Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6

The new Pixel 9 lineup is Google’s strongest and most aggressive hardware launch yet. But what’s even more impressive is its latest foldable called the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Rather than calling it the Pixel Fold 2, Google is clubbing it with the rest of the new series, and that makes sense since it shares a lot of the features and hardware with the Pixel 9 phones. The new 9 Pro Fold has a major design overhaul and, to our surprise, comes at the same starting price as last year’s model. 

In the U.S., its biggest rival is going to be the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6, which has pretty much gone unchallenged in its segment and is one of the best foldable phones in the market. Newer offerings like the OnePlus Open have given it good competition, but we think the new Pixel 9 Pro Fold will be its biggest opponent. With similar flagship hardware and a ton of AI software features, we pit the Google Pixel 9 Pro vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 to see if we have a definitive winner and which phone you should buy next. 

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold vs. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6: Design and displays

The new Pixel 9 Pro Fold looks nothing like the Pixel Fold from last year, and that’s a good thing. The design is arguably much better; the new matte glass and aluminum finishes feel richer, and the ugly thick bezels inside the folding display are all gone. It looks like it’s part of the Pixel 9 family. You get the same wide aspect ratio that we loved from the first model, but the chassis is now slimmer and lighter. It measures 10.5mm in depth when folded and just 5.1mm when unfolded. It’s not the world’s slimmest, but I’ll take it. 

The weight has also been reduced significantly, down to 257g. The phone comes in Obsidian and Porcelain colors. The 9 Pro Fold is still IPX8-rated for water resistance. One major annoyance we faced with the Pixel Fold was that it never quite unfolded completely flat, but Google has fixed that with the new model. 

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 looks more or less the same as the previous two generations, although it has a slightly wider aspect ratio this time. It’s only just about noticeable if you’re coming from an older Fold phone, but it’s not enough to make the typing experience on the cover screen much better. Samsung, too, uses aluminum and glass for the construction, and the Fold 6 is lighter than the Pixel at 239g. It’s still slightly thicker, though, at 12.1mm and 5.6mm in its folded and unfolded state, respectively. 

Samsung offers way more colors, as the Galaxy Z Fold 6 comes in Silver, Shadow, Pink, and Navy. Crafted Black and White are two exclusive shades if you buy them via Samsung.com. The Fold 6 is now IP48-rated for “dust” and water resistance, but keep in mind that the dust resistance only protects it from solid particles larger than 1mm, which doesn’t qualify as dust. 

The Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold gets new displays on the outside and inside. The outer display is a larger 6.3-inch Actua display with a 20:9 aspect ratio, similar to the Pixel 9 Pro. It’s an OLED with a Full HD+ resolution, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection, and a variable refresh rate of 60Hz-120Hz. Google claims it can get as bright as up to 1,800 nits for HDR content and up to 2,700 nits of peak brightness. 

The folding screen is larger too, at 8 inches. Google calls it a Super Actua Flex display. This OLED panel has a 2,076×2,152 resolution, UTG glass, and LTPO tech which can vary the refresh rate from 1Hz  to 120Hz. It has the same peak brightness as the outer screen, but HDR brightness is up to 1,600 nits. 

Samsung brought some minor refinements to the display on the Fold 6, but not any major changes. The corners of the folding display are no longer curved, which is the opposite of the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It’s a 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X panel, features LTPO tech, and has a 2,160×1,856 resolution. Peak brightness is similar at 2,600 nits.