Galaxy S26 prices: rumor claims Samsung has sacrificed its initial plans to keep your wallet happy

Samsung's getting ready for the upcoming Galaxy S26 release sometime in January or February next year. While the company is hard at work with its new flagships, leakers are hard at work trying to dig out information about the phones. A new leak now addresses the elephant in the room for the upcoming devices: pricing. Potentially. 

Leaker says Galaxy S26 prices may remain the same 

Tipster @jukanlosreve is now claiming on X that Samsung is trying to keep the prices of the Galaxy S26 models the same as last year. Previous rumors, based on the rising prices of internal components needed for a smartphone to function, indicate that Samsung may have to raise prices next year. 

Now, the tipster doesn't entirely contradict this, but instead claims that Samsung is more focused on keeping the prices steady instead of chasing thinness. Apparently, according to the tipster, Samsung has shifted its priorities, and that's why it's abandoning (reportedly) its ambitions for thinness. 

Reportedly, Samsung is determined to keep the base model's pricing starting at $799, which is the same price as this year's Galaxy S25, and also the same price for Apple's iPhone 17. 
In our Galaxy S25 review, we found that the $799 price was great for what the phone offered, including a telephoto camera and other fancy bells and whistles, so keeping the same price would be a good thing for Samsung.

However, the tipster claims that Samsung is deprioritizing design innovation and focusing on staying competitive in terms of pricing. 

Reportedly, insiders claim that Samsung had almost finalized a Galaxy S26 at just 6,9mm thick (which is 0.3mm less than its predecessor), but it decided against that new design. 

Thinness may be getting deprioritized

This year, the focus in the mobile tech industry has been on reducing phones' thickness and achieving super-slim and gorgeous looks. Some takes were more extreme – like the Galaxy S25 Edge or the iPhone Air – but nearly every smartphone out there got some reduction in thickness. 

Obviously, the industry expected the tradition to continue with the Galaxy S26 series, and probably Samsung had hoped for that too, initially. It's worth mentioning that another rumor also claimed that the upcoming phones won't be as thin as was once expected. 

Another important aspect to mention here, though. The leaker is not the most reliable leaker out there, and also, the idea of Samsung making the Galaxy S26 slimmer while slapping in nearly 1,000mAh of extra battery capacity seems quite the stretch, unless, well, Samsung had planned to use silicon-carbon tech for the battery. 

There's still plenty of stuff we don't know about the Galaxy S26 series, and quite a lot of weeks for leakers to dig out more interesting tidbits. Surprises may still be in store for us, similarly to how the industry once expected the lineup to be entirely different (an Edge replacing the Plus and a Pro replacing the vanilla model). So, let's keep an open mind for now. 

It seems the thin era didn't last much, and I'm not complaining about it

Extreme thin phones are gorgeous, and I agree wholeheartedly with the exquisite looks. And I love the portability aspect of it, too. However, at the moment, these thin models by Samsung and Apple are sacrificing battery life in favor of a thin profile, and that's a no-no in my book.  

And apparently, in many people's books, judging by the reportedly weak interest in buying one of these super-slim phones. 

Nevertheless, I'll always favor more battery and no price hikes over an extremely thin design. So there's that.

Unlimited plans for $15/mo at Mint!

$180

$360

$180 off (50%)

Mint Mobile is also offering an incredible bargain for those seeking unlimited data! The carrier's latest deal lets you grab any unlimited plan for just $15/mo, bringing the 12-month Unlimited plan to $180 instead of $360.

Buy at Mint Mobile