Samsung Galaxy S22 vs S22 Plus vs S22 Ultra: which should you buy?

By Jason Murdock

Published: Friday, 22 April 2022 at 12:00 am

Samsung’s latest trio of flagship smartphones, the S22 series, is likely to be one of the most popular choices for anyone shopping around for an Android handset in 2022 – but with a range of sizes, specs and price points, which one is for you?

Starting from £769 for the standard model but going all the way to £1500 for the top-of-the-line Ultra, these are premium, high-end, smartphones.

The top model easily earned a place on our list of the best smartphones of the year so far, and instantly stands out from the rest of the series as it has a different design – a more squared-off frame and an S-Pen that slots into the device itself. 

But that’s not to say the two remaining handsets are lacking. Each has appealing factors that may lure you from the most powerful option. Not only are they more affordable, but may also appeal to anyone who isn’t a fan of massive phones. 

We have been hands-on with all three, so be sure to read our Samsung Galaxy S22 preview, Samsung Galaxy S22+ review and Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra review. If they are too pricey for what you want to spend, here’s our list of the best budget smartphones. 

So if you are thinking of upgrading – or buying a Samsung S22 smartphone outright – this guide is for you as we compare the specs, features and pricing of each model. 

Jump to: 

Samsung Galaxy S22 vs Plus vs Ultra: key differences at a glance 

  • The S22 and S22+ have a very similar design – which is identical to the prior S21 series – while the S22 Ultra looks more like the earlier Note series. 
  • The standard Galaxy S22 has a 6.1-inch display, the S22+ has a 6.6-inch display and the Galaxy S22 Ultra has a larger 6.8-inch display. 
  • The Galaxy S22 Ultra and the S22+ have 1750 nits of brightness, while the standard Galaxy S22 has 1300 nits. (All three are 120Hz displays). 
  • The Galaxy S22 Ultra has a 40 megapixel (MP) front-facing “selfie” camera, while the other two models come with a 10MP front-facing set-up. 
  • While the rear camera set-up on all three models is similar, the Galaxy S22 Ultra has a 108 MP wide-angle. (The others have a 50MP wide-angle.) 
  • The Galaxy S22 Ultra has a 5000mAh capacity battery (up to 81 hours of audio playback). The S22+ has a 4500mAh. The S22 has a 3700mAh. 
  • Only the Galaxy S22 Ultra comes bundled with an S-Pen. Like the prior Note series of phablets, the stylus slots into the bottom of the phone. 

Samsung Galaxy S22 vs Plus vs Ultra: key differences in detail 

Design

The Galaxy S22 and S22+ have the same design as the prior line-up, the S21. They have a curved camera module on the top left of the frame that holds the triple-lens set-up. In comparison, the S22 Ultra has a more squared-off aesthetic that has a slot at the bottom left for the S-Pen, which comes bundled with the phone. 

The Galaxy S22 and S22+ come in four colours: Phantom White, Phantom Black, Green and Pink Gold. The S22 Ultra doesn’t have the Pink Gold option, instead of coming in Burgundy. Each has a variety of online exclusive shades via Samsung, including Graphite (Ultra), Red (Ultra), Sky Blue (S22+) and Cream (S22). 

Unsurprisingly due to the smaller size of the phone itself, the standard S22 is the lightest of the bunch, at 169g, while the Ultra is heavier, weighing in at 229g. All three have a water resistance rating of IP68 and are made with aluminium. For added durability, all three have Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the front. 

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Galaxy S22 (top) and Galaxy S22 Ultra (bottom) colours
Samsung

Specs and features

When it comes to day-to-day usage, the three phones will have significant overlap as they are all running the same software, so you will have a similar user experience no matter which one you go for – especially with the S22 and the S22+. 

Aside from the design, the biggest difference is the S-pen stylus that now slots into the S22 Ultra, turning it from phone into phablet. As a result, the Ultra has some software enhancements based around using the pencil, such as for making notes or sketches on the go. There’s a dedicated pop-up menu if the S-Pen is removed. 

You pay for the luxury, but the S22 Ultra undoubtedly gives you the best specs of the trio – with the best display, camera lenses, battery life and storage options. But with Android 12 (One UI 4.1) on all three, the handsets will all feel similar to use. 

