It almost lives up to the hype. It’s not completely wireless—a cord connects from a wall outlet to the charging pad—and it won’t juice up your smartphone any quicker than using a traditional charging cable. Still, I feel a tinge of disappointment whenever I encounter a smartphone that doesn’t feature this capability. I’ve grown accustomed to simply placing my phone on a charging pad at night, and searching for a cable in the dark seems like a hassle. For me, it’s all about convenience.
After assessing over 100 products in recent years, my colleague Simon Hill and I have distinguished the better wireless chargers from the inferior ones (and there are certainly some poor options out there). There is an abundance of styles, shapes, and materials available, offering various choices such as stands, pads, wireless battery packs, and even models that double as headphone stands.
Don’t forget to browse our other buying guides, which include the Best Android Phones, Best 3-in-1 Apple Wireless Chargers, Best MagSafe Chargers, Best iPhones, Best Samsung Galaxy S24 Cases, and Best iPhone 16 Cases.
Updated January 2025: We’ve added chargers from Nomad, Zens, Baseus, and UGreen.
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Does My Phone Support Wireless Charging?
Not every smartphone has wireless charging capabilities, but most brands offer models that do, so check your phone model first. If it does support wireless charging, you will often see terms like “Qi wireless charging” (the standard) or simply “wireless charging.” Phones that are compatible with the latest Qi2 standard will feature the Qi2 logo and have a magnetic ring for easier alignment (similar to Apple’s MagSafe). Qi2 is designed to be backward compatible, so Qi phones can be charged on Qi2 chargers, although they may do so at a reduced speed. Unfortunately, this does not always work the other way around; for example, the HMD Skyline, the first Qi2 Android phone, cannot be charged with most Qi chargers.
Do Wireless Chargers Function with Phone Cases?
