Apple
iPhone 17 Pro Max
A19 Pro · 6.9″ LTPO · Titanium
98
/ 100
From $1,199
VS
iPhone 17 Pro Max wins by 4
Samsung
Galaxy S26 Ultra
Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 · 6.9″ · 200 MP
94
/ 100
From $1,399
Specdex verdict
iPhone 17 Pro Max takes it — here’s why.
In our weighted Specdex score, iPhone 17 Pro Max lands at 98 and Galaxy S26 Ultra at 94. That puts iPhone 17 Pro Max ahead by 4 points — a narrow margin driven mostly by its strengths in the categories below.
Pick iPhone 17 Pro Max if…
- ✓Industry-leading A19 Pro silicon
- ✓New vapor-chamber cooling
- ✓Apple Intelligence Gen 2
Pick Galaxy S26 Ultra if…
- ✓Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 (3 nm refined)
- ✓Galaxy AI Gen 3 with Agent Flow
- ✓7-year updates through Android 23
Score breakdown
iPhone 17 Pro Max
98 cpu 100
gpu 98
camera 98
battery 90
display 95
design 96
Galaxy S26 Ultra
94 cpu 97
gpu 97
camera 95
battery 90
display 97
design 93
Specs side-by-side
Spec
iPhone 17 Pro Max
Galaxy S26 Ultra
Display
6.9″ LTPO OLED, 120Hz, 2868×1320
6.9″ Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, 3120×1440
Chipset
Apple A19 Pro (3 nm)
Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 for Galaxy
RAM
12 GB
16 GB
Storage
256 / 512 GB / 1 TB / 2 TB
256 / 512 GB / 1 TB
Rear camera
48 MP + 48 MP UW + 48 MP 6× tele
—
Battery
4800 mAh
5200 mAh
Charging
45W wired, 30W MagSafe
—
OS
iOS 19
Android 16, One UI 8
Weight
232 g
—
IP rating
IP68
—
iPhone 17 Pro Max
Pros
- +Industry-leading A19 Pro silicon
- +New vapor-chamber cooling
- +Apple Intelligence Gen 2
Cons
- −Premium price
- −Weight crept up with titanium chassis
- −Still 45 W charging ceiling
Galaxy S26 Ultra
Pros
- +Snapdragon 8 Elite 2 (3 nm refined)
- +Galaxy AI Gen 3 with Agent Flow
- +7-year updates through Android 23
Cons
- −Price crept up $100 vs S25 Ultra
- −AI features vary by region
- −Still 45W charging
FAQ: iPhone 17 Pro Max vs Galaxy S26 Ultra
Which is better, iPhone 17 Pro Max or Galaxy S26 Ultra? +
iPhone 17 Pro Max scores 98 on our weighted rubric — ahead by 4. Your best pick depends on the sub-scores above.
Is iPhone 17 Pro Max worth the price? +
At $1,199, iPhone 17 Pro Max delivers a Specdex score of 98 — strongest in cpu.
Is Galaxy S26 Ultra worth the price? +
At $1,399, Galaxy S26 Ultra delivers a Specdex score of 94 — strongest in cpu.
Does iPhone 17 Pro Max or Galaxy S26 Ultra last longer? +
Based on our long-term update and support ratings, both ship with multi-year support. Battery and reliability scores are visible in the breakdown above.