Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus vs. Galaxy S25 Plus
After yet another modest upgrade, you might be wondering what would be the most sensible pick between the newly released Samsung Galaxy S26+ and the year-old Samsung Galaxy S25+. After all, it looks like the latter gets you a lot of the way there at a more reasonable starting price.
But not everything becomes immediately apparent from the spec sheet alone. There are still some under-the-hood changes that need exploring. One example is the chipset. With the S26 series, Samsung is back to the dual-chip strategy for the majority of the markets, leaving places like Europe and South Korea with the Exynos 2600, while the US, China and Japan get all the S26 phones in the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 flavor.
For context, last year’s S25 series was exclusively powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, so this comparison will be particularly of interest to users deciding between the Snapdragon from last year and the Exynos this year. Stick around to find out.
Table of Contents:
For starters, you can compare the complete specs sheets or directly continue with our editor’s assessment in the following text.
Size comparison
When it comes to size and build, there’s not much to talk about. Aside from the relatively minor change in the camera stack design, the two Galaxy S Pluses are identical. Both are identical in size, feature the same Armor aluminum 2 frame and are protected by Gorilla Glass Victus 2 sheets on the front and back. There’s no change in the IP68 ingress protection and weight either.
You do get a set of new colors, of course. This year, they seem a tad more muted and more “serious”.
Still, subjectively speaking, we think the S25+ has a slight edge over the S26+ due to its simpler camera design. The S26+ wobbles like crazy when placed on a flat surface. Surely, it’s a minor inconvenience, and some will probably prefer the newer design after all.
Display comparison
Nothing out of the ordinary this year in the display department either. The two devices are seemingly equipped with identical screens featuring the same resolution, measuring 6.7″ in diagonal and supporting up to 120Hz. Both LTPO, of course.
Our display brightness tests confirm that, showing the same 1,400+ nits result.
Battery life
Contrary to our expectations, the two phones don’t show the same battery endurance, despite sharing an identical display and battery capacity. Somehow, Samsung managed to squeeze out a bit more from the 4,900 mAh battery this year. It could be the Exynos, but it could also be the newer One UI software. We can only speculate.
The fact of the matter is that the Galaxy S26+ performed better in the web browsing and video streaming tests. On the other hand, it falls behind its predecessor when it comes to 4G calling. Generally, though, the newer Plus is better when it comes to battery endurance, evidenced by the higher overall Active Use Score.
Charging speed
With the two phones supporting the same 45W charging power over Power Delivery and having the same batteries, it’s no wonder that they scored similarly in our charging test. The small differences you see could be due to minor changes in ambient temperature or just statistical error.
Speaker test
While the Galaxy S25 Plus has a louder set of speakers, the S26 Plus offers better tuning. The latter has a warmer, deeper sound without overpowering the vocals and mids. So if we had to choose, we’d definitely go for the newer Plus. Besides, the loudness difference is somewhat negligible.
Performance
The performance section is likely the most interesting one, as this is the only meaningful hardware change. The entire world got a Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy-powered S25+ last year, while the 2026 model in the US, China and Japan gets Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, while the rest of the world gets the new Exynos 2600.
One key distinction between the two chipsets is that the Exynos 2600 is based on a 2nm manufacturing process, while the SD8 Elite is 3nm. Also, the Exynos uses an AMD-designed Xclipse 960 GPU, while the Snapdragon relies on an in-house Adreno 830 GPU.
There are no changes to the memory configurations, though. Both devices offer a base 12/256GB configuration and are also available in a 12GB/512GB flavor.
Benchmark performance
As one would expect, the Exynos 2600 is an upgrade over last year’s Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC, beating its rival in all three tests above. The newer Galaxy outperforms the older one in the CPU-bound Geekbench 6 and the GPU-intensive 3DMark Wild Life Extreme tests by around 13%. The combined AnTuTu 10 benchmark shows a slightly bigger 15% gap.
The Exynos seems to have an edge over the SD8 Elite in our sustained performance scenario, too, which is good news for gamers.
Camera comparison
The changes in the camera hardware this year are minimal, though the S26 Plus does change a thing or two compared to the S25 Plus. It’s using a new sensor for its main camera – an Isocell GNG, which is by all accounts an update to the GN3 sensor of yesteryear with the same key specs – a 1/1.56″ optical format (or 1/1.57″, depending on who you ask), 50MP nominal resolution, 1.0µm pixel size.
Unchanged is the sensor size on the telephoto camera, at 1/3.94″, but it’s seemingly a different sensor – our S26 Plus says it’s got the 3LD model vs the 3K1 of the previous generation. The ultrawide camera should be same-same (1/2.55″, no AF).
A development of some consequence is the new lens on the selfie camera – all the S26s get a 23mm equivalent lens in place of the 25-26mm on the older models.
Image quality
For the purposes of the camera comparison, we’ll be looking at photos taken on the Galaxy S26 Plus against ones captured with the Galaxy S25 non-Plus. Last year’s models had identical camera setups for the two sizes, so the small one should be representative of the S25 Plus’ performance just as well.
Daylight
Main camera daylight photos are pretty similar at 1x, though we would say that the new model has a finer detail structure and looks more pleasing at 1:1 thanks to it. Colors are also a touch more saturated – at least the grass is greener, for sure.
