Google Pixel 9, 9 Pro, 9 Pro XL, and 9 Pro Fold are here, but which one is right for you?
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Thanks to Tuesday's Made by Google event held in Mountain View, CA, we know everything about the new Pixel 9 series lineup, from each phone's starting price and availability to its overall specs and features.
Google debuted the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro with a new design that says goodbye to the iconic camera bar and added two new phones to the lineup: the Pixel 9 Pro XL and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.
With so many phones to choose from in the Pixel 9 series, it can be difficult to decide which one is worth your money. To save you from flipping between multiple tabs, we've compiled all the major differences between each Pixel 9 phone to help you make an informed decision.
Preorder Google Pixel 9 — Quick links
Google Pixel 9 w/ free $100 Credit: from $799 @ Google Store
Google Pixel 9 Pro w/ free $200 Credit: from $999 @ Google Store
Google Pixel 9 Pro XL w/ free $200 Credit: from $1,099 @ Google Store
Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold w/ free $350 Credit: from $1,799 @ Google Store
Specs
Price and availability
The base Pixel 9 starts at $799, up $100 from the base Pixel 8's launch price. However, Google's Pixel 9 Pro is keeping the same $999 starting price the Pixel 8 Pro launched with.
If you're looking for a slightly larger phone, you can grab the new Pixel 9 Pro XL, starting at $1,099. Google's newest foldable — the Pixel 9 Pro Fold, not the Fold 2 — is the biggest phone the company offers, starting at $1,799, the same launch price as the original Pixel Fold.
Launch dates:
Pixel 9: August 22
Pixel 9 Pro XL: August 22
Pixel 9 Pro Fold: September 4
Pixel 9 Pro: September
At launch, the 9 Pro Fold has more limited availability compared to the rest of the Pixel 9 lineup. The Pixel 9 Pro Fold will be available in the US, Canada, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Sweden, UK, Australia, India, Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan.
All other Pixel 9 phones will be available in the countries listed above, as well as in Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Malaysia.
Design
Both the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro, as well as the new 9 Pro XL variant, show off a new design that features a pill-shaped bump out for the cameras rather than the iconic camera bar introduced on the Pixel 6 in 2021.
All four phones in the Pixel 9 series come in Obsidian and Porcelain colorways. The base Pixel 9 also offers fun Wintergreen and Peony colors, and the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL come in Hazel or Rose Quartz colorways.
The four phones share scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 cover glass, a fingerprint-resistant coating, and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the back, but the back is described differently between some of the phones. The Pixel 9 features a "polished back with satin finish metal frame," while the Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL share a "silky matte back with polished finish metal frame."
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold features the same "silky matte back" as the 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL and the "satin metal frame" element found on the base Pixel 9.
Display
There aren't any major differences between the Pixel 9 lineup in terms of display. As you spend more on a Pro variant, you'll get slightly higher resolution and an LTPO OLED display rather than just OLED, but the differences would barely be visible when looking at the phones side by side.
The base Pixel 9 features a 6.3-inch, 1080 x 2424-pixel OLED display with a variable refresh rate between 60 and 120Hz. The Pixel 9 Pro also offers a 6.3-inch display but with a slightly higher 1280 x 2856-pixel resolution, LTPO OLED tech, and a variable refresh rate between 1 and 120Hz.
Jumping to the Pixel 9 Pro XL, it shares LTPO OLED tech and adaptive 120Hz refresh rate with the Pixel 9 Pro but boasts a larger 6.8-inch display and higher 1344 x 2992-pixel resolution.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold has an external and an internal display. The external display is identical to the display found on the base Pixel 9. When unfolded, you'll see an 8-inch internal LTPO OLED display with a 2076 x 2152-pixel resolution and a variable refresh rate between 1 and 120Hz.
Processor
Google's four new Pixel 9 phones share its new Tensor G4 processor and Titan M2 security coprocessor, which promises to be more powerful and ready for AI tasks than its predecessor, the Tensor G3.
The base Pixel 9 only features 12GB of RAM, 25% less than the 16GB of RAM you'll find on the other three Pixel 9 Pro phones. So if you're after the best performance possible from a Pixel 9 series phone, the Pixel 9 Pro, Pixel 9 Pro XL, or Pixel 9 Pro Fold will be smarter picks.
Cameras
If you want to take stunning pictures with a new Pixel phone, your best bet will be either the Pixel 9 Pro or the Pixel 9 Pro XL. These two phones share the same camera setup, which includes a 42MP Dual PD front camera and a triple rear camera setup with a 50MP Octa PD wide lens, 48MP Quad PD ultrawide lens, and 48MP Quad PD telephoto lens.
The Pixel 9 shares the 50MP Octa PD wide camera and 48MP Quad PD ultrawide lens in the rear camera setup but lacks the telephoto lens and drops selfie quality quite a bit with a 10.5MP Dual PD front camera.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold has the worst camera setup of all four phones, but it's not surprising that Google had to keep costs down somehow. There's a 10MP Dual PD selfie camera, slightly lower quality than the base Pixel 9's front camera, and a triple camera setup in back with a 48MP Quad PD wide lens, 10.5MP Dual PD ultrawide lens, and a 10.8MP Dual PD telephoto lens.
Outlook
Google doubled the number of phones usually found in the initial Pixel lineup, for four excellent Pixel 9 series phones to choose from. (The Pixel 9a is likely in the works but won't launch until next year.) That gives you a lot of options, which can be both a good and a bad thing.
If you're looking for the cheapest way to get a Pixel 9 series phone and take advantage of the speedier performance and AI power promised by Google's Tensor G4 chip, the base Pixel 9 is your best option.
For those who want the best camera setup offered by a Pixel 9 phone, opt for the Pixel 9 Pro. Or if you'd like excellent cameras and a larger screen, the Pixel 9 Pro XL is a smarter pick.
If you want to test out the latest foldable phone tech, your obvious pick is the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. It's a niche pick, but it offers a lot for its high $1,799 starting price.
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