Galaxy S25 Edge vs S25 Ultra Camera: Is Thin Good Enough?

From the main 200MP camera, the Galaxy S25 Ultra and S25 Edge deliver almost identical results in bright conditions. That’s because they use the same camera. What differs significantly is everything else. The Galaxy S25 Edge doesn’t have any telephoto cameras, while the Galaxy S25 Ultra does. The Galaxy S25 Edge doesn’t have the Galaxy S25 Ultra’s 50MP ultrawide camera either. All of this allows Samsung to make the Galaxy S25 Edge significantly thinner (5.8mm versus 8.2mm) and lighter (163g versus 218g).

In this guide, we compare the cameras of the Galaxy S25 Edge and Galaxy S25 Ultra in more detail, breaking things down lens by lens. We also explain what you lose without a telephoto camera and compare the Galaxy S25 Edge’s cameras to those of the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S25+. Unless otherwise noted, specs come from Samsung. And we include the name of the reviewer responsible for each result.

S25 Edge vs S25 Ultra camera specs

Both are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy chip, and according to Notebookcheck the main camera on the Edge also uses the same 1/1.3-inch sensor size as the one on the Ultra.

The photos taken on 1x zoom are indeed very similar, and this makes sense since both devices use the same sensor size and image processing (ProVisual Engine).

Main camera: almost a tie

In Tom's Guide's 10-round photo test, the main cameras received the same marks for photos taken in daylight conditions, dynamic range, panoramic pictures and photos taken in low light. The publication liked the Edge’s pictures just a tad better because it preferred the slightly less saturated colours.

In DXOMARK’s camera test, the Ultra’s main camera fared better, scoring 155 points compared to 150 for the Edge. Both phones received the same grade of 165 points for bokeh effect.

Opinions were divided over the consistency of the phone’s camera in low light conditions. While Notebookcheck thought low-light pictures looked better than those captured with the standard Galaxy S25 thanks to the Edge’s larger sensor, Android Central had the opposite opinion, saying photos taken in low light were sometimes soft and grainy.

The latter publication also noted that the Galaxy S25 Edge’s image stabilisation in low light isn’t as good as Samsung’s other phones, and that its Night mode doesn’t always kick in automatically. So if you plan on taking pictures in poorly lit environments, it’s best to manually enable the Night mode and find a stable surface to lean your phone on.

What you lose without a telephoto

Things get worse past Samsung’s definition of optical zoom, a 2x crop from the middle of the 200MP sensor. Android Central noted that image quality suffered at each zoom level and that photos taken with 10x zoom (which is digital zoom with AI image processing) were noisy and soft. In Tom’s Guide’s 10x zoom comparison, the Ultra’s 5x lens could distinguish the bricks on a building, while on the Edge they were more of a streak.

• Portraits. Portrait mode on the Edge works at 1x and 2x only, which means you'll be standing close to the person you're photographing. Tom's Guide says it likes the Ultra's 3x and 5x focal lengths better for portraits.
• Concerts and sport. 2x is about as far as you can zoom on the Edge and still get a usable image from the middle of a concert crowd. The Ultra's 5x focal length lets it shoot concert performers from much further away, and its 10x zoomed-in (cropped) image is still sharp.
• Wildlife. For birds and other animals you can't walk up to, the Edge's focal lengths probably won't cut it.
• Distant detail. In Tom's Guide's tests, details of a statue on top of a building were reasonably sharp in images taken with the Ultra but smudged on the Edge.

There’s a workaround: if you’re shooting in good light, set your phone to take 200MP photos and crop as needed after the fact. Engadget notes that you won’t lose much quality this way, but you’ll have to manually choose 200MP photos to take advantage of this tip. Save this option for daytime shots of still objects. Why? When your phone takes 12MP photos, it groups pixels together to reduce noise. When it takes 200MP photos, it doesn’t. Notebookcheck notes the Edge can also save 50MP photos, a middle step between the two. Our 12MP vs 50MP vs 200MP guide explains the trade-offs.

What the S25 Edge does well

Macro shots are also possible on the Galaxy S25 Edge. Unlike the S25 and S25+, the Edge’s ultrawide camera supports autofocus, so it can focus on nearby objects. Bring the Edge close to a subject and you can tap the flower-shaped icon to enable Focus enhancer, which Samsung claims will use the autofocus-capable ultrawide camera to capture sharp close-up shots. Tom’s Guide’s macro shots were impressively detailed on both the Edge and Ultra, though it awarded this round to the former as it managed slightly sharper images. Our macro photography guide covers light and technique.

When it came to ultrawide photos, Tom’s Guide again found images from the S25 Edge and S25 Ultra to be very similar, noting that the former had a slightly wider field of view but that levels of detail were comparable when photos were saved at 12MP. DXOMARK’s ultrawide camera score isn’t much different either, with the Edge scoring 147 points and the Ultra 146. Selfies captured with the 12MP f/2.2 selfie camera also proved virtually indistinguishable in Tom’s Guide’s head-to-head.

