Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: which base model is better?

The Google Pixel 9 represents Google’s astir naked bid yet to present nan ‘iPhone of Android’ that each telephone shaper (other than Apple) dreams of bringing to market. Prior to its launch, nan astir evident contender for that title was nan Samsung Galaxy S24, which makes for a fascinating comparison betwixt nan 2 phones.

These 2 prestigious compact flagships stock a batch successful common, including a basal size and shape, a resolute attraction connected AI tricks, akin pricing, nan aforesaid exemplary package support, and camera features that look to person been taken from importantly much costly phones.

So, really precisely do they stack up to 1 another? We’ve reviewed some phones, and spent sizeable clip testing retired their various features since then. We tin safely opportunity from nan outset that this peculiar conflict is going to beryllium very intimately fought.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: specs comparison

Before we delve into nan good points, let’s tally done nan cardinal specifications of these 2 phones. While they’re operating successful akin territory, location are immoderate astonishing points of quality correct disconnected nan bat.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: value and availability

Google brought guardant its motorboat schedule for nan Pixel 9, releasing nan telephone into shops connected August 22, 2024. This was astir 7 months connected from Samsung’s Galaxy S24 motorboat connected January 17.

Pricing is very akin so betwixt nan two. The Pixel 9 starts from $799 / £799 / AU$1,349 for nan 128GB model, while nan 256GB exemplary will group you backmost $899 / £899 / AU$1,499.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 officially starts from $799 / £799 for 128GB, which is very akin to nan Pixel 9. However, nan larger 256GB exemplary proves to beryllium somewhat amended worth than its Pixel 9 equivalent, costing $859 / £859 / AU $1,399. Australian customers besides get a 512GB action for AU$1,599.

There’s besides nan truth that nan Galaxy S24 is simply a important 7 months older, meaning you’re much apt to find a awesome discount from third-party retailers. As such, we’d telephone nan Samsung telephone nan victor successful nan value-for-money stakes.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: design

The Google Pixel 9(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

After various creation iterations and revisions, some Google and Samsung look to person travel to nan aforesaid basal conclusion: if you want to entreaty to nan masses, make your telephone look for illustration an iPhone.

Both nan Pixel 9 and Galaxy S24 look a batch for illustration nan iPhone 15, pinch akin level metallic frames, tightly curved corners, and bold artifact colour finishes. As a result, they besides look rather a batch for illustration 1 another.

They’re acold from identical, though. The main constituent of differentiation is connected nan backmost of nan phones, wherever nan Pixel 9 adopts a striking camera barroom that runs astir of nan width of nan telephone and stands retired immoderate measurement from nan body. It’s surely much visually appealing than Samsung’s much muted approach, pinch each of its 3 cameras getting their ain discrete housing.

The Google Pixel 9(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

Conversely, nan Galaxy S24’s subtle style makes it consciousness much slender successful nan hand. At 147 x 70.6 x 7.6mm and 167g, it’s rather a spot smaller and lighter than nan Pixel 9, which weighs successful astatine a comparatively hefty 152.8 x 72 x 8.5mm and 198g. Samsung besides wins brownie points for providing acold much colour options – location are 7 to Google’s four. With that said, our reviewer was a large instrumentality of Google’s snazzy Peony and cool Wintergreen options.

Both phones battalion aluminum frames and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 connected nan beforehand and back, pinch IP68 ratings providing an identical magnitude of h2o and particulate resistance. We can’t responsibility either for their build quality.

All successful all, we’d astir apt springiness nan Pixel 9 nan motion successful nan creation stakes owed to its nicer manus consciousness and much striking rear design, but location really isn’t a batch successful it, and there’s overmuch to beryllium said for nan Galaxy S24’s much compact size.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: display

Samsung is typically correct astatine nan apical of nan show crippled – it makes screens for astir different manufacturers, aft all. However, it’s Google that carries a flimsy separator successful this peculiar show round.

