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Is your desk clutter sending you on a hunt for a new cell phone stand? Our team of experts examined over 40 options available today and purchased the top 11 for extensive side-by-side tests. We put each model through the most common applications and evaluated each for comparative effectiveness, aesthetics, and value. You may find yourself using a cell phone stand for video viewing, video conferencing, or holding your phone as an auxiliary screen at your desk; we did the same and then some. We compared all in the fleet, guided by the sole mission of helping you find the best cell phone stand for your needs.
Style: Fixed stand, adjustable angle | Holds a Tablet: Yes
REASONS TO BUY
Stylish
Large
The Omoton Adjustable is our favorite model. We love this stand's aesthetics and user-friendly design. Despite its small footprint, it is big enough to stand out on a cluttered desk. Unlike many other options we tested, this one can also undoubtedly hold a tablet of any size without risking toppling over and creating more of a mess. The aluminum, stiff-hinged adjustment mechanism stays in place but can be adjusted quickly and easily. The stand works great for one-handed use, as its silicone base plants it securely on your desktop.
If you are trying to minimize or reduce the number and size of objects on your desk, you may not appreciate the size of the Omoton. This stand is not foldable and isn't the easiest to store. If you want a great foldable option, the Nulaxy A4 Foldable scored just a few points below the Omoton. Still, despite its larger size, the Omoton is a top-notch product and our number-one recommendation.
Simple, sleek, and versatile is the name of the game with the Omoton.
The UGreen Portable is simple, light, and compact; it's just two pieces of plastic joined by an incremented, frictioned hinge. As you open the hinge further, you get a lower-angle view. This is the lightest and most compact stand we tested. The contact points are rubberized for stability, and for the minimalist digital nomad, the UGreen slides virtually unnoticed into a mobile office.
There is no way to adjust for height, and if you want to connect a power cord or headphones to your phone, you will be relegated to landscape view. The vertical view requires a clean, unused short bottom edge of your phone. We had no issues with the construction of the UGreen, but it feels a little flimsy. The Lamicall Adjustable Foldable is another affordable option we like that folds flat.
The UGreen is ultra simple and features adjustable angle but no adjustable height.
Updated Since Testing
The model we tested did not allow for height adjustment. However, the latest version offers two different adjustments for height.
The Lamicall Adjustable Foldable impressed us with its compact profile, rubberized base and backing, and range of adjustability. This versatile model easily holds a phone or a tablet and is our go-to for travel due to its simplicity and foldable design. It's also super easy to use with headphones or while charging your phone.
The tradeoff for being compact and adjustable angle-wise is that it lacks height adjustability. The Lamicall doesn't give much height off the desk, which isn't a problem in most situations. After testing various cell phone stands, we found that angle adjustability is much more important than height adjustment options. If you want a stand that allows for more height and adjustability, see the Lamicall Gooseneck below.
We love how compact the Lamicall is. Its design makes it great for travel and cramped workspaces.
The Lamicall Gooseneck mounts to almost any edge thanks to the adjustable clamp. You can attach it to your desk, nightstand, kitchen counter, etc. We imagine this stand is most useful for individuals who want to film themselves while working with their hands. Whether you're shooting time-lapses of cooking techniques or artwork, this model gives you the height and adjustability to easily get top-down angles of you at work. It's also easy to get your phone in and out of the phone clamp, and the edge clamp ensures that your device won't fall over, even if you give your desk a hard bump.
We were not thrilled that we couldn't place the stand directly in front of us when working at a desk backed up against a wall. Additionally, dialing in the angle requires serious muscle to bend and twist the neck to achieve the desired position. That said, it is highly adjustable and can be contorted to almost any angle you like. Just note that it is not ideal for typing or working on your phone; the gooseneck is pretty bouncy, and phones will do some serious wiggling as you tap on them. All in all, Lamicall Gooseneck is ideal for people who want to film themselves from creative angles. Another adjustable option worth checking out is the LISEN Adjustable.
The Lamicall Gooseneck is perfect for filming from interesting angles and video calls.
