Samsung Electronics has followed in the footsteps of Apple and Google, lifting the price of its flagship phones by $100 to $200, passing more of the memory cost burden onto consumers.
Samsung Electronics has raised the US prices of most models in its Galaxy S26 lineup, with increases ranging from $100 to $200. The move comes shortly after Apple and Google both lifted prices on their flagship phones, making it the latest example of consumer tech brands pushing cost pressure downstream amid a sustained memory chip shortage.
The increase covers the three main models — the Galaxy S26, S26+ and S26 Ultra — with every configuration rising by $100, while the top-end S26 Ultra 1TB variant climbs by $200 to $1,999. Because the S26 and S26+ already launched in March at prices $100 above the previous-generation S25 series, the base S26 now costs a cumulative $200 more than the S25 did at launch.
The Galaxy S26 FE and the latest foldable lineup, including the Galaxy Z Fold 8, Z Fold 8 Ultra and Z Flip 8, are not affected by the increase for now.
Size of the increase: a breakdown by configuration
According to the latest prices on Samsung's official website, the main Galaxy S26 models now sell for the following after the adjustment:
The Galaxy S26 (256GB) rises from $899 to $999;
the S26+ (256GB) rises from $1,099 to $1,199;
the S26 Ultra (256GB) rises from $1,299 to $1,399;
and the S26 Ultra (1TB) posts the biggest jump, from $1,799 to $1,999.
The Galaxy S26 FE is the only model in the lineup to hold its original price, still selling for $699. Notably, when it launched in August, its pricing was already $50 higher than the previous-generation S25 FE.
The S26 Ultra had previously been something of an exception in the lineup — Samsung kept its starting price at $1,300 when it launched in March, rather than raising it alongside the S26 and S26+, which made this the product line's first price increase since early 2024.
Industry backdrop: the chip shortage spreads the wave of price hikes
This round of phone price increases is not unique to Samsung. Prices for consumer electronics such as laptops, game consoles and smartphones have broadly risen over the past year, rooted in the AI boom and large-scale data center construction that have driven up demand for memory chips and kept supply tight.
Samsung's adjustment comes weeks after Apple introduced the more expensive iPhone 18 Pro series and raised prices on older models such as the iPhone 17. Alphabet's Google also priced its Pixel 11 series above the previous generation. Apple had earlier raised prices on nearly all of its laptops and desktops in June, with some products climbing by as much as $500.
When Samsung launched the S26 series in March, it explicitly said that higher memory prices were one reason pricing was $100 above the S25 at the time. This fresh adjustment, months after launch, shows that memory cost pressure has yet to ease.
Competitive landscape: foldables hold their price edge for now
In the foldable market, Samsung still retains some price advantage. The Galaxy Z Fold 8 sells for $1,900, below the $1,999 starting price of Apple's iPhone Duo, which goes on sale October 23.
Because the foldable lineup was excluded from this round of increases, that gap will be maintained in the near term.
For consumers interested in Samsung's bar-shaped flagship phones, however, the options have narrowed considerably.
If buyers hope to pick up a new S26-series device near its launch price, the Galaxy S26 FE is currently the only choice, while the minimum entry point for the remaining models has reached $999.