We reviewed both the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold upon their respective launches, with each earning a solid four-star rating.
Seeing as they achieved the same rating, how do the phones really compare? Both promise an immersive viewing experience, thanks to their super-sized main displays, AI-powered features and improved durability compared to their respective predecessors.
We’ve pinned the specs of the two foldables against each other to determine which Android-powered smartphone really comes out on top.
Price
The first thing to bear in mind if you’re considering a foldable handset is that they are typically much more expensive than a standard handset. Having said that, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 has a higher RRP of £1799/$1899 while the Pixel 9 Pro Fold starts at £1749/$1799.
Design
- The Z Fold 6 has squared corners
- The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold is thinner when folded
- The Z Fold 6 is available in more colours
Much like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the Z Fold 6 now sports squared-off corners with flattened sides whereas the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold still features rounded corners, which makes the handset look quite outdated in comparison.
On the other hand, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is thinner when folded at just 10.5mm compared to the Z Fold 6’s 13.4mm and sports Gorilla Glass Victus 2 across the front back while the Z Fold 6 only has Victus 2 on its back.
Despite being thicker, the Z Fold 6 is lighter than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold at just 239g compared to 257g. It also has a superior IP48 rating, which means it’s protected from full submersion in water and ingress from objects larger than 1mm. Even so, it’s worth remembering that dust and sand are obviously much smaller than 1mm, so this isn’t too much of an upgrade to the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s IPX8 rating.
The Z Fold 6 is also available in three colours including Navy, Pink and Silver with a matte finish to help reduce fingermarks, while the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is available in just Obsidian and Porcelain.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Screens
- Both have a 6.3-inch outer display
- The Pixel 9 Pro Fold has a larger 8-inch internal display
- There’s a noticeable crease in their respective internal screens
As both the outer panels are 6.3-inches, boast a 120Hz refresh rate and can reach 2600 nits peak brightness, on paper they sound very similar. However the Z Fold 6 has a taller and more narrow outer display, or Cover Screen as Samsung calls it, which we found tends to make apps look squashed and restrictive.
On the other hand, using the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s outer display feels like using a ‘normal’ Pixel 9 handset. In fact, Editor Max Parker found he was opening the phone less than the Z Fold 6, unless the larger internal canvas was preferred for watching content or playing games.
Speaking of the internal screens, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s is larger at eight-inches compared to the Z Fold 6’s 7.6-inches. Both are 120Hz, OLED panels but the Pixel 9 Pro Fold can reach a higher peak brightness of 2700 nits compared to the Z Fold 6’s 2600 nits (although the difference in real-life use is negligible.)
Both internal displays share the same caveat and that’s the crease. Neither Google or Samsung have managed to achieve the near creaseless internal display of the OnePlus Open so their respective foldables have a very prominent divet that runs down the middle of their screens.
As we know it is possible to at least lighten the crease of a foldable handset, this is a difficult pill to swallow especially as both handsets are considerably expensive.
Winner: Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Cameras
- The cameras of the Z Fold 6 is very similar to its predecessor
- Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold’s camera hardware isn’t as impressive as the Pixel 9 Pro XL
- Both handsets offer AI-powered photo editing tools
The Z Fold 6 is made up of three rear lenses, including a 50MP wide with OIS, an upgraded 12MP ultrawide and a 10MP telephoto with 3x optical zoom, a 4MP under-display camera and 10MP selfie lens on the Cover Screen. This lineup remains relatively unchanged to the Z Fold 5.
The star of the show here is undoubtedly the 50MP main lens which allows for crisp shots across most lighting conditions, although colours do retain the typical level of staturation that Samsung is known for.
Although the 12MP ultrawide is upgraded from last year’s, we found it doesn’t deliver much of a boost to image quality, while the 10MP telephoto lens remains the same as the Z Fold 4 which at this point just feels outdated.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold also has five cameras in total, with a trio of rear lenses including a 48MP main, 10.5MP ultrawide and a 10.8MP telephoto zoom. Although part of the Pixel 9 series, which boasts some of the best camera performance of 2024, unfortunately we were disappointed by the secondary lenses which don’t match up to the prowess of the Pixel 9 Pro XL.
However, like most Pixel handsets now, the 9 Pro Fold still boasts Google’s AI-powered editing suite which includes Zoom Enhance to boost detail in cropped photos and Magic Editor to revamp captured shots with just a few taps.
Similarly, the Z Fold 6 also comes equipped with Galaxy AI, Samsung’s AI toolkit, which features Photo Assist to edit photos by removing unwanted objects, adjusting angles or fill backgrounds.
Winner: Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Performance
- The Z Fold 6 is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy processor
- The Pixel 9 Pro Fold runs on Google’s Tensor G4 chip
- Both have a focus on AI
Like most new handsets this year, the Z Fold 6 and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold have a focus on AI capability, despite utilising different processors. The Z Fold 6, much like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, runs on Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy which promises to be faster and more powerful than its predecessor, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy.
Not only does it boast more power and is rapid in everyday use, but it also ensures the smooth running of Galaxy AI which is built-into the handset.
Like the Pixel 9 lineup, the 9 Pro Fold sports the Tensor G4 chipset which favours AI performance over sheer speed and power. In fact, we found that the gap between Snapdragon and Tensor chipset has widened, however it’s worth noting that we still found that during everyday use it felt smooth, with apps opening quickly.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Software
- Both offer industry-leading seven years of software updates
- AI-powered tools play a huge role
- Pixel 9 Pro Fold comes with Gemini built in
The Galaxy AI toolkit that launched with the S24 series can also be found on the Z Fold 6, including Circle to Search which allows you to find out more about anything on screen, simply by drawing a circle around it. There’s even live translation for real-time conversing in different languages, and the aforementioned Photo Assist.
In addition, there are new AI tools that are exclusive to the Z Fold 6 including Magic Doodle and AI Portrait Studio.
As you’d imagine, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold boasts Pixel-exclusive apps such as the brand new Pixel Screenshots, Pixel Studio for image generation and, arguably most impressively, the inclusion of Gemini Live.
The use of Gemini Live is thanks to the Tensor G4’s ability to run multimodal AI on-device which processes images and audio alongside text for faster and more natural responses.
Finally, both the Z Fold 6 and Pixel 9 Pro Fold offer an impressive seven years of OS upgrades too, taking them up to Android 21.
Winner: Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Battery life
- Both foldables have an uninspiring battery life, especially when compared to the OnePlus Open
- The Z Fold 6 has slightly faster charging speeds
- Pixel 9 Pro Fold has a larger battery capacity
We found both handsets lasted just about a full-day after average use, which wouldn’t necessarily be an issue if it weren’t for the slow charging speeds. The Z Fold 6 has 25W maximum speeds, which we found took around 90 minutes to jump from 1 to 100% whereas the Pixel 9 Pro Fold takes over 100 minutes for the same top-up.
Winner: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Verdict
Overall, the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold represents a better all-round foldable handset, thanks to its more usable cover screen, better camera hardware and AI prowess.
That’s not to say the Z Fold 6 isn’t a solid foldable though. It’s lighter, looks more modern and is far more technically powerful than the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
Buy the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 if…
You’d prefer a stylish foldable that looks more modern, is available in more colour choices and boasts sheer power.
Buy the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold if…
You want a foldable that has a more usable cover screen, better camera hardware and boasts impressive AI features that genuinely make your life easier.
Also consider: We’d also recommend checking out the OnePlus Open, which was awarded a near-perfect 4.5-star rating and is easily the current king of book-style foldables. Otherwise be sure to visit our best foldables list, where we’ve compiled our top-rated foldables on the market.
