Samsung Galaxy S23 vs Samsung Galaxy S26: Which is better?

Screen size

Galaxy S236.1"

Galaxy S266.3"+3.2%

Technology

Galaxy S23

GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G

Galaxy S26

GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G

2G bands

Galaxy S23

GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 , CDMA 800 / 1900 & TD-SCDMA

Galaxy S26

GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 , CDMA 800 / 1900 & TD-SCDMA

3G bands

Galaxy S23

HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 , CDMA2000 1xEV-DO

Galaxy S26

HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 , CDMA2000 1xEV-DO

Resolution

equal specs

Galaxy S231080 × 2340 px

Galaxy S261080 × 2340 px

Refresh rate

equal specs

Galaxy S23120 Hz

Galaxy S26120 Hz

Peak brightness

Galaxy S231,750 nits

Galaxy S262,600 nits+33%

Pixel density

Galaxy S23425 ppi+3.8%

Galaxy S26409 ppi

CPU speed

Galaxy S23Octa-core (1x3.36 GHz Cortex-X3 & 2x2.8 GHz Cortex-A715 & 2x2.8 GHz Cortex-A710 & 3x2.0 GHz Cortex-A510)

Galaxy S26Octa-core (2x4.6 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix L + 6x3.62 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix M)+27%

RAM

Galaxy S238.0 GB

Galaxy S2612.0 GB+33%

Storage

equal specs

Galaxy S23128 GB

Galaxy S26128 GB

Main camera

equal specs

Galaxy S2350.0 MP

Galaxy S2650.0 MP

Front camera

equal specs

Galaxy S2312.0 MP

Galaxy S2612.0 MP

Battery

Galaxy S233,900 mAh

Galaxy S264,300 mAh+9.3%

Wired charging

equal specs

Galaxy S2325 W

Galaxy S2625 W

Weight

Galaxy S23168 g

Galaxy S26—

Thickness

Galaxy S237.6 mm

Galaxy S267.2 mm+5.6%

IP rating

equal specs

Galaxy S23IP68

Galaxy S26IP68

Wi‑Fi

equal specs

Galaxy S23Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, tri-band, Wi-Fi Direct

Galaxy S26Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e/7, tri-band, Wi-Fi Direct

Bluetooth

Galaxy S235.3, A2DP, LE

Galaxy S265.4, A2DP, LE+1.9%

USB

equal specs

Galaxy S23USB Type-C 3.2, OTG

Galaxy S26USB Type-C 3.2, DisplayPort 1.2, OTG

5G support

equal specs

Galaxy S23Yes

Galaxy S26Yes

NFC

equal specs

Galaxy S23Yes

Galaxy S26Yes

3.5mm jack

equal specs

Galaxy S23No

Galaxy S26No

SD card

equal specs

Galaxy S23No

Galaxy S26No

Stereo speakers

equal specs

Galaxy S23Yes

Galaxy S26Yes

5G bands

Galaxy S23

1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 25, 28, 38, 40, 41, 66, 75, 77, 78 SA/NSA/Sub6 - International, 1, 7, 25, 28, 41, 66, 71, 78, 258, 260, 261 SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - USA

Galaxy S26

SA/NSA/Sub6 - International, SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - USA unlocked

Speed

Galaxy S23

HSPA, LTE (up to 7CA), 5G

Galaxy S26

HSPA, LTE (up to 7CA), 5G

Announced

Galaxy S23

2023, February 01

Galaxy S26

Not announced yet

Status

Galaxy S23

Available. Released 2023, February 17

Galaxy S26

Rumored

Dimensions

Galaxy S23

146.3 x 70.9 x 7.6 mm (5.76 x 2.79 x 0.30 in)

Galaxy S26

149.6 x 71.7 x 7.2 mm (5.89 x 2.82 x 0.28 in)

Weight

Galaxy S23

168 g (5.93 oz)

Galaxy S26

Build

Galaxy S23

Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), aluminum frame

Galaxy S26

Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus 2), aluminum frame

SIM

Galaxy S23

· Nano-SIM + eSIM· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM + eSIM (max 2 at a time)

Galaxy S26

· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM + eSIM + eSIM (max 2 at a time) - INT· Nano-SIM + eSIM + eSIM (max 2 at a time) - USA· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM - CN

Other

Galaxy S23

IP68 dust tight and water resistant (immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min) Armor aluminum frame

Galaxy S26

IP68 dust tight and water resistant (immersible up to 1.5m for 30 min) Armor aluminum 2 frame

Type

Galaxy S23

Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1200 nits (HBM), 1750 nits (peak)

Galaxy S26

Dynamic LTPO AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 2600 nits (peak)

Size

Galaxy S23

6.1 inches, 90.1 cm2 (~86.8% screen-to-body ratio)

Galaxy S26

6.3 inches, 97.4 cm2 (~90.8% screen-to-body ratio)

