Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S24: Worth the upgrade?

The Samsung Galaxy S25 is officially here, and it introduces a few notable upgrades over the Galaxy S24 it replaces. For starters, the Galaxy S25 is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, which enables it to run new Galaxy AI features shipped as part of One UI 7. But is it enough of an upgrade over the existing Galaxy S24?

After testing the new Galaxy S25, it's clear that Samsung is cementing this phone's position as a compact flagship. This device is smaller and lighter than the Galaxy S24 by every measure, despite being more powerful. If that sounds nice to you, the Galaxy S25 might be a worthy buy at around $800.

However, as you'll see as we break down the differences between these two phones, there are too many similarities to make the Galaxy S25 a slam-dunk upgrade over its predecessor.

Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S24: Design and display

Samsung stuck to the design we've been looking at for years, which has rounded edges, a flat front, and flat sides. This year, Samsung is going for a unified look across all Galaxy S25 models, including the Galaxy S25 Plus and Galaxy S25 Ultra.

The Galaxy S25 features flat sides all around, flat back and front glass, and rounded corners. The phone is slightly smaller than the previous model, measuring 146.9 x 70.5 x 7.2mm. The phone's weight is just 162 grams, which is lighter than past Galaxy phones. In terms of water resistance, the new Galaxy S25 is rated for IP68 protection, just like its predecessor.

The Galaxy S25 has slimmer display bezels than the Galaxy S24. It comes in Icyblue, Navy, Mint, and Silver Shadow colorways and is built with an aluminum frame.

The Samsung Galaxy S24 measures 147.0 x 70.6 7.6mm, weighs 167 grams, and has an IP68 rating, which makes it dust-tight. You can submerge it for 1.5 meters for 30 minutes. You can choose from different Galaxy S24 colors, such as Cobalt Violet, Amber Yellow, Onyx Black, and Marble Grey (Samsung exclusive Jade Green, Sapphire Blue, Sandstone Orange).

It also has a flat front and back with rounded edges and a soft finish. Armor aluminum makes the Galaxy S24 lighter than steel. It also has a Corning Gorilla Armor screen, which makes it more durable. The three cameras are in a vertical row on the back, a design that repeats itself on the newer model.

The Galaxy S25 has the same 6.2-inch low-temperature polycrystalline oxide (LTPO) OLED using M13 organic materials as the previous model. There’s also the same 120Hz and sharp display with crisp colors and Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

Meanwhile, the Samsung Galaxy S24 has a 6.2-inch 2340 x 1080 AMOLED 2x FHD+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate, so such a slight difference might not motivate you to upgrade. The Galaxy S24 can reach a peak brightness of 2,600 nits and has Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection. It offers excellent colors and a Super HDR preview on the viewfinder. Samsung also added Vision Booster to increase the brightness outdoors by flickering the display on and off.

Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S24: Hardware and specs

The smartphone sports a 50MP wide main camera, a 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, and a 12MP ultrawide camera. The new Galaxy S25 is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset, which was co-designed by Samsung and Qualcomm. It’s an ultra-powerful SoC with the same Oryon cores Qualcomm pioneered for the Snapdragon X lineup of laptop chips. There’s an NPU for on-device AI and enhanced gaming performance, helping the Galaxy S25 decisively outperform the Galaxy S24.

All three S25 models borrow the camera module style for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and come with a more traditional DSLR camera lens with thicker borders and ribbed edges.

The smartphone sports a 50MP wide main camera, 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, and 12MP ultrawide camera. It also has a 12MP selfie camera. This is the exact same setup as the Galaxy S24 and even the Galaxy S23 before that.

The Galaxy S25 matches its predecessor in terms of specs, with storage options such as 128GB and 256GB, although you will find more RAM, with 12GB for better performance and on-device AI processing. The S25 also has a 4,000mAh battery and supports wired and wireless charging. There is no fast charging or built-in MagSafe support, however — only a Qi2 certification with no hardware magnets.

How does this compare to the Galaxy S24? That model has non-expandable 128GB and 256GB storage variants, stereo speakers, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 4,000mAh battery. The Galaxy S24 also has a 50MP wide, 12MP ultra-wide, 10MP telephoto, and 12MP selfie camera.

Regarding charging speeds, the Galaxy S24 has 25W wired charging, 15W wireless, and 4.5 reverse wireless charging. The advertised charging speed is 50% battery in 30 minutes. That’s exactly the same as the newer Galaxy S25 offers.

Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S24: Software

The Galaxy S25 ships with One UI 7 on top of Android 15. The software upgrade includes a new visual style, icons, customization options, and more.

It’ll also have new Galaxy AI features, like AI Agents, that can take actions on your behalf — even across multiple apps. With Galaxy AI, you can have fun with generative AI wallpaper and generative edit features. It’s possible that some of these features will eventually make their way to the Galaxy S24, but that’s not confirmed.

On the other hand, the Samsung Galaxy S24 includes One UI 6.1, and you can have fun with AI features such as Circle to Search, which Android Central’s own Nicholas Sutrich says is his favorite. You can also have Gemini help you get information, identify objects, or tell you where to buy them. You also get seven years of software updates, just like the Galaxy S25.

Unfortunately, Samsung's delay in bringing One UI 7 to the Galaxy S24 is complicating things a bit. There will be yet another One UI 7 beta before a stable, public release rolls out. Even when it does, recent comments from Samsung executives suggest its best features will remain Galaxy S25 exclusives. If you like the Now Bar or Now Brief, you might need to upgrade to the Galaxy S25.

Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. Galaxy S24: Should you upgrade?

If money is no object, the Samsung Galaxy S25 is an impressive smartphone available for the same $800 price point that the older Galaxy S24 met last year. The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chipset is the real deal, and it’ll last for years and years with lengthy software support. However, it also shares a lot in common with the Galaxy S24, and you should consider going with the older model if you find a good deal.