How much will the Samsung Galaxy S26 cost? Here’s what we can piece together about next year’s Android king

We can take a look at some clues sprinkled throughout early reports and leaks, and put together a pretty solid picture to guess how much the Galaxy S26 will set you back in 2026.

What previous Galaxy flagships tell us

The Galaxy S25 line saw no price increases. | Image credit — PhoneArena

Samsung has been keeping the pricing for its flagship smartphones pretty consistent for years now. The only model that saw a price increase was the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which went up by $100. This is how all of the previous Galaxy flagships compare pricing wise:

Keeping this in mind, the Galaxy S26 will likely not be seeing a price increase either. The base model will still start at $799, the Plus model — which has apparently made a return — will still start at $999, and the Ultra will start at $1,299.

Exynos makes a comeback

Samsung used Snapdragon across all Galaxy S25 models. | Image credit — PhoneArena

Galaxy S26 will also be different in the fact that the Ultra model will reportedly be using Samsung’s in-house Exynos processor, though perhaps not in every region. After four years, Exynos returns to Galaxy S26 Ultra next year.

Samsung Foundry’s major win means that it’ll be cheaper for the company to manufacture its newest flagship phones, as it won’t have to buy Snapdragon chips from Qualcomm. This also lends further credence to the speculation that the Galaxy S26 phones won’t be seeing a price increase.

However, something makes me think that the opposite is also very much possible.

iPhone 17 Pro saw a price increase

The iPhone 17 Pro costs more than the iPhone 16 Pro. | Image credit — PhoneArena

Apple, arguably Samsung’s largest smartphone rival in the States, announced a $100 price increase this year for the iPhone 17 Pro. While this was backed by more RAM and larger storage capacity, it does set the stage for Samsung to announce a price increase of its own next year.

If Samsung does do that, it’ll likely be for the Galaxy S26 Ultra, rather than the base model or the Galaxy S26 Plus. There’s another reason that the Ultra might see a price increase as well.

Improved hardware on the Galaxy S26 Ultra

Leaked render of the Galaxy S26 Ultra. | Image credit — Android Headlines

According to some reports, the Galaxy S26 Ultra has a privacy display that allows you to hide what you’re looking at from people around you. This will, naturally, cost more to implement than a traditional display.

Though it’s not confirmed yet, multiple leaks have pointed to this being something that Samsung is interested in adding to the S26 Ultra. If the company does go ahead with this, then this might just lead to a slight price increase.

Other than that, the aperture on the camera is undergoing a slight change as well. While it won’t have a variable aperture like the iPhone 18, Samsung is looking to make the aperture on the Galaxy S26 Ultra wider. This is why the phone appears to have a protruding rear camera module, a small sacrifice for better photography as more light hits the lens.

It’s unlikely that a wider aperture will lead to a small price increase, but it’s definitely still possible.

Samsung’s indecisiveness might mean the same price tags

Galaxy S25 Edge hasn’t sold all too well. | Image credit — PhoneArena

Apparently, the Galaxy S26 Edge has been cancelled. After the Galaxy S25 Edge failed to sell according to expectations, Samsung introduced a different design for the Galaxy S26 Edge. It was supposed to feature a larger rear camera island, like the iPhone 17 Pro, and would come with a bigger battery too.

But if Samsung is willing to abandon a new product after just one generation, then that might mean that the company wants to return to what it’s familiar with. And, if that’s the case, then it stands to reason that the price tags will remain familiar as well.

In conclusion, it does seem very likely that the Galaxy S26 phones will not undergo a price increase, and will cost the same as their predecessors. That is, however, subject to change.

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