5 Android Phones More Powerful Than The Google Pixel 11

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While some consumers may have been excited about upgrading to a brand-new Pixel device this year, the standard Pixel 11 model isn't necessarily the best possible choice of the four new devices. The Pixel 11 does come with a seven-year software guarantee for both Android and security updates, and runs Google's Android 17 OS with Gemini Intelligence out of the box. Similar to other Pixel phones, the Pixel 11 will likely receive new software updates before contemporary handsets from other vendors. But the phone is more expensive than its predecessor, without matching the performance of rival flagships. Many 2025 and 2026 phones outperform the new Pixel in speed tests, including the five models that follow: the standard Galaxy S25, the Nubia Z80 Ultra, the Motorola Razr Ultra (2025), the OnePlus 15, and the standard Galaxy S26.

Some of these devices also come with a software guarantee that matches Google's, but all five phones feature high-end chips that can offer faster performance than the Pixel 11 for more intensive tasks and gaming. This may not be obvious in day-to-day smartphone use cases. Users may not notice any speed difference between the Pixel 11 and one of the handsets on the list when it comes to browsing the web, using social apps, interacting with AI assistants, and multitasking today. However, things may change in the coming years, especially for buyers who want to keep a device for longer than three or four years.

The seven-year support window is notable in theory, but there's no telling whether Google's new smartphone can age as well as the Galaxy S26. The premium Snapdragon chips powering this device may offer more headroom for Android and AI features of the future than the Pixel 11's Tensor G6.

Launched in January 2025, the Galaxy S25 has long passed its first anniversary, but the handset is a solid alternative to the brand-new Pixel 11. Like Google, Samsung offers a seven-year software guarantee for its flagships (Android releases and security updates), including the Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S26 models on the list. But the Galaxy S25's 3nm Snapdragon 8 Elite chip offers much better performance than the Tensor G6. The Samsung phone reaches 3,037 (single-core) and 9,669 (multi-core) points in Geekbench 6 tests compared to 2,575 and 6,027 points for the Pixel 11.

The graphics performance gap is even wider — a detail that will matter to Android buyers who are also interested in mobile gaming. The Pixel 11 averages 3,353 points in 3DMark Wild Life Extreme (WLE), via UL benchmarks, compared to 5,959 points for the Galaxy S25, via PhoneArena. Currently available for close to $700, the Galaxy S25 is much better positioned to handle more demanding workloads, including games. Even the much more expensive Pixel 11 Pro XL scores just 3,462 in PhoneArena's 3DMark GPU test.

Other notable Galaxy S25 specs include a 6.2-inch display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 2,600 nits of peak brightness, 12 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, and a 4,000 mAh battery that supports 25 W wired charging speeds. The camera system includes three sensors: 50-megapixel (wide), 12-megapixel (ultrawide), and 10-megapixel (zoom). The $899 Pixel 11 features a 6.3-inch display with a 60-120 Hz refresh rate and 3,000 nits of peak brightness, 12 GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, and a 4,985 mAh battery with 30 W wired charging support. The camera system includes three lenses: 48-megapixel (wide), 13-megapixel (ultrawide), and 10.8-megapixel (telephoto).

Released in April 2025, the Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) is a clamshell phone that features the same Snapdragon 8 Elite chip as the Galaxy S25. That means the foldable handset offers similar chip performance to the 2025 flagship phone, scoring 2,796 and 8,823 points in Geekbench 6 tests. The Razr Ultra tops out at 5,910 points in PhoneArena's 3DMark WLE rankings. In its review, Tom's Guide called the Motorola Razr Ultra "the most powerful flip phone to date" in May 2025, comparing it to other clamshells available on the market, including the Motorola Razr Ultra (2024) and the Galaxy Z Flip 6 (2024).

While the Motorola Razr Ultra (2025) launched at $1,299, you can find it selling for around $700 over a year after its release. The phone is also more powerful and comes with more RAM (16 GB) and base storage (512 GB) than the cheapest Pixel 11 version. Other specs include a foldable 7-inch display and a secondary 4-inch cover screen. Both support a 165 Hz refresh rate and 4,500 nits of peak brightness. The clamshell features a 4,700 mAh battery that supports wired charging speeds of 68 W, and a dual 50-megapixel camera (wide and ultrawide sensors) on the back.

Unfortunately, software support isn't a strong suit for Motorola. The Motorola Razr Ultra will offer users only three years of software updates, after launching with Android 15 on board. That may be enough for consumers who switch phones frequently.

