Google Pixel 6 vs. Pixel 5: Should you upgrade?

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The Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are easily the most enticing Pixel phones ever released. On paper, the Pixel 6 looks mighty impressive with a dual-camera setup, the Tensor chip, 5G connectivity, and more at a very attractive price. But is it worth upgrading to the Pixel 6 from the GooglePixel 5? Or should you continue using your Pixel 5 for another year or so? Let’s find out.

The Pixel 5 was never a flagship phone, with Google instead positioning it as a premium mid-ranger. Meanwhile, the Pixel 6 is a proper flagship Android with specs to back those claims. What makes the Pixel 6 an attractive proposition is its price—it is available for $599, which is actually $100 less than what the Pixel 5 commanded when it first launched in the US last year.

Before we talk about the major differences between the Pixel 6 and Pixel 5, below is a table showing their spec-by-spec differences.

Google Pixel 6 vs Pixel 5: Hardware and specs

Last year’s Pixel 5 launched with a 7nm Snapdragon 765G SoC and an Adreno 620 GPU, a mid-range Qualcomm Snapdragon chip that includes 5G connectivity (a first for the Pixel lineup). This year, Google is using its own 5nm Tensor chip, which is what makes the new Pixel phones so special, though they're outdone in connectivity by the current crop of the best 5G phones.

The Google Pixel 6’s Tensor SoC has an oct-acore CPU with a pair of Arm Cortex-X1 (2,800 GHz) and Arm Cortex A-76 (2.25 GHz) cores as well as four Arm Cortex A55 (1.8 GHz) cores. On the Google Pixel 5 you’ll find an older octa-core CPU with two Arm Cortex A76 cores; one clocks in at 2,400 MHz while the other comes in at 2,200 MHz; six Arm Cortex A55 (2,400 MHz) cores round out the SoC.

Tensor is the superior chip here, and it’s powerful enough for most users. While the Google Tensor SoC may score lower on benchmarks than the Samsung Galaxy S22 or iPhone 13, it relies on heterogeneous computing to accomplish various tasks. When compared with the Pixel 5, however, the Pixel 6 is the clear winner. Google claims its flagship offers “up to 80% faster performance” than the Pixel 5. On the GPU front, Google says its 20-core Tensor GPU is up to “370% faster” than the Pixel 5’s Adreno 620 GPU.

Tensor packs various optimizations for AI and ML tasks from Google that help it deliver improved security (in part owing to the included Titan M2 chip), an enhanced computational photography experience, and better efficiency. Needless to say, we’re disappointed Google will only commit to three years of OS upgrades, as the Samsung Galaxy S22 will get Android upgrades for four years and an additional year of security updates.

Another notable improvement on the Pixel 6 is that it comes with faster UFS 3.1 storage, while the Pixel 5 uses a slower UFS 2.1 NAND. The former is also available with up to 256GB storage, while the Pixel 5 was only available in one storage variant: 128GB. However, Google no longer offers unlimited Google Photos backups with the Pixel 6, which was available with the Pixel 5.