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Roderick Scott was a writer who reviews smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches. He tested 160 phones over 16 years. Folding Magnetic Car Phone Holder
After a new round of testing, we’ve updated this guide with all new picks, including the iOttie iTap 3 as our top pick.
Distracted driving causes thousands of accidents per year and can lead to hundreds of dollars in tickets. If you rely on your phone for driving directions, podcasts, or music streaming, or if you just want to be able to take calls safely, you may want to invest in a car phone mount. We spent more than 30 hours testing 16 phone mounts in one vehicle on both smooth and pothole-ridden residential streets, highways, and mountain roads, and we found that the iOttie iTap Magnetic line offers the best combination of safety, convenience, and stability for holding your phone.
Whether mounted on a dashboard or windshield, it is easy to set up, grips securely, and has a telescoping arm, a ball-head joint for versatile positioning, and a strong magnetic mount that supports most phones in any position.
Its extendable hook is easy to set up or remove, it securely mounts onto a car’s vent slats, and it has the same strong magnetic mount and ball-head joint as the dash version.
This mount has strong magnets that can handle bumps with minimal shakes, and it can be installed and removed single-handedly.
This dash and windshield mount has a motion sensor that opens and closes its arms to hold your phone in place, wireless charging, and options for folding phones.
This MagSafe mount gives you an additional support arm for extra stability and can charge your iPhone at speeds of up to 15 W.
Whether mounted on a dashboard or windshield, it is easy to set up, grips securely, and has a telescoping arm, a ball-head joint for versatile positioning, and a strong magnetic mount that supports most phones in any position.
Its extendable hook is easy to set up or remove, it securely mounts onto a car’s vent slats, and it has the same strong magnetic mount and ball-head joint as the dash version.
This mount has strong magnets that can handle bumps with minimal shakes, and it can be installed and removed single-handedly.
Magnetic phone mounts are the most convenient and easy-to-use options for holding your phone in a car and, in our testing, the iOttie iTap Magnetic mount delivered the best overall experience. The dash/windshield, air vent, and CD slot mounts are equally sturdy, and they’re easy to set up and take with you from car to car. In our tests, the magnets in all three versions were strong, supporting most of our phones vertically and horizontally over even the roughest terrain.
This dash and windshield mount has a motion sensor that opens and closes its arms to hold your phone in place, wireless charging, and options for folding phones.
If you want to charge your phone on a mount without dealing with cables, the iOttie Auto Sense 2 Dash & Windshield Mount is for you. This mount offers Qi wireless charging at up to 15 watts for Android phones and 7.5 W for iPhones. It also has a motion-sensor-powered automatic phone grip, strong suction for dashboard or windshield placement, an adjustable foot to fit larger phones, and a telescopic arm that can handle bumps better than that of its competitors.
This MagSafe mount gives you an additional support arm for extra stability and can charge your iPhone at speeds of up to 15 W.
If you have a MagSafe-compatible iPhone—the iPhone 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 all have Apple’s built-in magnetic-charging technology—the ESR HaloLock Qi2 Magnetic Wireless Car Charger is an affordable mount that’s easy to install. It also has a strong magnet, offers secure placement, and can support up to 15 W charging.
A wireless charging mount lets you safely use a phone while driving and keep it juiced up along the way. iOttie’s Easy One Touch Wireless 2 remains the best.
I’m a staff writer at Wirecutter who’s been covering consumer technology, including smartphone accessories, for over 15 years. I also use a car phone mount for school pickups and drop-offs, karate classes, food shopping, and picking up dinner more often than I’d like to.
Every car should have a safe way to hold a phone. Some advocates, such as the National Transportation Safety Board and Governors Highway Safety Association, say you should not use a phone while driving at all. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety says that multiple studies “have consistently linked texting or otherwise manipulating a phone to increased (crash) risk.”
But for many drivers, it’s their source for navigation, information, messages, music, and (of course) phone calls. A good smartphone mount can greatly reduce the risks of using a phone while driving by steadily holding your phone where you can easily see the screen and access on-screen buttons without blocking your view or forcing you to take your eyes off the road for too long. With the phone at dash level, using it becomes more like operating a car radio, which, according to a 2013 report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, “has little effect on driving performance or crash risk.” Phone use while driving is still a distraction, but clearly placement matters, and a good mount makes the inevitable phone use less dangerous.
