iPhone vs. Samsung
iPhone 17 vs. Galaxy S26
Images: Apple, Samsung
Every spec side by side, from Apple's and Samsung's official spec pages. Values marked (reported) aren't published by the maker.
Choose the iPhone 17 if…
- You already use a Mac, iPad, Apple Watch or AirPods
Choose the Galaxy S26 if…
- You want bigger battery
- You want lighter
- You want more memory (ram)
- You prefer Android and Samsung's software
Who wins what
Bigger screenTie
Bigger batteryGalaxy S26
LighterGalaxy S26
More memory (RAM)Galaxy S26
Longer update promiseNot comparable
Lower starting priceTie
Winners are worked out from the published specs below; ties and missing specs are shown honestly.
The key differences, in words
- Screen: iPhone 17: 6.3 in; screen-to-body Not published. Galaxy S26: 6.3 in (6.1 in with rounded corners).
- Chip: iPhone 17: Apple A19. Galaxy S26: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy (3 nm).
- Main cameras: iPhone 17: 48MP Fusion Main, 26 mm, f/1.6, sensor-shift OIS; 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide, 13 mm, f/2.2, 120 deg. Optical-quality 2x Telephoto (12MP, 52 mm crop from Main); 4x optical-quality range, up to 10x digital. Galaxy S26: 50MP Wide AF; 12MP Ultra Wide FF; 10MP 3x telephoto AF.
- Battery: iPhone 17: 3,692 mAh (reported, Apple EU energy label via MacRumors). Galaxy S26: 4300 mAh typical (4175 mAh rated).
- Weight: iPhone 17: 177 g. Galaxy S26: 167 g.
- Software updates: iPhone 17: —. Galaxy S26: 7 years of security updates (Samsung).
If you're leaning iPhone
Wait if you can · 42 419 days since release; this line usually refreshes every ~364 days (past its usual refresh). See the iPhone 17 price, true cost and buy-now score.
Full specifications
| AppleiPhone 17 | SamsungGalaxy S26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying | ||
| Apple price from | $899 | — |
| Buy-now score | 42/100 (Wait if you can) | — |
| Released | Sep 19, 2025 | Mar 11, 2026 |
| Price from | — | $899 |
| Launch | ||
| Announced | Sep 9, 2025 | Feb 25, 2026 |
| Released | Sep 19, 2025 | Mar 11, 2026 |
| Status | Available | Available |
| Body | ||
| Dimensions | 149.6 x 71.5 x 7.95 mm | 149.6 x 71.7 x 7.2 mm |
| Weight | 177 g | 167 g |
| Build | Ceramic Shield 2 front, color-infused glass back, aluminum frame | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 front and back, Armor Aluminum 2 frame |
| SIM | Dual eSIM (2 active, stores 8+); no physical SIM (US model) | — |
| Water/dust | IP68 (6 m for 30 min, IEC 60529) | IP68 (1.5 m for 30 min) |
| Display | ||
| Type | Super Retina XDR OLED, Dynamic Island, Always-On, HDR, True Tone, P3, 2,000,000:1 contrast | Dynamic AMOLED 2X, FHD+ |
| Size | 6.3 in | 6.3 in (6.1 in with rounded corners) |
| Resolution | 2622 x 1206 px, 460 ppi | FHD+ (exact px and ppi Not published) |
| Refresh rate | ProMotion adaptive, up to 120Hz (down to 1Hz Always-On) | Adaptive 1-120Hz |
| Brightness | 1000 nits typical, 1600 nits HDR peak, 3000 nits outdoor peak, 1 nit minimum | 2600 nits peak |
| Protection | Ceramic Shield 2, anti-reflective and oleophobic coatings | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 |
| Platform | ||
| OS | Ships with iOS 26 / current iOS 27 | Android 16, One UI 8.5 (at launch) |
| Chip | Apple A19 | Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy (3 nm) |
| CPU | 6-core (2 performance + 4 efficiency) | 8-core Qualcomm Oryon (2 prime + 6 performance); 4.74GHz / 3.6GHz on the Galaxy version |
| GPU | 5-core with Neural Accelerators, hardware ray tracing | Adreno 840 (reported) |
| Neural engine | 16-core Neural Engine | Qualcomm Hexagon NPU (reported) |
| Memory | ||
| Storage | 256GB, 512GB | 256GB, 512GB |
| RAM | 8GB (reported) | 12GB |
| Main camera | ||
