a Google Pixel 3a smartphone using the astrophotography mode, and in contrast, the second picture on the right was taken on the same night using a modern DSLR camera (a Nikon D750):

This is in a fairly light-polluted (Bortle 5) suburban area but there are two main conclusions to draw from these images:

1. The Pixel Astrophotography image is pretty good. It has captured lots of sharp stars and the core of the Milky Way can be seen spread across the sky even with light pollution. No additional post-processing was done and it was literally taken with the press of a button with no need to adjust and master the settings
2. The image with the DSLR is better. However, this was taken with a fairly advanced camera and lens, and the image was tweaked in post-processing and I had to configure the settings myself.

Another caveat is that this first image was taken with an older Pixel model (the 3a) with a lower-spec camera than the up-to-date Pixel 9 Pro.

You can see here an example of a great Milky Way image taken with the Google Pixel 8 Pro:

Here is a great video putting the Google Pixel 8 Pro through its paces and demonstrates the Astrophotography Mode in action:

As you can see, the Google Pixel smartphones can really perform for astrophotography and we believe it is the best smartphone for astronomy photography overall.

In addition, it has an astrophotography timelapse function that no other smartphone camera has.

Pros:

• Features amazing in-built Astrophotography Mode
• Has Astrophotography Timelapse Mode
• Cheaper than Samsung S24 Ultra and iPhone 15 Pro Max

Cons

• Lower megapixel count than the Samsung S24 Ultra

Key Specifications

• Camera Resolution: 50MP (48MP when ultrawide)
• Aperture: ƒ/1.68
• Field of View: 82° (123° ultrawide)
• Pixel Width: 1.2μm
• Astrophotography Mode: Yes
• Weight: 0.43 lbs (0.19 kg)
• Size Dimensions: 152.8 mm (height) x 72 mm (width) x 8.5 mm (depth)
• Screen Size: 6.3 inches
• Screen Resolution: 1080 x 2424
• RAM: 12 GB

Google Pixel 9

The latest Google Pixel smartphone

Pros:

• Outstanding Astrophotography Camera Mode
• 50 MP Camera Resolution
• Advanced in-built Google AI

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Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Highest Megapixel Smartphone Camera

Boasting a whopping 200 megapixels, the Samsung S24 Ultra has the highest resolution smartphone camera on the market.

It has a night mode that is great for low-light photography and works well for very easy astrophotography, but it also has a great manual/pro mode that enables you to take control of the settings and really make the most of the camera for astrophotography.

Samsung S24 Ultra Astrophotography

If you watch this video you can see some pretty amazing astrophotography images taken with the S24 Ultra:

Here’s an example Milky Way image shot with a Samsung S23 Ultra to show you what you can achieve:

As you can see, the Samsung S24 Ultra is excellent for astrophotography.

It has the highest megapixel count of any smartphone and while on some other specs (pixel width, aperture, astrophotography modes) it might seem behind the iPhone 15 Pro Max and Google Pixel 9, it has been shown to produce results every bit as good.

Pros

• Astonishing 200 Megapixel Camera
• Night Mode for easy astrophotgraphy
• Pro Mode available when you need more control
• Long Battery Life

Cons

• Expensive
• No specific Astrophotography Mode

Key Specifications

• Camera Resolution: 200MP (12MP ultra-wide and 10MP telephoto)
• Aperture: F/1.7
• Field of View: 85 degrees (120 degrees when ultrawide)
• Pixel Width: 0.6μm
• Astrophotography Mode: Night Mode
• Telephoto Lens: Yes
• Weight: 0.5lbs (0.2kg)
• Size Dimensions: 162.3 x 79 x 8.6 mm (6.39 x 3.11 x 0.34 in)
• Screen Size: 6.8 inches
• Screen Resolution: 1440 x 3120
• RAM: 12GB

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The latest and greatest Samsung Galaxy smartphone

Pros:

• Huge 200MP camera resolution
• Great Night Photography Mode
• In-Built Galaxy AI

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iPhone 16 Pro

Best iPhone for Astrophotography

The latest Apple iPhones are the iPhone 15 Pro and the iPhone 15 Pro Max.

The difference with the Pro Max is the larger handset size and display screen, as well as a telephoto lens with 5x zoom capacity, rather than the 3x for the smaller iPhone model.

iPhone 16 Pro Max Astrophotography

The camera does not have an astrophotography mode but does have a night mode that works for astrophotography.

You can see how it works and what results you can get in this video:

Here’s a Milky Way image shot with an iPhone 15 Pro Max:

Overall, the iPhone 16 Pro Max camera is excellent and can definitely perform for astrophotography using the night mode.

