Samsung Galaxy S26 — everything we know so far

With the end of 2025 coming into view so are Samsung's plans for its Samsung Galaxy S26 lineup. Samsung typically kicks the New Year off by launching its flagships, with an event sometimes taking place before the end of January. But even with rumors that Samsung may push back the launch of new phones, we're still starting to hear a lot about the Galaxy S26.

Expect the usual round of year-to-year improvements for the next Samsung flagship — a new chip, new AI features and a bigger battery. But early rumors hint at a slightly larger screen and possible camera improvements.

Then there's the matter of the Galaxy S26 lineup itself. Will it feature the usual set of three models — a standard model, a Plus version and the range-topping Ultra phone — or will Samsung squeeze a Galaxy S25 Edge follow-up into the mix? Even that's up in the air right now.

So with rumors popping up with increasingly frequency, here's what we know about the Galaxy S26 — and what we're hoping to find out.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Cheat Sheet

• The Galaxy S26 may feature minimal size increases.
• Rumored 60W charging may not offer as big an upgrade as hoped.
• A new camera sensor could come to all models for better picture quality and the Galaxy S26 could get an upgraded 50MP ultrawide lens
• Galaxy S26 Ultra could see major camera resolution boosts, with 200MP telephoto and 324MP main lenses
• Variable aperture may make a comeback — the first time since 2019
• The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 could be used on some models; other could run on an Exynos 2600 chipset
• Initial plans to replace the Plus model with a new Galaxy S26 Edge may have been scrapped

Samsung Galaxy S26: Potential release date

While we don't have a definite launch date for the Galaxy S26, we do know that Samsung generally sticks to the same release window each year. As of late, Samsung's new flagships typically arrive toward the end of January and start of February with a Galaxy Unpacked event taking place around the start of the year. A wider release typically follows two weeks later.

This brief window also means the release lands between January's CES and MWC at the end of February. In other words, Samsung schedules the Unpacked launch event at a time when it's going to dominate the limelight. It's also timed so that Samsung can claim to have the first phones arriving at the start of the year, though recently OnePlus has beaten it to the punch by a few weeks, at least in China.

For what it's worth, the Unpacked 2025 event that gave us the Galaxy S25 launch took place on January 22. The 2024 edition happened on January 17. Both of those events took place in San Jose, Calif.

Launch plans for the Galaxy S26 could be in flux, though, as reports have surfaced that Samsung is reshuffling its lineup by dropping plans to release a Galaxy S26 Edge in lieu of a Plus model. That could push the launch for the new phones back a few months, according to some reports. Specifically, a Korean publication claims the next Galaxy Unpacked event will take place February 25, which would almost certainly mean the phones won't go on sale before March.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Rumored price

Pricing information tends to leak out closer to the launch date, so your guess is as good as ours as to what the Galaxy S26 might cost.

Prices on Samsung flagships currently start at $799 for the Galaxy S25. The Plus model costs $999 while the Galaxy S25 Edge debuted at $1,099. The Galaxy S25 Ultra is the most expensive phone in the lineup, starting at $1,299. Until we hear otherwise, expect the 2026 versions of those phones to cost in the same neighborhood.

Samsung Galaxy S26: What models will Samsung release?

The arrival of the Galaxy S25 Edge in the spring brought the number of Galaxy S25 models to four. And that's before the recent release of the Galaxy S25 FE. That sparked talk that Samsung was planning on shrinking the number of Galaxy S26 models it released, with a Galaxy S26 Edge taking the place of the Galaxy S26 Plus. In that same scenario, the standard model could have gotten a new Galaxy S26 Pro moniker.

That talk has dried up, as apparently Galaxy S25 Edge sales have not gone well. Reportedly, that's convinced Samsung to drop work on an S26 Edge. Instead, current rumors suggest we're getting the same array of phones we've had for years — a standard model, a Plus version, and an Ultra phone. (That said, a separate report says the Galaxy S26 Edge hasn't been cancelled.)

Samsung Galaxy S26: Design and display

Don't expect much in the way of a new look for the Galaxy S26. Well-known leaker Ice UniUniverse suggests that the Galaxy S26 Ultra premium model won't look all that different from its predecessor.

And that goes for the rest of the lineup if renders published by Smartprix are anything to go by. They show a standard S26 that's indistinguishable from the S25. (The Galaxy S26 Edge in those renders seems to have adopted a bit of the iPhone 17's design, but we're assuming that phone is being pushed aside for a Galaxy S26 Plus now.)

According to a recent leak from a known source, it appears that Samsung could be increasing the display for the Galaxy S26 to 6.27 inches and the battery to 4,300 mAh. This would mean that users would have a larger screen size, while keeping the same pocket-sized appeal. The Galaxy S26 Ultra may feature some extra height and width, lower weight, and the same 6.9-inch display, Ice Universe reports.

There's some good news on the display front for the Galaxy S26 lineup. Leaked specs that also back up the increased screen size and battery claims suggest that Samsung is turning to an M14 OLED display. That's the same type of panel Apple and Google use on their flagships, so we'd expect the Galaxy S26 screen to be brighter if this rumor pans out.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Cameras

The first major camera rumor we've heard about the 2026 Samsung flagships claims that the entry-level Galaxy S26 will retain the 50MP main camera for another year. That said, we may see a brand new sensor, one that's larger than before to capture more light — something that can greatly benefit picture quality in different conditions.

