Which Is The Better Buy?

If nostalgia hits and you just absolutely need to get a flip phone, you’re in luck because there are quite a few options these days. Even better, two of the most capable flip phones on the market just dropped within weeks of each other. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 arrived at Galaxy Unpacked on July 22, 2026, for $1,200, while the Motorola Razr Ultra has been available since May for $1,500. As many similarities were found between these phones, there are plenty of differences too, so let’s figure out which one deserves your money.

Let’s be honest — the screen is something most of us care about quite a bit. After all, you’ll be staring at every day. Both phones deliver bright, vivid AMOLED panels, but the Razr Ultra pushes further on paper. Its 7.0-inch main display peaks at 5,000 nits and runs at 165Hz, compared to the Flip 8’s 6.9-inch panel at 120Hz and up to 3,000 nits. In real-world use, the difference in refresh rate is noticeable when scrolling, while the difference in screen brightness may be quite noticeable in direct sunlight.

That said, the Flip 8’s cover display marks a major step forward for Samsung, addressing one thing that annoyed most users — the limited widget-based screen. The Z Flip 8 now offers full app functionality natively, so you won’t have to download extra apps. While Razr Ultra continues to lead in terms of raw display specs, Samsung has narrowed the usability gap with its new FlexWindow upgrade. On cover screen specs, the Razr Ultra’s 4.0-inch panel runs at 165Hz versus the Flip 8’s 4.1-inch panel at either 60 or 120Hz.

When it comes to design, the Flip 8 is clearly the more pocketable phone. At 180g and 6.1mm thin when unfolded, it’s lighter and sleeker than the Razr Ultra, which weighs in at 199g and measures 7.2mm unfolded. When folded, the Razr Ultra is of course chunkier at 15.7mm versus the Flip 8’s 13.1mm. If you frequently carry your phone in a pants pocket, the Flip 8 wins.

As far as design goes, Samsung sticks to what it knows and offers a bunch of color options (Graphite, Cream, Pink and Mint) for its glass and metal smartphone. The Razr Ultra, on the other hand, comes with some more options, offering a quilted Alcantara back for the Orient Blue model or an actual wood finish for its Cocoa variant.

Both phones have an IP48 rating, offering protection from water immersion up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes. That 4 in IP48 indicates that particles larger than 1mm are blocked, but fine sand and dust can still get into the hinge area, so you should keep that in mind regardless of which phone you go with.

On paper, this is where the phones differ most. The Razr Ultra packs three 50MP cameras — a LOFIC-sensor main camera, a 50MP ultrawide and a 50MP selfie shooter — and supports 8K video recording. The new Z Flip 8 carries a 50MP main, a 12MP ultrawide and a 10MP selfie cam. It tops at 4K video at 60fps.

When we reviewed the Razr Ultra, we found the phone captures photos with great dynamic range, improved contrast and less grain. We also found, however, that some pictures showed flaws like halos in bright light.

The Flip 8’s main camera hardware is unchanged from its predecessor —but it could set itself apart with its AI-powered camera enhancements. With the integration of Galaxy AI through One UI 9, users gain access to a bunch of new tools like Super Steady with Horizontal Lock and better results in low-light situations.

The Flip 8 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, the newest chipset available in 2026. The Razr Ultra uses the Snapdragon 8 Elite, the same model that powered its 2025 model. The Flip 8’s newer chip will handle demanding tasks and AI workloads more efficiently, while the tighter software integration with One UI 9 should deliver an optimized performance across Samsung’s many AI features. Samsung’s new phone also ships with Android 17 out of the box, while the Razr Ultra launched on Android 16. While the Razr is eligible for the upgrade, it may take a bit before it gets there.

Another thing to consider is the fact that Samsung promises seven years of OS updates for the Flip 8, while Motorola offers only three years for Razr Ultra.

The Razr Ultra has a clear advantage when it comes to battery life. Its 5,000mAh battery is significantly larger than the Flip 8’s 4,300 mAh cell. In our review, the Razr Ultra lasted 31 hours in our local video playback test. By comparison, it’s hard to imagine the Z Flip 8 coming close, since it uses the same 4,300mAh battery capacity as its predecessor. For reference, the Galaxy Z Flip 7 managed just 18.5 hours in the same test.

When it comes to charging, the Flip 8 supports 25W wired charging and 15W wireless. That’s way slower than Razr Ultra’s 68W wired and 30W wireless speeds. We should mention, however, that Motorola uses a proprietary TurboPower protocol to reach those peak charging speeds, so you’ll need to buy a compatible Motorola adapter as the phone box doesn’t include one. On top of the $1,500 phone.

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 starts at $1,200 for 256GB. The Motorola Razr Ultra 2026 starts at $1,500. That’s quite a big price difference that’s difficult to justify given the older chip on the Razr and the shorter software support. To Motorola’s credit, they do tend to offer aggressive discounts, so you could definitely buy it for a lot less.

If you want the latest processor and best performance longevity, value seven years of software updates and prefer a lighter, thinner, more pocketable device, the Flip 8 is for you. If you want better battery life, faster charging, a distinctive design and a smoother main display, the Razr Ultra might be the one for you.

Both phones offer incremental updates over their predecessors, but neither brand is swinging for a complete overhaul. The Galaxy Z Flip 8 edges out the Razr Ultra, offering a newer, faster chip, seven years of updates, a redesigned AI-native cover screen and a $300 lower starting price. For now, the Galaxy Z Flip 8 is the smarter buy at launch. If you wait a few months, you could pick up the Razr Ultra for a much better price.