The Best Phone Grip

Buying Guide

Even if you use a case for some extra grip, your phone can still slip out of your hand and get damaged. That’s where a phone grip can help you as it attaches to the back of your phone and gives you something to easily hold as you’re taking pictures, making calls and performing other tasks. Plus, phone grips often double as small kickstands that come in handy for filming or watching videos. 

Phone grips either attach to your phone using a magnet, use a strong adhesive or slide on the sides. They come in three main forms that include PopSockets, ring grips and phone loops. You’ll want to know the pros and cons of these before you begin shopping since they differ in terms of durability, comfort, convenience and functionality.

PopSockets come in various forms, including standalone options that stick to or slide on your phone as well as wallet styles. They feature a base, an accordion structure you can open and collapse, and a round top that you can often swap out for different graphics or colors. These grips offer lot of variety, and handy accessories such as magnetic mounts are available. However, the plastic used can affect the grip’s durability.

Usually made of metal or plastic, ring grips are a low-profile option with a small base and a ring you can grasp with your finger. These can be particularly durable if you get a metal one, and you can usually rotate them 360 degrees. Many ring grips work well as a compact kickstand for your device and suit different angles. You can also find larger versions of ring grips where you get a small wallet that has the ring attached.

Made of elastic, silicone or another material, a phone loop is another option you can consider. You can find this type of grip in small sizes that fit a finger and larger sizes that can accommodate your whole hand. Phone loops are particularly comfortable to hold, and you can find compact versions that make it easy to lay your phone flat or slide it in your pocket. They may also be less likely to break during use.

• It’s most common and convenient to stick the phone grip on the middle of your phone’s back, especially if it’s a magnetic one. However, you get more flexibility with grips that use an adhesive, so you might opt to place the grip lower if you want to use it as a kickstand.
• Keep in mind that a phone grip can create inconveniences if you charge your device wirelessly. You can overcome these the easiest either by choosing a grip you can quickly remove – such as a magnetic or slide-on style – or buying something flat enough to not interfere with the wireless charging function. In some cases, an adhesive-based grip will also have a part – such as the ring or top – you can remove temporarily for charging.
• Unless you want to risk dropping and damaging or losing your phone, avoid holding only on to your phone grip and not the phone itself. A magnetic grip particularly is at risk of falling off and making you drop your phone if you do this, but a weakened adhesive can also cause this.
• Phone grips are often designed for use with a case. Not only will using a case protect your device, but it will often make an adhesive-based phone grip stick better. You’ll want to make note of any specific case types of textures your grip won’t work with. If you don’t want to use a case, though, you can shop around for phone grips that don’t require one.
• You’re not limited to using this accessory only with phones as grips can also work with tablets. Some manufacturers create extra-large versions for this purpose, while PopSocket makes its grips suitable for either device type. 
• If you have issues getting your phone grip’s adhesive to stick, make sure you’re not using an incompatible case and that the surface is clean and dry. The grip’s manufacturer might specify that you can rinse off the adhesive itself in case it has become dirty. If you’ve had the grip a long time, the adhesive may no longer be good, so you may need a replacement.
• You can have issues with residue after you remove a phone grip with adhesive. Rubbing alcohol will usually get that off.
• Consider opting for a set of phone grips to have on hand in case one of yours breaks or loses its ability to attach to your device.