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New report puts Google's Pixel 9a prices a bit higher than you may have hoped

By Adrian Diaconescu

Published: Feb 26, 2025, 3:35 AM

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Rendered in the best possible quality a number of times already, photographed in the wild, manhandled on video, and even spotted alongside Samsung's unreleased Galaxy S25 Edge (of all devices) recently, the Pixel 9a clearly doesn't hold many secrets or unanswered questions ahead of its fast-approaching launch.

But while everyone knows exactly how Google's next budget-friendly smartphone will look and precisely what specs and features it will offer, the handset's pricing structure for the largest global markets has been a rather contentious topic among some of the most reliable industry insiders these last few weeks.

A fresh report from a typically very trustworthy publication aims to clear the air and settle this debate once and for all, although you might not like the "settlement terms."

Expect to pay this much for the Pixel 9a in these countries

$499 with 128GB storage and $599 in a 256GB variant - United States;
£499 with 128GB storage and £599 in a 256GB variant - United Kingdom;
$679 with 128GB storage and $809 in a 256GB variant - Canada;
€559 with 128GB storage and €659 in a 256GB variant - Ireland;
€549 with 128GB storage and €649 in a 256GB variant - Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

While these North American and European tags largely coincide with what was rumored around a month ago and a little over a week later, a separate report from just last week probably made you hopeful that you'd ultimately be able to get a slightly cheaper Pixel 9a, at least on the old continent.

Have you ever seen a prettier mid-range phone than this pink-coated Pixel 9a? | Image Credit -- WinFuture

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the Google Tensor G4-powered 6.3-incher will start at €499 after all in any of the major European markets listed above, at least if we are to trust Android Headlines on their newest predictions.

At €549 in countries like France and Germany and $499 stateside, the Pixel 9a is essentially set to perfectly match its predecessor's affordability at the time of its late spring 2024 release. That's obviously not a shock in this day and age, but if you did catch that previous rumor calling for a potential price reduction from the Pixel 8a, I can totally understand if you now feel let down.

A €499/$449 Pixel 9a with a 120Hz refresh rate-capable OLED display, 8GB RAM, 48 + 13MP dual rear-facing camera system, and 5,100mAh battery sounded like an absolute value champion to me as well, but alas, it appears that we'll all have to tone down our expectations.

How will the Pixel 9a compete at these prices?

The short and simple answer to that question is... exactly how the Pixel 8a currently competes against its rivals for the title of best budget 5G phone out there. Yes, the Pixel 9a will undercut Apple's hot new iPhone 16e, Samsung's slowly aging Galaxy S24 FE, and the recently released OnePlus 13R while costing a little more than the Motorola Edge (2024) and significantly more than something like Samsung's Galaxy A35 5G mid-ranger.

Of course, prospective Pixel 9a buyers may also want to consider the "vanilla" Pixel 9, which normally starts at $799 but often goes down to $699, $649, and even lower at major US retailers like Amazon.

The upcoming Pixel 9a looks undeniably gorgeous in an Iris colorway as well. | Image Credit -- WinFuture

If you can get Google's non-a-branded and non-Pro Pixel 9 for $599, you should probably jump at such an opportunity considering that handset's clear camera performance and build quality advantages over its upcoming budget-friendly "cousin."

The OnePlus 13R, meanwhile, comes with more internal storage space in an entry-level variant than the Pixel 9a, as well as four extra gigs of RAM, a much larger and higher-quality screen, a beefier battery, and most likely, a better camera setup too composed of three rather than just two imaging sensors.

Granted, the Pixel 9a maintains a key strength over that device as well in Google's unrivaled long-term software support, but a slightly lower price point would have gone a longer way in consolidating this thing's broad appeal.

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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.