Video performance is also broadly similar between the two phones according to Tom’s Guide, which noted comparable levels of detail and stabilisation in its side-by-side comparison. DXOMARK’s video score, however, favoured the S25 Ultra, giving its main camera a score of 155 points, while the S25 Edge received 138. As with the Ultra, the Edge can record video in 8K at 30fps and in Log, and you can switch between the main and ultrawide cameras mid-recording for videos captured at up to 4K60, according to Notebookcheck. The Galaxy S25 Edge also supports Expert RAW, which Tom’s Guide downloaded via the More menu in its camera app. The publication put Expert RAW’s Astrophoto mode to the test and captured stars with exposure times of two to three minutes while using a tripod. Our Expert RAW guide shows how it works.

Battery, heat and handling

The Edge’s comparatively slender design means Samsung has had to make do with a comparatively small 3,900mAh battery, versus the 5,000mAh cell in the Ultra.

In practice, that means you may need to top up during the day. Tom’s Guide, for example, had to charge it during the working day (its battery rundown test lasted for 12 hours 24 minutes). Engadget, on the other hand, managed 25 hours 59 minutes of video playback (the Galaxy S25 Ultra lasted 29 hours 27 minutes), while Notebookcheck reckons you can expect almost 18 hours of web browsing, which it labelled ‘excellent’.

If you do intend to shoot lots of video, however, you should pick up a power bank. Charging tops out at 25W when wired (Samsung claims you should get up to 55% in around 30 minutes).

The good news is that the Galaxy S25 Edge doesn’t appear to overheat excessively. Samsung has squeezed in a vapour chamber that’s thinner but wider, and Engadget noted that the phone’s back rarely got much warmer than lukewarm. That said, the Galaxy S25 Edge did throttle quite considerably under Notebookcheck’s stress test, and its chip’s performance halved, which is more than was seen with the Galaxy S25 Ultra, although surface temperatures never exceeded 44.9°C.

At just 163g, the Galaxy S25 Edge is a featherweight smartphone that is 55g lighter than the Galaxy S25 Ultra, meaning it’s less tiring to hold for prolonged periods. It’s also IP68 rated against dust and water ingress, like the Ultra. The only niggle here is that, as Tom’s Guide noted, the Galaxy S25 Edge wobbles a little when placed face up thanks to its camera bump.

S25 Edge vs S25 and S25+

The main difference between the Edge and the cheaper S25 phones is that the Edge has the larger main camera and sacrifices the 3x camera.

Samsung says images from the main camera on the Edge will be more than 40% brighter in low light scenarios compared to the S25 and S25+. Notebookcheck agrees the Edge takes better pictures at night than the S25, but says daytime shots from the main cameras are comparable. Samsung's S25 and S25+ do have an advantage over the Edge, though, thanks to their actual 3x telephoto cameras. That extra hardware can come in handy for portraits and zoomed-in shots. The S25+ also has the same-sized screen as the Edge with a larger battery, and launched for $100 less.

Samsung's Galaxy S25 Edge weighs in similarly to the smaller Galaxy S25, despite having a bigger display. Our Galaxy S25 camera guide has the best settings for the S25 and S25+.

How to shoot around the missing zoom

Shoot lots of pictures as concert lights can change quickly, and choose the best one afterwards. Our concert photography guide covers exposure under stage lights.

Should you buy the S25 Edge or the S25 Ultra?

At its May 2025 launch, the Edge started at $1,099.99 for the 256GB model and $1,219.99 for the 512GB version, $200 less than the S25 Ultra at launch. As of November 7, 2026, Samsung US still lists the Galaxy S25 Edge from $1,099.99 and the Galaxy S25 Ultra from $1,299.99 (prices before trade-in). Elsewhere, they're often available for less. Tom's Guide spotted an unlocked Galaxy S25 Edge on Amazon for $699 back in September 2025, so it's worth checking prices elsewhere.

If you liked the Edge, there's sadly no chance of an S26 Edge: Korean outlet Newspim reported back in October 2025 that Samsung had scrapped it due to disappointing sales (the Galaxy S25 Edge sold 1.31 million units as of August according to Newspim, compared to 12.18 million for the Galaxy S25 Ultra). Samsung's February 2026 unveiling included just the Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26+ and Galaxy S26 Ultra. SamMobile reported some contradictory Galaxy S27 Edge rumours on September 2, 2026, so it could make a comeback in 2027, but nothing's certain at this point. For now, the Galaxy S25 Edge is still being looked after: stable One UI 9 began arriving for it on September 28, 2026.

Choose the Galaxy S25 Edge if you value the Galaxy S25 Ultra's primary camera in a lighter phone, typically shoot between 0.6x and 2x, and appreciate macro capabilities. Choose the Galaxy S25 Ultra if you take 3x and 5x portraits, shoot concerts, sports or wildlife, or run out of battery when shooting video all day. Choose a cheaper Galaxy S25 or S25+ if you want zoom but can't stretch to the price of the Galaxy S25 Ultra (they retain the 3x camera).

Our S25 Ultra camera guide has full Ultra camera details including an assessment of its cameras, and our best Samsung phone for photography guide ranks all of Samsung's current Galaxy phones.

Frequently asked questions