Google Pixel 9 vs. Pixel 9 Pro
Google has a pretty expansive lineup of phones this year, with a total of four Pixel 9 phones so far. And this year you have a choice between two compact options - the 9 and the 9 Pro.
There is an almost 300 bucks worth of a price difference between the 128GB/12GB Pixel 9 and the 128GB/16GB Pixel 9 Pro without considering any holiday deals or carrier rebates.
So if you are wondering whether the Pixel 9 Pro is worth the price premium over the vanilla Pixel 9, we are here to help as we will be putting them head-to-head in this comparison based on our extensive review findings.
Table of Contents:
For starters, you can compare the complete specs sheets or directly continue with our editor's assessment in the following video or in the text below.
Size comparison
The Google Pixel 9 and 9 Pro are practically identical size-wise. That's kind of the point. Both phones are actually considered pretty compact by modern standards, measuring just 152.8 x 72 x 8.5 mm and tipping the scale at 198 grams and 199 grams, respectively.
That latter bit is quite impressive, and we aren't quite sure how Google managed to include a whole extra telephoto camera without reducing the battery capacity or increasing the weight. Then again, the vanilla model is kind of on the heavier side to begin with.
The two phones are constructed exactly the same, with an aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on both the front and the back. Both phones have IP68 ingress protection.
The two phones have the same connectivity options as well. This includes Sub-6 5G and even mmWave in certain phone variants. Both the vanilla and Pro have a single Nano-SIM slot and eSIM support. There is dual-band GPS for positioning, NFC, Bluetooth 5.3 with LE, aptX HD, and tri-band Wi-Fi 7. Both phones have a USB 3.1 Gen 1 port, which means a theoretical max transfer rate of 5Gbps. While this is not well documented, both phones actually support DP video output over Type-C.
The only real connectivity difference between the two is Ultra Wideband (UWB) support, which is only available on the Pixel 9 Pro.
Display comparison
The Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro have identically sized 6.3-inch displays. Both also have a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support. There is no Dolby Vision video support on either one.
The Pixel 9 Pro panel is superior for a few reasons. It has a higher resolution at 1280 x 2856 pixels, compared to 1080 x 2424 pixels on Pixel 9.
The Pro is also using LTPO tech for more dynamic refresh rate switching and better power efficiency in the process.
And finally, the Pixel 9 Pro display is a little bit brighter than that of the Pixel 9. Both reach over 2,200 nits in our testing, which is plenty to be comfortable outdoors, but the Pixel 9 Pro goes an extra 100nits higher for what that's worth.
Battery life
Both phones have a 4,700 mAh battery and use the same chipset. Hence, it is only reasonable that their battery life would be identical. Well, there is a small difference in displays and the LTPO tech, balanced out with the extra display resolution of the Pro model. It results in a slightly better Active Use Score for the Pro. In practical terms, the two phones offer the same endurance.
Charging speed
Both phones support 27W wired charging over Power Delivery 3.0 with PPS. Since their battery capacity is the same, it only makes sense that they would charge at the same rate, and indeed they do.
The only difference in charging is that the Pro model can reach 21W of wireless charging with an official Pixel stand, while the vanilla can only go up to 15W. Other than that, both phones support up to 12W of wireless charging with third-party Qi chargers.
Also both phones support reverse wireless charging.
Speaker test
Both phones have identical hybrid stereo speaker setups. That means a full-fledged speaker on the bottom and an amplified front-firing earpiece as the second channel. The phone will assign the channels dynamically depending on its orientation in space. As Google normally goes about this, each speaker will also output the other channel's track at a lower volume.
Both phones have a Very Good loudness score, as per our testing. The difference in peak volume is very small and in favor of the Pixel 9 Pro.
Additionally, both phones are tuned practically identically, with very clear and crisp mids but not much bass.
Performance
Both phones are based on the same Google Tensor G4 (4 nm) chipset. The performance between the two phones is mostly identical.
We only say "mostly" since the Pixel 9 comes with 12GB of RAM, while the Pixel 9 Pro has 16GB in all of its configurations. While we aren't sure this will make much of a difference for most conventional tasks, we do know that running larger local AI models takes more RAM, so we can only presume that with Google's current focus on AI, there could be a slight edge in AI performance for the Pixel 9 Pro.
As for storage, you can get the Pixel 9 with 128GB or 256GB. The Pixel 9 Pro has 512GB and 1TB options as well. Google uses UFS 3.1 chips across the board, which are not the fastest around these days, but they are still pretty good.
Benchmark performance
In more practical terms, both phones perform great and are very snappy and responsive, chewing through each and every task we throw at them, including heavy gaming. You might not be getting the same performance level as a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, but the Pixels are definitely not strapped for power either.
Camera comparison
One of the key differences between the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro is the camera setup. And even then, the two phones still have quite a lot in common. As far as we can tell from the official information, the pair has the exact same 50MP, PDAF, and OIS-enabled main camera. The ultrawide is also the same 48MP unit with PDAF for macro photography.
The major difference is that the Pixel 9 Pro has a dedicated telephoto camera. It is a 48MP unit with PDAF and OIS that offers a 5x optical zoom.
