Galaxy S25 FE vs Galaxy S25 Plus: Where’s the cutoff line?

If we say that the Galaxy S25 FE and the Galaxy S25 Plus look similar, it would be an understatement. The latest leaked renders of the upcoming Fan Edition show a phone that’s nearly identical to the S25 Plus when it comes to design.

The overall shape and form are the same, the position of the camera cutouts is also the same, and the LED flash is in the same place on both models. If you try and look really hard, you might notice a slight difference in the design of the camera rings, but you really have to look closely. 

The situation is similar on the front, but there’s a slightly thicker chin on the Galaxy S25 FE compared to the Plus model. All buttons and ports also seem to be in similar places between these two.

*rumored 

In terms of size and weight, both phones share a similar footprint; the Galaxy S25 Plus measures 158.4 x 75.8 x 7.3 mm, while the Galaxy S25 FE comes in at 161.4 x 76.6 x 7.4 mm. That’s according to the same CAD render lead we’ve mentioned above. When it comes to weight, we expect the Galaxy S25 Plus to mimic the weight of the Plus at 190 grams. Both phones should feel the same in the hand despite the few millimetres difference in size, but we have to hold them side by side to pass judgement on that.

As far as materials go, we don’t have information on the Galaxy S25 FE, but we expect similar Gorilla Glass and aluminum frames as the ones used on the predecessor, namely Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+. The Galaxy S25 Plus comes equipped with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

*rumored 

The display of the Galaxy S25 FE is expected to be a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED panel with a 1080 x 2340 pixel resolution, resulting in around 385 PPI pixel density. According to the latest rumors the display will have a 120 Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2600 nits.

In contrast, the Galaxy S25 Plus‘ display is the same size, but the resolution is better at 1440 x 3120 pixels (513 PPI), and the phone also comes with 1-120 Hz LTPO tech and the same 2600 nits advertised peak brightness.

*rumored 

Samsung just doesn’t give up on its Exynos silicon, does it? The Galaxy S25 FE is expected to feature the Exynos 2400, a new silicon with an interesting architecture—it features 10 cores. There’s one 3.2 GHz ARM Cortex-X4 core, 2 x 2.9 GHz ARM Cortex-A720 cores, 3 x 2.6 GHz ARM Cortex-A720 cores, and finally 4 x 2.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A520 ones. 

Early performance benchmarks place this chip somewhere between the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and 8 Gen 3. Geekbench 6 scores are around 2000 points in single-core tests and 6500 points in multi-core.

The Galaxy S25 Plus, in comparison, managed 3132 and 9935 in the same test, so it looks like a big advantage, but we have to test the S25 FE in our lab for some hard numbers and an objective result.

*rumored 

In terms of RAM, the Galaxy S25 FE is expected to comes with 12GB on board in all storage configurations. This puts it in the same ballpark as the Galaxy S25 Plus. Speaking of storage, both phones start at 256GB and offer an additional 512GB variant.Now, in terms of software, there’s no difference between these two. The same software version, seven years of support, and AI magic are expected to be found on both phones.

The camera specs of the Galaxy S25 FE are not that interesting; the latest rumors suggest that the phone will use the same camera system as its predecessor. We expect the same 50MP main camera that is very similar to the main sensor of the Galaxy S25 Plus. The ultrawide is also similar, but the field of view is slightly different on the S25 FE.

Finally, the biggest difference seems to lie in the telephoto camera. The S25 Plus comes with a 10MP telephoto sensor, while the S25 FE is expected to mimic the 8MP of its predecessor. Both phones offer the same 3x optical zoom.

*rumored 

Now, of course, as similar as these two camera systems might be, the processing algorithms might be different. We need to snap some photos with the S25 FE and put them side-by-side with samples taken with the S25 Plus to offer you a final verdict.

That being said, the Galaxy S25 Plus managed a very decent score of 147 points in our composite camera rating, while the previous generation FE managed even better, scoring 150 points in the same test. So, we’re optimistic about the Galaxy S25 FE.

The Galaxy S25 Plus has a 4,900 mAh battery inside, which is pretty decent, albeit not on par with Chinese silicon-carbon cells of 6,000+ mAh capacities. Still, the S25 Plus managed 7h 36m in our battery test, ranking #34 for phones tested in the past 2 years.The Galaxy S25 FE is expected to bring an upgrade to the battery capacity of its predecessor, and one that’s exactly 200 mAh worth. This will bring the total battery capacity to 4,900 mAh, exactly the same as the one on the Plus model. 

Stay tuned for our battery benchmarks, which will show how these 200 mAh have or have not improved the battery life of the FE.

*rumored 

This shapes up to be a very interesting battle. With all the upgrades Samsung is expected to bring on the new Galaxy S25 FE, it seems that the model could cannibalise its much more expensive sibling, the Galaxy S25 Plus.

There are differences, however, although we’re not sure if they will be enough to justify the extra money for the S25 Plus. The phone has a better resolution screen, a faster processor, and a slightly different camera system (we can’t tell if it’s better or worse yet).

Whether or not people will choose to pay $300 more for a faster processor and a slightly better screen, we don’t know. Chances are the Galaxy S25 FE will further undermine the already not impressive sales of the Galaxy S25 Plus.

Stay tuned for tests, benchmarks, and a final verdict once we finish the review of the Galaxy S25 FE.