If you’re looking for the best lens for your Canon DSLR, then you’ve come to the right place – we’ve found the best Canon EF / EF-S lenses for Canon EOS DSLRs you can get your hands on, plus you’ll find helpful advice on how to choose the best lens for your Canon camera.
How do I choose the best Canon EF lens?
Canon EF lenses can be used on full-frame and APS-C cameras: If you’re shooting with a full-frame Canon camera like the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, then make sure you choose an EF lens designed for full-frame cameras.
Canon EF-S lenses are designed for APS-C cameras: If you’re shooting with an APS-C camera, such as the Canon EOS 90D, then make sure you choose an EF-S lens, as these are designed for APS-C cameras, and a 1.6x crop factor is applied. More on APS-C vs Full-frame here.
A note on lens compatibility: Make sure you check your lens mount, and camera body to ensure you get the right lens for your camera. If you’re shooting with a Canon EOS R camera, then have a look at our guide to the best Canon RF mount lenses. You can use a Canon EF / EF-S lens on a Canon EOS R camera as long as you have the right adapter.
Things to look for when choosing a Canon EF / EF-S lens:
Optical Image Stabilisation – When choosing a lens, look out for lenses with IS or Image Stabilisation, which some brands call ‘OS’ which stands for Optical Image Stabilisation, as this can help you get sharp shots even when shooting at slower shutter speeds, or helpful when using more zoom.
How to pick the right Canon lens for your needs
If you’re planning on shooting close-ups and macro photography, then you’ll need to look for a lens with “Macro” in the name, as this will allow you to get closer to your subject. If you’re planning on shooting portraits, look for a prime lens with a bright aperture, such as the 50mm f1/.8 lens, or any bright prime lens with a focal range between 35mm and 200mm. For landscape photography it’s likely you’ll want to go for a wide-angle or ultra-wide-angle zoom lens. For wildlife photography, a longer telephoto zoom lens is a great choice, such as a 70-300mm lens. For everything else, and general photography, a standard kit zoom lens, such as a 24-70mm (full-frame) or 18-55mm (or similar for APS-C) is a great choice.
Here’s our pick of the best Canon EF-mount lenses:
Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM (Image: Canon)
Best wide-angle Canon EF-S lens: Canon EF-S 10-18mm f/4.5-5.6 IS STM
Price: £219.99
If you’re after a compact wideangle zoom for your APS-C DSLR, this is a fine example to consider. It pairs up particularly nicely with entry-level models such as the EOS 1300D and EOS 200D, as well as mid-range DSLRs like the Canon EOS 90D. Its Stepping Motor Technology (STM) helps keep focus operation inaudible and with four-stop image stabilisation it’s possible to shoot sharp handheld images with shutter speeds as slow as 1/5sec. It may have a plastic mount and electronic manual focus, but don’t let that put you off as it delivers very pleasing results for such a low price. As such, it’s hard to think of a reason not to include this in your lens collection if you’re looking to expand and fancy owning an optic that’s better suited to containing more of what’s around you in the frame. It’s great for landscapes, interiors and architecture.
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 USM Macro (Image: Canon)
Best Canon lens for Macro: Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 USM Macro
Price: £379.99 (used)
If you own a Canon APS-C DSLR and like the sound of photographing objects at true life-size (1:1), you’ll want to add a dedicated macro lens to your arsenal. Equivalent to 96mm in the 35mm format, this dedicated macro lens will enable you to capture stunning close-ups, thanks to its 20cm minimum focus distance. The inclusion of Canon’s Ultra Sonic Motor (USM) means it can focus silently on subjects, and with Super Spectra coatings to suppress ghosting and flare, in addition to full-time manual focus override, it’s not short of features for under £400. What’s more, it doubles up as an effective portrait lens and creates beautiful background blur behind subjects when it’s used at its maximum aperture. All in all, it’s an excellent dual-purpose optic for Canon APS-C users who want a lens that’ll last a lifetime with due care.
Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM (Image: Canon)
Best Canon lenses: Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM
Price: £829.99
Though not the newest of lenses in the EF-S lineup, this fast zoom is an appealing optic for Canon users who demand a fast-aperture lens that produces pleasing results. The AF performance is accurate and quiet, while the image-stabilisation (IS) system is effective at allowing users to shoot three stops slower than is otherwise possible. Full time manual focus (MF) and an ultrasonic motor (USM) feature as you’d expect. Particularly useful for shooting challenging low-light scenes where you don’t want to raise the ISO too high, it produces high levels of sharpness and low distortion. The only real downside is wide-aperture sharpness at 55mm and the appearance of colour fringing under some conditions. It deserves close attention from users of Canon APS-C DSLRs such as the Canon EOS 90D and EOS 7D Mark II.
Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM (Image: Canon)
Best Canon EF lenses: Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM
Price: £1839
As well as developing the new BR optic to reduce chromatic aberration, the lens features a totally new optical design. Whereas the older EF 35mm f/1.4L USM incorporated 11 elements in nine groups with eight aperture blades, the newer EF 35mm f/1.4L II USM features a more complex arrangement of 14 elements in 11 groups with nine aperture blades. The result of the new design makes it both larger and heavier than its forerunner, which also plays its part in the way the lens handles. One of the key attributes of this lens is its maximum aperture that’s complementary to capturing natural, reportage-style images that so many photojournalists, sports and wedding photographers like to take.
Read our full Canon EF 35mm f1.4L II USM review
Canon EF 50mm f1.8 STM lens (Image: Canon)
Best Canon lenses: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM
Price: £119.99
This small ‘nifty fifty’ improves upon Canon’s older designs and has been brought up to date by incorporating a Stepper Motor (STM) for smoother and quieter AF. Compatible with full-frame and APS-C DSLRs, it becomes a highly practical and creative short telephoto lens that’s equivalent to 80mm when it’s attached to the latter. If you enjoy shooting portraits or any subject where you’d like to create attractive background blur, this lens allows you to do it without breaking the bank. It has a smaller 49mm filter thread and improved build quality over Canon’s older EF 50mm f/1.8 II, but produces results of similar quality. Stopping down from f/1.8 to f/2.8 improves sharpness and all trace of corner shading disappears by f/4. It’s one of the most popular lenses for those who feel they’ve outgrown a kit zoom.
Read the full Canon EF 50mm f1.8 STM review
Canon EF 85mm f/1.4L IS USM (Image: Canon)
Best Canon lens for portraits: Canon EF 85mm f/1.4L IS USM
Price: £1,489
This new L-series telephoto prime will have great appeal with portrait and wedding photographers who desire superior image quality to the aging EF 85mm f/1.8 USM and those who don’t want to splash out £1,765 for the larger and heavier EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM. The big attraction is its optical image stabilisation, which is effective to four stops and will be a godsend in low-light venues such as churches and dimly lit interiors. It has a 77mm filter thread, 0.85m minimum focusing distance and weather sealing that’ll provide reassurance when it’s used in variable weather conditions. If it’s anywhere near as good as our first impressions suggest, this is going to be an extremely popular lens with Canon full-frame users.
Hands-on Canon EF 85mm f1.4L IS USM review
Best Canon lens for zoom: Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS II USM
Price: £519.99
This mid-range telephoto zoom incorporates four-stop image stabilisation and a new, Nano USM motor for fast and silent autofocus. It weighs 720g, has a nine-bladed diaphragm and is equivalent to 112-480mm on an APS-C DSLR. An interesting idea is the lens’s LCD panel, which can be used to cycle through three modes: focal length, a camera shake meter, and the current focus distance complete with depth-of-field scale. It’s a great match to mid-range DSLRs, offering a great balance between portability and image quality.
Full Canon EF 70-300mm f4-5.6 IS II USM review
Canon EF-S 24mm f2.8 STM lens (Image: AP)
Best Canon pancake lens: Canon EF-S 24mm f/2.8 STM
Price: £149.99
This ultra-slim pancake prime is one of the least expensive lenses on the market, and measuring just 22.8mm thick, it’s one that can easily be carried around all day without any inconvenience. It’s a marvellous little optic for travel and street photography, providing a 38mm equivalent angle of view on the Canon APS-C DSLRs for which it’s made. The lens does exhibit vignetting at wide apertures, as well as distortion, but both are easily remedied in software. Most importantly, the lens focuses accurately and gives consistently sharp, detailed images. With its bargain price, carry-everywhere size and highly competent imaging performance, this lens deserves to be high on the wish list of many a Canon APS-C DSLR user.
