iphone x

The iPhone X is Apple’s most expensive phone ever. It’s also the most expensive to repair, and due to a design that uses glass for the entire front and back, it’s perhaps the most breakable. We recommend putting your new phone in a case, which can help defend against scratches, dents, and even a broken screen or back. After testing almost 70 cases for the iPhone X, we think the best case for most people to protect that huge investment is the Silk Base Grip. This sleekly designed case will help prevent damage from everyday life—to get more protection, you’d have to use a much bulkier case. And this case is very affordable too.

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Our pick

Silk Base Grip for iPhone X

The best iPhone X case for most people

The Base Grip has the best combination of a lack of bulk and an affordable price we’ve found yet.

$12 from Walmart

$12 from Amazon

The Silk Base Grip is thinner and lighter than most of the standard cases we tested, but covers more of the important parts of the phone without getting in the way of using it. The Base Grip’s material feels more premium than the price would suggest, and because it provides more grip than many other cases, your phone is less likely to slide out of your hand. Compared with all the other cases we tested, it offers the best balance of protection, features, design, and price.

That said, we also have picks for leather cases, wallet cases, folio cases, transparent cases, extra-protective cases, cases that work well with accessories, thin cases, and waterproof cases, so read on.

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The research

• Why you should trust me
• How we picked and tested
• Our pick for most people: Silk Base Grip
• A great leather option: Apple Leather Case
• Our wallet case pick: Silk Vault
• Our folio case pick: Twelve South Journal
• The best transparent case: Spigen Liquid Crystal
• A more protective option: Speck Presidio Grip
• An accessory-friendly case: Annex Quad Lock
• An even thinner case we like: Totallee Thin iPhone X Case
• The best waterproof case: Dog & Bone Wetsuit Impact
• Battery cases
• What to look forward to
• The competition

Why you should trust me

I was the accessories editor at iLounge for a little over three years. During my tenure there, I reviewed more than 1,000 products, most of which were cases. I’ve also been Wirecutter’s case reviewer for the past three years, where I’ve reviewed hundreds more cases. Those numbers span multiple generations of Apple devices, including every iPhone since the iPhone 4 and every iPad. I’ve probably handled more iPhone cases than almost anyone on the planet, so I have a particularly experienced perspective and depth of knowledge when it comes to these items.

How we picked and tested

We considered a huge number of factors when choosing the best cases, from objective measures such as physical dimensions and level of protection to subjective considerations of look and feel. Though we have a variety of recommendations across various styles, all of our picks satisfy the following criteria:

• Drop protection: We sought models that could adequately protect a phone without adding unnecessary embellishments or too much bulk. We didn’t conduct drop tests, but we did look for cases that would obviously be able to withstand some impact. (Even in a heavy-duty case, there’s no guarantee that your phone will survive every scenario intact—for example, a direct hit to the screen will still do damage.)
• Full coverage: As a general rule, the more of the phone that a case protects, the better; we preferred cases that protected everything but the phone’s screen. The best even provided button protection with great tactility, mimicking—or in some instances even enhancing—the way the buttons felt on a bare iPhone. We also liked cases that didn’t leave the top or bottom edge of the phone exposed, but that isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker. On the other hand, we didn’t consider cases with a circular opening to expose the Apple logo on the back of the phone because they offered less overall protection with no real benefit.
• Raised front lip: As Apple’s case guidelines explain, “[E]xposed glass on the Apple device must not come within 1 mm of a flat surface, such as a table or floor, in any orientation when the case is attached.” This lip around the edges of the phone’s display helps prevent cracked screens—one of the biggest worries with any smartphone—but it also helps to keep the screen from getting scratched if you place the phone screen-down. We used a 0.85-millimeter feeler gauge, per Apple’s guidelines, to test each case.
• No wireless interference: A case shouldn’t reduce performance with any wireless signals—Wi-Fi, cellular, NFC (near-field communication, necessary to use Apple Pay), or Qi wireless charging. We verified that each of those features worked with the case on. Additionally, the case shouldn’t prevent you from using any gestures, an especially important consideration with the iPhone X, which relies on you swiping up from the bottom edge of the screen as a primary interaction.
• Broad aesthetic appeal: Although you can find a case for any aesthetic preference, we looked for cases that had simple, elegant designs—ones that would appeal to most people—rather than models that adhered to specific aesthetic choices.

Some of our case picks. Photo: Michael Hession

Once we assembled a huge collection of cases, we put each one on our iPhone X to see how well it fit and functioned. To get a wider range of opinions, we assembled a panel of Wirecutter staffers to check out some of the top cases and share their thoughts. Finally, for yet another perspective, we asked non-tech-focused friends to tell us what they thought about the finalists.

We’ve circulated each of our picks among the Wirecutter staff for long-term testing so that we can see how they hold up over time.

Just because we dismiss a case in the competition section or don’t mention it in this guide doesn’t mean it’s not good. The following are simply our picks for the best cases for most people—you may have specific needs, or specific stylistic preferences, that make a different case better for you.

Our pick for most people: Silk Base Grip

Photo: Michael Hession

Our pick

Silk Base Grip for iPhone X

The best iPhone X case for most people

The Base Grip has the best combination of a lack of bulk and an affordable price we’ve found yet.

$12 from Walmart

$12 from Amazon

The Silk Base Grip is the epitome of what a great case should be. We know from years of feedback from readers, Wirecutter staff, and family and friends that most people want a case that’s slim, plainly designed, reliably protective, and inexpensive. The Silk Base Grip is exactly that—it’s a simple case that hits all the right notes.

The Base Grip is a one-piece case made of TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane, a flexible plastic). It has just enough give to make it easy to install, without being so loose that the sides pull away—something that can be a problem on inferior cases. Silk has maintained the case’s texture from the version we recommend for iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 8, and 8 Plus: The back panel has a rubbery grip (enough to not slide around too much in your hand, but not so much that it’s difficult to slide in or out of a pocket), and the edges have a rougher, pebbly texture. Combined, the two elements make this case feel secure in the hand; we never worried about our iPhone X slipping out of our hand while using this case.