The ZTE Nubia Z80 Ultra is another Android flagship launched in 2025 that's more powerful than the Pixel 11. The handset is more affordable too, starting at $799 before any discounts for the 16 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage version. The model with 12 GB of memory and 256 GB of storage starts at $649, though it may be sold out online.

The ZTE flagship features a 6.85-inch display with a 144 Hz refresh rate and 2,000 nits of peak brightness. The handset also comes with a 7,200 mAh silicon-carbon battery that supports 80 W (wired and wireless) charging speeds. The main camera system features two 50-megapixel sensors (wide and ultrawide), and a 64-megapixel zoom lens. On the front, the handset features an under-display camera, a unique design choice not seen on other smartphones on this list. The Nubia Z80 Ultra launched with Android 16 on board in late October 2025, but the phone might not get more than one year of major Android updates. That means the handset will be upgraded to Android 17, though Nubia will continue to support the Z80 Ultra for three years. That's a much worse software guarantee than Pixel phones launched since the Pixel 8, including the Pixel 11.

The Nubia Z80 Ultra reaches 3,487 and 10,550 points in Geekbench 6 tests, as the handset features the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 flagship chip that also powers other handsets on the list, including the OnePlus 15 and the Galaxy S26 phones. The phone has a top score of 6,324 points in PhoneArena's 3DMark WLE graphics test.

OnePlus has decided to exit the U.S. and European markets, so the OnePlus 15 flagship may not be available for purchase directly from the company. But if you can find it from other retailers, the device is a notable Pixel 11 alternative that will offer better CPU and GPU performance. Released in late October 2025, the smartphone started at $899.99 for the version with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage.

The handset features the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip, which means it's able to offer similar performance to the Nubia Z80 Ultra. Geekbench 6 scores reach 3,551 and 10,415 points, while PhoneArena's 3DMark WLE scores top out at 5,328 points. While the OnePlus 15 CPU and GPU are both faster than the Pixel 11's, the handset suffers from the same problem as some other handsets on this list: More limited software support. But the OnePlus flagship will get four years of major Android updates, which is an advantage over the Motorola and Nubia phones.

Like other flagships on the list, it's not just the raw power that stands out. The smartphone features a 6.78-inch screen (a 165 Hz refresh rate and 3,500 nits of peak brightness according to PhoneArena's testing), up to 16 GB of RAM, and up to 1 TB of storage. The handset has a triple-lens camera system on the back (three 50-megapixel sensors) and a massive silicon-carbon battery (7,300 mAh) that impressed us during our OnePlus 15 review.

Google said in its announcement that all new Pixel models feature the Tensor G6 chip, its "fastest, most powerful chip yet," supposed to make the handsets "more intuitive, fluid, and helpful." However, as impressive as these upgrades may sound, the overall Pixel 11 performance pales compared to the standard Galaxy S26 model.

Samsung's flagship received a special version of the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 from Qualcomm, the chip customized for Galaxy devices. Geekbench 6 scores can reach 3,586 and 10,545 points, while PhoneArena's rankings show the 3DMark WLE score topping at 6,607. The rest of the Galaxy S26 specs may sound familiar, as the handset is almost identical to its predecessor. The phone features a 6.3-inch display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 2,600 nits of peak brightness, 12 GB of RAM, up to 512 GB of storage, and three cameras on the back (50-megapixel wide, 12-megapixel ultrawide, and 10-megapixel zoom). The phone offers a larger battery than the Galaxy S25, at 4,300 mAh, that supports 25 W charging.

Like the Galaxy S25, the handset comes with Samsung's seven-year software guarantee for both Android and security updates. With all that in mind, the Galaxy S26 is a better phone than the Pixel 11, starting at $799.

Google's Tensor chips have not reached performance parity with Apple's A-series chips, the premium Exynos processors from Samsung, or Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips. As a result, it's relatively easy to find Android flagships that can offer faster performance than the Pixel 11. For this list, we focused on flagship devices available to U.S. buyers, including devices from Chinese vendors that can be purchased in North America.

We primarily looked at current year and last year Android flagships. Separately, we searched for Pixel 11 alternatives that are currently priced similarly, irrespective of their launch prices. That's why we picked the standard Galaxy S25 and Galaxy S26 models instead of their pricier Plus and Ultra versions. Finally, we looked at similar benchmark tests for this comparison, including the Geekbench 6 benchmarks, and PhoneArena's extensive ranking of 3DMark results.

That said, other Android smartphones that can offer better performance than the Pixel 11 exist, including several new devices from Chinese vendors that are available for purchase in international markets including the Xiaomi 17 Ultra, Motorola Signature, Honor Magic 8 Pro, and Oppo Find X9 Ultra.