If you are eyeing the Galaxy S24 FE, you may be wondering what makes it different from the Galaxy S24 proper and which one is the better phone to get.
While these two are very different devices size-wise, we can see how somebody might look into both for the cheapest entry into the Galaxy S24 family.
Of course, there are other considerations besides price to go over since, if that is the only concern, the decision is obvious – the S24 FE is still the cheaper device of the two.
That said, we’ll do our best to quickly and concisely go over the main comparison points between the S24 FE and S24 in this article.
Table of Contents:
For starters, you can compare the complete specs sheets or directly continue with our editor’s assessment in the following text.
Size comparison
The Galaxy S24 FE and the S24 proper are very different size-wise. The Galaxy S24 is one of the few “compact” smartphones in modern terms. Its display is just 6.2 inches in diagonal, and its overall body measures 147 x 70.6 x 7.6 mm. It is also pretty light, tipping the scale at 167 grams.
Conversely, the S24 FE is a fairly large device with a 6.7-inch display. Its body measures 162 x 77.3 x 8 mm and tips the scale at 213 grams. That’s a bit on the “chunky” side, even considering the display-diagonal. Its display bezels are notably thicker too.
Other than that, the two devices have a very similar overall design – the current “signature” Samsung Galaxy look. Both phones are also IP68-rated for ingress protection.
The bill of materials is quite similar too. You get an aluminum frame and a glass “sandwich” on both sides. That said, the Galaxy S24 is technically made with tougher and more premium Gorilla Glass Victus 2, while the S24 FE “settles” for Gorilla Glass Victus+.
Display comparison
We have already mentioned the obvious size difference between the displays on the two phones. Other than that, at least on the surface, the two display panels are not that different. They both can reach 120Hz refresh rate. Both have an HDR10+ resolution. Both are also HDR10+ certified.
According to Samsung, the S24 proper should be noticeably brighter than the S24 FE. However, in our testing, both phones manage very similar brightness outputs.
The one major display difference is that the LTPO tech is only present on the S24 and not the S24 FE. It is debatable how much of a difference it makes in practice. Still, the S24 clearly leverages LTPO to save power with more dynamic refresh rate switching since it manages a better Active Use Score than the S24 FE on a smaller battery.
This is probably the place to mention that while both phones have an under-display fingerprint reader, the one in the S24 FE is optical, while the S24 gets an ultrasonic unit. The ultrasonic one is faster and more accurate but doesn’t work with glass screen protectors.
Battery life
Being the bigger phone, the S24 FE naturally has a bigger battery – 4,700 mAh, compared to 4,000 mAh in the S24 proper. However, in our testing, the Galaxy S24 proved to be the more efficient of the two phones, managing a better Active Use Score. Not by much, mind you. You will likely get roughly the same real-world use on a single charge from both.
Just as a point of clarification, our Galaxy S24 review unit is the Exynos 2400 model.
Charging speed
Both phones are rated for a maximum of 25W of wired charging using Samsung’s Fast Charging standard. It leverages the Power Delivery 3.0 + PPS protocol, so any third-party charger with this tech would provide the maximum supported power output; you don’t need to get a Samsung charger specifically.
Both phones can also charge wirelessly at up to 15W and support reverse wireless charging.
Samsung claims that both phones can charge from zero to 50% in about 30 minutes, and interestingly, our testing mostly proves that both phones charge at about the same rate and a bit faster than Samsung claims.
One would think that having different-sized batteries would affect charging speed as smaller batteries should fill up more quickly. However, larger batteries can sustain higher charging rates for longer. So, in practical terms, both phones charge at about the same speed. It is far from industry-leading results, of course, but they are what you would expect from current Samsung phones.
Speaker test
Both the Galaxy S24 FE and S24 have stereo speakers in a hybrid setup where an amplified earpiece acts as the second channel. The earpiece is quieter and focuses mostly on high and mid-tones, while the bottom full-blown speaker has bass and good vocals.
The stereo effect appears balanced on both phones. The sound is tuned quite similarly, too.
Being the bigger phone, the S24 FE has a bit more space to work with and, hence, we assume, slightly larger speaker cavities. Hence, the S24 FE is ever so slightly louder than the S24. However, that small difference is hardly perceivable in real life.
The Galaxy S24 is a small phone but it still gets the best chipset on offer. In this particular case, it will mean either the Samsung Exynos 2400 or the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. Our review unit is the Exynos 2400 variant, and all our benchmarks are from that chipset.
