Best compact cameras of 2026
Updated 2026-10-30 · 2 min read · prices update with every price check
Compact cameras are back. People who grew up on phones want a camera that looks and feels like a camera but still fits in a pocket, and makers have answered with a wave of new ones. The catch: the best are hard to find and the cheapest are often old stock. Here is what is worth buying, with today's prices.
If you want older, cheaper "digicams" for their look, we have a separate digicam page with every compact we track.
Our picks
- 5
Sony RX1R IIIFull frame · 61 MP · 4K 30p · 498 g
UK £3,600 · EU €3,999.99 used · AU A$6,904.40 · SG S$6,199
- Best pocket camera: Ricoh GR IV. An APS-C sensor and a sharp 28mm lens in a body that really does fit a jeans pocket. The pick for street photography.
- Best looking: Fujifilm X100VI. A 40 MP APS-C sensor, a 35mm-equivalent lens and a hybrid viewfinder. It is the camera everyone wants, so check how many stores have it before you pay a premium.
- Best all-rounder: Canon PowerShot V1. A 1.4-inch sensor with a zoom, a flip-out screen and good video. Great for travel and for vlogging.
- Best travel zoom: Panasonic Lumix ZS99. A very long zoom on a small sensor, at a low price. Best in daylight.
- Best image quality: Sony RX1R III. A full-frame 61 MP sensor in a compact body, at a price to match.
Fixed lens: zoom or prime?
A prime (a single focal length, like the GR IV or X100VI) gives you sharper pictures, a brighter lens and a smaller camera, but you zoom with your feet. A zoom (like the ZS99 or V1) is more flexible for travel and family events. If you aren't sure, a zoom is the safer first choice.
Every compact camera with a US price today
Compacts released since 2023 with a new US price today, cheapest first:
- 7
Waterproof?
For the beach and the pool, the OM System TG-7 is waterproof without a case. Or look at an action camera: see the best action cameras of 2026.
For the rest of our picks across every kind of camera, see the best cameras of 2026.