If you don't want to spend over the odds on the Galaxy S26, the previous-gen model could meet your needs and cost you nothing.
If you’re in the market for an Android upgrade, don’t sleep on the Galaxy S25 series. While Samsung has offered plenty of new releases this year, such as the Galaxy S26 lineup and Samsung’s latest foldables, these aren’t the only top-tier Android phones on the market right now.
The S25 still offers flagship performance, excellent cameras and Samsung’s AI features, but it now comes at much lower prices, thanks to carrier and retailer promotions. Depending on where you look and if you have an old phone to trade in, you might even walk away with one practically free.
T-Mobile is one of the best options, offering up to $1,200 off the Galaxy S25 series, with or without a trade-in, meaning you could get one for free via bill credits. That deal applies to the S25, S25 Ultra, S25 FE and S25 Edge.
CNET’s mobile experts have documented the many reasons Samsung’s Galaxy S25 phones remain among the best Androids available. In fact, our phone testing team declared that the base Galaxy S26 was “difficult to recommend” over the year-old Galaxy S25 due to a lack of hardware upgrades and the newer model’s $100 price hike.
Samsung phones aren’t known for being cheap, but the breadth of the S25 range — from the more affordable FE to the feature-packed Ultra — means there’s something for most budgets, especially when deals are in play.
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