Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Galaxy Z Fold 5: is this summer the time to upgrade?
Holding on to the Galaxy Z Fold 5? The Z Fold 7 is a leap forward, and you may need to drop the weight to make it.
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Intro
It's a new age for foldables and Samsung has stood up to the challenge. The new Galaxy Z series has accepted the terms of the competition and then some. The Galaxy Z Flip 7's cover screen has fully grown now, so it can no longer be shamed by Motorola's Razr Ultra. And the Galaxy Z Fold 7 may just be the thinnest foldable phone today. At this point, it's splitting hairs and kind of pointless — it's just good enough that it's really, really thin.
Are you still clutching that Galaxy Z Fold 5? Performance-wise, you are probably fine. But the hardware must feel dated. That cover screen is narrow and tall, the phone feels like a bit of a brick when folded up, and the cameras are good but not great. Maybe it's actually time to upgrade to the Z Fold 7 this year.
Not only is it super-slim and feels comfortable to use when folded, it comes with a 200 MP main camera, and the latest top-tier chip is a nice cherry on top. One sacrifice — no more S Pen support. Is it worth it?
Not only is it super-slim and feels comfortable to use when folded, it comes with a 200 MP main camera, and the latest top-tier chip is a nice cherry on top. One sacrifice — no more S Pen support. Is it worth it?
Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Galaxy Z Fold 5 expected differences:
| Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Galaxy Z Fold 5 |
|---|---|
| Significantly thinner, 8.9mm when folded | Kind of chunky, at 13.4mm |
| Super-light foldable, 215 g | Hefty 253 g |
| Wider cover screen, 6.5", 21;9 ratio | Tight and narrow cover screen, 6.2", 23.1:9 ratio |
| 6.5-inch cover and 8-inch internal screens Significantly thinner bezels | A 6.2-inch cover and 7.6-inch internal screens |
| Shallower display crease | Hinge was upgraded, but crease still present |
| 2,600 nits of peak brightness | 1,750 nits peak brightness |
| Triple rear camera (200MP+12+10MP) 10MP external 10MP internal selfie cameras | 50MP+12+10MP 10MP external 4MP internal selfie cameras |
| Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) with 12 GB RAM | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4nm) with 12 GB RAM |
| 256GB and 512GB, 1 TB with 16 GB RAM | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB |
| 4,400mAh battery | 4,400mAh |
| 25W wired and 15W wireless charging expected | 25W wired and 15W wireless |
| Android 16 and One UI 8 out of the box | Updated to Android 15 / One UI 7 Eligible One UI 8 |
Table of Contents:
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Design and Size
Finally folding into form
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 was lighter, flatter, and had a new hinge that finally folded flush — nice! But even back then, it still felt a bit chunky. Tech moves fast and now, two years later, competitors have super-thin and light foldable phones. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 may be fast and have an excellent screen. But design-wise — it's less and less capable of competing.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7, though, is a real design refinement. A 4.2 mm profile when unfolded and 8.9 mm when closed — that makes it almost as thin as a Galaxy S25 Ultra when in closed state. And the external screen has a "normal" aspect ratio of 21:9, making the phone much more comfortable and intuitive to use as a chocobar.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7, though, is a real design refinement. A 4.2 mm profile when unfolded and 8.9 mm when closed — that makes it almost as thin as a Galaxy S25 Ultra when in closed state. And the external screen has a "normal" aspect ratio of 21:9, making the phone much more comfortable and intuitive to use as a chocobar.
| Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Galaxy Z Fold 5 |
|---|---|
| Thickness 4.2 mm unfolded 8.9 mm folded | Thickness 6.1 mm unfolded 13.4 mm folded |
| Weight ~236 gr | Weight 253 gr |
Screen real estate has also grown. The cover display stretches from 6.2 to 6.5 inches, and the inner screen is nudged from 7.6 to 8 inches. But the best part? The cover screen gets wider, not taller. That means no more typing like you’re trying to send a text on a TV remote.
