Samsung Galaxy S21+ vs Samsung Galaxy S9 Specs Comparison

Compare mobile phone specifications of up to three devices at once. Our specs comparison tool helps you find and compare the perfect phone for your needs.

8.5
Samsung Galaxy S21+
9.0
Samsung Galaxy S9
Samsung Galaxy S21+ Samsung Galaxy S9
Released · Jan 29, 2021
Released · Mar 16, 2018
6.7-inch
5.8-inch
Triple camera
Single camera
8GB · 128GB
4GB · 64GB
4800 mAh
3000 mAh
Check prices Check prices

Design

Dimensions
6.35 x 2.98 x 0.31 inches
161.5 x 75.6 x 7.8 mm
5.81 x 2.70 x 0.33 inches
147.7 x 68.7 x 8.5 mm
Weight
7.13 oz (202.0 g) 5.75 oz (163.0 g)
Materials
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass Victus)
Frame: Aluminum
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5)
Frame: Aluminum
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP68 Water, Dust; IP68
Biometrics
2D Face unlock, Ultrasonic in-screen fingerprint Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Notification light
Keys
Right: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Phantom silver, Black, Violet Midnight black, Coral blue, Titanium gray, Lilac purple, Burgundy red, Sunrise gold, Ice blue

Display

Size
6.7-inch 5.8-inch
Resolution
2400x1080px, 20:9 ratio, 393 PPI 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 568 PPI
Technology
Dynamic AMOLED Super AMOLED
Refresh rate
120Hz (adaptive)
Screen-to-body
88.63 % 84.36 %
Peak brightness
1300 cd/m2 (nit)
Features
HDR support, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass Victus), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor HDR support, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor

Hardware

System chip
Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 (5 nm) Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm)
Processor
Octa-core
1x2.84GHz Kryo 680
3x2.42GHz Kryo 680
4x1.80GHz Kryo 680
Octa-core
2800 MHz
Kryo 385
GPU
Adreno 660 Adreno 630
RAM
8GB (LPDDR5) 4GB (LPDDR4)
Internal storage
128GB (UFS 3.0) 64GB
Storage expansion
not expandable microSDXC up to 400 GB
OS
Android (13, 12, 11), Samsung One UI Android (10, 9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo), Samsung One UI

Battery

Capacity
4800 mAh 3000 mAh
Type
Li - Polymer Li - Ion
Charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, USB Power Delivery, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging, Qi and Powermat wireless charging, Reverse wireless charging Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging, Qi and Powermat wireless charging
Charge speed
Wired: 25.0W
Wireless: 15.0W
PhoneArena Battery Tests
Battery Life Estimate
5h 26min
Browsing
10h 50min
Video
8h 27min
Gaming
8h 36min
Battery Life Estimate
Untested
Browsing
Untested
Video
Untested
Gaming
Untested

Camera

Rear
Triple camera Single camera
Main camera
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.8
Focal length: 26 mm
Sensor size: 1/1.76"
Pixel size: 1.8 μm
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.5/F2.4
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
Second camera
12 MP (Ultra-wide, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.8
Focal Length: 13 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
Third camera
64 MP (Telephoto, OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F2.0
Focal Length: 29 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 0.8 μm
Flash
LED LED
Video recording
7680x4320 (8K UHD) (24 fps), 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (240 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (960 fps)
OIS, HDR, Hyperlapse, Video light, EIS
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (240 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (960 fps)
HDR, Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, Picture-taking during video recording, Video calling, Video sharing
Front
10 MP (PDAF, HDR), Video capture: 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps) 8 MP (Autofocus, HDR), Video capture: 2560x1440 (QHD) (30 fps)

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
5.0 5.0
WLAN
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,ax(Wi-Fi 6),dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
USB
Type-C, USB 3.2 Type-C, USB 3.1
Hearing aid compatible
M3/T3
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer
Other
NFC, ANT+ NFC, ANT+

Multimedia

Headphones
No 3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Multiple speakers Earpiece, Multiple speakers
Features
32-Bit DAC, Dolby Atmos, aptX, Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus 32-Bit DAC, aptX-HD
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share Wireless screen share
Radio
FM FM
Additional microphone(s)
Noise cancellation, Video recording Noise cancellation

Cellular

5G
Bands n2, n5, n12, n25, n41, n66, n71, n77, n260, n261, SA, NSA, Sub-6, mmWave
4G (FDD)
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 14(700 PS), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 30(2300 WCS), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 14(700 PS), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 66(AWS-3), 71(600)
4G (TDD)
Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+), 46, 48(3600) Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+), 46
3G
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 8(900) Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100)
Data Speed
LTE-A, HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS LTE-A Pro Cat 18 (1200/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA
SIM type
Nano SIM Nano SIM

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Dec 18, 2020
FCC ID value: A3LSMG996U
Date approved: Jan 11, 2018
FCC ID value: A3LSMG960U
Measured SAR
Head: 0.65 W/kg
Body: 0.95 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.04 W/kg
Phablet: 3.97 W/kg
Head: 0.35 W/kg
Body: 0.96 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 0.95 W/kg

Buyers information

MSRP
$ 1000 $ 720
In The Box
C to C Data Cable, Ejection Pin

Availability

Officially announced
Jan 14, 2021 Feb 25, 2018

Alternative variants

with 256GB storage
Internal storage 256GB
MSRP $ 1050
International version
System chip Samsung Exynos 9 9810 (10 nm)
Processor Octa-core
2900 MHz
Exynos M3 and ARM Cortex-A55
GPU Mali-G72 MP18
FCC approval Date approved: Dec 27, 2017
FCC ID value: A3LSMG960F
Measured SAR Head: 0.26 W/kg
Body: 1.00 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.56 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.04 W/kg
for Europe
System chip Samsung Exynos 2100 (5 nm)
Processor Octa-core
1x 2.91GHz Cortex-X1 + 3x 2.81GHz Cortex-A78 + 4x 2.2GHz Cortex-A55
GPU Mali G78 MP14
Weight 7.05 oz (200.0 g)
5G Bands SA, NSA, Sub-6
FCC approval Date approved: Dec 18, 2020
FCC ID value: A3LSMG996B
Measured SAR Head: 0.24 W/kg
Body: 0.75 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 3.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 1.26 W/kg
Phablet: 1.95 W/kg
with Dual SIM
System chip Samsung Exynos 9 9810 (10 nm)
Processor Octa-core
2900 MHz
Exynos M3 and ARM Cortex-A55
GPU Mali-G72 MP18
Dual SIM Yes
with 256 GB storage
Internal storage 256GB
MSRP $ 820
with 128 GB storage
Internal storage 128GB
MSRP $ 770
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