4 Android Phones With Better Battery Life Than The Galaxy S26 Ultra

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Samsung Galaxy devices have generally excellent battery life, with each new release offering a little more, namely in the premium models like the Galaxy S26 Ultra. The S26 Ultra has a 5,000mAh battery, with 60-watts of wired charging and 25-watts of wireless charging to give it a nice power boost when levels are low. That delivers about 16 hours of battery life on average, or slightly over, with the screen on consistently and continuous browsing over 5G networks. Believe it or not, that's not the best battery life available from a modern phone. There are several competing devices that last longer, delivering much better usage times, for a variety of reasons.

A bigger battery in competing devices is the obvious reason for longer usage times, but it's not necessarily the only benefit other phones offer. Sometimes, more efficient power usage, better power delivery for components like the screen, and better multi-tasking or software support add a little extra time too.

It depends on the phone, the manufacturer, and the individual specifications they offer. To give a straightforward example, the iPhone 16 Plus has a 4,674mAh battery, smaller than the S26 Ultra, and yet it lasts longer on average — about 16 and a half hours. The iPhone 16 models got a big battery boost, but even with those batteries being larger compared to previous generations, improvements are also achieved through solid battery management revisions within iOS. Sticking to Android devices, specifically, here are some alternate phones with better battery life than the Galaxy S26 Ultra, if that's what you're looking for.

The best average battery life on the market currently goes to the OnePlus 15, building upon the brand's exceptional performance from previous models. OnePlus has always been known to deliver long-lasting devices.

Running OxygenOS 16, OnePlus' Android-based platform, the phone delivers about 25 hours of battery life on average through a combination of advantages. For starters, the battery in the OnePlus 15 is 7,300mAh, much larger than the S26 Ultra's. It still manages to be slim and lightweight thanks to Silicone Nanostack technology, a silicon-carbon battery tech that increases the energy density to boost capabilities. So, it's not only bigger, but utilizes energy in a unique way, as well.

The OnePlus 15 also boasts 80-watt SUPERVOOC wired charging, significantly speeding up charging times — it can charge to full in about an hour, usually less. OnePlus 15 is $900 for the 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage model or $1,000 for the 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage model, both cheaper than the Galaxy S26 Ultra without added discounts or offers. The OnePlus 15R also gets similar battery life, around 21 and a half hours on average.

The ASUS ROG Phone 9 Pro is impressive for more than one reason. It offers incredible battery life, which is the focus here, but manages to do that while delivering high-performance gaming-centric features like a 165Hz screen, advanced and modular cooling, and a unique back display.

Of course, turning on some of those high-powered features will cut the battery life a bit. However, that lower battery life is still to the tune of 15 hours or so, with over 20 hours when you reduce power usage. The 65-watt charging support will get you back into the action in a short time.

Inside, the ROG Phone 9 Pro has a 5,800mAh battery. That's bigger than the Galaxy S26 Ultra, so you already have a head start. The phone is running Android, as expected, but one of the coolest features is a modular variety of accessories. An AeroActive Cooler (X Pro), for example, clamps to the rear of the phone to cool it down during intense gaming. You can take it off easily when you don't need it. Moreover, there's unique cooling technology built into the ROG Chill Case, an optional case for the phone. The price is quite high, though, starting around $1,500 and up to $1,600 for the 24GB of RAM and 1TB of storage model. Many retailers are also out of stock currently.

Motorola has done very well optimizing battery life for the Moto G series over the years, so it's not surprising to see one of the newer models show up on this list. With an average over 19 hours, it's a solid budget option if you don't want all the bells and whistles of the Ultra and Pro-level devices.

The 30-watt charging capabilities will charge the battery faster than most devices, giving a nice 20% boost or so with a mere half hour of charging. The 120Hz display is beautiful and easy on the eyes, and not something you normally see included with budget handhelds.

Inside, there's a 5,200mAh battery, bigger than the S26 Ultra, which you no doubt know by numbers alone now. Moreover, you can find it remarkably cheap. The 4GB of RAM, 128GB of storage model is available for $200 unlocked with no discounts or offers. Compared to the prices of nearly every other device mentioned here, that's quite a bit of savings for a long-lasting and reliable option.

If you're willing to take a slight downgrade — it's debatable whether that's true or not — the previous Galaxy S25 Ultra offers decent battery life at around 16 to 17 hours on average. You may recognize that's on par or about an hour longer than the S26 Ultra's 16 hours. A lot of that can be attributed to the Snapdragon 8 Elite's solid power management and optimization support, the processor inside the device. The 5,000mAh hour battery is the same size.

The biggest difference between the new S26 Ultra model and the S25 is the new privacy feature that makes even iPhone users envious. That's not the only reason to upgrade, however. There are a ton of cool new Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra features everyone should try, meaning that if you have the resources, going with the latest model is a given.

But in the interest of reducing FOMO, and speaking strictly on the battery life alone, you can't go wrong with the Galaxy S25 Ultra. You should know, the Galaxy S25 Plus also gets solid battery life, around 16 hours or so. S25 Ultra prices start at $1,300 with no discounts or trade-ins, versus the S25 Plus at $1,120.

In the interest of variety, we decided not to include multiple devices from the same brand, like OnePlus. Instead of monopolizing the list with a bunch of OnePlus models, you have more options with better battery life to consider. That said, there are several additional devices that have better battery life that may or may not belong on your radar. Those include the OnePlus 13 with about 19 hours of battery life, the Moto G Play 2026 with about 18 hours of battery life, and the OnePlus 13R with 18 hours of battery life. The Moto G 2025 and Moto G Power 2026 both boast 18 hours or more of battery life.

Ultimately, and combined with the other phones mentioned above, you should be able to find a device that matches your needs across a wide swath of budget points, ranging from affordable to expensive. Not everyone wants to shell out hundreds or thousands on the latest or greatest smartphone, and that makes perfect sense.

If that rings true with you, you might want to consider affordable smartphones that are ridiculously overpowered, or, if you want something more capable, cheap Android phones that punch above their price brackets. With the latter especially, you can save money and still get a premium-grade phone.