I put the iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL through a 7-round face-off — here’s the winner

The Apple iPhone 17 Pro Max and Google Pixel 10 Pro XL are the top-of-the-line models in their respective lineups, especially when they’re spec’d and priced almost identically; it’s no wonder they rank among the best phones. But which is the tops among these two?

I honestly can’t remember the last time Google came out on top, but our Pixel 10 Pro XL review reveals big improvements in areas like the camera and AI. The latter’s notable because the Pixel 10 Pro XL is starting to widen the divide between what Google offers versus Apple.

In contrast, our iPhone 17 Pro Max review shows how Apple continues to make great strides in the areas that matter to a lot of people. From the outstanding performance out of its A19 Pro chip, to the hardware upgrades to its telephoto and selfie cameras, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is a force to be reckoned with.

But which of these heavyweights comes out on top? I’ve been putting the iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL to the test for the past week to tell you which is better for your needs.

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Specifications

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Price and Release

The Pixel 10 Pro XL launched on August 28, 2025, with the iPhone 17 Pro Max launching less than a month later, on September 19, 2025.

Gone are the days when Google undercuts Apple on price, as the Pixel 10 Pro XL has the same $1,199 starting cost as the iPhone 17 Pro Max — with both models coming with 256GB of starting storage. You can get them in 512GB and 1TB capacities, but Apple also offers the iPhone 17 Pro Max with 2TB storage.

However, Google is asking for more money with its higher storage options. For example, the 512GB and 1TB cost $1,319 and $1,549 respectively versus the $1,299 and $1,499 prices Apple has with its models.

Winner: iPhone 17 Pro Max

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Design

In typical ultra-premium fashion, both companies put in a lot of effort and detail with their designs. Apple gave its flagship model a big makeover, which fashions an aluminum frame with Ceramic Shield 2 on the front and regular Ceramic Shield on the back. The camera compartment also sees a change as the square shaped arrangement makes way for a more rectangular one.

Google’s redesign came with last year’s model, so the Pixel 10 Pro XL doesn’t have much difference. But despite this, I still love the charm it exudes with its rounded corners, aluminum frame, and matte-textured toughened Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the back. There’s also the oval shaped camera cutout on the back, which I find more attractive than Apple’s.

While the Cosmic Orange version of the iPhone 17 Pro Max is a refreshing color change, the Pixel 10 Pro XL still beats it with more color options. This one’s tough and boils down to personal preference.

Winner: tie

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Display

When it comes to size, the iPhone 17 Pro Max has a slight advantage with its 6.9-in OLED display, but that’s about the only thing it has better than the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s 6.8-inch screen. Frankly, you can’t go wrong with either display because they offer exquisite viewing angles, fast 120Hz adaptive refresh rates, and rich colors that make them perfect for watching video content.

What makes the Pixel 10 Pro XL better in this area is its blinding peak brightness output of 2,555 nits. This makes a huge difference outdoors when the sun’s out because I can make out its display much easier than the iPhone 17 Pro Max, which tops out at 1,899 nits. As I’ve detailed in my recent display comparison test, this difference lets me read web pages much easier with the Pixel 10 Pro XL — along with watching video.

Winner: Pixel 10 Pro XL

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Cameras

Last year I shot over 200 photos with the iPhone 16 Pro Max vs Pixel 9 Pro XL, which ended up giving the win to Apple by a stretch. This time it’s interesting because both phones’ cameras get their share of upgrades.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max’s rear camera system consists of a 48MP main shooter, 48MP ultrawide, and 48MP telephoto with 4x optical zoom. The latter’s an upgrade over the previous model, along with its new 18MP Center Stage camera that I’ve already tested in detail against other best camera phone contenders. The new telephoto shooter comes with controversy, as the iPhone 16 Pro Max featured a 12MP telephoto, but with a slightly longer 5x optical zoom.

Google’s strategy is different because there’s honestly no hardware change, so you get a 50MP main camera, 48MP ultrawide, 48MP 5x telephoto, and 42MP selfie. Instead, it’s leaning on new image processing algorithms and AI.

