Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra tops US Consumer Reports smartphone rankings

[Financial News] Samsung Electronics announced on the 15th that the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra ranked No. 1 in the latest smartphone evaluation by the US consumer magazine Consumer Reports (CR).
Consumer Reports is a leading monthly magazine on consumer goods published by the US consumer advocacy organization Consumers Union.
With this result, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra has now taken the top spot in Consumer Reports’ smartphone rankings for three consecutive years, following the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra and Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra.
The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra earned a total score of 88 points, placing it alone at No. 1 when combining performance, reliability, and user satisfaction.
Out of CR’s 10 performance evaluation categories, it received a perfect score of 5 in seven areas, including display, rear camera image quality, battery, durability, and ease of use.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra followed, tying for second place with 87 points each.
CR explained why it was the only one among the top 30 smartphones to receive a perfect score for battery performance, stating, "Despite its large 6.9-inch display, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra recorded the longest battery life among the devices we tested, at 51 hours and 30 minutes."
Apple’s iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 17 Pro Max tied for fourth place with the Samsung Galaxy S25+, each receiving 86 points.
The Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra was also named the best smartphone by major consumer association magazines across Europe, including Which? in the United Kingdom, Que Choisir in France, Altroconsumo in Italy, Organización de Consumidores y Usuarios (OCU), a Spanish consumer association magazine, DECO PROteste in Portugal, Test Aankoop in Belgium, and Rad & Ron in Sweden.
In Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Belgium, it received the Best of Test Award, given to the top-performing product in tests conducted by experts at each consumer association magazine.
In the United States, the Samsung Galaxy S26 series has been designated the official mobile phone of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). In March, a drone show was held in Philadelphia to celebrate the partnership with the NCAA. In the United Kingdom, Samsung is running localized campaigns that highlight features such as the Privacy Display, reflecting European consumers’ heightened concern for privacy in public spaces.
mkchang@fnnews.com Jang Min-kwon Reporter