Price per year of updates: the most phone support for the money
Each phone's regular US price on October 15, 2026, divided by the years of security updates it has left. The Galaxy A17 5G comes out cheapest, at about $56 a year.
The Samsung Galaxy A17 5G gives you the most promised support for the money. It cost $269.99 on samsung.com on October 15, 2026, and Samsung lists security updates through August 2031. That is about 4.8 years from now, or roughly $56 for each year of updates. The Galaxy A27 5G (about $66 a year) and the Galaxy A37 5G (about $90) come next.
Cheap phones with short support look different once you divide. The moto g play (2026) cost $249.99 at its regular price, but Motorola ends its security updates in December 2028, so each remaining year costs about $115, twice as much as the A17.
How we worked it out
For every phone sold new in the US that we track, we took two numbers:
- The price: the maker's regular price on its own US store on October 15, 2026. Temporary sales are left out, because they end. Launch prices are left out too, because several phones now cost more than they did at launch (see why phones cost more in 2026).
- The support left: the months from October 2026 to the month the maker says security updates end, written as years.
Then we divided the price by the years. The result is rounded to the nearest dollar.
Two makers publish an end month: Samsung on its US spec pages and Motorola on its security-update support page. Google and Nothing promise a number of years counted from the month a phone first went on sale, without publishing an end date, so we count those years from that month and mark the result "at least". Apple publishes no update period for any iPhone, so iPhones get no figure; our guide to how long phones get updates explains what Apple does publish.
The full table
| Phone | Per year | Years left | Updates until | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galaxy A17 5G | $56 | 4.8 | Aug 2031 | $269.99 |
| Galaxy A27 5G | $66 | 5.8 | Jul 2032 | $379.99 |
| Galaxy A37 5G | $90 | 5.4 | Mar 2032 | $489.99 |
| Nothing Phone (4a) Pro | $92 | 5.4 | at least Mar 2032 | $499 |
| Pixel 10a | $93 | 6.4 | at least Mar 2033 | $599 |
| Galaxy S26 FE | $101 | 6.9 | Sep 2033 | $699.99 |
| Galaxy S25 FE (older model) | $110 | 5.9 | Sep 2032 | $649.99 |
| Galaxy A57 5G | $111 | 5.4 | Mar 2032 | $599.99 |
| moto g play (2026) | $115 | 2.2 | Dec 2028 | $249.99 |
| Nothing Phone (3) | $122 | 5.8 | at least Jul 2032 | $699 |
| Pixel 11 | $132 | 6.8 | at least Aug 2033 | $899 |
| Pixel 10 | $137 | 5.8 | at least Aug 2032 | $799 |
| moto g (2026) | $138 | 2.2 | Dec 2028 | $299.99 |
| Galaxy S26 | $158 | 6.3 | Feb 2033 | $999.99 |
| Pixel 11 Pro | $161 | 6.8 | at least Aug 2033 | $1,099 |
| Pixel 10 Pro | $171 | 5.8 | at least Aug 2032 | $999 |
| moto g power (2026) | $178 | 2.3 | Jan 2029 | $399.99 |
| Galaxy Z Flip8 | $178 | 6.8 | Jul 2033 | $1,199.99 |
| Galaxy S26+ | $189 | 6.3 | Feb 2033 | $1,199.99 |
| Pixel 11 Pro XL | $190 | 6.8 | at least Aug 2033 | $1,299 |
| moto g stylus (2026) | $200 | 2.5 | Apr 2029 | $499.99 |
| Pixel 10 Pro XL | $206 | 5.8 | at least Aug 2032 | $1,199 |
| motorola razr (2026) | $218 | 3.7 | Jun 2030 | $799.99 |
| Galaxy S26 Ultra | $221 | 6.3 | Feb 2033 | $1,399.99 |
| motorola edge (2026) | $225 | 2.7 | Jun 2029 | $599.99 |
| Galaxy S25 Ultra (older model) | $248 | 5.3 | Jan 2032 | $1,299.99 |
| Pixel 11 Pro Fold | $278 | 6.8 | at least Aug 2033 | $1,899 |
| Galaxy Z Fold8 | $281 | 6.8 | Jul 2033 | $1,899.99 |
| motorola razr fold | $296 | 6.4 | Mar 2033 | $1,899.99 |
| Pixel 10 Pro Fold | $300 | 6.0 | at least Oct 2032 | $1,799 |
| motorola razr+ (2026) | $307 | 3.6 | May 2030 | $1,099.99 |
| Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra | $311 | 6.8 | Jul 2033 | $2,099.99 |
| Galaxy Z Fold7 (older model) | $348 | 5.8 | Jul 2032 | $1,999.99 |
| motorola razr ultra (2026) | $450 | 3.3 | Feb 2030 | $1,499.99 |
| iPhone 16 | — | — | no date published | $799 |
| iPhone 17 | — | — | no date published | $899 |
| iPhone 17e | — | — | no date published | $699 |
| iPhone 18 Pro | — | — | no date published | $1,199 |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | — | — | no date published | $1,299 |
| iPhone Air | — | — | no date published | $1,099 |
Price: the maker's regular US price on Oct 15, 2026. Updates until: the end of security updates; "at least" means the maker counts years from the launch month instead of publishing a date. Per year: price divided by years left.
What the numbers show
Samsung's A series leads. Samsung gives its 2026 A-series phones six years of security updates, only a year short of the seven it gives phones that cost three times as much. The A17 5G, A27 5G and A37 5G take the top three places. Our list of the best phones under $300 covers the A17 in more detail.
The Pixel 10a is the cheapest Pixel per year. At $599 with seven years counted from March 2026, it works out to about $93 a year. The Pixel 11, at $899, comes to about $132.
Motorola's short windows cost more than they look. The moto g phones get three years of security updates and the razr flips about four, so a lower price doesn't go as far. The razr ultra (2026) has the highest figure in the table, about $450 a year.
Book-style foldables cost $278 to $348 a year. Even with seven years of updates, a price near $1,900 or more keeps them near the bottom of the table. Flip phones do better: the Galaxy Z Flip8 comes to about $178 a year.
Older models still sold new can be worse value. The Galaxy S25 Ultra costs the same $1,299.99 it launched at in February 2025, but its updates end in January 2032, a year before the S26 Ultra's. That makes it about $248 a year, against about $221 for the newer phone.
What this number doesn't tell you
- The phone doesn't stop working when security updates end. It stops getting fixes for newly found security holes, and over time some banking and payment apps stop supporting it.
- You may not keep it that long. If you replace phones every two or three years, the years after that don't matter to you, and the plain price matters more.
- Batteries wear out before most of these windows end. A battery replacement adds to the cost of keeping a phone for six or seven years.
- Carrier deals change the price. Monthly credits and trade-ins can lower what you pay, but they usually tie you to a carrier for years. Our guide to unlocked vs carrier phones covers the trade-off.
- Promises can be extended. Makers have lengthened support before. If one does, the table will change and this page will say so.
The figures are only as current as the prices and support pages they come from. Check the maker's store and support page on the day you buy.