The same report that claims the Galaxy S26 screens are getting brighter also tips the standard model to get a higher-resolution sensor for its ultrawide camera. In this scenario, the Galaxy S26 would have a 50MP ultrawide shooter to go with its 50MP main lens.

The bigger change could come to the Galaxy S26 Ultra, which may up the ante on the telephoto lens. Some rumors promise a 200MP zooming camera with 5x magnification, while others say the telephoto will use the same sensor as before. The trademark secondary telephoto lens on the Ultra is also reported to get a boost to 50MP, with 3.5x optical magnification. However all that pales in comparison compared to rumors of a 324MP main camera — though that may be a bit excessive.

Further speculation claims the S26 Ultra may see the return of variable aperture, something we haven't seen on a Galaxy since 2019. The old implementation was a lot less flexible than what other phone makers, like Xiaomi, have offered in recent years. So it'll be exciting to see what Samsung can do with it.

If you were expecting any changes to the selfie camera on the new phones, maybe put a pin in those hopes. A report claims the Galaxy S26 will use the same front camera that's been in place since the S23.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Performance

Since the Galaxy S25 series runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, you'd imagine that the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 introduced by Qualcomm in September will power the next generation of Samsung phones. And that would be a great development, since our Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 benchmarks suggest big CPU and GPU improvements for Qualcomm's latest silicon. And that doesn't even get into the boosted neural engine that will fuel a lot of new AI features on devices.

However, a rumor suggests that the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus could miss out on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, with Samsung instead turning to its own Exynos 2600 chips. That's apparently a decision fueled by a desire to save costs, though another part of that rumor claims phones released in the U.S. and China will get the Qualcomm chipset. Of course, yet another report claims the Galaxy S26 Ultra will get an Exynos 2600 chip, too — a report we're not exactly buying.

We should note that every Samsung phone release is usually preceded by these Snapdragon-or-Exynos rumors, and that usually it works out that at least some of Samsung's phones feature the Qualcomm silicon.

For what it's worth, a Samsung executive said that performance, AI and cameras will be the focus on the Galaxy S26 series, though no specifics were provided.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Battery and charging

There have been a bunch of Galaxy S26 battery rumors so far, and none of them can seem to agree on what to expect from the three phones in the lineup. The earliest suggested that we may see the phones come with silicon carbon battery chemistry, which offers much higher power density than ordinary lithium-ion batteries.

That would essentially mean more battery capacity without taking up more space. It could also translate to a smaller physical battery that frees up room for other things. It all depends on which way Samsung wants everything to run.

Some reports claim that Samsung could increase the battery capacity on the S26 Ultra to somewhere between 6,000 mAh and 7,000 mAh — which would be an incredible leap upwards. Sadly, later rumors suggested that the Ultra model wouldn't exceed 5,400 mAh. While larger than the 5,000 mAh battery in the Galaxy S25 Ultra, it's not quite the spectacular increase from those earlier reports, even if it is a lot more believable.

In the months since then, we've heard that the battery may not be getting any kind of increase at all, with Ice Universe claiming that the S26 Ultra will have the same 5,000 mAh battery as previous Galaxy Ultra models.

Thankfully Ice Universe also claims that the charging speed will finally exceed 45W — later claiming it would hit 60W. While that's something of a meme at this point, it's about time Samsung pushed the charging rate to something that can better rival its Chinese counterparts.

However, in a subsequent post on Weibo, IceUniverse indicated that the 60W charging speed might not increase the overall rate by that much. In the post, they state that the phone could only reach 75-80% charge from 0% after 30 minutes. Still, it could reach 90% in less official tests, which can be quite conservative.

And the other Galaxy S26 models? Sadly, those could stick with 25W charging like many Galaxy S models before them. But at least wireless charging could get improved with proper Qi2 support so that you'll no longer have to buy an extra case to enjoy the benefit of the improved wireless charging standard.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Software

One big change that could be happening with Galaxy AI is support for other third party chatbots — not just Gemini and Bixby. Choi Won-Joon, the president and COO of Samsung's mobile division confirmed to Bloomberg that talks have been happening, but didn't specify which (if any) third parties could come to Galaxy AI.

Bloomberg notes that Samsung is "nearing a deal" with Perplexity, which would also see Samsung invest in the company.

Naturally, we assume that AI will play a huge role in the Galaxy S26's software, especially with Samsung executives promising as much. We'd guess the new phones will debut with a version of One UI 8.

Samsung Galaxy S26: Outlook

Even at this stage, there's still a lot we don't know about the Galaxy S26 lineup, including what phones will make up the 2026 models and when they might arrive. It is clear that anyone hoping for a dramatically different look for Samsung's phones will be disappointed, even if other potential upgrades do sound positive.

The big questions right now will be what happens to the Plus model and if the Edge really is gone after just one version. We also want to hear more about potential updates to cameras and display, and it would be good to know which silicon will actually power the Galaxy S26 next year.

More from Tom's Guide

• Galaxy S26 Ulttra — what we know so far
• Do you really need a Samsung flagship? Or is the FE model good enough?
• Best Samsung phones