| Lenses | 48MP Fusion Main, 26 mm, f/1.6, sensor-shift OIS; 48MP Fusion Ultra Wide, 13 mm, f/2.2, 120 deg. Optical-quality 2x Telephoto (12MP, 52 mm crop from Main); 4x optical-quality range, up to 10x digital | 50MP Wide AF; 12MP Ultra Wide FF; 10MP 3x telephoto AF |
| Features | True Tone flash, Photonic Engine, Deep Fusion, Smart HDR 5, 48MP macro, spatial photos, Night mode, Portraits, Photographic Styles | 3x optical zoom, 2x optical-quality zoom, 30x digital zoom |
| Video | 4K Dolby Vision 24/25/30/60 fps; 1080p slo-mo 120/240 fps; Cinematic 4K30; Action mode 2.8K60; spatial 1080p30; Dual Capture 4K30; HEVC/H.264 | 8K at 30fps; 4K at 60fps |
| Selfie camera | ||
| Lens | 18MP Center Stage, f/1.9, autofocus, TrueDepth (Face ID) | 12MP Wide AF (85 deg) |
| Video | 4K Dolby Vision 24/25/30/60 fps; Cinematic 4K30; 1080p120 slo-mo; Dual Capture | 4K at 60fps |
| Sound | ||
| Speakers | Stereo speakers; Spatial Audio, Dolby Atmos playback | Stereo speakers |
| 3.5mm jack | No | No |
| Connectivity | ||
| Cellular | 5G sub-6 GHz and mmWave (n258/n260/n261), 4x4 MIMO; Gigabit LTE; model A3258 | 5G (sub-6 only), LTE |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be), 2x2 MIMO, Apple N1 chip | Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Bluetooth | 6 | v5.4 |
| Positioning | Dual-frequency GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, BeiDou, NavIC | — |
| NFC | Yes, reader mode, Express Cards with power reserve | Yes |
| UWB | 2nd-gen Ultra Wideband | Yes (Samsung spec table) |
| Satellite | Emergency SOS, Messages, Find My and Roadside Assistance via satellite | — |
| USB | USB-C, USB 2 (480Mb/s), DisplayPort up to 4K HDR | USB Type-C (version Not published) |
| Features | ||
| Biometrics | Face ID | Fingerprint sensor (type Not published) |
| Sensors | Barometer, high dynamic range gyro, high-g accelerometer, proximity, dual ambient light, magnetometer | Accelerometer, barometer, fingerprint, gyro, geomagnetic, Hall, proximity, light |
| Other | Action button, Camera Control, Thread, Crash Detection | Wireless PowerShare |
| Battery | ||
| Capacity | 3,692 mAh (reported) | 4300 mAh typical (4175 mAh rated) |
| Video playback | Up to 30 h (27 h streamed) | Up to 30 hours (Samsung) |
| Wired charging | 50% in 20 min with 40W+ adapter (Apple); about 27-28W peak measured (reported) | Up to 25W, about 55% in 30 min |
| Wireless | MagSafe up to 25W, Qi2 up to 25W | Up to 15W Fast Wireless Charging; Wireless PowerShare |
| Misc | ||
| Colours | Black, White, Mist Blue, Sage, Lavender | Cobalt Violet, White, Black, Sky Blue; Samsung.com only: Pink Gold, Silver Shadow |
| US price | 256GB $899, 512GB $1,099 with carrier activation; $929 / $1,129 unlocked (raised from $799 launch price on 2026-09-09) | Launch: 256GB $899.99; 512GB $1,099.99 (reported). A US rise to $1,000 / $1,200 was reported in Oct 2026 (SamMobile) |
| Software updates | — | 7 years of security updates (Samsung) |
Add more products to this comparison
Sources: Apple iPhone 17 tech specs, Apple Newsroom: Apple debuts iPhone 17, Apple Store: buy iPhone 17, MacRumors: iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air specs, battery capacities and RAM, MacRumors: iPhone Air USB-C charging speeds tested (includes iPhone 17), Samsung US Newsroom: Galaxy S26 series launch + specification table, Samsung US: Galaxy S26 Ultra compare page (lineup, video playback, current price), Google Fi spec page: Galaxy S26 (US carrier; materials and sensors), Qualcomm product brief: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, SamMobile (reported): Galaxy S26 US price increase, Oct 2026, itechguides (reported): S26 series US launch prices per storage. Spotted an error? Tell us.