Worth Your Money? Samsung S26 Ultra Price News

This year’s addition to the beloved Samsung Galaxy series is currently expected to hit the shelves in March. The Galaxy S26 Ultra is arriving later than we first thought, but we’re still excited to get our hands on it. 

Here at Ghostek, we’ve been following the Samsung 26 Ultra rumors like a hawk, and the chatter about the price has been particularly interesting. The latest leaks suggest that despite their best efforts, Samsung is putting the price up. 

This is what we’ve learned. 

How Much Will the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra Cost?

According to the tipster Arsène Lupin, the entire S26 series is getting a price increase. He posted on Twitter that there could be an extra 30 to 40% on some models in the S26 series, including the Ultra. This was based on the expected prices for the Bulgarian market, but it stands to reason that they’ll increase for all markets. 

Lupin’s leak puts the price in euros as:

• Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/256 - €1,739

• Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/512 - €1,969

• Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/1TB - €2,329

Providing the increase is universal, American Samsung users can expect to pay:

• Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/256 - $2,055

• Galaxy S26 Ultra 12/512 - $2,327

• Samsung S26 Ultra 12/1TB - $2,753

The Other Galaxy S26 Models

The rest of the S26 models are reportedly being hit with similar price increases. The base-level Galaxy S26 is expected to retail at $1,319, and adding 512GB storage will bring that up to $1,685. 

As for the Galaxy S26 Plus, the price tags are reported to be $1,767 for the standard and $2,039 with extra storage. 

Samsung S26 Prices: Things To Consider

We understand that a price increase might be off-putting, but there are a few things to bear in mind. 

The Source of the Latest Galaxy Rumors

Arsène Lupin, the tipster who broke these reports, is generally well-regarded among the online phone community. He has been correct before, but he doesn’t have a perfect track record. He has been wrong.

None of the price increases have been confirmed by Samsung, and Lupin hasn’t revealed much information about who is feeding him this info. There is still a chance the reports are incorrect.

The Fluctuating Prices Abroad

It’s also worth noting that these prices are for the Bulgarian market. This is significant because the country has recently gone through a major currency change. 

Bulgaria joined the European Union in 2007, but didn’t accept the euro currency until January 1st 2026. Up until then, they used the lev. The situation was complex, and they were a de facto member of the eurozone for years, but a country can’t switch currencies without a few hiccups.

The Bulgarian economy is stable, and the forecast is good. However, it stands to reason that their market prices are less easy to predict than those of countries like France or Austria, which have used the euro for decades. Samsung may indeed plan to market the S26 at those prices, but they might also change that decision closer to the launch. 

The Cost of the Competition

Lastly, bear in mind that Samsung’s competitors also have new iPhone models on the horizon. The recent reports about the next iPhone suggest that Apple is trying to keep their prices low.  

Therefore, it’s still possible that Samsung will launch the Galaxy S26 Ultra at a lower price. A cost increase is likely, but they may delay it until after Apple has done the same. 

This strategy would give them better publicity for the sake of lower returns. Samsung is an enormous company though, and should have no trouble absorbing any short-term losses. They may consider a few months of reduced income as a fair trade for improving goodwill with their customers. 

Explaining the Samsung Galaxy S26 Price Increase

The main reason behind this potential increase is the inescapable rise of AI. The cost of RAM has increased dramatically of late, thanks to the demand from data centers. The so-called RAMageddon has seen prices go up across the entire tech industry. Smartphones aren’t the only things that cost more nowadays; tablets, computers, game consoles, and laptops have all been impacted. 

How Samsung Might Avoid This

This isn’t cut and dry though, and quite frankly, the news around this story has been evolving so fast that it’s been a challenge to keep up. In fact, as we were putting this very article together, another report caught our attention.

Specifically, it was this post on Techmaniacs, a Greek-language website. Some of the finer points may have been lost in translation, but from what we can gather, they think that the S26 Ultra might not go up in price after all. 

This doesn’t extend to other models in the S26 line. In fact, it looks as though Samsung are taking an unusual pricing strategy; Techmaniacs reports that the standard versions of each phone will see a price hike, whereas the higher storage ones won’t. 

That might sound odd, but it does make a certain degree of sense. Samsung likely expect to sell more of the base units and thereby offset the expense of lowering the prices for the bigger, but less popular versions. Whether they choose to go down this route remains to be seen.

The Galaxy S25 Ultra vs the Galaxy S26 Ultra

Assuming the Galaxy S26 Ultra is more expensive than its predecessor, is it worth it? If things pan out as expected, the S26 will offer:

• 16GB of RAM (an increase of 4GB)

• The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor

• More rounded edges

• Faster charging speeds - 60W wired and 25W wireless charging

• A thinner and lighter design

• Upgrades to the camera sensor

In practical terms, this means that the S26 will be faster and more comfortable to hold than its older brother. And it’ll achieve this without sacrificing the fantastic camera that the S25 Ultra was renowned for. 

Follow Ghostek for the Latest News

We’re going to be keeping a close eye on Samsung and tracking all the developments about their new devices. The Galaxy S26 Ultra looks like it’ll be an exciting addition to the smartphone world. Visit us regularly for all the latest news. 

If you’re a fan of Samsung and intend to purchase an S26, you’ll want a protective case. We have an extensive collection of protective cases and accessories for Samsung phones available, so why not see if anything catches your eye? You can give your new phone a personal touch with Ghostek.