Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus vs Galaxy S24 Plus: Enough reasons to upgrade?
Is there enough to justify getting the new Galaxy S26 Plus in place of the Galaxy S24 Plus?
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The Galaxy S26 family is finally here! Samsung has officially unveiled its latest and greatest flagship phones, and once again, we've got to enjoy three models — the small Galaxy S26, the Galaxy S26, and of course, the Galaxy S26 Ultra. Today we'll be focusing on the Galaxy S26 Plus.
This model has always been the middle child in Samsung's flagship portfolio, offering a big-screen experience without breaking the bank. It's an alternative to the Galaxy Ultra, but for the past couple of generations the Plus model hasn't been the best-selling S-series device of the lot.
Good sales or not, the Galaxy S26 Plus is here, bringing minor upgrades and refinements. Given people often upgrade around the two-year mark, it'd be interesting to compare it to its distant sibling — the Galaxy S24 Plus. What are the differences, and should you upgrade to the Galaxy S26 Plus if you own the Galaxy S24 Plus? Let's find out!
Galaxy S26 Plus vs Galaxy S24 Plus main differences:
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Similar design, oval camera bump | Flat sides, front and back design, separate holes for the cameras |
| Similar 6.7-inch display, potentially brighter | 6.7-inch screen, dynamic LTPO 120Hz refresh rate, 2600 nits peak |
| Exynos 2600 chipset, or Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 or Exynos 2400 |
| The same camera system | 50MP main camera, 10MP telephoto, 12MP ultrawide |
| Identical RAM and storage variants (no 128GB model) | 12GB RAM and 256GB or 512GB onboard storage |
| The same battery capacity and wired charging speeds, faster wireless charging at 20W | 4,900 mAh battery, 45W fast wired charging, 15W wireless |
| Different colors | Wide variety of color options |
Table of Contents:
Also read:
Design and Size
Changes in the camera bump
Not much has changed in terms of design in the past couple of Galaxy S Plus generations. The new model closely follows the design language of its siblings. There's a slightly different, pill-shaped camera bump on the back of the Galaxy S26 Plus, while the Galaxy S24 Plus relies on separate cutouts for the three cameras on its back.
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Thickness 7.3 mm | Thickness 7.7 mm |
| Dimensions 158.4 x 75.8 mm | Dimensions 158.5 x 75.9 mm |
| Weight Around 190 grams | Weight 196 grams |
The Galaxy S26 Plus is slightly thinner than the Galaxy S24 Plus - by 0.4 mm to be exact. This won't really translate to much of a difference in feel, and the same goes for the 6 grams weight difference between these two phones.
The building blocks of the S26 Plus are your usual glass and aluminum, just like the model before and the one before that. The Galaxy S26 series features Corning Gorilla Armor 2 as screen protection material, which is nice and an upgrade compared to the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the Galaxy S24 Plus.
The building blocks of the S26 Plus are your usual glass and aluminum, just like the model before and the one before that. The Galaxy S26 series features Corning Gorilla Armor 2 as screen protection material, which is nice and an upgrade compared to the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the Galaxy S24 Plus.
In terms of colors, the Galaxy S24 is available in Onyx Black, Marble Grey, Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Jade Green, Sandstone Orange, and Sapphire Blue (some of these are Samsung.com exclusives).
The Galaxy S26 series colors are identical between the different models this year. The S26 Plus is available in Black, White, Cobalt Violet, and Sky Blue with two exclusive colors available via the Samsung Store — Pink Gold and Silver Shadow
Display Differences
The display size remains unchanged on the Galaxy S26 Plus compared to the last couple of generations. It's the same 6.7-inch AMOLED panel as the one found on the previous generation, and the one before that.
So we get the same 1440 x 3120 resolution, resulting in the same 513 PPI pixel density as the Galaxy S24 Plus. The refresh rate of the display in the S26 Plus is also the same as the one on the last two models - the 120Hz.
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Size 6.7" | Size 6.7" |
| Brightness 2600 nits (peak) | Brightness 2600 nits (peak) |
Samsung cites 2600 nits of peak brightness for the Galaxy S26. This number mimics the specs of the previous two models.
Speaking of brightness, the Galaxy S24 Plus managed 1279 nits at 100% APL in the same brightness test, which is good but not that impressive by modern standards. Let's see how the new Galaxy S26 Plus model fares in our display test.
Both phones achieved almost identical results, in the normal margin of error. It's almost certain that Samsung used the same AMOLED panel on the S24 Plus, the S25 Plus, and the new S26 Plus. Not that it's a bad thing, this screen is great, with plenty of brightness, good color reproduction, great minimum brightness, and good white balance. But there are no upgrades in this area, it seems.