Samsung has upgraded the hinge again, and thickened the flexible glass of the main screen a little more. As a result, the crease along the middle of the main screen is barely visible, also not very tactile when running a finger through it.
Its bezels are also thinner than the ones on the Fold 5, which are starting to get unsightly when compared to modern competitors. And while the Z Fold 5 has IPX8 rating for water protection, the Z Fold 7 no has IP48 for some limited debris protection as well (sadly, dust and fine sand are still a danger).
Display Differences
Same panels, smarter proportions
If you liked the displays on the Z Fold 5, you’ll probably love what the Fold 7 comes with. We still get Dynamic AMOLED 2X panels on both the inner and outer screens, each with a 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate, high resolution, and peak brightnessof 2,600 nits. But the real story here is shape and usability.
The cover screen getting wider means it should finally feel less claustrophobic when dual-thumb typing on it. And the inner screen gives us a larger canvas to work on. Too bad it doesn't support an S Pen now!
The cover screen getting wider means it should finally feel less claustrophobic when dual-thumb typing on it. And the inner screen gives us a larger canvas to work on. Too bad it doesn't support an S Pen now!
| Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Galaxy Z Fold 5 |
|---|---|
| Cover screen 6.5 inches | Cover screen 6.2 inches |
| Main screen 8.0 inches | Main screen 7.6 inches |
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 can also reliably hit higher brightness targets in real-life use, it's not just about the peak brightness!
In general, the displays are very, very similar with the same-ish color accuracy and contrast (OLED panels do come out a bit different, within tolerance). The major upgrade here is the max brightness of the Z Fold 7 and the aforementioned super-shallow crease.
Performance and Software
Out with the old, in with the Elite
This is where things really start to split.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy — a great chip in 2023, still good for daily use, but already starting to show its limits in sustained performance and AI tasks. The Fold 7 is powered by the 3nm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, which already proved its grit on the Galaxy S25 series.
Not only will this translate to faster performance, but also better battery efficiency and cooler thermals. The 12GB RAM baseline is still the same, but if you go for a 1 TB upgrade with the Galaxy Z Fold 7, you will get 16 GB of RAM.
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy — a great chip in 2023, still good for daily use, but already starting to show its limits in sustained performance and AI tasks. The Fold 7 is powered by the 3nm Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, which already proved its grit on the Galaxy S25 series.
Not only will this translate to faster performance, but also better battery efficiency and cooler thermals. The 12GB RAM baseline is still the same, but if you go for a 1 TB upgrade with the Galaxy Z Fold 7, you will get 16 GB of RAM.
CPU Performance Benchmarks:
The numbers do show that a lot has improved over the past two years. But here's the real talk — flagship phones get overkill chips that not only can run everything on the Play Store, but also have plenty of headroom to do so in the future. Point being, 5k of Geekbench score is nothing to smirk at and you can rest assured that the Galaxy Z Fold 5 runs great today.
GPU Performance
Now, GFX performance does matter a bit more if you are a gamer. Over the past couple of years, we've started getting games that were cross-developed from the ground up to be completely the same on smartphone and on PC/console. Titles like Delta Force and Arena Breakout: Infinite come to mind. If you want to be sure that you can run these, and upcoming titles at the max settings, your craving for the latest chipset may be justified.
Software-wise, the Fold 5 shipped with Android 13 and One UI 5.1. It did get an Android 15 update this year, after months of delays — hopefully that was just a snag in the path to seamless updates from Samsung. And it is eligible for an Androud 16 update — hopefully sooner this time around.
Meanwhile, the Fold 7 ships with Android 16 and One UI 8 out of the box! It's not a huge upgrade over One UI 7 — mostly some Google Gemini integrations, making sure the assistant is easily accessible from both screens and both fold modes. Plus Google's upgrades for the assistant.
Both devices are expected to enjoy 7 years of software support, which is fantastic for future-proofing, but again — don't make us wait for months to get the next Android build, please. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 still has time to go until 2030, the Z Fold 7 will be supported until 2032.