Credit: Buck Yedor
Compare Products
Stowed stands. Left to right and top to bottom: Omoton, B-Line, Aduro, UGreen, Lamicall Portable, Nulaxy, Lamicall, ToBeoneer.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Why You Should Trust Us
We bring years of productivity, attention to detail, and of course, cell phone use to this review. We compared and assessed versatility, stability, portability, ease of use, and aesthetics throughout the testing period. Each metric was individually evaluated, and all products were directly compared, and each metric was also noted during actual "real world" use. Calibrating subjective and objective assessments to one another yields our proven and authoritative conclusions.
Our testing metrics for cell phone stands are as follows:
Versatility (30% of overall score weighting)
Stability (30% weighting)
Portability/Stowability (15% weighting)
Ease of Use (15% weighting)
Aesthetics (10% weighting)
Our primary tester on this project, Jed Porter, is well known for his work at sibling site OutdoorGearLab and as a full-time, year-round mountain guide and professional climber/skier. To optimize his time in the mountains, he has become one of our review and productivity gurus. He was joined by Buck Yedor, who brings a surplus of home goods testing experience and an extreme passion for keeping his workspace tidy. Our review team brings fundamental office productivity, careful analysis, and a burning desire to do anything but sit at our desks. We are students of efficiency and clean phone viewing/use spaces and systems.
Viewing recipes and other instructions on your phone is easier with a stand, and especially with a stand that features adjustable display angle.
Few applications of a cell phone stand require minimum bulk. However, when size matters, it is difficult to shop and compare without our first-hand observations.
All the 2020 tested products. Three "rows", upper left to lower right: Aduro, Omoton, UGreen, Nulaxy, Lamicall Portable, B-Line, Lamicall, ToBeoneer.
Analysis and Test Results
To test cell phone stands, we mainly used them in our day-to-day lives. Then, to augment our daily use, we made formal observations. We weighed and measured each stowed product. We folded and unfolded each hinge, looking for wear and introduction of "play". We tried each model with two different cell phone sizes and a small tablet and tested each with and without a charging cord plugged in.
The Lamicall Portable is light and compact, with adjustable display height.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Value
Except for the B-Land Cell Phone Holder , all models are near the same price point. That being said, the B-Land is also unique in its versatility and wearable options, which could bring more value to its cost if you are looking specifically for such features.
Likewise, if storing your smartwatch alongside your phone is a high priority, the Omoton 2-in-1 includes this option for a slightly higher price than the other models. For those requiring a sturdy model, the metal options found in Omoton Aluminum will offer more long-term value in your investment, as plastic versions may break easier. The Omoton also offers the most overall value if you are unsure what niche your cell phone stand will fill in your workspace.
The ToBeoneer is all one piece and is way simple.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Versatility
While not all stands on the market will do so, all those we tested will hold your phone vertically or horizontally and work with any phone model, size, or case configuration. The variety of viewing angles and positions differentiates the models in our test.
The B-Land is clever and simple. You have many options on how you use and deploy it.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Some adjust in nearly infinite ways, while others don't adjust at all. Gooseneck-style products are the most adjustable. The B-Land Cell Phone Holder has infinite viewing angles and adjusts for height over a range of 1-2 feet. The B-Land can be configured to hang and even wear, making the gooseneck-style products the most versatile. The desk-mounted Lamicall Gooseneck is as adjustable as the B-Land but with a much sturdier mounting system. We found the Lamicall to offer an endless amount of customizability.
Your cell phone stand isn't just for holding your cell phone.
Credit: Jediah Porter
The remainder of the products we tested are differentiated by height and angle adjustment. If the non-gooseneck products adjust for height, it is only up to a couple of inches at most. Height adjustment is nice but is secondary in importance to angle adjustment. If you have to choose angle or height, choose angle adjustment.
Angle adjustment is helpful for any task that doesn't take place at a seated desk. When lying on the couch or bed watching TV on your phone, you want your screen to be more vertical than at a desk. You want a flat screen when standing and viewing your phone, as you might when following recipe directions in a kitchen or DIY instructions at a workbench. An adjustable angle is handier than you would think. Other than the ToBeoneer, gooseneck products readily adjust for angle, as do most other stands.
Shown here is the Omoton, one of our highest scorers.
