iPhone 18 Pro vs Galaxy S26 camera: 6 real photos side by side
Real photos, side by side, so you can see the difference.
Quick take
In bright daylight the iPhone 18 Pro and the Galaxy S26 framed our six scenes almost identically, and the photos are close. The 18 Pro looks a touch darker and more contrasty, the S26 a little brighter in the shadows. The 18 Pro saved 24 MP files, the S26 12 MP, which shows in the centre crops.
What the photo files show
| iPhone 18 Pro | Samsung Galaxy S26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Saved file at 1x | 5712 × 4284 (24.5 MP) | 4000 × 3000 (12 MP) |
| Main lens (35 mm equivalent) | 24 mm | 23 mm |
| 2x photo | 48 mm equivalent, 4032 × 3024 (12.2 MP) | 46 mm equivalent, digital zoom 2x, 4000 × 3000 (12 MP) |
| Software in the files | 27.0.1 | S942NKSS4BZIG |
| Rear cameras used here | Main camera only | Main camera only |
How these were taken
24 October 2026, Palmengarten, Frankfurt am Main, sunny with clouds, between 14:28 and 15:27. Each scene was shot with all 11 of our test phones within a few minutes, each on the same tripod, each on its default auto camera settings. The main camera at 1x, the roses at 2x. Location data removed, people blurred, no other edits. How we test · Compare these two in the Camera Lab
What this comparison does not show
- Night, indoor and portrait photos: not shot yet.
- Ultra-wide and telephoto lenses beyond 2x, and video.
- Other light: this is one sunny afternoon. Colours can change in cloud or at dusk.
- Other copies of the same phone: we have one of each.
Compare more shots
See how other phones handle the same six scenes.
- iPhone 17e vs Samsung Galaxy A57
- iPhone 14 Pro vs iPhone 17e
- iPhone 17e vs Google Pixel 10a
- Samsung Galaxy A57 vs Google Pixel 10a
- Samsung Galaxy A57 vs Redmi Note 15 Pro 5G
- Samsung Galaxy S26 vs Google Pixel 10a
- iPhone 18 Pro vs iPhone 17e
- Nothing Phone (4a) Pro vs Google Pixel 10a
Illustration