Both devices are expected to enjoy 7 years of software support, which is fantastic for future-proofing, but again — don't make us wait for months to get the next Android build, please. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 still has time to go until 2030, the Z Fold 7 will be supported until 2032.
Camera
The Fold finally grows a real eye
One of the biggest knocks on the Fold 5? The camera system. It inherited the same 50MP main shooter, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP 3X telephoto from the Fold 4 — and while it was fine, it felt outdated for a $1,800 phone.
The Fold 7 finally changes that. It's lifting the 200 MP main camera from the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Not the wild Super Zoom, but for main camera shots, it should be very adequate.
The Fold 7 finally changes that. It's lifting the 200 MP main camera from the Galaxy S25 Ultra. Not the wild Super Zoom, but for main camera shots, it should be very adequate.
| Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Galaxy Z Fold 5 |
|---|---|
| Main camera 200MP | Main camera 200MP |
| Ultrawide 12MP | Ultrawide 12MP |
| Telephoto 10MP 3X | Telephoto 10MP 3X |
| Cover selfie 10MP | Cover selfie 10MP |
| Internal selfie 10MP | Internal selfie 4MP under-display |
The question — and fairly so — is if that 200 MP sensor actually makes a huge difference. Of course we put it through our elaborate tests!
PhoneArena Camera Score:
As you can see, the Z Fold 7 did indeed score higher... just a little bit higher. A couple of points here and there don't mean much, but that's not even the kicker. The slight difference in scores comes from the fact that Z Fold 7 had slightly more consistent exposure and color calibration from one shot to the next. The sharpness and details got about the same score on both phones!
OK... let's look at some actual samples then:
And here we see exactly that. The image from the Z Fold 7 may appear a bit darker in direct comparison. But, on the other hand, the Z Fold 5's highlights are maybe a bit too bright, and also there's a green-ish cast over the photo. So, in general, the Z Fold 7 gives us more balanced and consistent dynamics, as well as colors. Details are pretty good and sharp on both phones, but less over-sharpened on the Z Fold 7.
In low light, the differences become more apparent — the Z Fold 5 image gets yellow-ish and detail visibly deteriorates due to plentiful noise reduction. The Z Fold 7 holds it together well — very well!
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is also better at zooming — while the Z Fold 5 image starts to fall apart, get bloomy and washed out at 10x, the Z Fold 7 picture is still serviceable!
The ultra-wide camera may be the same spec, but the Galaxy Z Fold 7 gets better ultra-wide pictures out of it. More balanced contrast and better detail smoothing, where the Z Fold 5 can be seen to apply wobbly noise reduction and also a very contrast-y output.
Both selfie cameras perform very similarly, with the main difference being the postprocess sharpening. The Z Fold 5 photo looks kind of jagged around the beard there, the Z Fold 7 picture has softer details.
Main Camera
And here we see exactly that. The image from the Z Fold 7 may appear a bit darker in direct comparison. But, on the other hand, the Z Fold 5's highlights are maybe a bit too bright, and also there's a green-ish cast over the photo. So, in general, the Z Fold 7 gives us more balanced and consistent dynamics, as well as colors. Details are pretty good and sharp on both phones, but less over-sharpened on the Z Fold 7.
In low light, the differences become more apparent — the Z Fold 5 image gets yellow-ish and detail visibly deteriorates due to plentiful noise reduction. The Z Fold 7 holds it together well — very well!
Zoom Quality
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 is also better at zooming — while the Z Fold 5 image starts to fall apart, get bloomy and washed out at 10x, the Z Fold 7 picture is still serviceable!
Ultra-wide Camera
The ultra-wide camera may be the same spec, but the Galaxy Z Fold 7 gets better ultra-wide pictures out of it. More balanced contrast and better detail smoothing, where the Z Fold 5 can be seen to apply wobbly noise reduction and also a very contrast-y output.
Selfies
Both selfie cameras perform very similarly, with the main difference being the postprocess sharpening. The Z Fold 5 photo looks kind of jagged around the beard there, the Z Fold 7 picture has softer details.
