The Best Compact Cameras That Really Fit in Your Pocket

Thanks to TikTok, the Fujifilm X100VI (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is one of the most sought-after cameras on the internet, and for good reason. It packs a very sharp 40-MP sensor in a light, compact, and portable body. It doesn't quite fit in your pocket like some of the others here (well, it might if you wear cargo pants), but the 40-MP APS-C sensor is well worth the small amount of extra bulk. (See our camera buying guide for a breakdown on sensor size and how it affects image quality.) The six stops of in-body image stabilization means you can hold this camera in your hands in low-light situations and still get sharp images.

Much of its appeal with the TikTok crowd no doubt has to do with the retro rangefinder look, but the beauty here is much more than skin deep. The fixed 23-mm lens (the equivalent of a 35-mm lens on a full-frame camera) may not zoom like the Sony above, but it's plenty sharp and has wonderful contrast. The hybrid viewfinder means you can shoot with this as though it were a rangefinder if you want, or you can use the digital viewfinder, or both combned, hence the “hybrid” term. You also get the full suite of Fujifilm's various film simulations, allowing you to produce photos that mirror the color rendering of old film stocks.

The X100VI can shoot 6.2K 30-fps video and 4K footage at up to 60 fps. That makes this camera more than capable of great video, but there's a catch: The annoyingly loud focusing noise. I'd say the X100VI is fine for short clips and casual video, but not a great choice for those who want a true hybrid photo/video camera. The other drawback to the X100VI is the autofocus speed; it's not great compared to the competition.

The awkwardly named ZV-1 II is the best camera I've tested for the budding YouTube or TikTok star. Sony's original ZV-1 was a decent vlogging camera, but the second, “Mark 2” as it's known, improves the original design with a wider-angle lens that makes it easier to shoot at arm's length. That, combined with the revamped controls, makes this one of the best cameras for filming yourself.

The 18- to 50-mm (f/1.8 to f/4) equivalent zoom lens is plenty sharp and wide, and the Multi-Face Recognition mode is extremely clever and effective. In this mode, the ZV-1 II will detect when another face comes into the scene and automatically stops down the aperture to keep everyone in focus. There are limits obviously, but it works surprisingly well. The onscreen controls, which use the rear touchscreen to offer a smartphone-like shooting experience, are perfect for anyone looking for higher-quality images and audio than a phone provides but wants to retain the ease of shooting that smartphones offer. The other improvement over the first version is the ability to charge via the USB-C port (which means you can bring a portable battery and recharge on the go).

OM System's TG-7 is more or less the Olympus TG-6 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) with a new nameplate on the front. The Olympus TG line of cameras has long earned a spot in our Best Action Cameras guide as our favorite underwater camera, but it's great above the water too. The 12-MP micro four-thirds sensor in the TG-7 is the lowest-resolution sensor in this guide, but it still produces great images. The bright f/2.0 to f/4.9, 25- to 100-mm optical zoom lens has good contrast, even underwater. I've printed underwater shots from the TG-6 (which has the same sensor) at 11 x 14 and found them plenty sharp. The excellent macro mode is a nice extra and makes the TG-7 more versatile than others.

I'm also a fan of the Field Sensor System, which records GPS coordinates and ambient temperature with the images. I've never found much use for that data, but it's fun to have. The 4K video tops out at 30 fps, which is good enough for most things you'd do with this camera. If you want slow-motion footage, you can shoot 1080p at up to 120 fps. One thing I noticed about the TG-7 is that it seems to have fixed the noise of the zoom lens when recording video.

It's also worth emphasizing how tough this camera is: It's freeze-proof, crush-proof, dustproof, and shockproof (you can drop it from 7 feet). It also has quite a few “real” camera features, like focus stacking for close-ups, an extensive set of add-ons and extra lenses, and even an underwater case that extends its depth rating.

The Leica Q3 (9/10, WIRED Recommends) is, like most Leicas, an absolutely fantastic camera and correspondingly priced. The 60-megapixel sensor is capable of stunning images, and the fixed 28-mm f/1.7 Summilux APSH lens has wonderful contrast. It's also a unique lens in that it's capable of manual focusing, autofocusing, and macro shooting all through very clever use of the focus ring. Just managing to make an autofocus lens easy and smooth to focus manually is a feat almost no other lens maker has pulled off. The electronic viewfinder is a 5.76-million dot OLED screen that's bright and sharp. I never had any issues with manual focusing using it. Unlike many systems I've used that require a button press, turning the focusing ring automatically zooms in to allow for precise focusing.