We’ve researched the specs and features of more than 100 car phone mounts over the years, searching for well-reviewed and best-selling models on Amazon, from both well-known and lesser-known companies. Any good car phone mount needs to do a few things well; here’s what we look for when testing them:
With these criteria in mind, you need to consider where you want your phone mount located and how you want to attach your phone to it. There are several types of car phone mounts, and the one that will work best for you depends on your car’s dash design, your personal preferences, and, for windshield mounts, regional regulations.
In order to get a feel for how models work with both smaller and larger phone sizes, we tested each mount with a 6.3-inch Google Pixel 9 Pro and the 6.9-inch iPhone 16 Pro Max.
We evaluated how easy it was to set up the mount on the dash or windshield, attach or remove a phone, and adjust the mount in order to best position the screen. We also evaluated whether the phone remained steady while driving to easily read the screen, if the tension arms or magnet attachment held the phone securely over rough terrain, and how well the mount stayed attached to the car with different phones and driving conditions. For dash and windshield mounts, we also tested the reliability of their suction cups on a window and two textured vinyl dashboards.
Whether mounted on a dashboard or windshield, it is easy to set up, grips securely, and has a telescoping arm, a ball-head joint for versatile positioning, and a strong magnetic mount that supports most phones in any position.
Its extendable hook is easy to set up or remove, it securely mounts onto a car’s vent slats, and it has the same strong magnetic mount and ball-head joint as the dash version.
This mount has strong magnets that can handle bumps with minimal shakes, and it can be installed and removed single-handedly.
The iOttie iTap Magnetic mounts offer everything most people need in a car phone mount. We especially like the iOttie iTap 3 Magnetic Dash & Windshield Mount and iOttie iTap 3 Magnetic Air Vent Mount, plus the iOttie iTap 2 Magnetic CD Slot Mount. The mounts feature a strong magnetic plate and a ball-head joint for flexible positioning—all while maintaining a small footprint and keeping your phone firmly in place. The iTap 3 models also include a magnetic adapter ring that works on Android and pre-MagSafe iPhones, but if you have a newer iPhone, you may want to opt for our MagSafe pick.
No matter the iTap mount, the setup is simple. Every iTap 2 and 3 model is equipped with the same ball-head joint to handle every movement of your phone, whether it’s in landscape or portrait orientation. The air-vent model has a new metal hook that can easily extend and retract by twisting its rotating dial, which is located behind the plate and ball joint. It can be installed by attaching the ball joint to the vent-mount area, and with several twists of its rotating dial, to extend and lock it into place, your mount can be securely attached to your vent in seconds.
To install the dashboard mount, you need to peel off the protective film of the adhesive pad, lift the locking lever, place it on your dash or windshield, press down to create suction, and then press down on the locking lever to secure it in place. The adhesive on the dashboard mount is also reusable (you can rinse it under warm water and air-dry it before reusing). For the iTap 2 Magnetic CD Slot Mount, you should remove any discs from the CD slot, then insert the CD-slot connector and use the locking lever to secure the mount.
The iTap 3’s magnets are especially strong. The iTap 3 is equipped with 10 sets of magnets within its round plate to keep your phone in place, while the iTap 2 models only have two magnets (though they still do a good job holding your phone in place). The iTap 3’s magnets are strong enough to keep your phone mounted across uneven roads, but not so strong that the entire mount comes off when removing your phone. The iTap line previously used magnetic plates for Android and non-MagSafe iPhones, but its latest models use a MagSafe-like magnetic ring, which can be applied to your phone via a strong adhesive and can be used with or without a case.
It can keep your phone in place, no matter the terrain. While the magnets play an important part in why the iTap mounts work so well, the other big component is iOttie’s ball-head joint, which helps keep everything in place. It lets you rotate your phone 360 degrees between portrait and landscape modes, as well as about 45 degrees to the side or 30 degrees up. In our tests, we had no issues with the iTap 3’s dash and vent mounts holding our phones in place over rough roads. If you encounter any unwanted movement, simply screw the cradle knob over the ball joint tighter to better keep it in place.
It’s incompatible with circular air vents. The extendable metal hook for the iTap 3 Magnetic Air Vent Mount works with most vents, but not all. It was designed to be used in only flat air vents, so this may not be the ideal solution for vehicles with circular air vents.