You can’t go wrong using their main cameras during the day because the results are almost identical. The details and sharpness of the landscape scene I shot above look similar, but I like how the Pixel 10 Pro XL draws out a bit more detail in the shadows — along with how the sky’s brighter.

With their ultrawide cameras, they seem to cover the same range from side to side, but a closer inspection reveals that the iPhone 17 Pro Max pulls in more detail and definition with the textures of the stone and bricks. However, I again like how the Pixel 10 Pro XL boosts the exposure to draw out the details hidden in the shadows.

To judge their dynamic range performance, I pointed the cameras at the museum above with the sun directly behind it. This causes the facade to be in shadow, which in turn, causes both phones to compensate for this contrast in light by boosting the shadows. The Pixel 10 Pro XL manages to do this while retaining the same level of contrast throughout the shot, whereas the iPhone 17 Pro Max has a lower contrast look.

I took both phones on a day trip to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden and snapped the closeup of the Chinese Aster above. Initially, both look really crisp and make the flower look dramatic by applying just the right amount of background blur. However, the Pixel 10 Pro XL gets my vote with its stronger contrast and sharper look.

Don’t ever judge a camera by the amount of megapixels they tout because my selfies above prove how the 18MP front-camera of the iPhone matches the 42MP one of the Pixel. Both capture a lot of my facial features well, like my hairline and freckles on my nose, but the Pixel 10 Pro XL shows more definition with my hoodie. However, I prefer how the iPhone 17 Pro Max captures my skin tone.

Zoom performance is interesting because I don’t notice a huge difference between 2x and 5x zoom. However, I can see a difference at 10x zoom as the Pixel 10 XL does a better job of showing more of the textures around the wooden sign hanging on the Torri gate above. What’s even more impressive is how Pro Res Zoom with the Pixel 10 Pro XL uses AI to enhance zoom shots beyond 30x zoom.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max handles panoramas better, evident in how it casts an even exposure all throughout the shot above — especially pulling up the shadowed portions of the trees in the background. The Pixel 10 Pro XL isn’t as eye-catching, but it’s also strange that it cut out a portion of the tree on the right.

When it comes to low light, Apple is still king in this area because of how the iPhone 17 Pro Max is able to make dark scenes look bright. Despite the near-pitch black setting of when I photographed the tree above, both phones brighten it up with their respective night modes — but the iPhone 17 Pro Max does a better job at exposing the branches and leaves.

Beyond the hardware, I will say that I prefer the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s camera app because it has more of the features I crave. For example, Pro Controls lets me adjust settings like the focus and ISO — while extra AI-assisted modes like Add Me and Auto Best Take make it more versatile. The iPhone 17 Pro Max to its credit has the Camera Control, but I don’t find it as helpful.

This one’s tough because both phones certainly have their strengths. Notice how I don’t mention weaknesses because they seriously don’t have any. The Pixel 10 Pro XL wins for its zoom performance and shooting modes, but the iPhone 17 Pro Max beats it in low light and selfies.

Winner: Pixel 10 Pro XL

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Performance

There’s never been a time when Google’s chip has outperformed Apple’s in our lab testing, and that doesn’t change with this year’s models. The iPhone 17 Pro Max is powered by an A19 Pro chip and delivers results that blow out the Tensor G5 out of the water.

In Geekbench 6, the iPhone’s 3,871 single core score easily eclipses the 2,322 score of the Tensor G5, and the result is no different with their multi-core scores. When it comes to graphics processing, the iPhone 17 Pro Max is unequivocally the superior phone as it maintains an average frame rate of 159.53 fps with 3DMark’s Wild Life Original Unlimited test. This is nearly double the 81.03 fps that the Pixel 10 Pro XL averages running the same test.

While I prefer the iPhone 17 Pro Max for gaming — it delivers smoother graphics that don’t cause it to overheat thanks to its new vapor cooling system — I don’t see a tremendous difference in performance from either phone with everyday tasks. Meaning, if you’re going to be juggling multiple apps, surf the web, and watch the occasional flick, you won’t see a big difference between them.