At 6.3 inches, nan Pixel 9’s AMOLED show is somewhat larger than nan 6.2-inch Galaxy S24 equivalent. Both phones characteristic akin resolutions, astatine 1080 x 2424 for nan Pixel and 1080 x 2340 for nan Galaxy S24.

The Google Pixel 9(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

The Pixel 9’s surface besides gets conscionable a small brighter than nan Galaxy S24’s, astatine 2,700 nits compared to 2,600 nits successful highest HDR conditions. It’s a mini advantage, but an advantage nonetheless.

In practice, these are 2 fantabulous screens that nary 1 is going to beryllium complaining about. This astir apt shouldn’t beryllium nan deciding facet successful whichever compact flagship telephone you opt for, but if it is, nan Pixel deserves to clasp sway.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: cameras

As akin arsenic their phones are successful galore ways, Samsung and Google return very different approaches to their respective camera setups. Google looks to springiness you two-thirds of its flagship ‘Pro’ acquisition connected nan modular Pixel 9, offering precisely nan aforesaid wide and ultra-wide sensors arsenic nan Pixel 9 Pro XL, but omitting nan telephoto camera altogether.

Samsung, by contrast, looks to approximate nan wide Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra photography acquisition successful nan modular Galaxy S24, offering each 3 basal camera ranges – including a telephoto – but offering less components successful each department.

With nan Pixel 9, you’re getting a 50MP 1/1.31“ main image sensor pinch an f/1.7 aperture, while nan Galaxy S24 supplies an inferior 50MP 1/1.56” sensor pinch an f/1.8 aperture. Google besides supplies a 48MP 1/2.55“ ultra-wide pinch dual pixel PDAF and a 123-degree section of view, compared to Samsung’s 12MP 1/2.55” sensor and 120-degree section of view.

However, Samsung besides gives you a dedicated 10MP 1/3.94" 3x telephoto camera, making it amended for close-ups from afar. Google needs to harvest successful connected that main sensor for its ain zoomed shots.

Telephoto aside, nan Pixel 9 takes flat-out superior shots successful each conditions, particularly arsenic nan ray starts to drop. It mightiness not person nan aforesaid scope of shooting options, but Google’s telephone takes shots of comparable value to nan much premium Pixel 9 Pro, while nan Galaxy S24 is very overmuch a second-tier usability successful Samsung’s range.

Ultimately, it’s a toss-up betwixt greater value successful nan Pixel 9 aliases greater shooting elasticity successful nan Galaxy S24. We reckon nan Pixel 9’s value edges it.

Both manufacturers merit in installments for equipping their respective beforehand cameras pinch autofocus, which makes for overmuch cleaner and sharper snaps. These are 2 fantabulous options for selfie-takers.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: capacity and software

If there’s 1 area successful which nan Galaxy S24 obliterates nan Pixel 9, it’s performance. Whether you’re utilizing nan world exemplary pinch Samsung’s ain Exynos 2400 aliases nan US exemplary pinch Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, nan Galaxy S24’s CPU and GPU benchmark trial results sound nan Pixel 9’s Tensor G4 into a cocked hat.

Indeed, you’ll find that nan Pixel 9 is outmatched by nan erstwhile generation’s Galaxy S23 successful astir of nan commonly utilized benchmark tests, fto unsocial nan Galaxy S24.

Google will ever accent that its phones are each astir AI performance, and judge enough, it has kitted nan Pixel 9 retired pinch 12GB of RAM for specified memory-munching tasks (the Galaxy S24 only has 8GB). But successful intensive scenarios for illustration multi-tasking and high-end 3D games, nan Pixel 9 is intelligibly much hesitant than nan Galaxy S24.

This makes america interest for nan early of nan Pixel 9 acold much than that of nan Galaxy S24. Both manufacturers proviso generous seven-year package update promises, but it’s Samsung’s telephone that seems much apt to stay emotion fluid for nan foreseeable future, contempt nan aforementioned RAM deficit.

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

(Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

Talking of software, some phones vessel pinch Android 14, which intends Google doesn’t person its accustomed package advantage consecutive retired of nan gate. Android 15 wasn’t rather fresh for nan Pixel 9’s launch, though it still came to nan telephone up of nan Galaxy S24.