Price 

The Galaxy S22 is the most affordable of the new series, while the S22 Ultra is the most expensive. The Galaxy S22+ occupies the middle ground in the series. Here is a full breakdown of how much each smartphone will cost you in the UK: 

Galaxy S22

  • 128GB Storage/8GB RAM: £769
  • 256GB Storage/8GB RAM: £819

Galaxy S22+

  • 128GB Storage/8GB RAM: £949
  • 256GB Storage/8GB RAM: £999

Galaxy S22 Ultra

  • 128GB Storage/8GB RAM: £1149
  • 256GB Storage/12GB RAM: £1249
  • 512GB Storage/12GB RAM: £1329
  • 1TB Storage/12GB RAM: £1499

All pricing is RRP and was correct at the time of writing. 

Storage

Built-in storage is important to consider as it’s basically an indicator of how much content – think photos, videos and files – that the phone can hold without having to rely on cloud platforms. The Galaxy S22 and S22+ plus come in two options – 128GB or 256GB – but the S22 Ultra has a much bigger variety of variants, being offered in four options: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB and a massive 1 terabyte (TB) built-in. 

Battery life

Smartphone battery life can be tricky to determine with accuracy as it’s extremely dependent on how much the handset is being used, and what for, on a daily basis. Gaming or watching videos all day? You may need to reach for your charger well before another person who has only used the device for checking emails. 

All three of the phones in the latest Galaxy series should give you more than a full day of power from a full charge. The S22 has a 3700mAh battery, the S22+ has a 4500mAh battery and the Ultra has the largest of the trio, at 5000mAh. 

During testing, we found the S22 Ultra easily lasted a full day on moderate to heavy use: watching videos, using Slack, setting reminders, listening to Spotify during a 2+ hour commute and scrolling social media websites. Charging was fast, too, going from dead to 100% in under an hour using a wall adapter. All have wireless charging. 

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Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (left) and S22+ (right)
David Paul Morris via Getty Images

Camera

The S22 and S22+ have identical rear camera set-ups: 12MP ultra-wide, 50MP wide-angle and a 10MP telephoto. They both have up to 3x optical zoom and a “super-resolution” zoom of up to 30x, alongside optical image stabilisation. 

The S22 Ultra has a quad-camera setup, boosting the wide-angle from 50MP to 108MP and adding another 10MP telephoto with a 10x optical zoom. It has a “super-resolution” zoom of up to 100%, and this was impressive during testing as we found it to be highly effective at retaining image quality even at large distances. 

Display

One difference between the phones (and what may be a deciding factor for some potential buyers) is screen size. The S22 has a 6.1-inch FHD+ display, the S22+ has a 6.6-inch FHD+ display and the S22 Ultra has a 6.8-inch Quad HD+ display, with more curved edges. These are measured diagonally, corner to corner. 

Simply put, the standard S22 is what we could consider to be a fairly small flagship (identical to the standard iPhone 13), while the S22 Ultra is quite large, more akin to the Apple iPhone Pro Max’s 6.7-inch panel. Again, the S22+ is in the middle.

5G connectivity

All three phones are well future-proofed in terms of connectivity, supporting 5G, Bluetooth 5.2 and GPS. In terms of the ports on the devices, they charge using USB-C (wall charger adapter is sold separately) and have wireless charging. 

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A Samsung Galaxy S22, (L) S22 Ultra (M) and Galaxy S22+ Ultra 5G (R).
David Paul Morris/Getty Images

Our verdict: Which Samsung Galaxy S22 should you buy?

The latest S22 series is purposely designed to have a variety of options depending on what you need from a new smartphone. But there are two clear standouts, at least in our opinion. Those are the Galaxy S22+ and the Galaxy S22 Ultra, with the big exception being if having a small smartphone is your main priority. 

While there are many similarities with the base S22, the middle-sibling S22+ will give you a bigger display, better brightness and a stronger battery. 

But if you can afford it, the Galaxy S22 Ultra is our pick of the best handset in the series. It comes with a built-in S-Pen stylus that adds another level of functionality, the design feels incredibly premium and it has the best camera setup thanks to the 100x zoom and 108MP lens. It has the best battery of the trio and a much broader variety of internal storage options that go all the way up to a massive 1TB. 

Here’s the bottom line: Fans of small phones may love the S22, but the S22+ has better specs. If you can stretch the budget, however, the S22 Ultra is the top buy.

Where to buy the S22 smartphones

Buy the Samsung Galaxy S22:

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Buy the Samsung Galaxy S22+:

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Buy the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: 

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