iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: which flagship phone wins?

If there had to be a true grudge match when it comes to the best phones, it would easily be Apple vs Samsung. While the companies have had the odd trip up, both are still the biggest names in the smartphone industry, so comparisons between the two are just a fact of life.

With that in mind, let's break down the differences between the iPhone 17 and the Galaxy S25. Now, this isn't a debate about which is better, as both phones are pretty fantastic at what they do, ranking high on our list of the best phones. Instead, it's more about which is the better phone for you.

Do you want a phone that's more about taking great pictures, or are you more invested in AI features? Do you prefer solid performance, or are you more interested in a strong ecosystem? We'll look to answer all of this and more.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Specs sheet

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Price and Availability

Both the iPhone 17 and the Galaxy S25 feature the same starting price of $799. However, the iPhone 17's base model comes with 256GB of storage, while the Galaxy S25 only has 128GB, with the 256GB version costing $859.

With that being said, you can also find a lot of S25 deals and iPhone 17 deals that will significantly lower the price of each — in fact, you might even be able to get it for free.

In terms of color, the iPhone comes in Lavender, Sage, Mist Blue, White and Black. Meanwhile, the Galaxy S25 comes in Navy, Icyblue, Mint, Silver Shadow, with Blueblack, Coralred, and Pinkgold being Samsung store exclusives.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Design and Display

There's a bit of an argument that both Apple and Samsung don't really change much when it comes to the base models of their phones. This is relatively true with both the iPhone 17 and the Galaxy S25, which both resemble their forbears in several ways. However, there are some differences that are worth making note.

Firstly, the Galaxy S25 is a bit thinner and lighter than its predecessor, although the enhanced aluminum frame certainly helps it on the durability front. Meanwhile, the screen and back are protected by Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus 2. It's certainly a tough phone, and the mura effect that plagued the Galaxy S24 has seemingly been taken care of.

Meanwhile, the Phone 17 and iPhone 16 are certainly very similar looking. However, the new phone's aluminium frame feels great in the hand, and the display is noticeably bigger, without the phone actually looking any larger. The iPhone 17 also features Ceramic Shield 2 on the front and back, which is claimed to be 3x more resistant to scratches.

When it comes to the displays, both are pretty stellar, but there are a couple of differences to take note of.

For the most part, we found that the Galaxy S25's display was a little brighter, while also offering a higher range of colors, represented by the DCI-P3 percentage, both in its Vivid and Natural outputs. However, the iPhone 17's color accuracy, showcased by the Delta-E score, is better, meaning the colors on the screen should be more accurate, although only fractionally.

Both displays also have a 120Hz refresh rate — a first for Apple's base-model phone, and a welcome change at that.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Cameras

Both Apple and Samsung's devices have appeared as some of our best camera phones over the years, so we know that both the iPhone 17 and the Galaxy S25 have a strong pedigree. On paper, the Galaxy S25 would seem to come out ahead, as it has more cameras: a 50MP main camera (f/1.8), a 12MP ultrawide (f/2.2) and a 10MP 3x telephoto (f/2.4).

Meanwhile, the iPhone 17 features a 48MP main (f/1.78) camera and a 48MP ultrawide (f/2.2). For the most part, the actual camera hardware is relatively similar in terms of quality; the big difference between the two has more to do with the colors on display.

Both cameras have the colors appear more saturated than you would expect, but the iPhone 17 offers a much more balanced color profile. For instance, if you look at the green peppers, you'll notice that they're much better exposed on the iPhone 17. Meanwhile, the red peppers blend in the picture from the Galaxy S25, while being a bit more distinct on the iPhone.

Apple also has the clear advantage when it comes to low light performance. The 48MP camera on the iPhone 17 shows a much better image of the tree, especially the shadowed areas under the branches, making a much better image.

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I also want to mention the center stage front camera on the iPhone 17, which is certainly impressive in what it can do. Essentially, the square sensor allows you to take a picture in any orientation, be it horizontal or vertical, and still have the same framing.

Now, that isn't to say that the Galaxy S25 has bad cameras by any means, with all of them showing a marked improvement over the Galaxy S24. However, if you want the best overall camera experience, then the iPhone is certainly the stronger contender.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Performance

When it comes to the benchmark tests we typically run on smartphones, there's no clear winner between Apple's and Samsung's device.

As you can see, Apple's A19 chip has a clear win when it comes to single-core performance over the Galaxy S25's Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip. However, Samsung's device performs better when it comes to multicore scores.

On our gaming test, the S25 notched a higher result than the iPhone 17, but on our transcoding test (where we convert a video file in Adobe Premiere Rush), the iPhone came out ahead.

What does this mean for the average user? Well, for the most part, it varies on the app you want to use, but a single-core performance is usually enough for most devices. As such, a high score in that will allow for a pretty stellar performance. Where you'll start to see a difference is in more complex programs, such as gaming, which require more cores to perform perfectly.

An example of the power is the wildlife test, which shows the Galaxy offering higher frames per second under strain than the iPhone. However, both chips will reliably perform most tasks with ease, and video editing remains at its peak on the iPhone 17. If you're looking for a phone that offers a better gaming experience, however, then you might want to grab the Galaxy S25 instead.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Software and AI

Look, I'm just going to say it: Apple isn't the best when it comes to AI, with many of the promised features seemingly locked in a constant state of "coming soon." Apple Intelligence has some interesting features, certainly, but most of them require either the watch or the Apple AirPods. Meanwhile, Samsung offers a full complement of AI services and features, all of which are much more polished than Apple's.

With that being said, if you're looking for innovation in other areas then Apple certainly has that. iOS 26 has just been released with a new look and customization options for the home and lock screen. They might not be for everyone, but it's more innovative than we've seen from Samsung's OneUI software, which appears to be coasting on the fact that it's doing better than Apple at this point.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Battery and Charging

Samsung phones have long held the belt as some of the longest-lasting phones you can buy, usually only being beaten out by dedicated gaming phones. However, Apple isn't entirely out of the fight.

Apple is famously coy when it comes to the battery sizes in its devices, but the new phone certainly has a longer battery than the iPhone 16. However, Samsung takes the win for the overall battery life. The Galaxy S25 ran for 15 hours and 43 minutes in our tests, while the iPhone 17 managed 12 hours and 47 minutes.

However, where Apple takes the win is in charge times, with the iPhone 17 featuring 35W wired charging compared to the 25W seen in the Galaxy S25. When we tested it, we were able to get the iPhone 17 to 71% battery from 0% after only thirty minutes, while the Galaxy S25 only just breached 50%.

iPhone 17 vs Galaxy S25: Which should you buy?

So, which is the better phone? It's not very easy to say, really, as both are great devices with a lot to offer. However, if you're looking for a camera phone that has a fair bit of power behind it, then the iPhone 17 is a strong choice. After all, the charging speeds, A19 chip and display are all stellar.

Meanwhile, if you're looking for more power under the hood, but also want a decent setup when it comes to camera and a battery life that will last you the day, then the Galaxy S25 is a strong contender.

At the end of the day, we have reached the point in phones where most of them are roughly the same in what they offer. This means that a lot of the choice is down to preference over anything else. So let us know which is your favorite and why.

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