Although the smartphone in your pocket can do a lot of great things - including taking fantastic photos - if there’s one area where traditional cameras tend to fare better, it’s with their zoom capability.
There are plenty of reasons why a camera equipped with a long zoom lens is the ideal solution for you. Whether it’s for all-around flexibility when traveling or you just like to photograph a wide range of subjects, having the ability to zoom in (and out) from a scene always comes in handy. Shooting at longer focal lengths is helpful for portraits while being able to zoom even further is ideal for sports, wildlife, and other distant subjects.
Zoom cameras, with fixed built-in zooms, tend to be split into two broad categories. Traditional pocket-friendly point-and-shoot compact cameras are ideal for holidays and day trips. Meanwhile, bridge cameras are bigger and chunkier but have lengthier zooms, and handling that is reminiscent of DSLRs.
Most pocket-friendly zoom cameras have small sensors, but you can also find a few with larger one-inch type sensors that still offer a good degree of zoom. Bridge cameras also tend to have smaller sensors, but as an all-in-one solution to getting a long zoom, this is often worth the trade-off.
Best zoom camera overall This is a luxury-priced compact camera that is our top recommendation as it combines a quality 1-inch sensor with an impressive 8x zoom in a very portable casing. Read more
Best for beginners This is a great mid-priced zoom camera that offers a 40x superzoom in a surprising small shell - offering telephoto power that phone users can only dream about. Read more
Best for wildlife This premium bridge camera handles much like a DSLR, but boasts a spectacular 24-600mm zoom range that is ideal for bird photography or for use on safari.
Best for vlogging YouTubers and TikTokers don't need a zoom lens - but having one makes it much easier to frame yourself tightly on the flip-out LCD screen of this camera that's been designed for content creators. Read more
Best waterproof This compact is at home on land and water. Designed to take the knocks it can dive to depths of 15m - but also comes with a very competent 4x zoom and superb close-focusing capabilities. Read more
Best value superzoom This big-zoom bridge camera gives a great compromise between price and performance. It packs an impressive 63x zoom range - and has the useful combination of an electronic eyelevel viewfinder and a swing-out LCD panel. Read more
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Weight: 302g (body only, with battery and memory card)
Reasons to buy
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Large one-inch sensor
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Super fast shooting
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Fast and effective AF
Reasons to avoid
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Fiddly handling
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Super expensive
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Relatively restricted zoom range
When it comes to the king of the all-rounders, a camera that is adept at pretty much anything you’d care to throw at it, the Sony RX100 VII is the one. But, the one for which you’ll pay a huge premium for.
With its 8x zoom, it’s fairly flexible (though if zoom is your main concern, there are others that are better here), but it’s the fact that it can shoot at super-fast burst speeds, has a retracting EVF, a well-featured touchscreen and a high-performing one-inch sensor - and does all of that while fitting in your pocket that sees it sit at the top of our list.
If you want something which will fit more neatly into your budget, keep looking down our list.
With its 40x zoom lens, the SX740 is a fantastic option for those who want a simple-to-use travel-friendly camera, which is also well-suited to family snaps and days out.
Particularly ideally suited to beginners, it also offers more advanced modes for enthusiasts (though sadly there’s no raw format shooting). Other useful specifications include the front-facing screen (ideal for those holiday selfies) and 4K video.
The compromise for having such a lengthy zoom is a small sensor, so the SX740 is probably not one for those who like to shoot a lot in low light, but for bright light holiday shots, it’s a good value all-rounder.
If you’re looking for a zoom camera for wildlife or other moving subjects, the Sony Cyber-shot RX10 IV is a superb choice, and certainly the best of its kind on the market. Not only do you get a very flexible 25x zoom (giving you an equivalent of 600mm at the telephoto end), but you get fantastic image quality throughout the zoom range.
You also get superb AF tracking for moving subjects, and fast burst shooting to keep up with those elusive subjects. With its large one-inch sensor and maximum wide aperture - even at the telephoto end - the RX10 IV is no slouch when it comes to low light shooting either.
Of course there is a price to pay for such excellence, with the RX10 IV being one of the priciest models on the market, but considering the equivalent spend you’d need to make for comparable DSLR optics, it could arguably be viewed as a bit of a bargain.