Credit: Jediah Porter
If you are a highly organized, gadget-obsessed type, this may be the stand you've been looking for. The Omoton 2-in-1 is designed to hold a phone and keep your Apple watch secure. This stand is fixed and all-aluminum, with a silicone pad to help hold it in place. We liked the sturdiness of this stand, though its footprint is large, especially if you don't plan to use it as a watch stand all the time.
Great for multi-taskers, the Omoton 2 in 1 holds a phone and an Apple Watch with ease.
Credit: Jane Jackson
Stability
In this subcategory, we looked at "bump resistance". Can you readily use the touchscreen without stabilizing the phone with your other hand? What if you accidentally kick the leg of your table? Will you dislodge it all?
Stability is the device's ability to "stick" to the surface and the phone's security within the stand. The stability of gooseneck stands is a double-edged sword. The long, flexible rods bounce around more than others. But, a full disconnect is rare because the phone is clamped in place. The B-Land phone stand only clamps on the phone end, but its mass is greater, and it has a relatively flexible rod that is stiffer than the Aduro. We had good luck stabilizing the B-Land with a heavy book on the base.
Gooseneck holders bounce when you touchscreen, but they'll vibrate back to a still viewing position.
Credit: Jediah Porter
The remaining products achieve stability with stand mass and rubber contact points. Heavier stands are more secure. All those that made our final cut have rubberized contact points everywhere they sit on a surface, and everywhere your phone contacts them. The heavier metal stands, such as the Omoton Aluminum, are stable enough to drive your touchscreen one-handed without stabilizing with your other hand. Like the eminently portable UGreen, the plastic options require two hands for most touchscreen operations.
The grey circles are rubberized, gripping pads. All non-clamping stands in our test have rubber grips like this on all contact surfaces. Pictured here is the Lamicall.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Portability/Stowability
You'll often want to take your cell phone stand where ever you take your phone. Having the ability to take your stand from home to work or a coffee shop is incredibly valuable. Our selected products vary significantly in stowed size and mass.
Gooseneck products are bulky and heavy. Only the most generous bike messenger style work satchels will have room for a stowed gooseneck holder. The rest are all much smaller. All non-gooseneck products take up less space than a can of soda. Among them, the fully folding versions are the only ones we can recommend for digital nomads. Paired with a folding keyboard, the clever technophile can closely replicate a laptop workspace with less carried mass and bulk than a legit Brooklyn slice.
A portable computing and correspondence solution is nice for travels that don't require a computer but involve more typing than your touchscreen is ready for. A good stand makes it easier.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Much of what we like about the highest-scoring Omoton Aluminum is its bulk. As it pertains to storage and transport, this bulk works against it. For dedicated desk usage, you won't notice the size in any negative fashion. Other cell phone stands like the Omoton 2 in 1 are unabashedly large. These stands don't stow easily and take up quite a bit of space on a desk.
Here's a portable computing arrangement that is way more compact than any laptop. Folding stand, folding keyboard, and your smartphone. Shown here is the Nulaxy, folded.
Credit: Jediah Porter
Ease of Use
What does it take to get your phone in position? Simpler, in this case, is often better. The ToBeoneer is easist to use thanks to its fixed-view angle and one-piece construction.
On the other end of the spectrum are the gooseneck options. Getting the optimum viewing angle with either of these can be a wrestling match. We found the B-Land easier to work with than the Aduro.
The simplest, cleanest product in our test. No moving parts and no adjustments on the ToBeoneer.
Credit: Jediah Porter
The plastic folding options can feel a little flimsy, especially when the alternatives are so robust, but it seems that the wrong sort of table drop could damage the UGreen. Though we aren't prone to intentionally testing to failure, we also aren't unfamiliar with equipment failure.
Imagine all you can do with this arrangement. Guitar practice? Car repairs? Dance lessons?
Credit: Jediah Porter
Aesthetics
Pleasing aesthetics are intertwined with function and productivity. Simple products with smooth contours scored best.
The Omoton excels in many ways, and we love all the different color options. The gooseneck models are pure function; no one was particularly enamored with their look. The ultra-simple ToBeoneer leaves lots and lots of room for function after form. This value-oriented choice could be a sculpture first and a cell phone holder without scoring any lower. It's not sculpture, but that's perhaps why it costs so little.
