Samsung’s foldable devices are becoming more expensive. The lack of RAM is part of the bill

Samsung’s latest foldable devices offer upgrades over last year’s models — including a new device with a wider screen — but they also carry the industry’s favorite trend: higher prices.

the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra and Z Flip 8 Each costs $100 more than last year’s Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7, while the brand new, confusingly named Galaxy Z Fold 8lands between them in price. Foldable devices have always been at the top of the smartphone price scale, and none of Samsung’s new devices buck that trend. Raising prices on some of the most expensive phones you can buy only pushes them into more niche areas.

Samsung said the higher prices reflect rising memory and component costs, which has affected phones, computers and other products across the technology industry. The company also pointed to improvements over last year’s devices, including new Titanium Flex displays, larger batteries, and 50-megapixel ultra-wide cameras on the Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra.

This pricing pressure is not unique to Samsung. Almost every phone in 2026 either costs more than its predecessor or arrives with so few upgrades that the price has remained flat, and Samsung’s foldable devices also face higher-priced competition from Motorola’s Razr lineup.

The bigger picture is Lack of RAMfueled largely by the artificial intelligence boom, has pushed memory prices up sharply and left manufacturers with a choice: raise prices or cut specifications. Growing demand for AI data centers and modules has prompted chipmakers to prioritize high-bandwidth memory for AI workloads, leaving less capacity for the standard DRAM and NAND memory used in phones and computers. Tariffs and other costs may add to the pressure, but demand for AI-based memory is the main reason behind the broader rise in phone prices.

Read more: Samsung wants us to pay $2,000 for a new Galaxy phone. It’s a “no” for me

Galaxy Z Fold 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, and Galaxy Z Flip 8 prices

The Galaxy Z Fold 8, Samsung’s latest foldable phone, is the company’s new book-style foldable phone. In addition to its wider, shorter shape that opens to reveal a 4:3 internal screen, the device lacks a few of the features of its more premium sibling. The price of the Z Fold 8 starts at $1,900 for 256GB of storage, goes up to $2,100 for 512GB, and reaches $2,500 for 1TB.

	256 GB	512 GB	1 TB
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8	$1900	$2100	$2500

In comparison, the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra is a longer, book-shaped foldable device with slightly more premium features – a 10MP telephoto camera and a large 5,000mAh battery. It starts at $2,100 for 256GB of storage, then goes up to $2,300 for 512GB and tops out at $2,700.

	256 GB	512 GB	1 TB
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra	$2100	$2300	$2700

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 is the latest foldable phone from Samsung and has slight improvements over its predecessor: it is lighter, has a slightly thinner design, and like other foldable devices from Samsung released alongside it, runs on a Qualcomm processor. Snapdragon 8 Elite Generation 5 chip. It starts at $1,200 for 256GB and goes up to $1,400 for 512GB.

	256 GB	512 GB
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8	$1200	$1400

Galaxy Z Fold 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, and Galaxy Z Flip 8 colors

The new Galaxy Z Fold 8 with a wider form factor debuts in Lavender, Graphite and Cream colours, with a Pistachio color exclusive to Samsung’s online store.

The most premium Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra colors are Violet Shadow and Graphite Cream, with the Green Shadow color being an online exclusive to the Samsung Store only.

The clamshell colors of the Galaxy Z Flip 8 are pink, graphite and cream, with mint available exclusively for the Samsung online store.