Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Time for an early upgrade?

It's that time of year again, and the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus has been officially revealed. The latest plus-sized Galaxy S25 model shares a lot of similarities with older Galaxy phones, like the two-year-old Galaxy S23 Plus. However, the new Galaxy S25 Plus is not without improvements, like a snappy Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor and brand-new Galaxy AI features.

What does that mean for current Galaxy S23 Plus owners? The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 smartphone is still capable in 2025, and will soon get the boost to One UI 7. While there are a handful of reasons Galaxy S23 Plus users might want to upgrade to the Galaxy S25 Plus, there may be just as many reasons for sticking with the older model for another year or two.

If you're on the fence, we have the full breakdown of how the new Galaxy S25 Plus compares to the old Galaxy S23 Plus.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Pricing and availability

The Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus starts at $999.99 and comes with 256GB of storage. There's also a 512GB model available for an additional fee. You can choose from Icyblue, Navy, Mint, and Silver Shadow colorways. There are plenty of Galaxy S25 Plus deals available to help you save, too.

Meanwhile, the Galaxy S23 Plus is mostly unavailable in new condition, but you can find it on used and refurbished sites. The phone originally retailed for $999.99 when it debuted in 2023.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Design and display

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For all intents and purposes, the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus and the Galaxy S23 Plus look the same from the outside. There are some small tweaks, like the Galaxy S25 Plus' DSLR-style camera covers, boxy shape, and slightly-larger screen. In terms of dimensions, the two phones are nearly identical. The newer Galaxy S25 Plus measures 158.4 x 75.8 x 7.3mm, while the older Galaxy S23 Plus measures 157.8 x 76.2 x 7.6 mm.

It's nice that, despite featuring a larger screen and battery, the Galaxy S25 Plus is both thinner and lighter than the Galaxy S23 Plus. The newer model is 0.3mm thinner and six grams lighter, which probably doesn't sound like much but it does make the Galaxy S25 Plus feel better in the hand.

While most of the colors of the S25 Plus are boring to look at, the new Navy shade is a real standout. The phone also has completely flat glass on the front and back, and side rails too. Other than these little tweaks, many would mistake it for the S23 Plus since they both look similar.

The two phones' use the same display technology, but the Galaxy S25 Plus has a 6.7-inch screen while the Galaxy S23 Plus has a 6.6-inch screen. They're both AMOLED 2x panels with 120Hz variable refresh rate capabilities. The Galaxy S25 Plus will be slightly taller and have slimmer bezels, for what that's worth. One big advantage of the S25 Plus' display is its resolution, which is QHD+ compared to Full-HD+ on the S23 Plus.

Aside from these minuscule differences, the two phones are built very similarly. They both have Gorilla Glass Victus 2 coverings for the display and back glass, as well as an aluminum chassis. In terms of dust and water-resistance, there is an IP68 certification for both phones. All told, if you're not a smartphone enthusiast, you may not notice much of a difference between these two devices.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Hardware and specs

The differences on the inside matter much more than the ones on the outside. The Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus has a system-on-a-chip (SoC) that's two generations newer than the one inside the Galaxy S23 Plus, as expected. That doesn't tell the whole story, though, because the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip powering the new model is a huge advancement. This particular variant was co-designed by Samsung and Qualcomm and uses the Oryon cores from Qualcomm's successful Snapdragon X lineup of laptop processors.

In other words, the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy represents much more than an incremental update. The 3nm chip is a huge deal for Android phones, and it'll crush the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip (4nm) in the Galaxy S23 Plus in a few ways. Namely, the Snapdragon 8 Elite mobile platform excels in on-device AI processing and gaming performance. That'll be crucial if you care about having the latest and greatest Galaxy AI features. In our gaming tests, the phone stayed cool even when playing demanding titles like Honkai: Star Rail at max settings.

On top of that, the Galaxy S25 Plus has more RAM (12GB) and battery capacity (4,700mAh) than the Galaxy S23 Plus. It also supports newer connectivity protocols, like Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and UWB.

In terms of camera hardware, you may be disappointed (or relieved) to learn that the Galaxy S25 Plus and the Galaxy S23 Plus have the same exact lenses. The main camera is a 50MP, f/1.8 lens, and that's paired with a 12MP, f/2.2 ultrawide camera and a 10MP, f/2.4 telephoto camera capable of 3x optical zoom.

The imaging results with the Galaxy S25 Plus are a bit better thanks to AI magic, computational photography, and better image-signal processing, but it's definitely not a night and day difference. Some shortcomings still exist like the bokeh, which just doesn't feel as natural as it does with the OnePlus 12. The contrast in some photos also feels exaggerated which can lead to darker-than-expected photos in low light, even with Night Mode.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Software

One UI 7, based on Android 15, ships with the Galaxy S25 Plus and will come to older models later. That means the Galaxy S23 Plus still has a few OS upgrades left, but it's clear that the Galaxy S25 Plus will have the edge in longevity. The flagship will get seven years of software support, including full OS upgrades and security patches. In theory, the phone you buy today could serve you well into the next decade.

The argument for sticking with the Galaxy S23 Plus is that it'll also get One UI 7, which is heralded as the biggest Samsung update in years. In fact, Samsung tells us that this version of One UI 7 has been in the works for three years. As such, updating to One UI 7 could make the Galaxy S23 Plus feel new and fresh, even if it's a few years old.

However, some features will be exclusive to the Galaxy S25 Plus due to its NPU and additional processing power. That includes enhanced Circle to Search functionality, AI agents, and cross-app actions. These features could make their way to other Galaxy phones in the future, but for now, they're exclusive to the newest models.

Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus vs. Galaxy S23 Plus: Is it really time to upgrade?

While the Snapdragon 8 Elite is a groundbreaking chip, and the Galaxy S25 Plus' new AI features are cool, I'm not sure that's enough to convince Galaxy S23 Plus owners to upgrade. The overall design of the Galaxy S25 Plus is the same, and the camera hardware is completely unchanged.

If you're eager to have the newest and best AI features — and value longevity — upgrading might not be such a bad thing. However, I'd consider rocking the Galaxy S23 Plus for another year to see if the next Galaxy phone is a more compelling upgrade.