The selfie cameras on the two phones are different as well. While both have autofocus, the Pixel 9 Pro gets a much higher-resolution 42MP Quad-Bayer sensor compared to the 10MP one on the vanilla Pixel 9.
Other relatively smaller camera differences include multi-zone laser autofocus on the Pixel 9 Pro and single-zone on the Pixel 9. Additionally, only the Pixel 9 Pro can capture 8K@30fps video.
Image quality
Let's start with the main camera. It hardly comes as a surprise that the two phones capture practically identical shots. These are excellent overall, with plenty of detail and great sharpness.
In typical Pixel fashion, there seems to be a preference for high contrast, which can occasionally leave some of the shadows looking a bit dark. Even so, the dynamic range is excellent. Color rendition is more on the restrained side of things.
Google Pixel 9: ultrawide • main • 2x digital zoom
Google Pixel 9 Pro: ultrawide • main • 5x optical zoom
The ultrawide camera is also shared between the two phones; hence, we get identical shots from them. The camera doesn't disappoint and captures very good photos. It resolves a ton of detail and processes it organically. Global parameters are also in tune with the established Pixel look.
Finally, we get to move on to some differences and the dedicated telephoto camera that only the Pixel 9 Pro has. While we wouldn't call the 5x telephoto a class leader, it definitely captures solid all-around photos.
The main camera on the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro captures very impressive low-light photos. These are very clean and sharp, and a lot of masterful processing was done to bring out details in the shadows and normalize light sources. There is practically no noise. Saturation is on point. There is some shot-to-shot variance in exposure at times, but nothing too severe.
Google Pixel 9: ultrawide • main • zoom
Google Pixel 9 Pro: ultrawide • main • telephoto
Overall, the ultrawide does not disappoint in low light. It delivers bright exposures with pleasing tonal development. Dynamic range is good with nicely boosted shadows and well-contained highlights and light sources.
When it comes to low-light zooms, the digital crops from the Pixel 9's main camera are admirable, but they can't hold a candle to the dedicated telephoto on the Pixel 9 Pro. That said, the telephoto is good but not perfect in low-light conditions.
Moving on to the selfies, we frankly don't see a major advantage of either phone. The higher-resolution sensor on the Pixel 9 Pro's selfie camera has a better rendition of finer detail. Still, both phones capture great detail with very good skin tones.
Pixel 9 selfies
Pixel 9 Pro selfies
Video quality
As expected, we are having trouble differentiating between the videos from the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro. 8K on a mobile phone is more or less a gimmick currently, so we are only comparing 4K footage. That said, both the main camera and ultrawide footage look great, with plenty of detail and good dynamic range.
Digital 2x zoomed videos from the main camera of the Pixel 9 hold up surprisingly well, but again, the clips from the dedicated 5x telephoto on the Pixel 9 Pro are on a different level.
Below we have a few framegrabs from the videos taken by the two phones at each focal length so it's easier to compare to one another.
Google Pixel 9: ultrawide • main • zoom • low-light
Google Pixel 9 Pro: ultrawide • main • telephoto • low-light
Verdict
There is no point beating about the bush here. The Google Pixel 9 Pro is unquestionably the better device of the two. It preserves absolutely every aspect of the regular Pixel 9 and builds upon it. Granted, some of its upgrades are minor, like the niche UWB support, or the slightly faster wireless charging with the official Pixel stand. Even the display LTPO tech for more adaptive refresh rate adjustment, while cool, doesn't exactly offer earth-shattering benefits to battery life. Nor does the higher display brightness push the phone into new usability heights.
The way we see it, the only real reason anyone might consider the Pro over the vanilla Pixel 9 is the dedicated camera .
We are really glad that Google didn't compromise on the vanilla Pixel 9 experience too much. Sure, the Pro is a better phone, but the core experience is the same across both models. You get practically the same performance and battery life, the same excellent main and ultrawide cameras, the same charging and the same excellent Google support for up to seven major OS upgrades.
Bottom line here is that you are getting an excellent phone either way. If you value the telephoto and/or want more storage, go for the Pro. Otherwise, save a few bucks and grab the vanilla Pixel 9. You won't regret it.
- The same user experience at a lower price.
Get the Google Pixel 9 for:
- The Ultra Wideband (UWB) support.
- The LTPO display with higher pixel density.
- The faster wireless charging with an official Pixel stand.
- The 16GB of RAM and more and higher storage options.
- The more versatile camera setup with a more detailed selfie cam, a dedicated telephoto, 8K video and multi-zone Laser AF.
- The contactless thermometer sensor (if you need one on your phone for some reason).
Get the Google Pixel 9 Pro for:
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Reader comments
- Rathee
- 15 Dec 2024
- 7k}
What about haptics of both phone?
- Shaijag00
- 03 Dec 2024
- IKL
Did you test the hotspot function on each phone. When I upgraded to the Pixel 9 Pro on Verizon, my Hotspot capability has failed every time unless I am on a wi-fi connection.
- NeonHD
- 02 Dec 2024
- 6Fi
Did you miss the footnote at the bottom? You are mistaken if you think I said I had a problem with stock Android. I would never want to use One UI over AOSP. My comment was more of a minor criticism coming from a long-time AOSP ROM user. I was e...
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