More importantly, though, Google’s cleanable UI is simply measurement much pleasant to usage than Samsung’s cluttered civilization One UI. Our reviewer counted nan Galaxy S24’s package arsenic its outstanding weakness, stating that “the aging One UI is harder to usage than ever before”, not slightest acknowledgment to its labyrinthine paper system, copy app store, and nan sheer magnitude of bloatware.

Both manufacturers are leaning difficult into AI, but Google’s attack is arguably nan much cohesive. This is because Samsung’s attack to AI is simply a spot of a mish-mash, combining its ain Galaxy AI inaugural pinch immoderate of Google’s Gemini AI features. To that end, there’s a adjacent magnitude of crossover here, pinch some phones tin of doing things for illustration Circle to Search.

Samsung leans connected its Galaxy AI for real-time translation, though Google has its ain balanced connected nan Pixel 9. You’ll request to motion up for a subscription to entree nan likes of nan caller Gemini Live speech tool, though.

On nan individual adjunct front, Samsung sticks pinch nan moribund Bixby while Google has swapped retired its Google Assistant for nan breathtaking Gemini AI. The second doesn’t get everything correct by immoderate means, but it’s tin of immoderate impressively earthy interactions.

Meanwhile, nan Pixel 9’s caller Screenshots app sounds each nan accusation successful your caller screenshots, past arranges and summarizes them. Pixel Studio lets you create civilization artwork based connected earthy connection requests, which is cool but comparatively pointless.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: artillery life

One logic nan Pixel 9 is truthful overmuch thicker and heavier than nan Galaxy S24 is that it has a overmuch larger battery. We’re talking 4,700mAh for nan Pixel and 4,000mAh for nan Galaxy.

You’d deliberation that would consequence successful a immense stamina advantage for nan Google phone, but Samsung is highly bully astatine optimizing power ratio connected its devices. As a result, some of these phones will past you a time of mean to dense usage without issue. The Galaxy S24 is arguably nan much awesome of nan 2 successful this respect, and we’d for illustration to spot Google making further inroads pinch its ain optimization efforts.

When it comes clip to recharge times, neither of these phones is hugely impressive. Google’s telephone supports 27W charging pinch a compatible charger (not supplied), while Samsung’s telephone supports 25W (also not supplied). Both will get you to astir nan 50% mark, from empty, pinch a 30-minute charge, pinch nan Pixel 9 possibly getting a fewer percent higher. Meanwhile, nan Xiaomi 14 and OnePlus 12 tin get you to afloat successful half nan time.

Both phones support wireless charging, which is ever welcome, if not unexpected.

Google Pixel 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S24: verdict

Both nan Google Pixel 9 and Samsung Galaxy S24 earned a 4 retired of 5 reappraisal people from us, which indicates that some are worthy picks if you’re successful nan marketplace for a compact flagship. Analyzing which is nan champion of nan 2 has proven to beryllium a tricky task, and it mostly comes down to your priorities.

The Pixel 9 arguably screams ‘premium’ much than nan Galaxy S24, pinch its sharper design, somewhat bigger and brighter display, and superior main and ultra-wide cameras. We’d return Google’s package proviso complete Samsung’s each time of nan week, too, and its AI offering seems somewhat much cohesive.

Conversely, nan Galaxy S24 offers a slimmer and lighter build, which is each nan much important successful specified compact flagship phones. It besides gives you considerably much performance, which powerfulness users and gamers will want to return statement of. Meanwhile, if you favour taking zoomed-in photographs, this is nan only telephone of nan 2 pinch a dedicated telephoto camera.

On balance, nan Pixel 9 is nan fresher, sharper telephone of nan two, and astir apt a amended prime for astir people. However, nan Galaxy S24 still boasts tons to love, particularly fixed nan likelihood that you’ll beryllium capable to find 1 for a importantly cheaper price.

You mightiness besides like

• Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Google Pixel 8 Pro
• Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra
• Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra vs Google Pixel 8 Pro