More Camera Samples
Video Quality
The cameras kind of trade blows here for video. While the Z Fold 7 has a bit of a weird pinkish hue for skintone at the beginning, it does have a more balanced contrast that boosts shadows. Then again, the Z Fold 5's more contrasty noir-inspired look may be a desired effect! When we move around a bit and go to a backlit scene, the Z Fold 5 is actually a bit faster to recover. But, moving to a low-light corner of the office, we get better detail and exposure from the Z Fold 7 camera again. So, verdict? The video is OK, not great, from both phones.
Battery Life and Charging
Still stuck in the slow lane
Here’s where Samsung still refuses to evolve.
Both the Fold 5 and the Fold 7 pack a 4,400mAh battery — seemingly the same, though do keep in mind that the Z Fold 7 is now a much thinner device. So, progress has been made here, no two ways about it. It's just that there's some give and some take with such major design shifts.
Both the Fold 5 and the Fold 7 pack a 4,400mAh battery — seemingly the same, though do keep in mind that the Z Fold 7 is now a much thinner device. So, progress has been made here, no two ways about it. It's just that there's some give and some take with such major design shifts.
PhoneArena Battery and Charging Test Results:
And there has been some evolution in energy efficiency! While for heavy tasks like streraming video or gaming, the results are about the same. But for casual use, like non-stop web browsing, the Z Fold 7 can last quite a bit longer!
Neither phone is pushing charging boundaries. The Z Fold 5 capped out at 25W wired and 15W wireless, and so does the Z Fold 7.
In 2025, that’s going to draw some ire — especially when foldables from China are pushing 100W+ charging and 6,000mAh silicon-carbon batteries.
The only silver lining? With a newer, more efficient chip, the Fold 7 might still outlast the Fold 5 on a single charge, even with the same capacity. But don't expect a two-day phone here.
In 2025, that’s going to draw some ire — especially when foldables from China are pushing 100W+ charging and 6,000mAh silicon-carbon batteries.
The only silver lining? With a newer, more efficient chip, the Fold 7 might still outlast the Fold 5 on a single charge, even with the same capacity. But don't expect a two-day phone here.
Specs Comparison
Here's a rundown of the core specs, but you can also browse our full Galaxy Z Fold 7 vs Galaxy Z Fold 5 specs page.
| Galaxy Z Fold 7 | Galaxy Z Fold 5 |
|---|---|
| Size, weight 72.8 x 158.4 x 8.9 mm folded 215gr | Size, weight 154.9 x 129.9 x 6.1 mm (13.4 mm folded) 253gr |
| Screen 8.0" OLED internal, 120Hz, 2,600 nits 6.5" OLED external, 120Hz 2,600 nits | Screen 7.6" OLED, 120Hz, 1,750 nits 6.2" OLED, 120Hz, 1,750 nits |
| Processor Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy 3nm | Processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy 4nm |
| Versions: 12GB/256GB 12GB/512GB 16GB/1TB LPDDR5X | Versions: 12GB/256GB 12GB/512GB 12GB/1TB LPDDR5X |
| Cameras: 200MP main 12MP ultra 10MP 3X zoom 10MP front 10MP internal front | Cameras: 50MP main 12MP ultra 10MP 3X zoom 10MP front 4MP internal front |
| Battery: 4,400 mAh | Battery: 4,400 mAh |
| Charging: USB-C 25W wired 15W wireless | Charging: USB-C 25W wired 15W wireless |
Also read:
Summary
The Galaxy Z Fold 5 was reliable, refined, and very Samsung. If you've been holding out, waiting for a meaningful upgrade — the Z Fold 7 is definitely that. Just keep in mind that S Pen support is gone, so if you are addicted to that stylus and hand-written notes... You need an alternative.
Other than that, the Z Fold 7 is through and through the superior foldable, and the superior phone in general here. Minus the fact that it costs quite a bit more now. But, at least you can take advantage of Samsung's enhanced trade-in now and get $900 off on a Z Fold 7 if your Fold 5 is in good condition!
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