Many people rely on their phones for navigation, listening to music and taking calls while on the move. It’s important all these things are set up before you start your journey, to ensure you’re not in breach of the law.
Your best bet is to get a car mount or holder, which will ensure you can use your phone hands-free. The good news is that there are plenty of options out there, with most supporting a wide range of modern smartphones.
Here are our favourites, including magnetic, air vent-loaded, suction cups and more.
If you’re looking for more useful car accessories, check out our round-up of the best dash cams.
This is a car holder and fast wireless charger all rolled into one, supporting speeds of up to 10W. Any device capable of the Qi standard will work here.
The holder securely attaches to your car’s air vents, and its design means the viewing angle of your device can be adjusted by 360º.
Once you plug the cable into the back of the case, simply drop your phone onto the pad and it will automatically closed to secure it in place, starting the charging process. To release, just tap the side of the mount and it will instantly open up again.
The mount comes with the SnapTo tab, though you don’t need it if you already have a SnapTo case.
What we liked about Moshi’s Universal mount is that it’s versatile. You can either use the adhesive suction cup attachment to stick it onto your dashboard or windscreen, or you can clip the mount directly onto your air vent.
The mount also pivots 360-degrees on a metal ball, so you can rotate your phone whichever way you wish. The only issue we had was that the ball takes a bit of effort to actually rotate.
This isn’t necessarily a drawback, as you wouldn’t want the pivot to be so loose that your phone starts drooping mid-journey. The mount can support up to 1kg, after all. Just be sure to position the phone to the angle you want beforehand.
The Yosh mount works in two parts. One part is a stainless steel frame that slots into the horizontal or vertical air vent, with the circular magnet facing outwards. Keep in mind this mount does not work with circular vents.
The other is an adhesive metal plate that goes onto the back of your phone, or within your phone case. Once the plate is attached to your phone, your phone should secure onto the mount right away. The magnetic design allows easy 360- degree rotation of your phone without any structural clutter.
The only possible drawback is that the adhesive on magnet might be hard to remove from your phone afterwards. We haven’t tested this for ourselves though.
Yosh also offers a lifetime warranty.
Suction cup mounts allow you to place your phone almost anywhere but they can sometimes be unreliable, falling off over time. A vent mount won’t do this and we really like Belkin’s simple but effective design.
You only need to choose a vent to put it on and the mount has two sizes for the grip depending on how thick the plastic is. At the back is a clever clips so you can keep a cable handy. The vent mount also rotates so you can quickly switch between portrait and landscape depending on the app you’re using.
We’ve found the mount grips nicely and you can also use your phone with the case on. If you feel like it, the device also comes in a premium version that has leather padding (£24.99/US29.95).
Naturally the Fast Wireless Car Charger Mount will work only with phones that support the Qi wireless charging standard, but even if your phone does not support this it’s a handy gadget to leave in the car. It uses a ball joint to achieve positioning at any angle, and clips on to an air vent so there’s no need to obstruct your view of the road.
The clamp is adjustable, allowing you to cradle a phone that is between 65- and 90mm in width. Height is unrestricted. You will find a Micro-USB cable in the box, though you’ll need to supply your own car charger into which you can attach this.
The Choetech offers wireless charging up to 10W, but to achieve this the car charger will also have to support 10W. It can also output 5W or 7.5W, making it suitable for whichever smartphone you have to hand.
With the Pitaka MagMount Qi, you can simply get in, attach your phone to the mount via magnets and away you go – safe in the knowledge that it’s also charging.
It works best with the Pitaka MagCase (except the MagCases for S9 and S9 Plus) which you would need to buy separately. The MagCases come with a metal plate integrated into its back.
The magnet does a great job of holding onto your phone and the ball joint gives a decent amount of adjustment. You just need to plug the mount into your car’s 12v socket with it’s MicroUSB port and you can just leave it ready to go.
The MagMount is available three styles: the suction cup, vent mount and CD slot mount. Those same styles are available without wireless charging too (£14.29), so you can choose which one suits your car the best.
US visitors can click here to see the vent mount, suction cup and CD slot options (all US$15.99).
The mount locks onto your windscreen using a suction cup and features a 10-inch, flexible arm that gains additional support from a foam dashboard rest.
You can also rotate your phone 360-degrees with this mount by pressing a release button. We like that the cradle also adds additional protection for your phone, almost like a rugged case, as its made of a shock-absorbing sponge.
The only detractor is that your phone may be slight farther away from you if you mount it on the windshield – however, the sticky 3M gel pad lets your mount the holder onto your dashboard for a closer view.
The mount allows 360-degree rotation as well and is compatible with phone screen sizes ranging from 2.3 inches to 3.5 inches.
Like the Yosh mount, the Wuteku mount also features the strength of a neodymium magnet and a metal plate that attaches behind your phone. Instead of slotting into your car vent, howver, the Wuteku mount secures onto your dash with a heat-resistant 3M adhesive.
What’s unique about this mount is that it pivots on a stainless steel ball allowing full 720-degree rotation. The Wuteku mount can also be used on motorcycles.
The mount itself is a spring-loaded padded grip that holds your phone tight in place. You can also adjust the thickness of the bit that goes into the CD drive using the three extra pads that Mpow provides. Each pad has a different thickness, so you can attach the one that works best for you.
The mount is compatible with phones and devices up to 5.5 inches in screen size and also fully rotatable.
In the US, a slightly different version is available for US$32.99.
Somrata researches and writes about the best tech deals to help readers make smart, informed buying decisions. She’s an expert on accessories and also reviews laptops, phones, audio and other devices.