Daylight comparison, main camera (1x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
To some extent, those tendencies remain the same at 2x – the new model has lusher greens, and it’s a little bit sharper.
Daylight comparison, main camera (2x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
At 3x zoom, the S26 Plus is once again a bit more enthusiastic with its greenery. Detail processing is looking slightly different in some instances (brickwork is more heavily sharpened on the old model, maybe so too is brightly lit grass). It’s really small differences we’re talking about – certainly not something that would make you choose one over the other.
Daylight samples, telephoto camera (3x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Moving over to the ultrawides, it’s a bit more of the same. You could spot some minute differences, but we’d be surprised if any of them would help anyone make up their mind.
Daylight comparison, ultrawide camera (0.6x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Low light
Galaxies have been straying off the right path with their full-auto low-light performance for a few years, and the 2026 models are probably even less convincing once it goes dark than the 2025 bunch. That’s not to say they can’t produce good results, but rather that they won’t always do it automatically, and forcing them in the right direction isn’t always possible.
For what it’s worth, main camera results are marginally better out of the S26 Plus than the S25 Plus – most of the time. Neither is great, it’s just that the new model just might expose brighter and be a little bit cleaner – not always, but let’s say that the stats are in its favor.
Low-light comparison, main camera (1x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Things can get a little weird on the S26+ if you dial up the auto night mode to the max – we observed these color shifts on the S26 non-Plus too. The old model’s dedicated night mode is more reliable in its performance. To be fair, you can have a standalone night mode on the S26+, you just need to install the in-house Camera Assistant app and enable it from there – that will often get you a third different image.
Low-light comparison, main camera (1x), max night mode: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
There’s no clear winner at 2x either. If you leave both phones to their own devices, maybe the S26 Plus will be slightly better. With night mode thrown into the mix, it’s also not always obvious if one is better than the other.
Low-light comparison, main camera (2x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Maxing out the auto night mode processing doesn’t make the difference between the two more dramatic – we’d be hard pressed to name a decisive winner.
Low-light comparison, main camera (2x), max night mode: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
At 3x zoom, the two phones take somewhat different approaches, with the S26 Plus’ photos typically being softer, while the S25 Plus results are noisier.
Low-light samples, telephoto camera (3x): Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
The night mode counterparts are more universally likable on the S26+, so you might count that as a win for the new model.
Low-light samples, telephoto camera (3x), night mode: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Shooting on the ultrawides, it’s anyone’s guess which phone will take the better picture half the time it’s the S26+, half the time it’s the old one.
Low-light comparison, ultrawide camera: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
It’s slightly more consistent with night mode results, where the S26+ more or less has the upper hand in most cases.
Low-light comparison, ultrawide camera, night mode: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Selfies
The one more obvious change in the Galaxy cameras this year is the wider lens on the selfie camera, and we appreciate the extra coverage. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also that extra bit sharper. The old one is good too, but the new one is better.
Selfies comparison: Galaxy S26+ • Galaxy S25+
Video quality
Both phones offer identical video recording capabilities when it comes to the big stuff, with 4K60 on all cameras, 8K30 on the main rear ones, and decently capable Pro video modes. There are two new additions that come with the S26 Plus – the Horizon lock stabilization mode and the ability to use LUTs when recording in Log – hardly groundbreaking stuff, but if either of those is your thing, then you need to go with the new model.
For practical purposes, video quality in daylight is the same between the two phones. If you’re to stare long enough from close enough, you might think that the new model’s 1x and 2x have slightly stronger sharpening applied, but that’s about all the difference you can come up with.
Daylight video screengrabs, Galaxy S26+: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x
Daylight video screengrabs, Galaxy S25+: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x
There’s a bit more of a difference in low-light recording. The new ultrawide’s clips are sharper, and that applies to 1x footage from the main camera. (Also, to some extent, to the 2x clips, but those aren’t fun to watch from either phone). Oddly enough, it’s the old telephoto that is doing better, noticeably so. The S26+ tends to expose brighter at 0.6x and 1x, which we do appreciate.
Low-light video screengrabs, Galaxy S26+: 0.6x • 1x • 2x • 3x
Low-light video screengrabs, Galaxy S25+: 0.6x • 1x • 3x
Verdict
Aside from the modest performance and battery life upgrades, the newer Galaxy S26 Plus has little to show for its higher price. Maybe a tad nicer-sounding speakers and longer battery life could tip the scales for some users, but generally, the cheaper Galaxy S25+ from last year will get you exactly where you need to go and with less stress on your wallet.
In Europe, the price gap is around €100-200, based on third-party retailers’ offers. In the US, the situation is a bit tricky. The older Plus is hard to come by unless you shop from official Samsung channels, where the device costs $1,000, while the S26+ goes for $1,100 at the same Samsung official store. On the other hand, retailers like Amazon will gladly sell you the S26+ for around $850.
All in all, if you are in the US, you might be better off getting the newer Plus from third-party retailers. From a European perspective, however, the S25+ might be the smarter pick. We believe that the upgrades this year are so negligible that even the somewhat small €100-200 price difference is hard to justify.
- The better SoC and sustained performance.
- The better speakers.
- The longer battery life.
- The wider and sharper selfies.
- The LUTs in Log video recording, Horizon lock stabilization
Get the Samsung Galaxy S26+ for:
- The lower price tag.
- The largely similar user experience.
Get the Samsung Galaxy S25+ for:
