What you need to know
- Sales of the Galaxy S26 series in the US increased 29% in the first three weeks compared to last year.
- Galaxy S26 Ultra sales were up 71% as buyers gravitated towards premium models this year.
- The higher prices of the S26 and S26 Plus led more users to choose the Ultra models instead.
Despite talk of a slowing smartphone market and rising prices, it looks like Samsung has nailed it For the Galaxy S26 series, sales have been strong for the brand.
According to a report by Counterpoint ResearchSales of the Galaxy S26 series in the US grew 29% in the first three weeks compared to the Galaxy S25 series in the same period last year. Of that growth, the Galaxy S26 Ultra alone accounted for 71% of total sales, which is about 10% more than the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s share last year.
The report suggests that more buyers are leaning towards the Ultra model this time, partly due to the price increase for the base Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus. Samsung raised the prices of those models by $100, while keeping the Galaxy S26 Ultra’s price the same as last year, potentially pushing more users toward the higher-end option.
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Furthermore, the report highlights the privacy display feature as one of the key reasons driving interest in the Ultra model. It also points to aggressive deals from carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile as another factor behind the strong sales of Samsung’s $1,300 flagship.
There have been many reports this year suggesting that rising component and memory costs could slow down smartphone sales, but Samsung is bucking the trend, which is quite impressive.
The attention is now turning towards Samsung’s upcoming foldables, which are expected to launch soon The rumored Wide Fold device aims to compete with Apple’s expected iPhone Fold. That said, with prices continuing to rise across the industry, it will be interesting to see how demand plays out in the coming months.
Android Central’s Tech
It’s no surprise that Ultra is doing most of the heavy lifting here. Between better deals and more worthwhile features, it looks like the purchase is smarter this year than the regular Galaxy S26 model.