Winner: iPhone 17 Pro Max

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Battery and Charging

Not only does it have the more powerful processor, but the iPhone 17 Pro Max is also way more power efficient — which results in a much longer battery life on our battery drain test. Its time of 17 hours and 54 seconds is more than 3 hours longer than the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s mark of 14 hours and 9 minutes.

I still find both phones getting all-day battery life with my real world experience, with very few instances of having to charge them while I’m at work. However, I constantly find the iPhone 17 Pro Max with more juice left over after the same amount of time has passed. While the Pixel 10 Pro XL has the faster 45W charging speed, it’s the iPhone 17 Pro Max that charges faster in the same amount of time. For example, 30 minutes of charging them yields 63% capacity for the Pixel — while the iPhone gets to 64%.

Finally, I like how both phones feature embedded magnets to support all the accessories I love to use — like my MagSafe wallet and the many best MagSafe chargers I test.

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Software and AI

Visually, I really like the makeover Apple gives to iOS 26 with its new Liquid Glass design. It’s a refreshing change that adds transparent, glass-like elements to various parts of the interface, while animations look fluid as ever. I also love the changes it makes with the lock screen with new customization options that make my wallpapers look more dynamic.

But while Apple invests a lot into updating the look and feel of iOS 26, it struggles to keep pace with the features that come with Android 16 on the Pixel 10 Pro XL. There isn’t much of a cosmetic change with Android 16, but Google widens its lead when it comes to productivity and artificial intelligence.

With the former, I can obviously run apps in split-screen mode to make it way easier to use two apps simultaneously. You still can’t do this on iPhone. Secondly, there’s the hidden Android 16 desktop mode I can tap into that essentially gives me a desktop PC-like experience when I connect my Pixel 10 Pro XL to a monitor. Doing the same thing with the iPhone 17 Pro Max results in nothing more than a mirroring mode.

Secondly, I need to talk about AI because there are barely any new Apple Intelligence features with iOS 26. While I really like the new Call Screen feature of iOS 26, it still doesn’t come close to matching what the Pixel 10 Pro XL offers with its similar feature. I’ve put other similar software features they offer to the test, like Photo Clean Up vs Magic Eraser and Image Playground vs Pixel Studio, with the Pixel coming out on top each time.

Google adds even more new AI features with the Pixel 10 Pro XL, like how Magic Cue is the perfect example of AI working in the background to proactively recommend suggestions to me, its new Live Translation feature that uses generative AI to essentially mimic my voice with phone call translations, and the slew of AI photo editing tools at its disposal. Ask Photos is unlike anything out there with editing photos because now I can just describe what changes I want and the Pixel 10 Pro XL proceeds to make them.

I can go on and on about more features with the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s software, but the point I want to make is that these tools and features make a big difference to my workflow. I’m spending less time because of them, which is why Google’s farther ahead in this area than Apple.

Winner: Pixel 10 Pro XL

iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL: Verdict

This iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Pixel 10 Pro XL came out much closer than I anticipated, resulting in a tie after looking at all the categories. Google could’ve ended up finally doing the unthinkable if only it were priced lower than its rival, much like how it’s been in previous years — but it doesn’t as this is the first time it’s the same price as the iPhone.

But despite this, I’m still surprised by the result. Whether you go with the Pixel 10 Pro XL or iPhone 17 Pro Max, they’re superb in their own way. I would choose the iPhone 17 Pro Max if performance and battery life are tops on your priority list, whereas the Pixel 10 Pro XL offers better productivity and AI features.

If you were to ask me which one I’d personally pick, I’d have to say the Pixel 10 Pro XL. That’s because as I’ve said, the new AI features it offers saves me time — plus I can fall back to using the Android 16 desktop mode if I forget to bring my laptop with me to work. Even though the Tensor G5 is clearly outmuscled by the A19 Pro, the Pixel 10 Pro XL’s performance is still good enough for my liking.

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