In terms of biometrics, Samsung struck gold with its ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner. It's been on several generations of S-series devices, and it works flawlessly. The same tech can be found on both phones.
Performance and Software
Exynos or Snapdragon?
The Galaxy S26 series brings back the duality of Exynos and Snapdragon chipsets, depending on the market. The Galaxy S26 Plus features the latest Qualcomm silicon — the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 in North America, Japan and China — while Europe and the rest of the world gets the Exynos 2600.
The last generation skipped the Exynos in favor of an all-Snapdragon lineup, but the Galaxy S24 Plus still featured two chipsets for the different market regions. We got the Exynos 2400 version, and its performance was mostly on par with its Snapdragon twin.
Being two generations apart, there will be a substantial gap in performance between these two; find out the answer in the benchmarks below.
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Chip Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Exynos 2600 | Chip Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 |
| Process 3nm 2nm | Process 4nm |
| RAM, Storage 12/256GB 12/512GB LPDDR5X RAM UFS 4.0 storage | RAM, Storage 12/256GB 12/512GB LPDDR5X RAM UFS 4.0 storage |
Well, there you have it! The Exynos 2600 is faster than the two-year old Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. It's not a surprise but it's nice to see the graphics and visualize Samsung's progress. The chip is still a tad behind the latest Snapdragon, but if you're coming from the Galaxy S24 Plus, the new model will be an upgrade and will most definitely feel faster.
In terms of software, RAM, and storage — things look identical. Both phones feature 12GB of RAM (an upgrade for the S24 Plus back in the day) and 256 or 512GB of onboard storage. The S24 Plus is now two years old, which means that two of the seven years of promised major OS updates have already passed.
The Galaxy S26 Plus launches with Android 16 out of the box and One UI 8.5 on top. The S26 Plus will be supported for seven long years up until 2033, while the S24 Plus will receive its last software update in 2031.
The Galaxy S26 Plus launches with Android 16 out of the box and One UI 8.5 on top. The S26 Plus will be supported for seven long years up until 2033, while the S24 Plus will receive its last software update in 2031.
Camera
No changes once again
The camera system on the Galaxy S26 Plus doesn't feature any big upgrades compared to the last couple of generations. Samsung has chosen to keep the same three cameras for yet another year, a slightly disappointing notion.
You can find the detailed camera specs of both phones in the table below, but long story short - they are identical.
You can find the detailed camera specs of both phones in the table below, but long story short - they are identical.
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Main 50 MP, f/1.8 24 mm 1/1.56" | Main 50 MP, f/1.8 24 mm 1/1.56" |
| Ultrawide 12 MP, f/2.2 13 mm 1/2.55" | Ultrawide 12 MP, f/2.2 13 mm 1/2.55" |
| Telephoto 10 MP, f/2.4 3X zoom (67mm) 1/3.94" | Telephoto 10 MP, f/2.4 3X zoom (67mm) 1/3.94" |
PhoneArena Camera Score:
It's all algorithms and AI nowadays, so we shouldn't write off the Galaxy S26 Plus yet, despite it rocking the same camera system. It might still outscore the S24 Plus. Speaking of scores, the S24 Plus managed to score 152 (out of 158), an amazing score for a two-year-old phone with no aspirations to be a dedicated "camera" device.
The Galaxy S26 Plus, on the other hand, managed just 149, so it seems Samsung has gone backwards?! Let's check out some real-life samples.
Main Camera
This is extremely odd. The Galaxy S24 Plus produces better images with its main camera - the level of detail is better, the focus is also visibly better, and the white balance is more natural. The S26 Plus images look too yellow and warm, and they lack focus and detail. You can see it most clearly in low-light shots, but it's also there in broad daylight, although the difference is smaller there.
Zoom Quality
The telephoto camera of the S26 Plus produces slightly better images than the one found on the S24 Plus. The difference again isn't big, but this time the new phone has the edge when it comes to resolution, detail and overall exposure.
Ultra-wide
Ultrawide samples are very similar, except for the warmer hue on the Galaxy S26 Plus. The level of detail, exposure and white balance are all very comparable. No big differences here.
Selfies
Selfies are nearly identical, but the image taken with the Galaxy S26 Plus looks a bit different in the framing department. Even though the focal length and field of view are the same on paper, Victor looks further away in the frame in the S26 Plus sample. Go figure.
Battery Life and Charging
Faster wireless charging
The battery capacity inside the Galaxy S26 Plus copies the one in the previous generation and the one before that. 4,900 mAh is not small, but considering Far East rivals now exploit silicon-carbon tech and produce batteries pushing the 8,000 mAh mark, we expected more from Samsung.
