Apple iPhone 18 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S26+
The Apple iPhone 18 Pro scores 8.2 in our rating, and the Samsung Galaxy S26+ scores 7.7. The Apple iPhone 18 Pro leads in performance, camera and battery, while the Samsung Galaxy S26+ is ahead in design. At launch in the US, the Samsung Galaxy S26+ cost $99.01 less ($1,099.99 vs $1,199). The Apple iPhone 18 Pro is the newer phone, announced Sep 9, 2026.
Key differences
Why choose the Apple iPhone 18 Pro
- Longer optical zoom 4× vs 3×
- Brighter screen 3,000 nits vs 2,600 nits
- Newer model Sep 9, 2026 vs Feb 25, 2026
- Faster wireless charging 25 W vs 20 W
- More storage 256 GB / 512 GB / 1 TB / 2 TB vs 256 GB / 512 GB
- Satellite messaging
Why choose the Samsung Galaxy S26+
- Bigger battery 4,900 mAh vs 4,288 mAh
- Bigger screen 6.7 inches vs 6.3 inches
- Lower launch price $1,099.99 vs $1,199
- Lighter 190 g vs 211 g
- Thinner 7.3 mm vs 8.75 mm
- Higher screen resolution 1440 × 3120 px vs 1206 × 2622 px
PhoneRanked scores
Calculated from specs, relative to phones from the same year and price range. How we rate phones
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Overall
8.2
7.7
Display
8.6
8.6
Performance
9.4
8.9
Camera
8.7
7.4
Battery
6.4
6.2
Design
8.5
8.8
Value for money
6.2
6.1
Display
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Size
6.3 inches
6.7 inches
Type
OLED, Super Retina XDR
OLED, Dynamic AMOLED 2X
Resolution
1206 × 2622 px
1440 × 3120 px
Pixel density
460 ppi
—
Refresh rate
120 Hz
120 Hz
Adaptive refresh
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Peak brightness
3,000 nits
2,600 nits
HDR
HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision
—
Protection
Ceramic Shield 2
Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2
Performance
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Process
2 nm
3 nm
Max CPU clock
4.93 GHz
4.74 GHz
GPU
Apple 7-core GPU with Neural Accelerators
Adreno 840
RAM
12 GB
12 GB
Storage
256 GB / 512 GB / 1 TB / 2 TB
256 GB / 512 GB
microSD slot
✕ No
✕ No
Cameras
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Main camera
48 MP, f/1.48
50 MP, f/1.8, 1/1.56"
Optical stabilization
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Ultrawide
48 MP
12 MP
Telephoto
48 MP, 4× optical, periscope
10 MP, 3× optical
Optical zoom
4×
3×
Rear cameras
3
3
Rear video
4K@120
—
Front camera
18 MP
12 MP
Front video
4K@60
—
Battery and charging
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Capacity
4,288 mAh
4,900 mAh
Battery type
Li-Ion
—
Wired charging
—
45 W
Wireless charging
25 W
20 W
Reverse wireless
✕ No
✓ Yes
Charger in box
✕ No
✕ No
Design and build
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Dimensions
150 × 71.9 × 8.75 mm
158.4 × 75.8 × 7.3 mm
Thickness
8.75 mm
7.3 mm
Weight
211 g
190 g
Form factor
Bar
Bar
Frame
Aluminum
Aluminum
Back
Glass
Glass
Water resistance
IP68
IP68
Fingerprint
None
Under-display ultrasonic
3D face unlock
✓ Yes
✕ No
SIM
eSIM only
Nano-SIM + eSIM
Colors
Black, Silver, Glacier, Burgundy
Cobalt Violet, Sky Blue, Black, White, Silver Shadow, Pink Gold
Connectivity and features
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
5G
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 7
Wi-Fi 7
Bluetooth
6.0
6.0
USB
USB-C 3.x
—
NFC
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
3.5 mm jack
✕ No
✕ No
Stereo speakers
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Satellite
✓ Yes
✕ No
IR blaster
✕ No
✕ No
Software
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
OS at launch
iOS 27
Android 16
Interface
—
One UI 8.5
OS updates
—
7 years
Security updates
—
7 years
Launch and price
Spec
Apple iPhone 18 ProSamsung Galaxy S26+
Announced
Sep 9, 2026
Feb 25, 2026
Released
Sep 18, 2026
Mar 11, 2026
Status
Released
Released
US launch price
$1,199
$1,099.99
Green marks the stronger value in a row. Specs come from official manufacturer data, cross-checked with established tech media; each phone page lists its sources. Report an error
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