Aimed at vloggers, the Sony ZV-1 is designed for content creators that need to shoot videos of themselves. As such the zoom is a modest 24-70mm affair with a variable aperture of f/1.8 - f/2.8. However, there is a big change in minimum focusing distance as you zoom which is annoying especially if you're using it to record video.
The SteadyShot active stabilization wasn't the best however the autofocus is very impressive. It has a vari-angle, a rear tilting screen that means it's perfect for recording yourself a mic-wind shield which means its audio quality even with the built-in mic is still pretty good. Unlike the Sony RX100 compact cameras, it doesn't have a viewfinder, but it produces high-quality images, is even better at video, and, best of all, it'll cost you less.
As an alternative, Sony has brought out the newer Sony ZV-1 II. This is essentially the same as the original, but has a 18-50mm zoom that offers wider framing for vloggers. However, we are recommending the cheaper ZV-1 here for its longer zoom reach.
The TG-7 is the latest in a series of shockproof, and fully waterproof cameras in the Tough range - originally produced by Olympus, and now marketed under the OM System brand. Its appeal is that you can use this on the beach, in extreme weather, on a boat, or even when snorkeling and not worry. But it is not just about the commando credentials, we love built-in microscope setting that allows you to take amazing close-ups - and that it records GPS coordinates and temperature with your photos.
Its 12 megapixel sensor can shoot 4K video, but can usefully capture Full HD video at 120fps for super-slow-motion - with a modest 12MP stills capability. The TG-7 has a modest 25-100mm optical zoom - butt that is actually very good compared to other fully waterproof compacts. In our field tests we found the Tough easy-to-use but sophisticated, is quite simply the best waterproof camera around.
If you’re looking for a well-rounded bridge camera that offers a good range of functions - and has that all-important ultra-long zoom, then the Canon SX70 is a good option.
At 65x, it’s one of the longest on the market (without verging into the ridiculous territory of the Nikon P1000, see below), giving you good scope to shoot pretty much every subject imaginable.
We found it very least to handle (you will feel familiar with it if you’re used to using other Canon cameras). There's usable enough EVF and fully articulating screen - but which is let down by the fact it’s not touch-sensitive. There’s a good range of shooting modes, plus the ability to shoot in raw format.
The trade-off here for the ultra-long zoom is a small sensor, meaning the SX70 doesn’t perform amazingly well in certain conditions - such as low light. But for a good value travel and holiday camera, we reckon it’s still well worth considering.
Zoom range
When it comes to choosing a zoom camera, think about exactly how much zoom you actually need. You’ll probably want at least an 8-10x zoom, but some of those in our list here offer 20 or 30x, with one even offering a staggering 125x (enough power to shoot close-ups of the moon!).
Thinking about equivalent focal lengths, if zoom is your main concern you’ll generally be looking for something which goes beyond the standard 24-70mm type range, so pay attention to that in the specs list. Also think about the wide-angle end of the lens, especially if you’re looking for something to fulfill a range of needs or is ideal as an all-rounder for subjects such as travel. That could even mean you look out for something wider than 24mm for extended flexibility.
Sensor size
As a general rule, the bigger the sensor the better the image quality. Zoom compacts typically have a 1-in type sensor, or a 1/2.3in sensor. The 1in sensor measures 13.2 x 8.8mm - around four times the size of 1/2.3in one (which measures 6.17 x 4.56mm). The bigger the sensor, though, the bigger the lens needs to be - so cameras with 1in sensors tend to have smaller zooms than those with the smaller imaging chip.
One of our reviewers testing the Canon PowerShot SX70 HS (Image credit: Future)
Our team of in-house and external reviewers have tested hundreds of zoom cameras over the years, and we use their experience to pick the best available in the market today for this guide. We test compact cameras and bridge cameras in real world conditions - seeing how they handle shooting a variety of different lighting conditions and shooting scenarios, and then comparing their results to those we have taken with similar cameras. With zoom cameras, handling is just as important as out-and-out image quality - so we pay particular attention to ease-of-use and ergonomics in our tests. Read more about how we test products at DCW
Amy Davies has been writing about photography since 2009, and used to be a colleague on Digital Camera magazine and Techradar.com. She now works as a freelance journalist writing for nclude Amateur Photographer, Stuff, Wired, T3, Digital Photographer, Digital Camera World, TechRadar, Trusted Reviews, ePhotozine and Photography Blog. She has an undergraduate degree in journalism and a postgraduate diploma in magazine journalism, both from Cardiff Journalism School.
