Best phone mounts and holders for cars

Like its competition, iOttie's iTap 2 Magnetic Air Vent Mount slides easily onto horizontal and vertical slats—but then it one-ups them with a clamp that squeezes on the rubber clip for a secure hold. Pulling your phone off this magnetic air vent mount never causes it to budge.

That clamp fixes the major problem with most air vent phone mounts, and this iTap 2 mount's other features are equally well-designed: It rotates 360 degrees to accommodate custom phone orientations, allows for some airflow behind the phone, and is compact and unobtrusive.

You also get a firm lock when placing a phone on the iTap 2's magnetic surface, whether you use either of the two metal plates included or any random one that you're already using. The grip does weaken a little if you have a case between the plate and the phone, but my phone in its thick wallet case still stayed put while going over moderately bumpy roads.

With an MSRP of US$30, other cheaper mounts may look more tempting, but this iOttie model easily trounced my former favorite, a Koomus air vent mount that has to be wedged against my car's dash to keep it in place. At its street price of US$25, the iOttie iTap 2 Magnetic Air Vent Mount is worth the extra cash—especially since it travels well, too.

iOttie's Easy One Touch 4 Air Vent Mount is a solid pick, both in price and functionality. This mount has two parts, but it's very easy to assemble: Just snap the vent clamp into the back of the phone mount, and attach it to your air vent using the spring-loaded clamp. The mount keeps your phone in place thanks to two arms that hug it tightly, using a lock and release system.

The Easy One Touch 4 fits phones between 2.3- and 3.5-inches wide—I tested it out using an iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X with and without cases, and it fit the bill for all three of Apple's current models. It'll work just fine for Android phones within that size range, too.

This iOttie mount held up well during my testing. The hinge continued to keep my iPhone held upright without sagging, and the mount stayed firmly clasped to the air vent without falling off due to my phone's weight. Plus, it rotates 360-degrees to help you find the perfect viewing angle, be it in landscape or portrait orientation.

Car mounts that just clip onto the slats in your air-conditioning vent are incredibly convenient. They don't block your view or muck up your dashboard with adhesive, and they work with cars lacking a CD player. And in those blazing summer months, the A/C blowing right onto the back of your phone will help keep it from overheating.

Kenu makes one of the best grip-style vent clips. It's minimalist in design but durable, with a spring-loaded side clip big enough to fit the even large phones like Plus-model iPhones and Galaxy Notes. (If you own a phone under 5-inches, you'll want to buy the smaller version of this mount.) The vent clip has grips for thick or thin vent slats, so it'll work in most cars. And since it can rotate, you can use it with angled AC vents or turn your phone to landscape orientation.

At an MSRP of $25, it's not one of the cheapest vent mounts on the market. But the durability and careful design are worth a few extra bucks.

You're unlikely to find a more simple, unobtrusive, and inexpensive option than this US$11 / AU$30 phone holder.

Slits on the magnetic mount's short, rubberized stem allow it to slip onto your car's air vent. To attach your phone to the mount, you'll need to apply one of the two included metal plates to your phone directly or slip the plate into your phone's case.

The magnet combination is rated to hold today's largest phones, such as the Galaxy Note 8 or iPhone X, and in my experience with a Pixel XL, the device remained secure while making the screen visible as I drove.

The downsides are that it blocks a vent and/or absorbs any hot or cold air your vent is emitting. Still, it's an exceedingly simple solution for making your phone accessible while you drive.

The iOttie iTap 2 Wireless is a clever combination of phone mount and wireless charger.

In addition to the vent-style mount that we reviewed, it's also available as a mount that uses the CD slot in your car's stereo or as a dash mount. All three are priced at $55 and are capable of wirelessly charging your Qi-enabled smartphone.

The included magnet in the iTap 2 Wireless was strong enough to hold an iPhone XS Max in place without fear of it falling while driving.

In our tests, its wireless charging performance ranked average to above average, for iPhone XS Max and Samsung Galaxy S9, respectively, compared to other wireless chargers we've tested.

The Square Jellyfish Jelly-Grip Car Vent Mount is a mouthful, but it's an excellent smartphone vent mount for your car. This phone holder uses an adjustable, solid metal hook that extends to slide through a vent (from 3/8 to 1 deep) and over its horizontal louvers. Square Jellyfish says that the mount can be used with vertical louvers, too, though we didn't test that. If you have round louvers, it won't work.

The spring-loaded side grips grab phones up to six inches wide tightly—almost too tightly. Actually mounting the phone required placing it face down on a seat and grabbing it with the grips, then placing the whole contraption within the vent. You can also slide the phone out to remove it, but be careful of any side-mounted buttons.

The tradeoff? An absolutely secured phone that isn't going anywhere. And since the grips swivel on a ball mount, you can still position your phone for easy viewing. As a final bonus, the manufacturer offers a lifetime warranty: Send Square Jellyfish a picture of the problem, and the company will ship a replacement, free of charge.

As its name implies, TechMatte's Magnetic Universal Smartphone features a magnetic mount to hold your phones in place. You attach one of the included metal plates to your phone, either by using the adhesive or by slipping it between the phone and its case, and then stick the phone to the mount in any orientation you desire. The magnet is decently strong—with the metal plate slipped between a Nexus 6P and its rugged case, the phone mostly stayed in place.

The mount itself connects to its base via a ball joint with a collar that lets you torque it down for more tension. The CD mount is very slim but the system to add friction is unusual. It uses a simple thumb screw to add tension that holds it in place. The screw is slower than other systems, but it does let you add as much or little tension to the CD mount when in the CD slot. Oddly, on the car we tried it on, even with the screw tightened down, there was still a little more play than we expected.

Overall, this TechMatte model does the job, but between its magnetic mount system (a style which I'm not totally sold on) and its slow-to-remove screw system, I'd go with a grip-style CD-slot mount—like this Koomus unit I also tested.