Galaxy S23 might be more expensive than the Galaxy S22

Samsung will unveil the Galaxy S23 series on February 1st, if a recent leak is correct. A separate rumor claimed that Samsung still hadn’t finalized the Galaxy S23 price tiers, which might delay the phone’s release schedule. Samsung is supposedly sparing no expense on the Galaxy S23’s development. Add to that the inflation effects on manufacturing goods, and a Galaxy S23 price hike would not come as much of a surprise.

A questionable leak from Korea claims that a price hike is in order for the new flagships. The Galaxy S23, S23 Plus, and S23 Ultra prices supposedly leaked for Samsung’s home market.

Korea is often the source of price leaks for unreleased Samsung devices. Sometimes these are accurate; other times, they’re not. After all, these are just rumors, and Samsung can always adjust the pricing tiers to meet its needs.

The Galaxy S23 price information comes from a Twitter user who posted a screenshot that shows the purported costs. According to the screenshot, the Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus will be 200,000 won ($158) more expensive than their predecessors. The Galaxy S23 Ultra will be 150,000 won ($119) more expensive than the S22 Ultra.

Here are the prices, in won, from that screenshot. Sales tax is likely included:

• Galaxy S23 – 1,199,000 won ($948)
• Galaxy S23 Plus – 1,397,000 won ($1,105)
• Galaxy S23 Ultra – 1,599,400 won ($1,265)

Assuming the information is accurate, we should expect similar price increases in every market where Samsung will sell the Galaxy S23 series.

The screenshot in the tweet claims the information comes from an SK Telecom source. It also says that the Galaxy S23 Unpacked event will happen in early February, with preorders happening between February 7-16.

But this is all just unconfirmed chatter. It’s unclear where the screenshot comes from, and SamMobile says the leaker has been wrong before.

That’s not to say that the Galaxy S23 can’t be more expensive than the Galaxy S22. Again, the current economy and Samsung’s new strategy for flagship phones can drive up costs.

We’ll also remind you that the Galaxy S23 might start at 256GB of storage instead of 128GB. That’s an upgrade that Samsung might not offer free of charge, assuming the rumor is accurate.

The problem with a price hike is that it’ll hurt Samsung’s marketing. Apple kept the iPhone 14 price unchanged from the iPhone 13 series (at least in the US). And the Galaxy S23 will compete against Apple’s iPhone 14 models at the worst possible time for Samsung. The economy is already hurting the tech giant.

Price hike or not, Samsung will surely offer buyers who preorder the Galaxy S23 phones various perks that will make the phones seem more affordable.