The best Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra cases in 2022

The Galaxy S22 Ultra is large enough even without a case on it, so a slim case with a good grip is ideal for those of us who need to keep this flagship to a reasonable size. The Caseology Nano Pop was the case that perfectly protected my S21 over the last year, and its quality rises again for the Galaxy S22 Ultra, giving us the solution to a design choice many Ultra users have despised.

Last year's S21 Ultra had a huge camera module, but at least it was one rectangular slab that was easy to keep clean, as opposed to the dust-attracting demon that is the S22 Ultra's standalone lenses design. Caseology knows you deserve better, so the Nano Pop once more gives us the look and feel of a proper camera module with its boldly accented camera cover. Even the navy/yellow color scheme matches a whole host of sports teams from the Superbowl-winning Rams to the Wolverines and beyond, but there's a two-tone gray option for the monochromatic among us.

Heavy-duty kickstand cases are among the most competitive case segments on the market, especially for phones as big as the S22 Ultra. You want one that features a wide kickstand that works when your phone is vertical or horizontal so that you can use it for video calls and scrolling through your Reddit feeds, not just when watching YouTube in the break room. While Supcase, CaseBorne, Youmaker, VRS Design, and many, many others offer kickstands in this style, the Poetic Spartan takes the edge with its more refined appearance. Pleather accent panels add definition and grip, and the Spartan's colors are more subdued and refined than the brighter, almost neon colors of its competitors. The exception to this is the Metallic Orange, which won't perfectly match the custom Red colorway for the S22 Ultra, but it comes pretty close.

Ultra is synonymous with premium luxury, and no case feels more luxurious than leather. While the rest of the accessory makers opt for cases that only cover the back in leather — not the sides — Samsung's Leather Cover covers everything in leather except for the buttons, which get metallic color-matched covers that match the rings around the Ultra's cameras. If you're not a huge fan of the lack of cohesive camera bump on the S22 Ultra, this case covers that inconsistency and should keep them from gathering as much dust. The color options for the Ultra vary from the S22 and S22+: rather than the deep Forest Green, we get Burgundy. While a shade of brown might've looked more natural, the Burgundy itself looks quite a deep wine red that many will find alluring. The Light Gray's brightness stands out from the pack, which might make it the best option of the three colorways.

Urban Armor Gear usually tends to look more tactical and macho than most, even among the heavy-duty market they thrive in, but UAG dipped its toe in the more modern, minimal design pool with the Lucent Series and the Civilian Series. Even with its more understated profile, the UAG Civilian Series can still take a hit in stride thanks to its honeycomb pattern on the case's lining. The Black and Olive Green — it's more of an army green, not that baby-food "Olive" the S21 FE got — get bright orange accents around the bottom corners and the top edge of the screen, but the Mallard looks more dignified. That unique shade of blue with just the barest hints of teal would've been awkward with orange, so instead, it gets dark gray, giving it a more debonair design in the same compactly durable shell.

While Spigen's single-layers cases are legion, year after year the Spigen Rugged Armor reigns supreme. The case's grippy texture makes drops less likely and offers air cushion impact protection when you inevitably drop it all the same. The only criticism I can give this case is that it only comes in black. I know — that's hardly a reason not to buy it. But I like colorful phones and phone cases, and everything else about this product is so good, it's really a minor nitpick at best.

With a screen as big as the Galaxy S22 Ultra, kickstand cases are invaluable, letting you save your wrist and your neck by propping your phone up when you need a break. ESR's clear case — it also comes in a well-textured black, but the clear lets your S22 Ultra's colors shine through — offers a compact kickstand for half the price of Samsung's bulkier Standing covers.

This kickstand is listed as being useable in both portrait and landscape, but in portrait mode, I recommend going easy on the taps as the kickstand balances on three points rather than four the way it does in landscape mode. The kickstand is also nice and firm so long as you don't overextend the hinge, wearing out the hinge's tension.

If you want a heavy-duty case that isn't quite as extreme as the Poetic Spartan, OtterBox's Commuter Series gives your Galaxy S22 Ultra impact resistance, grip, and port protection in a slightly slimmer package. The dust flap keeps your USB-C port covered so that it doesn't get any debris in it during whatever dirty work you get up to, and since the case is slim enough to easily support wireless charging, you can keep that flap closed as often as possible. The cutouts on the back of the hard outer shell let the inner TPU layer add grip so that the case won't slide around — or off — smooth surfaces and add grip in the hand.

If ESR's kickstand isn't quite to your liking — or if you just want a case that does even more — VRS Design has a wallet case that also has an impressively sturdy kickstand that works in both portrait and landscape mode. The steel-accented card slide can take a beating so that your cards never fall out in a time of need — or get trapped inside the case when you need to pay the tab. The Damda Glide holds up to 4 cards with ease and comes in two finishes of black: regular and metallic.

Ara Wagoner (9 Articles Published)

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