Home Phone comparison Samsung Galaxy A21s and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) - Which is better?

Samsung Galaxy A21s vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

39 out 100
Samsung Galaxy A21s
VS
93 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
Samsung Galaxy A21s
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy A21s Manufactured in June, 2020, with display 6.5 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 850, vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon), Manufactured in March, 2026 with chipsetQualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy A21s
  • Higher battery capacity: 5000mAh vs 4900mAh
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
  • Larger display: 6.7in
  • Higher pixel density: 516ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Lighter design: 190g vs 192g
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 6.0 vs 5
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports DisplayPort
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 2/32 GB
- 3/32 GB
- 3/64 GB
- 3/128 GB
- 4/32 GB
- 4/64 GB
- 4/128 GB
- 6/64 GB
- 6/128 GB		 - 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB

Review

Key Specs Samsung Galaxy A21s and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
Customize your score
Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison
Smartphones:
Samsung Galaxy A21s
vs
Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

Display

Display quality comparison
Type PLS TFT Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.5 in 6.7 in
Resolution 720x1600 pixels 1440x3120 pixels
Aspect ratio 20:9 19.5:9
Pixel density 270 ppi 516 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
Max brightness 540 nits n/a
HDR support No Yes, HDR10+
Touch Sampling Rate n/a 240 Hz
Screen-to-body ratio 82.9 % 91.7 %
Features n/a - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Samsung Galaxy A21s
487 nits
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
n/a
sRGB gamut88.4 %n/a
PWM (Flicker)500 Hzn/a
Response time30.4 msn/a
Contrast1500:1n/a
Sources: NotebookCheck [Samsung Galaxy A21s]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 163.6 mm (6.44 in) 158.4 mm (6.24 in)
Width 75.3 mm (2.96 in) 75.8 mm (2.98 in)
Thickness 8.9 mm (0.35 in) 7.3 mm (0.29 in)
Weight 192 g (6.77 oz) 190 g (6.7 oz)
Water resistance No IP68
Cooling system n/a Vapor chamber
Back panel Plastic Glass
Frame Plastic Metal
Colors - Black
- Blue
- Red		 - White
- Black
- Silver
- Blue
- Pink
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor Yes rear Yes, In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Samsung Galaxy A21s
82.9 %
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
91.7 %

Performance

Testing Samsung Galaxy A21s and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Samsung Exynos 850 Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
Max Frequency 2000 MHz 4740 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (8) 8 (2 + 6)
Architecture 8/2 (Cortex-A55) - 6/3.63 (Oryon Gen 3 Performance)
- 2/4.61 (Oryon Gen 3 Prime)
Process Samsung TSMC
Transistor Size 8 nm 3 nm
Neural Processor No Hexagon
Graphics Mali-G52 MP1 Adreno 840
GPU Cores 24 1536
GPU Frequency 850 MHz 1200 MHz
FLOPS 40.8 GFLOPS 3686.4 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A21s
484
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
3393
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A21s
1523
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
11515
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)4843393
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)152311515
Sources: Geekbench v6 [Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)]
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Samsung Galaxy A21s
191375
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
3670711
CPU687481070381
GPU268071431843
Memory59210420557
UX36610747930
NanoReview Score1913753670711
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Samsung Galaxy A21s
425
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
n/a
Max Surface Temp.43.2 °Cn/a
Stability98 %n/a
Graphics Test2 fpsn/a
Graphics Score425n/a
Sources: 3DMark [Samsung Galaxy A21s]
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Samsung Galaxy A21s
5429
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
n/a
Writing score5426n/a
Web score4708n/a
Video editing5145n/a
Data manipulation3808n/a
NanoReview Score5429n/a

Memory

RAM
RAM Size - 3 GB
- 4 GB		 12 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5X
Memory Frequency 1866 MHz 5300 MHz
Channels 2 4
Storage
Storage Capacity- 32 GB
- 64 GB		256 GB
Storage TypeeMMC 5.1UFS 4.1
Memory CardMicroSDNo

Software

OS Android 10 (Upgradeable to Android 12) Android 16
OS Size 12 GB 30.8 GB
UI Skin One UI 4.1 One UI 8.5

Battery

Volume 5000 mAh 4900 mAh
Max Charging Power 15 W 45 W
Battery Type Li-Po Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (25 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes, (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (50% in 60 min) Yes
Full Charge Time 2:10 h n/a
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Samsung Galaxy A21s
25:00
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
n/a
Web Browsing09:45 hn/a
Video Playback14:13 hn/a
Games05:34 hn/a
Standby Mode128 hn/a

Main camera

Matrix 48 MP 50 MP
Photo resolution 8000x6000 pixels 8160x6120 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 3x
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Digital Optical
8K Recording No Yes (Up to 30 fps)
4K Recording No Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion No 240 fps (1080p)
Wide-angle lens 123 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Depth: 2 MP		 Standard: 50 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features Bokeh effect - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix48 MP50 MP
Aperturef/2.0f/1.8
Focal length26 mm24 mm
SensorSamsung S5KGM2Samsung ISOCELL S5KGN3
Sensor size1/2.01/1.56 (0.64)
Pixel size0.8 μm1 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationDigitalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a10 MP
Aperturen/af/2.4
Focal lengthn/a67 mm
Sensorn/aSamsung ISOCELL S5K3K1
Sensor sizen/a1/3.94 (0.25)
Pixel sizen/a1 μm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix8 MP12 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX564
Sensor size1/4.01/2.55 (0.39)
Pixel size1.12 μm1.4 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital

Front camera

Matrix 13 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 4128x3096 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length n/a 26 mm
Sensor CMOS Samsung S5K3LU
Sensor size 1/3.1 1/3.2 (0.31)
Pixel size 1.12 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus No Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5 6.0
Bluetooth features PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
DisplayPort n/a Yes, DP 1.2
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*21
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900
3G BandsB1 (2100), B2 (1900), B5(850), B8 (900)UMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B5/B7/B8/B20/B28)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B14/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B29/B30/B38/B39/B40/B41/B48/B66/B71)
LTE category13n/a
5G SupportNoYes

Sound

Speakers Mono n/a
3.5 mm Jack Yes No
FM Radio Yes No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Samsung Galaxy A21s
79.5 dB
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
n/a

Other

Class Budget Flagship
Announced May, 2020 yr February, 2026 yr
Release Date June, 2020 yr March, 2026 yr
Launch Price ($) 200 n/a
MSRP ($) n/a 1099
Sensors - Hall Sensor
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor		 - Hall Sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included n/a No
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) the clear winner in this comparison.

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