Samsung Galaxy S9 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 Active 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.

Comparison mode:
Differences only
9.0
Samsung Galaxy S9
9.0
Samsung Galaxy S8 Active
Samsung Galaxy S9 Samsung Galaxy S8 Active
Released · Mar 16, 2018
Released · Aug 11, 2017
5.8-inch · 2960x1440px
5.8-inch · 2960x1440px
Single camera
Single camera
4GB · 64GB
4GB · 64GB
3000 mAh
4000 mAh
Check prices

Availability

Officially announced
Feb 25, 2018 Aug 07, 2017
Prices (MSRP)
$720 $850

Design

Dimensions
5.81 x 2.70 x 0.33 inches
147.7 x 68.7 x 8.5 mm
5.99 x 2.95 x 0.39 inches
152.1 x 74.9 x 9.9 mm
Weight
5.75 oz / 163.0 g 7.34 oz / 208.0 g
Materials
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5)
Frame: Aluminum
Resistance
Water, Dust; IP68 Water, Dust, Shock, Vibration, Temperature; IP68; MIL-STD-810 certified
Biometrics
Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch)
Features
Notification light
Keys
Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Midnight black, Coral blue, Titanium gray, Lilac purple, Burgundy red, Sunrise gold, Ice blue Gold, Gray

Display

Size
5.8-inch, 84.36% screen-to-body 5.8-inch, 74.89% screen-to-body
Type
Super AMOLED, HDR Super AMOLED, HDR
Resolution
2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 568 PPI 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 568 PPI
Protection
Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Corning Gorilla Glass 5
PhoneArena Display Test
Bright Max (20% APL)
Untested Untested
Bright Min
1 (Excellent) 2 (Good)

Hardware

System chip
Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm) Snapdragon 835 MSM8998 (10 nm)
Processor
Octa-core
2800 MHz
Kryo 385
Octa-core
2350 MHz
Kryo 280
GPU
Adreno 630 Adreno 540
Memory
4GB (LPDDR4)/64GB
4GB/128GB
4GB/256GB
4GB (LPDDR4)/64GB
Storage expansion
microSDXC up to 400 GB microSDXC up to 256 GB
OS
Android (10, 9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo) Android (9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo, 7.0 Nougat)

Battery

Type
3000 mAh, Li - Ion 4000 mAh, Li - Ion
Charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charging
Qi and Powermat wireless charging
Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0
Qi and Powermat wireless charging

Camera

Rear
Single camera Single camera
Main camera
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.5/F2.4
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
12 MP (OIS, PDAF)
Aperture size: F1.7
Focal length: 26 mm
Sensor size: 1/2.55"
Pixel size: 1.4 μm
Flash
LED LED
Video recording
4K UHD (60 fps), 1080p (240 fps), 720p (960 fps)
HDR, Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, Picture-taking during video recording, Video calling, Video sharing
4K UHD (30 fps), QHD, 1080p (60 fps), 720p (240 fps)
HDR, Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, Picture-taking during video recording, Video light, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing
Front
8 MP (Autofocus, HDR)
Video capture: QHD (30 fps)
8 MP (Wide Angle, Autofocus, HDR)
Video capture: QHD

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
5.0 5.1, Yes
WLAN
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band,i
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac, i
USB
Type-C, USB 3.1 Type-C, USB 3.1
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor
Hearing aid compatible
M4/T3
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning
Other
NFC, ANT+ NFC, ANT+, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Earpiece, Multiple speakers Earpiece, Loudspeaker
Features
32-Bit DAC, aptX-HD Album art cover, Background playback
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share DLNA,Wireless screen share,MHL
Radio
FM
Additional microphone(s)
Noise cancellation Noise cancellation

Cellular

4G (FDD) Bands
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 66, 71 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 28, 29, 30
4G (TDD) Bands
38, 39, 40, 41, 46 38, 39, 40, 41
3G Bands
5, 8, 4, 2, 1 5, 8, 4, 2, 1
Data Speed
LTE-A Pro Cat 18 (1200/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA LTE-A Pro Cat 16 (1000/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, UMTS
SIM type
Nano SIM Nano SIM
HD Voice
Yes

Regulatory Approval

FCC approval
Date approved: Jan 11, 2018
FCC ID value: A3LSMG960U
Date approved: Jun 30, 2017
FCC ID value: A3LSMG892A
Measured SAR
Head: 0.35 W/kg
Body: 0.96 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 0.95 W/kg
Head: 0.57 W/kg
Body: 0.37 W/kg
Simultaneous Transmission: 1.59 W/kg
Wireless Router: 0.44 W/kg
Phablet: 3.88 W/kg

Alternative variants

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 Sprint
4G (FDD) Bands 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28
4G (TDD) Bands 41
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
for T-Mobile
4G (FDD) Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 66, 71
with 256 GB storage
Memory 256GB
Prices (MSRP) $820
with 128 GB storage
Memory 128GB
Prices (MSRP) $770
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