Full Canon EF-S 24mm f2.8 STM review
Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM (Image: Canon)
Best Canon lenses: Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS II USM
Price: £989.99
This lens is the replacement for one of Canon’s best-selling full-frame optics for the past 10 years – the EF 24-105mm f/4L USM. It features a revised optical design that has made it a little sharper towards the edges with less barrel distortion at the wide end. Vignetting isn’t quite as severe either and it features a new electronic aperture diaphragm system (EDM) that provides smoother and quieter aperture changes during movie capture. It’s the best 24-105mm full-frame zoom Canon makes, but isn’t quite as razor sharp as the stunning EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II USM.
Full Canon EF 24-105mm f4L IS II USM review
Best ultra wide-angle zoom: Canon EF 11-24 f/4L USM
Price: £3099
Canon and its engineers must be praised for constructing one of their finest L-series lenses, and for the way they’ve created the Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM lens, one of, if not the best, rectilinear wideangle zooms ever made. If you’re a full-frame user who specialises in landscape, architectural or interior photography, and demand a lens that’s not only capable of squeezing as much of your surroundings as possible into the frame, but does so with exceptional optical performance, this is one to add to your wish list. You may also be able to find it second-hand, saving you money.
Read our Canon EF 11-24mm f/4L USM review
Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM review image (Image: AP)
Best ultra-wide-angle zoom with IS: Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM
Price: £1389
This ultra-wide-angle zoom lens is ideal for landscape, architecture, and interior shots where you need to get as much as possible into the frame. The built-in image stabilisation (IS) will help when slower shutter speeds are needed, such as when shooting in low-light conditions. With an f/4 aperture, this lens is best suited to landscapes and detailed images, and the best results are found when shooting at f8. We were impressed by the image quality produced by the lens in our review. As a Canon L series lens, the lens is fully weather-sealed so should survive use in all conditions.
Read our Canon EF 16-35mm f/4 L IS USM review
Canon EF 17-35mm f/2.8L USM (AP Image)
Best Canon EF wide-angle lens: Canon EF 17-35mm f/2.8L
Price: from £300 (used)
The Canon EF 17-35mm F/2.8L USM lens may be one of the older lenses on this list, but the lens, with the professional “L” designation is designed to survive. Andy Blackmore is a fan of the lens, having used the lens on assignment in constant dust in Iraq and Afghanistan. If you’re looking for a newer version, then the Canon EF 16-35mm f2.8L III is the latest version, but with a price of £2199, you may also want to look at the Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM, which is priced at £1389, and benefits from image stabilisation.
Read the Canon EF 17-35mm f/2.8L USM field test
Best third party EF-mount lenses
If you’re looking for high-quality lenses, but lower prices, as well as want to find lenses that give you a different view, then have a look at some of these options.
Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 DG OS HSM Sports
Price: from £1349
Sigma produce some impressive and interesting lens options, as well as offering similar alternatives to Canon’s own brand lenses. This 70-200mm f2.8 lens offers optical image stabilisation, with 4-stops of stabilisation, and delivers impressibly sharp results, with low levels of distortion. As well as being weather-sealed, it also benefits from being noticeably cheaper than Canon’s 70-200mm f2.8 lens, saving you some serious money.
Read our Sigma 70-200mm F2.8 DG OS HSM Sports review
Sigma 24-70mm f2.8 DG OSM Art lens in EF-mount
Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 DG OS HSM Art
Price: from £1149
Another alternative to Canon’s own brand lens, the 24-70mm f2.8 DG OS HSM Art lens offers the a bright f2.8 aperture throughout the zoom range, plus with the added benefit of optical image stabilisation, which is missing from Canon’s more expensive 24-70mm f2.8L II USM lens, at £2109. It’s also a compact lens, so a good choice for those looking for something smaller.
Read our Sigma 24-70mm F2.8 DG OS HSM Art review
Sigma 40mm f1.4 DG Art lens – Canon EF mount
Sigma 40mm F1.4 DG HSM Art
Price: from £629-969
The Sigma 40mm F1.4 DG HSM Art lens is designed for optimum image quality, with minimal distortion. If you’re looking for a bright prime lens, then the Sigma 40mm F1.4 is a great choice, slightly wider than the typical 50mm lens, this gives a good choice for those wanting something different. It offers exceptional image quality and beautiful background blur (bokeh), however, it is a large lens, and quite weighty at 1.2kg.
Read our Sigma 40mm F1.4 DG HSM Art review
For more have a look at the latest news, lens reviews, and buying guides, or have a look at the best Canon EOS cameras.