Your phone might shift while driving. The iTap 2 Magnetic CD Slot Mount’s magnetic plates and mounts usually work well, but they’re not perfect. Driving over large potholes may shift your phone slightly, causing your phone to rotate to a vertical angle while it’s still magnetically attached to the mount. However, the phones I used for testing never completely fell off the mount.
This dash and windshield mount has a motion sensor that opens and closes its arms to hold your phone in place, wireless charging, and options for folding phones.
The iOttie Auto Sense 2 Dash & Windshield Mount is the best option for people looking to keep their Android or iPhone charged while mounted on their dashboard or windshield. It has self-clamping tension arms, strong suction, a telescopic arm, and a motion sensor that automatically opens and closes its arms when you place your phone near it. The Auto Sense 2 can wirelessly charge Android phones up to 15 W and iPhones at speeds of 7.5 W. It also has an option for folding phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6, and Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
It’s simple to set up and easily adjustable. To install the Auto Sense 2 mount, you attach the ball-joint portion to the mount, tighten the locking knob, place it on the desired area of your dashboard or windshield, lift the locking lever, press the suction cup down to create suction, and then press down on the locking lever to secure it in place. You can also customize its placement with its telescopic arm, which extends up to 8 inches to bring it closer, and you can rotate your phone 360 degrees to find the desired angle—whether in portrait or landscape.
No magnets are required. The Auto Sense 2 uses a combination of a motion sensor and servomotors to detect nearby movement to open and close its self-clamping arms. You can release your phone by pressing the buttons on the side. It has an adjustable foot to accommodate and wirelessly charge larger phone models like the 6.9-inch iPhone 16 Pro Max or Pixel 9 Pro XL. Its clamping arms don’t clamp down too hard on the volume or power button like the previous model. It also has an internal battery, which takes an hour to fully charge and can power the mount and its features for up to an hour—without being plugged in.
This MagSafe mount gives you an additional support arm for extra stability and can charge your iPhone at speeds of up to 15 W.
The ESR HaloLock Qi2 Magnetic Wireless Car Charger is the best charging MagSafe option for your iPhone. It has an adjustable ball-joint design, a strong magnet, and easy clip-on installation, plus it charges at up to 15 W speeds—all with a smallish footprint. It comes with a USB-C cord, but a cigarette lighter adapter must be purchased separately.
It doesn’t get easier than this two-step setup process. The HaloLock Qi2 mount comes with a clip that attaches to the vent blade and has a support arm for extra stability, which goes on above or below the air vent, and you’re done. Though it may not look like much, this solid setup keeps your phone in place over any pothole-riddled pavement.
It can be mounted to an air vent or a dashboard, but we would avoid the latter. ESR ships the HaloLock Qi2 with an air vent mount and a ball-head anchor mount for a dashboard. We encountered zero issues with the vent mount but didn’t have a positive experience with the dashboard version. Outside of using an adhesive that can only be applied to your dash once, the ball-head mount didn’t keep our iPhone 16 Pro Max in place when driving on bumpy roads.
If you want faster MagSafe charging speeds, plus an included cigarette lighter adapter: The Mophie Qi2 Snap+ charged our iPhone 16 Pro Max from 2% to 50% in about 30 minutes, while the ESR HaloLock Qi2 Magnetic Wireless Car Charger took closer to 40 minutes. And unlike our other MagSafe pick, it comes with a cigarette lighter adapter in the box. However, it’s expensive.
At CES 2025, Aukey announced its new $41 MagFusion Dash Pro car phone mount. It has a clip-on design, a 360-degree ball joint, and 15 W Qi2 wireless charging speeds similar to our current picks. However, this Aukey mount adds a strong magnet with a built-in cooling system to prevent overheating and improve battery health. The MagFusion Dash Pro is now available, and we plan to test it against our current picks soon.
The iOttie iTap 3 Magnetic Flush Mount has the same strong magnets as the rest of the iTap 3 line, but like most flush mounts, it works best on flat surfaces and can only be applied once.
The iOttie Easy One Touch 5 is similar to the iOttie Auto Sense mount but doesn’t offer wireless charging.
Scosche’s MagicMount Charge mount checks off many boxes with fast charging, a MagSafe-like ring for Android phones, and strong suction for dashboard or windshield mounting. However, its MagSafe magnet isn’t strong enough—our phone easily disconnected from its mount when we tried to pivot it into a landscape orientation.