On the other hand, the Galaxy S24 FE only has a single chipset option – the Samsung Exynos 2400e. It is not exactly the same as the Exynos 2400. It has the same GPU; the CPU has the same number of cores but a lower clock and (possibly) a different modem.
Both phones have 128GB of non-expandable UFS storage and 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM in their base configuration. You can get 256GB or 512GB of storage with either phone.
Benchmark performance
Regarding benchmarks and burst performance, the Galaxy S24 performs better across the board. The difference is small, but interestingly, it is present in both CPU and GPU tests, which is a bit surprising, seeing how the GPUs are supposed to be the same.
Anyway, in practical terms, both phones perform practically identically. They also run the same Android 14 and One UI 6.1 combo with the same set of features, including more advanced ones like Samsung DeX.
Both phones support DP video output over Type-C to accommodate the DeX experience. They also both have a USB 3.2 Gen 1 data connection, meaning a maximum theoretical transfer rate of 5 Gbps.
It is worth noting that the S24 FE has a virtual proximity sensor, which does not work as well as the hardware one inside the Galaxy S24.
On a more positive note, the S24 and S24 FE get Samsung’s new extended software support treatment, promising seven major OS updates and seven years of security patches.
Camera comparison
The Galaxy S24 FE and S24 proper camera setups seem similar on paper. They include a 50MP main camera, a 3x telephoto and a 12MP ultrawide, however, the actual camera hardware differs on these two phones.
Image quality
The Galaxy S24 FE and Galaxy S24 both deliver flagship-level photos with their main cameras – maybe not the best we’ve seen, but still very good. We are looking at almost identical photos.
The 3x telephoto on the S24 proper has a larger, higher resolution sensor but the same pixel size, so the image quality is about the same too. An important distinction between the two is that the S24 FE’s camera has a further reach.
If you equate their actual focal lengths, the S24 camera has 2.8x zoom, whereas the S24 FE camera has a 3.1x zoom. The tighter zoom provides more magnifications and, consequently, more detailed shots from the same shooting position.
As for the ultrawide cam, the Galaxy S24 has a physically larger sensor, but we can hardly see a difference in image quality or detail in daylight photos.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: ultrawide • main • telephoto • portrait
Samsung Galaxy S24: ultrawide • main • telephoto • portrait
In low-light scenarios, the main camera on the S24 proper seems to have a slight lead in overall low-light photography, perhaps due to a better ISP and processing. It develops shadows and darker areas much better.
For the ultrawides, the S24 has a substantial lead in image quality, producing much more detailed photos.
The zoom cameras provide identical image quality.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: ultrawide • main • telephoto
Samsung Galaxy S24: ultrawide • main • telephoto
The 10MP selfie on the S24 FE holds its own very well and the selfies out of the two cameras are equally good and have an identically wide field of view.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: selfies
Samsung Galaxy S24: selfies
Video quality
Video quality is the same from the main cameras. Neither ultrawide offers mind-blowing video quality, but we have to give a slight nod to the S24.
Finally, when it comes to zoom video, the S24 has again to better output.
Below, we have a few framegrabs from the videos taken by the two phones at each focal length.
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE: ultrawide • main • telephoto • low-light
Samsung Galaxy S24: ultrawide • main • telephoto • low-light
It is great to see that there is effectively no disparity in video recording capabilities like modes and resolutions between the two phones and across all of their cameras.
Verdict
As we said at the very beginning, the Galaxy S24 FE and S24 proper are very different in size. The latter is actually considered a quite compact phone by modern standards. This alone should be enough for most people to decide between the two devices.
If that isn’t the case for you, then there are at least a few ways to look at the newer Galaxy S24 FE. You can look at it as the cheapest entry point into the flagship Galaxy S24 series. You get most of the same features and flagship experience, even including the promise of seven major OS upgrades and seven years of security patches.
Then again, it is just as equally valid not to consider the S24 FE as an actual part of the flagship lineup. Despite doing its best to preserve the core experience intact, Samsung has also undoubtedly cut many corners in the process.
So in this fight between the S24 vs S24 FE, we would pick the S24 as the better phone unless size was a consideration.
Get the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE for:
- The larger display.
- The identical user experience.
- The lower price.
- Longer call runtimes.
Get the Samsung Galaxy S24 for:
- The compact form factor.
- The LTPO display tech and slimmer bezels.
- The slightly better overall performance.
- The better ultrawide in low-light.
