One of the best phones this year is theGalaxy Z Fold 7, with Samsung jumping aboard the trend set by rivals like theOppo Find N5andHonor Magic V5in shedding pounds in favor of a slim new look.
Against this competitive backdrop, Google launched thePixel 10 Pro Foldlast week. While its rivals have focused on removing features and making changes to satisfy a goal of being thin, Google chose to add features and address some of the criticisms of last year’s excellentPixel 9 Pro Fold.
That comes at a price, however, as the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is now the thickest and heaviest folding phone you can buy. With most customers experiencing both products in a retail store, and both likely to feature at the top of ourbest folding phoneslist, which of these flagship foldables should you buy?
I spent half an hour with Google’s new folding phone at its launch in New York, and while the battle is quite close, there’s a clear winner.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: specs
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: design and display
The biggest challenge facing the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold is that Samsung completely revamped the Galaxy Z Fold 7 design. The Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold is 0.6mm thicker than last year’s Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold, but that phone was slimmer than last year’sGalaxy Z Fold 6.
However, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is considerably thinner and lighter than Google’s latest flagship, and although there isn’t a vast chasm between the two, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is notably thicker and heavier in the hand. While the Galaxy Z Fold 7 feels like a regular smartphone when folded, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold also feels considerably thicker; for context, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is just 0.7mm thicker than theGalaxy S25 Ultra, while the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is 2.3mm thicker than the comparativePixel 10 Pro XL.
Another change from the Galaxy Z Fold 6 is that Samsung made the displays on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 larger, and now they’re a similar size to the Pixel 10 Pro Fold. The main display measures 6.5 inches, just 0.1 inch larger than Google’s cover screen, while both phones unfold to an 8-inch main display with similar peak brightness.
A notable feature is that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 has titanium and carbon fiber plates directly under the crease in the display, which help support the display and minimize the crease. However, it’s also worth noting that the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is the first folding phone to support IP68 dust and water resistance, making it as protective as a regular smartphone in the same conditions.
Winner: Galaxy Z Fold 7.Both phones are very similar in dimensions and aspect ratio. While the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is more rounded than the Galaxy Z Fold 7 — and likely to be slightly more comfortable in the hand — there’s no denying that the Galaxy Z Fold 7 feels considerably more premium in the hand. Samsung’s displays are also more enjoyable than Google’s.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: performance and battery
While Samsung built an ultra-thin folding phone, it came at the expense of performance and battery life.
On paper, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 has the same Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor as thebest Samsung phones. However, like the ultra-thin Galaxy S25 Edge, the processor is throttled to prevent thermal overheating. This is paired with either 12GB or 16GB of RAM, depending on the storage option you choose.
Meanwhile, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is the first phone to feature the new Tensor G5, which is built using the same 3nm TSMC process as the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy processor. This is designed to offer up to 60% better machine learning performance, a 34 percent increase in CPU performance, and improvements to GPU performance and camera processing. This is paired with 16GB of RAM, and although we haven’t tested it yet, we’d expect similar levels of performance between both phones.
While the performance is likely to be similar, the battery could be considerably different. In its desire to achieve an ultra-thin body, Samsung couldn’t increase the battery capacity beyond the 4,400 mAh one used in last year’s Galaxy Z Fold 6. The Fold 7 also features the same 25W charging and 15W wireless charging, while 4.5W reverse charging is also onboard.
Meanwhile, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold blows the Galaxy Z Fold 7 out of the park, at least on paper. The battery is considerably larger at 5,015 mAh, while the 30W charging is slightly faster, although both phone makers promise 50% battery in 30 minutes. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold stands out, however, thanks to 15W MagSafe-like Qi2 magnetic charging, which Google calls PixelSnap. The Fold 7 technically supports the same standard, but one crucial difference is that it requires an additional case, while the Pixel 10 Pro Fold has the magnets built in.
Winner: Tie. It’s really hard to decide between these two, but on paper, Samsung will likely have the better performance, while Google will probably have the better battery life and charging. However, we’ll wait for our full Pixel 10 Pro Fold review closer to launch to be able to determine this.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: cameras
Google chose to keep the existing Pixel 9 Pro Fold cameras in the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, meaning you get a triple camera setup with a 48MP main camera, 10.5MP ultra-wide camera, and 10.8MP telephoto camera. Although there are some improvements thanks to the new ISP in the Tensor G5, this is essentially the same camera hardware as last year.
