Every Day Carry Cameras for 2025

By: j.wilder

Everyday Carry cameras for 2025.

Today, the everyday carry (EDC) camera is typically a smartphone.

Here's an idea: Get a cheap smartphone and buy a real camera.

Let's look at some criteria and options for stills photography (not video).

My EDC Camera Criteria

My focus is car photography and shooting stills, not video. With that in mind, here are a few specific requirements for my every day carry camera.

1. Pocketable is a wish - No camera in 2025 meets this criteria except the Ricoh GR3.

2. Fixed lens - Fixed lenses are optimized for the camera. Interchangable lenses create complexity, bulk, and waste time.

3. Zoom or Crop capability - Zoom with your feet is a cliche. There are barriers such as height, private property, and dangerous areas. A zoom helps you get the shot. Alternatively, a large sensor allows you to crop and still get sufficent resolution.

4. Electronic viewfinder - The real world has bright sun. An EVF is the only solution for this.

5. Tilting Display - A tilting display makes low and high shots much easier.

So, what are the choices for compact digital cameras with some or all of features?

Keep reading for my top picks.

Top Compact Cameras for Every Day Carry (EDC)

This is my list of top compact cameras for every day carry.

• Ricoh GR III (Best form factor)
• Ricoh GR IIIx (Best form factor)
• Leica D-Lux 8
• Fujifilm X100VI

Ricoh GR III

Ricoh GR III. Photo Credit: James Wilder

The Ricoh GR III is the ONLY camera in 2025 that can truly fit in your pants pocket. And, it has an APS-C image sensor!

Ricoh GR III
Sensor: APS-C
Lens: 18.3mm (28mm equiv)
Aperture: F2.8~F16
Weight: 257g (0.57 lb / 9.07 oz)
Articulating Display: NO
Image Stabilization: Yes
Released: March 2019
List price: $899

*No articulating display.
*No electronic viewfinder but there is a non-electronic viewfinder attachment available.

us.ricoh-imaging.com/product/gr-iii/

Ricoh GR IIIx

The Ricoh GRIIIx was released Sept 2021. The key difference between the GRIII and the GRIIIx is the focal length. The GR IIIx focal length is 26.1mm (40mm equiv). This focal length is close to the 35mm focal length of the Fujifilm X100VI.

Ricoh GR IIIx
us.ricoh-imaging.com/product/griiix/

Leica D-Lux 8

Leica D-Lux 8. Photo Credit: Leica

Leica D-Lux 8
Sensor: 4/3” CMOS sensor
Lens: 24-75 mm lens
Aperture: f/1.7-2.8
Weight: 397g (with battery)
Articulating Display: NO
Image Stabilization: Yes (optical)
Released: July 2024
List price: $1600

*No tilting display.

leica-camera.com/en-US/photography/cameras/d-lux/d-l...

Fujifilm X100VI

The X100VI is the sixth-generation model of the X100 Series.

Fujifilm X100VI

Sensor: APS-C (40.2MP)
Lens: 23mm (35mm) f2.0 max Fixed.
Display: 3.0 inch LCD, Tilting
Weight: 521g with battery and SD memory card.
Articulating Display: YES
Image Stabilization: YES
List price: $1599
Released: February 2024

*No zoom but has a WIDE / TELE / OFF option.
*Has built-in ND filter!

fujifilm-x.com/global/products/cameras/x100v/

Weight

The weight in grams of each camera.

• 199g - iPhone 16 Pro (for comparison)
• 257g - Ricoh GR III
• 299g - Sony RX100Va (discontinued)
• 397g - Leica D-Lux 8
• 521g - Fujifilm X100IV
• 514g - Sony a7cM2 (without lens)
• 743g - Leica Q3 (for comparison)

Notes

Leica - Leica returns to the list in 2024 with it's Leica D-Lux 8. This camera is modeled after the Q3. I have been following Leica much more closely since the D-Lux 8 was announced. Here are some more thoughts on Leica. Link,

Leica considers their D-Lux, Q3, and Q3 43 "compact" cameras. However, the Q3 weighs almost twice s much as the D-Lux 8.
leica-camera.com/en-US/photography/everydaycarry

Ricoh - The GR III was released in 2019. Ricoh usually releases different versions each year to keep things interesting (and stay in the news). They released a GR camera with a high diffusion filter in 2024. The Richo GR is not a trand chasing camera. It's a (very good) snapshot camera, so they don't need to improve much, but it has been a while.

Sony - I have excluded Sony "ZV" cameras as they are positioned as video creation cameras for vloggers and social media content creators.

Canon - It appears Canon has quit making compact cameras. Loud and clear to me, they are out of the compact market.

Check out Compact Camera Rumors for the latest information on future compact cameras.

Finally

With every camera there's a compromise. The perfect camera is the one I would design myself. And that's not happening.