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Samsung stops releasing monthly updates for the Galaxy S21 series

By Cosmin Vasile

Published: Feb 04, 2025, 2:05 AM

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Samsung Galaxy S21 family | Image credit: PhoneArena

Unsurprisingly, Samsung confirmed that the Galaxy S21 series is too old to continue to receive updates monthly. While this doesn’t mean that Galaxy S21 owners will no longer get security patches, it’s a warning that these phones are four years old and that you should probably think about upgrading to a new flagship.

The South Korean giant recently updated its Security Updates Work Scope page, and the Galaxy S21 series is no longer among the devices that are guaranteed to receive monthly updates. Instead, the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+, and Galaxy S21 Ultra will only receive updates four times per year.

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On the bright side, if you own a Galaxy S21 FE, then you’re still going to receive updates every month, but that’s going to change early next year when the phone will be too old to continue to get updates so often.

Samsung announced at launch that the Galaxy S21 series will benefit from four years of major OS updates and five years of security update. To this day, the Galaxy S21 series has yet received the highly anticipated Android 15 update, but that’s probably going to happen in the next couple of weeks. Unfortunately, this will be the last major Android update that these flagships will receive.

Samsung stops releasing monthly updates for the Galaxy S21 series

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra | Image credit: PhoneArena

On the other hand, the Galaxy S21 FE qualifies for one more major update, which means it should also get upgraded to Android 16 when Google releases it later this year. Of course, that doesn’t mean that it will receive the update in 2025, but it’s important that it will remain relevant for at least one more year.

Although we could argue it might not be worth upgrading from the Galaxy S24 to Galaxy S25, Samsung fans with much older flagships like the Galaxy S21 should really consider an upgrade this year.

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Cosmin, a tech journalist with a career spanning over a decade, brings a wealth of experience to PhoneArena. His expertise lies in brands like Samsung and Nokia, and he has a keen interest in innovative technologies. After a brief stint in PR, Cosmin returned to tech journalism in 2016, committed to delivering clear and objective news. When he's not writing or appearing as a guest on TV and radio shows, Cosmin enjoys playing RPGs, watching Netflix, and nurturing his passion for history and travel.