Meanwhile, Samsung also adopted the same triple-camera setup as the Galaxy Z Fold 6 with one key difference: the new 200MP primary camera. This is ostensibly the same camera found in the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but like the ultra-thinGalaxy S25 Edge, it’s actually 18% smaller in size. However, my testing found that the primary and ultra-wide cameras are on par with Samsung’s camera powerhouse.
Where the Galaxy Z Fold 7 falls apart is with the telephoto camera, as the 10MP telephoto offers 3x optical zoom and little else beyond this focal length, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold telephoto lens has 5x optical zoom, and based on comparing the same hardware in last year’s foldables, it will likely offer better zoom performance than Samsung’s new folding phone.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 also drops the dreaded 4MP under-display camera above the main display in favor of a regular selfie camera. Both displays feature a 10MP selfie camera, although the one in the main display is an ultrawide, while the cover display features a narrower wide-angle selfie lens. Meanwhile, Google uses the same 10MP wide lens for both of its selfie cameras.
Winner: Tie. The Galaxy Z Fold 7 has a great primary camera, but the telephoto is almost certainly better on the Pixel 10 Pro Fold. Until we can use Google’s latest folding phone closer to its release, it’s too difficult to call a winner here.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: software and updates
Both folding phones runAndroid 16out of the box and come with seven years of software and security updates. Google is faster at dropping these updates — and releases new features via quarterly Pixel drops — but Samsung is just as capable at updates and is second only to Google in speed and reliability.
The Pixel 10 Pro Fold comes with Google’s new Material 3 Expressive UI, which allows you to theme the entire interface with a set of colors to fit your stylistic choices better. Meanwhile,One UI 8on the Galaxy Z Fold 7 features subtle aesthetic updates throughout the UI, revamped Samsung apps, and a better overall software experience.
Then there’s multitasking, and while the Pixel 10 Pro Fold comes with coreAndroid 16 multitaskingfeatures like extending an app beyond the edge of the screen, the Galaxy Z Fold 7 is considerably ahead. Not only does it have the sameAndroid 16 features, it also has Samsung’s extremely mature multi-window multitasking solution that can run multiple apps simultaneously.
Winner: Galaxy Z Fold 7. Yes, Samsung has removed S-Pen support this year, and Google has a lot of nifty AI features, but when it comes to doing more on the big screen, Samsung has a considerable lead.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: price and availability
Here’s where things get a little complicated: the Pixel 10 Pro Fold starts at $1,799, like the Pixel 9 Pro Fold last year, while the improvements in the Galaxy Z Fold 7 mean Samsung has bumped the price of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 by $100 to $1,999. This pricing is for the base 256GB storage option on each model.
Here’s how pricing stacks up on the other storage variants.
There is a considerable delta between the pricing on both devices, but it’s also worth keeping in mind that Samsung is aggressive with the actual price you’ll pay. Between trade-in deals and in-store credit, the best Galaxy Z Fold 7 deals can reduce your purchase to similar or lower prices than thebest Pixel 10 Pro Fold deals. However, there are special pre-order promotions that make the latter more appealing during this limited window.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7 was announced on June 04, 2025, and went on sale on July 07, 2025, while the Pixel 10 Pro Fold was announced on August 09, 2025, but won’t be released until July 11, 2025.
Pixel 10 Pro Fold vs Galaxy Z Fold 7: verdict
ThePixel 10 Pro Foldbuilds on an excellent folding phone with key improvements that make it even better, like a vastly improved processor, the best durability of any foldable, and magnetic charging built in. However, it does so at the cost of size and weight, and as it turns out, this makes a much larger difference than it may seem.
Samsung has undoubtedly built an incredible folding phone with theGalaxy Z Fold 7. As the reactions proved when we showed it to 30 people, the phenomenal design is precisely what makes the Galaxy Z Fold 7 a standout hit. Of course, we haven’t reviewed the Pixel 10 Pro Fold yet, so we’ll reserve final judgment until our review closer to its release date.