The Loncaster Silicone Car Phone Holder is a horizontal silicone mold that you can drop your phone into. It does a good job of holding your phone in place and attaches easily to your dash, but it looks cheap, the phone holder covers parts of your screen, and the silicone mold gets dirty quickly.
The ESR HaloLock Dashboard Wireless Charger with Low-Profile Mounting Arm and the Qifutan Car Phone Mount Long Arm have great grip and a sturdy yet flexible long arm, but they have too much bounce when driving.
The ZeeHoo 15W Wireless Car Charger is a functional budget mount but lacks the necessary 12-volt lighter charger to power it.
Mophie’s Magnetic and wireless charging vent mounts are similar to our pick, with simple installation and strong magnets, but their built-in vent attachments don’t fit safely in some vents, while our picks do.
Belkin’s BoostCharge has a great magnetic/MagSafe mount, but it doesn’t sit securely on the vent with larger phones like the iPhone 14 Plus, iPhone 15 Plus, or Pixel 7 Pro.
The Kenu Airframe Magnetic has a strong magnet to hold your phone, but its clamp doesn’t stay secure once mounted, which can cause your phone to shake while in motion.
Scosche’s MagicMount Pro2 4-in-1 Phone Mount has a strong magnet and is easy to install, but it didn’t hold our phone steady while driving.
The Scosche MagicMount CD is comparable to our CD-slot-mounted pick, the iOttie iTap 2 Magnetic CD Slot Mount, but the overall design of the iOttie mount is more appealing and easier to install.
Ticilfo’s CD-slot mount is a simple plastic model that allows you to mount and remove your phone with one hand, but it can shake a bit when you’re driving over bumps.
The Apps2Car Universal Magnetic CD Slot Car Phone Mount does a good job of holding a phone in place, but it uses a screw and washer nut to tighten the mount in place in your CD slot, which is strange.
The iOttie Easy One Touch 5 is a great CD mount that allows you to attach and remove your phone with one hand, but the iOttie iTap Magnetic 2 CD Slot Mount takes up less space and offers the same secure hold.
The iOttie Velox Mini Qi2 Dashboard mount provides an easy setup process with an adjustable, telescoping arm to suit your preferred angle. However, its charging speeds weren’t as fast as our pick. The vent version has strong magnets, but we found it to be too stiff for adjustments—no matter how much I loosened its ball joint.
Peak Design’s Qi2 vent mount has a premium aluminum build and offers one of the fastest charging speeds among the mounts we’ve tested. However, its expensive price and installation process are more complex than its competitors. The dashboard version also had trouble sticking and staying on my dashboard when testing.
The Pitaka MagEz Pro 2 Qi2 vent mount offers a sturdier ball-head setup than other mounts we’ve tested. However, it also provided the slowest charging speeds among our Qi2 mounts.
The GloPlum Magnetic is a MagSafe air-vent mount with a strong magnet, plus up to 15 W charging speeds. But it doesn’t have much support or a long warranty.
The iOttie Easy One Touch Wireless 2 was our previous MagSafe-mount pick. While it’s still a great choice, our picks offer the same features and take up less space.
The iOttie Velox Mini has a built-in ventilation system that keeps your iPhone cool. It has one of the strongest magnets on a car mount that we’ve tested thus far. But the ball joint that allows it to rotate is a little stiff to adjust compared with our picks.
The expensive Belkin BoostCharge Pro’s only advantage is its fast charging speeds. Our picks held and adjusted the iPhone better.
The Scosche MagicMount Pro has the smallest footprint for a car mount, but it didn’t prevent my iPhone from tilting face down when driving over bumps or uneven pavement.
The Spigen OneTap Pro lets you use the vent clip by itself or the vent clip and swing arm in tandem, which gives you more flexibility for positioning your iPhone. However, the swing-arm setup did move a bit when driving over bumps. Our picks performed better in terms of stability and magnet strength.
This article was edited by Signe Brewster and Caitlin McGarry. Nick Guy contributed additional reporting to this guide.
Roderick Scott was Wirecutter's staff writer reporting on smartphones, tablets, and accessories. He is the former publisher of TechGuySmartBuy, where he reviewed everything from phones to headphones to smart speakers to cars. He is also a former aspiring songwriter, music producer, and A&R working with local talent.
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45w Usb C Car Charger Wirecutter is the product recommendation service from The New York Times. Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing so you can make quick and confident buying decisions. Whether it’s finding great products or discovering helpful advice, we’ll help you get it right (the first time).