Resolution

Galaxy S23

1080 x 2340 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~425 ppi density)

Galaxy S26

1080 x 2340 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~409 ppi density)

Protection

Galaxy S23

Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2

Galaxy S26

Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2

Galaxy S23

Android 13, up to 4 major Android upgrades, One UI 8

Galaxy S26

Android 16, up to 7 major Android upgrades, One UI 8.5

Chipset

Galaxy S23

Qualcomm SM8550-AC Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4 nm)

Galaxy S26

Qualcomm SM8850-AC Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 (3 nm) - ROWExynos 2600 - Europe

CPU

Galaxy S23

Octa-core (1x3.36 GHz Cortex-X3 & 2x2.8 GHz Cortex-A715 & 2x2.8 GHz Cortex-A710 & 3x2.0 GHz Cortex-A510)

Galaxy S26

Octa-core (2x4.6 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix L + 6x3.62 GHz Oryon V3 Phoenix M)

GPU

Galaxy S23

Adreno 740

Galaxy S26

Adreno 840

Card slot

Galaxy S23

Galaxy S26

Internal

Galaxy S23

128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 512GB 8GB RAM

Galaxy S26

128GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM

Other

Galaxy S23

UFS 3.1 - 128GB only UFS 4.0

Galaxy S26

UFS 4.X

Triple

Galaxy S23

50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.56", 1.0µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 10 MP, f/2.4, 70mm (telephoto), 1/3.94", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55" 1.4µm, Super Steady video

Galaxy S26

50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.56", 1.0µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 10 MP, f/2.4, 67mm (telephoto), 1/3.94", 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55" 1.4µm, Super Steady video

Features

Galaxy S23

LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama

Galaxy S26

Best Face, LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama

Video

Galaxy S23

8K@24/30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS

Galaxy S26

8K@24/30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, 10-bit HDR, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS

Single

Galaxy S23

12 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.2", 1.12µm, dual pixel PDAF

Galaxy S26

12 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.2", 1.12µm, dual pixel PDAF

Features

Galaxy S23

HDR, HDR10+

Galaxy S26

HDR, HDR10+

Video

Galaxy S23

4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps

Galaxy S26

4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps

Loudspeaker

Galaxy S23

Yes, with stereo speakers

Galaxy S26

Yes, with stereo speakers

3.5mm jack

Galaxy S23

Galaxy S26

Other

Galaxy S23

High-bitrate audio support

Galaxy S26

High-bitrate audio support

WLAN

Galaxy S23

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, tri-band, Wi-Fi Direct

Galaxy S26

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e/7, tri-band, Wi-Fi Direct

Bluetooth

Galaxy S23

5.3, A2DP, LE

Galaxy S26

5.4, A2DP, LE

Positioning

Galaxy S23

GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO

Galaxy S26

GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS

NFC

Galaxy S23

Yes

Galaxy S26

Yes

Radio

Galaxy S23

Galaxy S26

USB

Galaxy S23

USB Type-C 3.2, OTG

Galaxy S26

USB Type-C 3.2, DisplayPort 1.2, OTG

Sensors

Galaxy S23

Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer

Galaxy S26

Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer

Other

Galaxy S23

Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support)

Galaxy S26

Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support)

Type

Galaxy S23

Li-Ion 3900 mAh

Galaxy S26

4300 mAh

Charging

Galaxy S23

25W wired, PD3.0, 50% in 30 min 15W wireless (Qi) 4.5W reverse wireless

Galaxy S26

25W wired, PD3.0 25W wireless (Qi2.2) 4.5W reverse wireless

Colors

Galaxy S23

Phantom Black, Cream, Green, Lavender, Graphite, Lime

Galaxy S26

Black; other colors

Models

Galaxy S23

SM-S911B, SM-S911B/DS, SM-S911U, SM-S911U1, SM-S911W, SM-S911N, SM-S9110, SM-S911E, SM-S911E/DS

Galaxy S26

SAR

Galaxy S23

0.95 W/kg (head) 0.88 W/kg (body)

Galaxy S26

SAR EU

Galaxy S23

0.96 W/kg (head) 1.30 W/kg (body)

Galaxy S26

Price

Galaxy S23

$ 246.04 / C$ 323.75 / £ 229.00 / € 338.95 / ₹ 39,999

Galaxy S26

Galaxy S23 vs Galaxy S26

Which is better?

Choose Galaxy S23 for

Choose Galaxy S26 for

Biggest differences

Galaxy S23

Galaxy S26

Head-to-head comparison

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Specifications Comparison

Network

Performance

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Battery

Build

Connectivity

Display

Performance

Cameras

Battery

Build

Connectivity

Launch

Body

Display

Platform

Memory

Main Camera

Selfie camera

Sound

Comms

Features

Battery

Misc