Although it has a lower megapixel count than the Samsung S24 Ultra on this page, it does have a faster aperture and the highest pixel width on its camera sensor and this helps it deliver for night photography by better gathering light in dark conditions.

Pros

• Trusted Apple iPhone with the best iPhone camera yet
• Night Mode that excels for Astrophotography.

Cons

• Expensive
• No specific Astrophotography Mode
• Lower megapixel count than the Samsung S24 Ultra

Key Specifications

• Camera Resolution: 48 MP
• Aperture: F/1.5
• Field of View: 69 degrees (120 degrees when ultrawide)
• Pixel Width: 1.9 μm
• Astrophotography Mode: Night Mode
• Telephoto Lens: Yes
• Weight: 0.45 lbs (0.2 kg)
• Size Dimensions: 5.8 x 2.8 x 0.3 inches (146.7 x 71.5 x 7.7 mm)
• Screen Size: 6.1 inches
• Screen Resolution: 2778 x 1284
• RAM: 6 GB

Best iPhone for Astrophotography

Apple iPhone 16 Pro

Latest Apple iPhone with best camera

Pros:

• Best iPhone camera yet
• Night Mode that excels for Astrophotography

Cons:

• Expensive
• No specific Astrophotography Mode

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FAQs: Best Phones for Astrophotography

What are the best budget smartphones for astrophotography?

The three models listed above are all premium options that have the best cameras, however you can have a lot of success with some more budget friendly smartphones.

This image below was taken with a Xiaomi Rednote 13 Pro by astrophotographer Mihail Minkov:

Alternatively a good option is to go for an older (and/or refurbished) model from the Google, Samsung or Apple ranges.

Click these links to check prices:

1. Google Pixel 7a
2. Apple iPhone 13
3. Samsung Galaxy S23 FE

Smartphones vs DSLRs for astrophotography

Smartphone cameras are getting better and better and the megapixel count is rising but the sensors in camera phones are much smaller than those in modern DSLR or mirrorless cameras and so will not be able to perform as well.

Therefore, DSLR/mirrorless cameras are still better but the gap is closing and obviously just using a phone has a serious convenience advantage.

Plus learning to use a DSLR or mirrorless camera for astrophotography is much harder than just pressing a button on a smartphone.

See above in the Google Pixel 8 Pro section an example comparison of smartphone vs DSLR astrophotography.

What phones have astrophotography modes?

The Google Pixel range are the only smartphones that have dedicated astrophotography modes.

However, other cameras have great night modes (and moon modes) that can be utilized effectively for astrophotography.

Can you do astrophotography with an iPhone?

Yes, iPhones have great cameras and night modes that can be used for astrophotography. See our guide on how to do iPhone Astrophotography.

Which phone is best for moon photography?

Many phones are great for moon photography but the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro and the Huawei P40 Pro have moon modes specifically for lunar imaging.

Note, there has been some skepticism about how the Huawei moon mode works (some believe it actually inserts a separate moon image into your photo, rather than using your capture – see here).

The Samsung S23 Ultra also raised some eyebrows with it’s moon photography – see here.

How do you take a perfect moon picture with your phone?

The Vaonis Hestia is a device released in 2024 that specifically enhances your smartphone’s astrophotography capabilities – particular for lunar and solar imaging.

See our review here or check prices below.

Vaonis Hestia

$486.04

Transform Your Smartphone Into A Smart Telescope

Pros:

• Extremely easy to use - just attach your smartphone and allow the app to guide you to capture and process astrophotography images
• Compact and portable
• Future-proof with all smartphones compatible

Cons:

• No tracking will limit capacity to capture deep sky images
• Small aperture compared to a telescope

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12/20/2024 10:41 am GMT

You can also use a telescope or telephoto lens to take a photo of the moon with your smartphone.

What is stacking in astrophotography?

Stacking is a process where multiple images of the same scene are taken and then layered on top of each other. This removes the noise and produces a better image.

The Astrophotography Mode in the Google Pixel smartphones takes care of stacking the images automatically.

Conclusion: Best Astrophotography Camera Phone

Overall, we recommend the Google Pixel 9 as the best overall smartphone for astrophotography due to its excellent in-built astrophotography mode.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra is also excellent. It has a huge resolution of 200 megapixels and great in-built camera modes that give you the capacity to take amazing photos of the starry night sky.

The iPhone 16 Pro is the best iPhone yet for astrophotography, with a brilliant night mode.

Please let us know in the comments below if you have any questions.