Head to head
Google Pixel 9avsSamsung Galaxy A36
The short answer
Choose the Pixel 9a for peak brightness, battery life per charge and Geekbench 6 CPU score. Choose the Galaxy A36 for more base storage and battery lifespan. Both cost £399 at UK RRP. The Pixel 9a gets security updates for longer: until April 2032, against March 2031 for the Galaxy A36.
- Released
- 2025-04-10endoflife.date, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Price
- £399Google Store UK, retrieved 2026-09-11
- Security updates until
- 2032-04-01endoflife.date — Pixel, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Released
- 2025-03-28endoflife.date, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Price
- £399Samsung Newsroom UK — Galaxy A56 5G, A36 5G and A26 5G, retrieved 2026-08-20
- Security updates until
- 2031-03-28endoflife.date — Samsung mobile, retrieved 2026-08-20
3 wins for Pixel 9a2 wins for Galaxy A362 gaps borderline2 differences you won’t noticeSame RRP
Verdict: Pixel 9a ahead on 3 rows, Galaxy A36 on 2 rows
On the makers’ figures and the named third-party sources, the Pixel 9a wins on peak brightness (2,700 nits against 1,200 nits), battery per charge (52.32 h against 41.47 h) and Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) (3,697 against 2,781, both from Geekbench Browser); the Galaxy A36 wins on storage (base) (256 GB against 128 GB) and battery lifespan (2,000 cycles against 1,000 cycles). 2 gaps are borderline, differences most people would not notice: display size (6.7 in against 6.3 in) for the Galaxy A36 and fast charging (45 W from the maker against 23 W from GSMArena) for the Galaxy A36. The differences in weight and battery capacity are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same refresh rate and RAM. The other 36 rows have no threshold or no direction to judge by, so nobody wins them.
True to scale
Outlines from each maker’s published dimensions, drawn to scale. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.
Specifications
A win is marked only where the figures can be ranked and the gap is one you could notice. A row the site has no threshold for says whether the two differ, and that it is not ranking them. = marks the same figure on both, ≠ not ranked a difference with no ranking. Every figure carries its source.
Body
Display
Samsung Newsroom UK — Galaxy A56 5G, A36 5G and A26 5G claims 1200 nits · GSMArena — Samsung Galaxy A36 specifications reports 1900 nits
Pixel 9a is ahead here, by a gap you’d notice.
Platform
Memory
Camera
Battery
Connectivity
Benchmarks
4 attributes neither phone has a sourced figure for
OS versions supported · Google Mobile Services · Telephoto · 3DMark Wild Life Extreme. Rows appear as sources are cited — a gap in our data, not a statement about either phone.
Questions
Is the Pixel 9a better than the Galaxy A36?
On the figures, neither is better overall: the Pixel 9a wins on peak brightness, 2,700 nits (Google) against 1,200 nits (Samsung Newsroom UK), battery per charge, 52.32 h against 41.47 h (both EU energy label) and Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core), 3,697 against 2,781 (both Geekbench Browser); the Galaxy A36 wins on storage (base), 256 GB (Samsung Newsroom UK) against 128 GB (Google) and battery lifespan, 2,000 cycles against 1,000 cycles (both EU energy label). Every other row is borderline, too close to notice, or not ranked.
Which has the better battery?
The Pixel 9a, by a gap you’d notice: battery per charge, 52.32 h against 41.47 h (both EU energy label). The Pixel 9a is ahead on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: battery capacity, 5,100 mAh (Google) against 5,000 mAh (Samsung Newsroom UK).
Which is lighter?
The Pixel 9a is lighter on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: weight, 185.9 g (Google) against 195 g (Samsung Newsroom UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
The Pixel 9a, by a gap you’d notice: peak brightness, 2,700 nits (Google) against 1,200 nits (Samsung Newsroom UK).
Which gets updates for longer?
The Pixel 9a gets security updates for longer: until April 2032, against March 2031 for the Galaxy A36. Sources: dates from endoflife.date.
Which is cheaper?
Both cost £399 at UK RRP. Prices from Pixel 9a: Google Store UK; Galaxy A36: Samsung Newsroom UK.
Other comparisons
The pairs a buyer of either phone would also weigh. Any two phones in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.