The Q3 is capable of shooting 8K video at up to 30 fps (H.265). There’s also Apple ProRes 422HQ support for 1080p video capture. While I would not suggest that the Q3 is a videographer’s best friend—it’s very clearly made for still shooters—it’s at least capable of recording impressive video. At $6,000, the Q3 is not for everyone. But if you can afford it and are comfortable with the 28-mm focal length, it's a great camera. You'll want to bring it with you everywhere, and it produces the kind of images that make you glad you did.

If you want a camera that's more fun to shoot with than your phone, provides immediate gratification in the form of mini prints, and can serve as a printer for any other images you have, consider our favorite Instax camera, Fujifilm's Instax Mini Evo. It's the best camera-printer hybrid in the Instax lineup. As the name suggests, it prints Instax Mini film, roughly the size of a credit card (3.4 inches x 2.1 inches). The body has a film-camera-inspired design (minus the viewfinder), but here, functions like rotating the aperture ring or ISO-style dial are used to control lens effects and film effects respectively. When you're ready to print, pull the film winder. It's clever and fun, but the design is also functional.

The Mini Evo uses a fixed aperture, f/2.0, and automatically switches shutter speed (1/4 to 1/8,000 second) and ISO (100 to 1,600) based on the exposure meter. The exposure meter is accurate in my experience. High-contrast scenes with deep shadows will stump it sometimes, but that's OK because the Mini Evo captures your image to its internal memory (about 45 images, expandable to 1 GB with a microSD card) so you can check your shot on the rear screen before printing. Once you have what you want, crank the “film wind” lever, and out comes your print.

What if you want a dedicated camera but don't want to spend $1,000 to get one? There are quite a few cheap compact cameras out there, some of which aren't even worth the $50 they're charging, but there are others that get the job done if all you want is a better way to take some quick snaps. Here are a few of our favorites:

• Kodak Pixpro FZ45 for $89: This is a great digital point-and-shoot. It’s lightweight, compact, easy to use, and affordable (especially during a time when digital cameras are going viral). It comes equipped with a 16-MP CMOS sensor, a 27-mm wide-angle lens (with 4X optical zoom), the ability to record full HD video, as well as features like red-eye removal and face detection. There’s also a 2.7-inch LCD screen to cycle through all your footage and tinker with the settings. It runs on AA batteries, and make sure they’re alkaline. Otherwise, you might run into some issues with the camera. –Brenda Stolyar
• Kodak Ektar H35 for $45: This is not a digital camera, it's a film camera. It's a half-frame film camera I think is ideal for beginners to film. It's affordable and dead simple to use—it has no controls, just point and shoot. It captures half a frame of 35-mm film for each exposure, which means you get double the shots out of a roll of film. This is my favorite camera for anyone who wants to try film without spending a fortune.

What's WIRED about compact cameras: We love compact digital cameras because they sit neatly between your phone and a big ol’ honkin’ DSLR or mirrorless camera. They're better than your phone—the larger sensors and better lenses often outdo even the best computational photography of phones—but they're more portable than a “real” camera. A full-frame mirrorless camera will blow even the best compact camera out of the water in image quality, but it won't fit in your pocket. Also, absolute sharpness, massive dynamic range, and 50 lenses to choose from do not make a great photo. Light, timing, composition. That's what you need to master.

What's TIRED about compact cameras: Not much actually. Sure, a camera with interchangeable lenses will give you more options, and larger sensors capture a bit more detail (and make it easier to get that dreamy bokeh), but they are also cumbersome, complex, and often less fun. There's a reason these are called “point-and-shoot” cameras. That's all you need to do, and there's something beautiful and inspiring in that simplicity. The one problem with compact cameras is that the industry seems to have largely abandoned them. The Sony RX100 VII is from 2019, with no sign of an VIII. Ricoh did release the GR IIIx in 2021, but the basic design and sensor hail from 2019. The excellent Panasonic Lumix LX100 II is discontinued and nearly impossible to find. Fujifilm's X100VI, the Leica Q series, and the Ricoh GR series (hopefully) are the main compact cameras on the market.

I test by taking these cameras out in the world and snapping photos in a wide range of lighting conditions, color situations, and varying levels of contrast to gauge their performance. I then print images to see how they look in the real world. I also make sure they actually fit in my pants pockets. Except jeans. Nothing fits in the pockets of jeans. Having done this for nearly a decade, I have a wide range of experience with many camera models and iterations. These picks produce the best results I've been able to achieve.

In case you were wondering, my pocket camera of choice is the Fujifilm X70. I reviewed it back in 2016 and sent it back to Fujifilm shortly thereafter. But I never really forgot about it. Finally, seven years later, I bought one off eBay. It's not a pick here because it's only available used (and that can be a crap shoot), but I do love it and it's almost always in my pocket.