Samsung Galaxy A56 5G vs Samsung Galaxy S26

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G

Samsung

7.2

Good

Samsung Galaxy S26

Samsung

6.8

Skip Unless Upgrading from S23 or Older

What Reviewers Agree On

Premium design with glass back punches well above the $449 price point
Super AMOLED display is vibrant and sharp with smooth 120Hz refresh rate
Selfie camera and video recording capabilities are genuinely impressive
IP67 water resistance is a welcome inclusion at this price
Samsung's 6-year update commitment adds long-term value

Deal Breakers

Still photography quality falls short of competitors like Pixel 8a
Gaming performance suffers with noticeable frame drops in demanding titles

Pros & Cons

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G

Pros

Premium design with glass back punches well above the $449 price point
Super AMOLED display is vibrant and sharp with smooth 120Hz refresh rate
Selfie camera and video recording capabilities are genuinely impressive
IP67 water resistance is a welcome inclusion at this price
Samsung's 6-year update commitment adds long-term value

Cons

Detailed Comparison

Design & Build

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G

The A56 5G impresses with a design that belies its mid-range pricing. The glass back and metal frame give it a premium feel, and reviewers consistently praise how it looks and feels more expensive than it is.

Glass back and metal frame create a genuinely premium look and feel that rivals phones twice the price
IP67 water and dust resistance is excellent to have at this price point
At 190g, it's comfortable to hold and use one-handed despite the 6.7-inch screen
The design language closely mirrors the flagship S25 series, which is a positive for brand consistency

Samsung Galaxy S26

The S26 adopts more angular, Ultra-like corners for a unified family design. The Armor Aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 provide solid durability. At ~7.3mm and ~162g, it's pocketable and lightweight.

The unified design language across the S26 family gives even the base model a premium, Ultra-like aesthetic

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What Reviewers Agree On

Camera hardware is unchanged for the fourth consecutive year — same 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP 3× telephoto as the S23/S24/S25
$100 price hike over the S25 is only partly justified by the doubled 256GB base storage
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy is genuinely fast with headroom to spare
Thinnest and lightest flagship in its class — PhoneArena calls it a "masterclass in ergonomics"
6.3-inch OLED display is slightly larger than the S25 and remains best-in-class for the size
Battery is modestly larger than the S25 — modest but real "battery boost"
Seven years of software updates remains the longest Android support commitment

Deal Breakers

No camera upgrade for the fourth year running — single biggest reason to skip
No Privacy Display, no Horizon Lock — both locked to the Ultra
No Qi2 magnetic charging despite the category moving to it
Still 25W charging in an era where even mid-range Chinese phones ship 80W+
$899 price is hard to justify against a discounted S25 at $599–699
Design changes are minimal — most reviewers cannot tell an S26 from an S25 at a glance

Samsung Galaxy S26

Pros

Camera hardware is unchanged for the fourth consecutive year — same 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, and 10MP 3× telephoto as the S23/S24/S25
$100 price hike over the S25 is only partly justified by the doubled 256GB base storage
Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy is genuinely fast with headroom to spare
Thinnest and lightest flagship in its class — PhoneArena calls it a "masterclass in ergonomics"
6.3-inch OLED display is slightly larger than the S25 and remains best-in-class for the size
Battery is modestly larger than the S25 — modest but real "battery boost"
Seven years of software updates remains the longest Android support commitment

Cons

No camera upgrade for the fourth year running — single biggest reason to skip
No Privacy Display, no Horizon Lock — both locked to the Ultra
No Qi2 magnetic charging despite the category moving to it
Still 25W charging in an era where even mid-range Chinese phones ship 80W+
$899 price is hard to justify against a discounted S25 at $599–699
Design changes are minimal — most reviewers cannot tell an S26 from an S25 at a glance

Display

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G

The 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display is one of the A56's strongest selling points. With FHD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh rate, it delivers a viewing experience that's hard to fault at this price.

The Super AMOLED panel delivers rich colors and deep blacks that look fantastic for media consumption
120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling and navigation feel smooth and responsive
Outdoor visibility is good thanks to decent peak brightness, though not flagship-level

Samsung Galaxy S26

The 6.3-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with 1-120Hz adaptive refresh rate carries over from the S25. It remains a sharp, vibrant panel for its compact size. No Privacy Display — that's Ultra-only.

The 6.3-inch compact form factor remains the S26's biggest strength — it's one of the few true compact flagships available in 2026
FHD+ resolution feels like a compromise at $900 — the S26+ and Ultra both get QHD+ panels

Camera System

Samsung Galaxy A56 5G

The camera system is the A56's most contentious aspect. The 50MP main sensor delivers acceptable results in good light, and the selfie camera genuinely impresses, but still photography in challenging conditions falls noticeably behind competitors.

Selfie camera is surprisingly excellent — among the best in the mid-range segment
Video recording capabilities punch above the phone's weight class
Still photography disappoints — the main camera struggles with dynamic range and detail in challenging light
Ultrawide and macro lenses are serviceable but unremarkable for the price

Samsung Galaxy S26

Identical camera hardware to the S25, S24, and S23: 50MP main, 12MP ultrawide, 10MP 3x telephoto, 12MP selfie. Software processing via One UI 8.5 may yield modest improvements, but the hardware stagnation is the most common criticism.

Three years of the same camera hardware at an ever-increasing price — Samsung needs to invest in the non-Ultra camera stack
Despite the stale hardware, Samsung's computational photography via AI ISP may still improve photo quality through software alone