Samsung Galaxy season is upon us. As the Korean giant's major Unpacked showcase kicks off, the S26, S26 Plus and S26 Ultra models are now all official – and there's a new pricing structure, too.
Gone is any 128GB storage variant (not that the previous S25 Ultra had such an option), meaning the 256GB option is your minimum. That, inevitably, means you'll need to pay a little more for the latest and greatest hardware.
Here's a quick breakdown of the Galaxy S26 series' asking price in the UK and the USA:
256GB |
512GB |
1TB |
|
Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra |
£1279 $1299 AUD$2199 |
£1449 $1499 AUD$2499 |
£1699 $1799 AUD$1949 |
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus |
£1099 $1099 AUD$1,849 |
£1269 $1299 AUD$2149 |
N/A |
Samsung Galaxy S26 |
£879 $899 AUD$1549 |
£1049 $1099 AUD$1849 |
N/A |
However, UK, Australian and EU customers get one major bonus that doesn't apply in the USA. If you pre-order any Galaxy S26 handset then you'll get double the storage at no extra cost.
That's so long as you order before the 11 March on-sale date, giving you a couple of weeks to make the decision. There will be other trade-in promotions to further sweeten the deal, too.
So just how much pricier is the S26 series compared to its predecessor in the UK? I've done the maths, based on the like-for-like 256GB models, so you can see the percentage jump:
S25 (2025 RRP) |
S26 (2026 RRP) |
% increase |
|
Ultra (256GB) |
£1,249 |
£1,279 |
2.40% |
Plus (256GB) |
£999 |
£1099 |
10% |
Base (256GB) |
£859 |
£879 |
2.33% |
I'm not surprised to see a figure at or lower than 3% for any product, given annual cost of living rises. Furthermore, with RAM and storage costs skyrocketing, this is actually a small change.
With the exception, of course, of the S26 Plus. A handset that I, and others, thought would be removed from the 2026 line-up – leaving space for Samsung's Edge model to take that spot instead.
While this hasn't happened, I would be surprised for the Plus' sales volume to move the needle. Its 10% annual price jump being a significant part of the reason for that.
That said, as with any S26 model on pre-order, the jump to more storage is a big cost-saver. With the S26 Ultra, in particular, you can unlock a 16GB RAM variant – only available in the 1TB model – by purchasing the 12+512GB product at £1449.
It's going to be an interesting year for the best phones, with Samsung's S26 range modifications marginal compared to last year. The flagship Galaxy always feels like the handset to make the biggest mark early on in the year, though, with 2026 no exception.