In our battery test the Galaxy S24 Plus scored 7h 31m which put it in 46th place among phones tested in the past 2 years. It's a mediocre result and given the new chipset inside the Galaxy S26 Plus, we might get a very similar score. No silicon-carbon involved, sadly.
| Galaxy S26 Plus | Galaxy S24 Plus |
|---|---|
| Battery size 4,900 mAh | Battery size 4,900 mAh |
Charging speeds 45W wired 20W wireless charging USB-C | Charging speeds 45W wired 15W wireless charging USB-C |
PhoneArena Battery and Charging Test Results:
Looking at the benchmarks above it's clear to see that Samsung still lags behind when it comes to efficiency. The Exynos 2600 draws more power and even though the batteries in both phones are the exact same capacity, the Snapdragon-equipped S24 Plus is able to topple the S26 Plus.
There's a big difference in browsing and gaming in favor of the S24 Plus, and the phone loses by about an hour in YouTube streaming.
As far as charging is concerned there's been no changes in the past couple of years, and the Galaxy S26 Plus supports the same 45W wired charging speeds that are also supported by the Galaxy S24 Plus.
There's a slight upgrade in wireless charging, the new Galaxy S26 Plus supports 20W wireless charging.
Speaking of speed, the Galaxy S24 charges its battery from zero to full in 1 hour and 9 minutes — not terribly fast but not as slow as some iPhone devices. The S26 Plus is able to fill its battery in 1 hour and 3 minutes, so a negligeable difference.
Specs Comparison
|
|
| Samsung Galaxy S26+ | Samsung Galaxy S24+ |
| Dimensions | |
|---|---|
| 158.4 x 75.8 x 7.3 mm (~10 mm with camera bump) | 158.5 x 75.9 x 7.7mm (~8.85 mm with camera bump) |
| Weight | |
| 190.0 g | 196.0 g |
| Size | |
|---|---|
| 6.7-inch | 6.7-inch |
| Type | |
| Dynamic AMOLED, 120Hz | Dynamic AMOLED, 120Hz |
| System chip | |
|---|---|
| Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy SM8850-1-AD (3 nm) International version - Exynos 2600 |
Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 SM8650 (4 nm) International version - Exynos 2400 |
| Memory | |
| 12GB (LPDDR5X)/256GB (UFS 4.0) 12GB/512GB | 12GB/256GB (UFS 4.0) 12GB/512GB |
| OS | |
| Android (16), up to 7 OS updates | Android (15, 14) |
| Type | |
|---|---|
| 4900 mAh | 4900 mAh |
| Charge speed | |
| Wired: 45.0W Wireless: 15.0W | Wired: 45.0W Wireless: 15.0W |
| Main camera | |
|---|---|
| 50 MP (OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung GN3 Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.56" Pixel size: 1.0 μm | 50 MP (OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung GN3 Aperture size: F1.8 Focal length: 24 mm Sensor size: 1/1.56" Pixel size: 1.0 μm |
| Second camera | |
| 12 MP (Ultra-wide) Sensor name: Sony IMX564 Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm | 12 MP (Telephoto) Sensor name: Sony IMX564 Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.2 Focal Length: 13 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm |
| Third camera | |
| 10 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF) Sensor name: Samsung S5K3K1 Optical zoom: 3.0x Aperture size: F2.4 Focal Length: 67 mm Sensor size: 1/3.94" Pixel size: 1 μm |
10 MP (Telephoto) Sensor name: Samsung S5K3K1 Aperture size: F2.4 Focal Length: 67 mm Sensor size: 1/3.94" Pixel size: 1.0 μm |
| Front | |
| 12 MP | 12 MP |
| Bluetooth | |
|---|---|
| 6.0 | 5.3 |
| WLAN | |
| Wi-Fi 6,Wi-Fi 6E,Wi-Fi 7 Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac, ax | Wi-Fi 6,Wi-Fi 6E Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac, ax |
| USB | |
| Type-C, USB 3.2 | Type-C, USB 3.2 |
| Sensors | |
| Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor | Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor |
| Hearing aid compatible | |
| M3/T4 | |
| Location | |
| GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning | GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning |
| Other | |
| NFC, Ultra Wideband (UWB) | NFC |
See the full
Samsung Galaxy S26+ vs Samsung Galaxy S24+ specs comparison
or compare them to other phones using our
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Summary
Samsung seems to be stuck with the Galaxy S-series and the Plus models in particular. The last couple of generations the upgrades were incremental, and this trend continues with the Galaxy S26 Plus.
The phone features the same camera system as the previous couple of models, the same battery size, and the same screen. If you already own the Galaxy S24 Plus, which is the other entity in this comparison, there's little to no reason to get the new Galaxy S26 Plus.
If you're coming from an older Galaxy device, or just want to dip your toes into Samsung's ecosystem coming from an iOS device, the Galaxy S26 Plus is a decent choice.
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