Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus vs S26 Ultra: Comparing the Androids

Price and Availability

At the time of writing, the entire Galaxy S26 series can be pre-ordered ahead of the official launch on March 11th. Sitting comfortably in between the S26 and S26 Ultra, the Galaxy S26 Plus starts at £1099 for its 256GB handset. 

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Alternatively, for just under £200 more, you can get the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra from £1279. Both the S26 Plus and Ultra have slightly higher starting prices compared to their predecessor. 

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Galaxy S26 Ultra runs on Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy

While the Galaxy S26 Ultra runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, Samsung has instead kitted out the S26 and S26 Plus with its own Exynos 2600 chip. If, however, you’re based in the US, then the entire S26 series will benefit from Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy.

Sounds familiar? It should do, as this happened in 2024 with the Galaxy S24 series. What made matters worse back then was that, although Samsung promised the performance would be the same, we found that Qualcomm’s chip was much more powerful than Exynos. Unfortunately, this doesn’t bode well for the S26 series.

Even so, as we haven’t reviewed Exynos 2600 yet, we’ll have to wait and see how the chip fares in everyday use.

Otherwise, although we haven’t reviewed the custom chip for Galaxy, we have reviewed handsets running on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 and have been impressed with its performance. Everything from multitasking between apps, gaming and even photo and video editing performs well without a hitch.

Galaxy S26 Ultra has a larger display

At 6.9-inches, the Galaxy S26 Ultra is slightly larger than the Galaxy S26 Plus which measures in at 6.7-inches. And that’s not where the screen differences end. 

One of the key differences between the S26 Ultra and S26 Plus is that the former boasts a clever privacy display, which means the screen isn’t visible from certain viewing angles. You can also customise the level of privacy, including just making certain areas of the screen private or enabling the setting on a per-app basis. It’s a brilliant addition, and one we wish was available on the entire S26 series. 

Another difference, which you might be familiar with already if you’ve used a Galaxy S-series before, is the Ultra comes equipped with the S-Pen. It’s a useful addition that might make using the display that bit easier for some users, but whether it’s the reason to upgrade depends on your personal preference.

Otherwise, both are Dynamic AMOLED 2X, QHD+ panels with a 1-120Hz refresh rate. 

Galaxy S26 Ultra has two telephoto lenses

Samsung hasn’t made many major changes with either the S26 Plus or Ultra’s camera hardware. That means, like the S25 Plus and S25 Ultra, the S26 Plus is made up of 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide and 10MP telephoto lenses, while the S26 Ultra sports a 200MP main, 50MP ultrawide, 50MP and 10MP telephoto lenses.

However, Samsung has stated that the main lens of the S26 Ultra should result in images that are 47% brighter while the 50MP telephoto should see a 37% increase in brightness.

The fact that the S26 Plus’ camera is unchanged is a shame. Although the S25 Plus undoubtedly is a confident snapper, and can take great pictures in most lighting conditions, we haven’t seen any exciting upgrades in a few generations.

Galaxy S26 Ultra promises faster charging

Considering many of even the best mid-range and cheap phones have a 5000mAh battery, and some even boast cells of over 7000mAh, the S26 Plus’ 4900mAh and S26 Ultra’s 5000mAh are pretty underwhelming. Even so, we’ve never struggled with a Samsung Galaxy’s battery life and found they can comfortably see a day through which means we can expect the same with the S26 series.

Otherwise, Samsung promises the S26 Ultra will support charging speeds of up to 60W, which is promised to reach 75% in just half an hour. In comparison, the S26 Plus supports 45W charging, the same as its predecessor.

Both feature Galaxy AI

Regardless of whether you opt for the S26 Plus or S26 Ultra, rest assured that you’ll benefit from the entire Galaxy AI toolkit, including Gemini and Samsung’s brilliant photo and video editing tools, including Object Eraser and Audio Eraser. The S26 series also benefits from a few tweaks to old favourites, including the ability to search for multiple elements in Circle to Search and a more personalised Now Brief and Now Bar too.

Also new for the S26 series is Now Nudge which provides you with real-time suggestions based on what you’re doing on your phone. For example, it will provide a shortcut to specific photos from a trip if someone messages you for them. 

Early Verdict

As we haven’t reviewed either phone, we’ll hold off from giving a conclusive verdict for the time being. However, if you want to benefit from a Qualcomm chip, faster charging and a more versatile camera set-up then the Galaxy S26 Ultra seems to be an easy recommendation.

On the other hand, although the S26 Plus is remarkably similar to its predecessor, it’s still a brilliant Android phone that will suit those who want premium features and a larger screen but without the hefty price.