Home Phone comparison Samsung Galaxy M31 and Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos) - Which is better?

Samsung Galaxy M31 vs Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)

46 out 100
Samsung Galaxy M31
VS
88 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
Samsung Galaxy M31
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy M31 Manufactured in March, 2020, with display 6.4 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 7 Octa 9611, vs Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos), Manufactured in March, 2026 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2600. 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 M31
  • Larger display: 6.4in
  • Higher battery capacity: 6000mAh vs 4300mAh
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
  • Higher pixel density: 411ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Lighter design: 167g vs 191g
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.4 vs 5
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports DisplayPort
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 6/64 GB
- 6/128 GB
- 8/128 GB		 - 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB

Review

Key Specs Samsung Galaxy M31 and Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
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 M31
vs
Galaxy S26 (Exynos)

Display

Display quality comparison
Type Super AMOLED Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.4 in 6.3 in
Resolution 1080x2340 pixels 1080x2340 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 19.5:9
Pixel density 403 ppi 411 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
Max brightness 600 nits n/a
HDR support Yes HDR10 Yes, HDR10+
Touch Sampling Rate n/a 240 Hz
Screen-to-body ratio 84.1 % 90.9 %
Features Always-On Display - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Samsung Galaxy M31
614 nits
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
n/a
sRGB gamut142 %n/a
PWM (Flicker)208 Hzn/a
Response time8.5 msn/a
Contrast∞ Infiniten/a
Sources: NotebookCheck [Samsung Galaxy M31]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 159.2 mm (6.27 in) 149.6 mm (5.89 in)
Width 75.1 mm (2.96 in) 71.7 mm (2.82 in)
Thickness 8.9 mm (0.35 in) 7.2 mm (0.28 in)
Weight 191 g (6.74 oz) 167 g (5.89 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 M31
84.1 %
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
90.9 %

Performance

Testing Samsung Galaxy M31 and Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos) In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Samsung Exynos 7 Octa 9611 Samsung Exynos 2600
Max Frequency 2300 MHz 3800 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (4 + 4) 10 (1 + 3 + 6)
Architecture - 4/1.7 (Cortex-A53)
- 4/2.3 (Cortex-A73)		 - 6/2.75 (C1-Pro)
- 3/3.25 (C1-Pro)
- 1/3.8 (C1-Ultra)
Process Samsung Samsung
Transistor Size 10 nm 2 nm
Neural Processor Yes AI engine with 32K MAC NPU
Graphics Mali-G72 MP3 Samsung Xclipse 960
GPU Cores 54 1024
GPU Frequency 850 MHz 980 MHz
FLOPS 113.8 GFLOPS 4014.1 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Samsung Galaxy M31
505
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
3203
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Samsung Galaxy M31
1547
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
11056
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)5053203
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)154711056
Geekbench Compute (GPU)n/a27467
Sources: Geekbench v6 [Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)]
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Samsung Galaxy M31
257150
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
3504102
CPU736401013874
GPU453501351843
Memory62516414601
UX75644723784
NanoReview Score2571503504102
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Samsung Galaxy M31
820
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
n/a
Max Surface Temp.45.2 °Cn/a
Stability74 %n/a
Graphics Test4 fpsn/a
Graphics Score820n/a
Sources: 3DMark [Samsung Galaxy M31]

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 6 GB 12 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5X
Memory Frequency 1866 MHz n/a
Channels 2 4
Storage
Storage Capacity128 GB256 GB
Storage TypeUFS 2.1UFS 4.1
Memory CardMicroSDNo

Software

OS Android 10 (Upgradeable to Android 12) Android 16
OS Size 15 GB 29.5 GB
UI Skin One UI 4.1 One UI 8.5

Battery

Volume 6000 mAh 4300 mAh
Max Charging Power 15 W 25 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes, (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes Samsung Adaptive Fast Charge (45% in 60 min) Yes
Full Charge Time 2:25 h n/a
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Samsung Galaxy M31
24:27
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
n/a
Web Browsing10:13 hn/a
Video Playback14:16 hn/a
Games05:44 hn/a
Standby Mode117 hn/a

Main camera

Matrix 64 MP 50 MP
Photo resolution 9248x6920 pixels 8160x6120 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 3x
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Digital Optical
8K Recording No Yes (Up to 30 fps)
4K Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion 240 fps (720p) 240 fps (1080p)
Wide-angle lens 123 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 64 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 5 MP
Depth: 5 MP		 Standard: 50 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix64 MP50 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.8
Focal length26 mm24 mm
SensorISOCELL Bright GW1Samsung ISOCELL S5KGN3
Sensor size1/1.721/1.56 (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 length12 mm13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX564
Sensor size1/4.01/2.55 (0.39)
Pixel size1.12 μm1.4 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital

Front camera

Matrix 32 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 6528x4896 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Aperture f/2.0 f/2.2
Focal length 26 mm 26 mm
Sensor Sony IMX616 Samsung S5K3LU
Sensor size 1/2.8 1/3.2 (0.31)
Pixel size 0.8 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus No Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 2160p (4K) 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 5.4
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* Varies by region Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*22
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 - SIM 1 & SIM 2GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900
3G BandsHSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100UMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B3/B5/B8/B20/B40/B41)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)
LTE category12n/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 M31
81.7 dB
Samsung Galaxy S26 (Exynos)
n/a

Other

Class Mid-range Flagship
Announced February, 2020 yr February, 2026 yr
Release Date March, 2020 yr March, 2026 yr
Launch Price ($) 220 n/a
MSRP ($) n/a 879
Sensors - 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 (Exynos) the clear winner in this comparison.

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