Google Pixel 7a vs. Pixel 6a: Which one’s right for you?

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Over the past few years, there has been a slow shift in the smartphone market. In years past, it was necessary to get a flagship phone to ensure you received a device powerful and capable enough to last more than a year or two.

As flagship prices have crept up to $1000 or more, manufacturers have begun to take notice of the midrange market segment and have steadily made their offerings stronger and more capable.

Over the past few years, Google has arguably provided the best blend of features in midrange devices. With the Pixel 6a, Google took its flagship quality camera, processor, and design language and brought it to the midrange.

The Pixel 7a continues that trend and raises the bar and price. Both devices are great and very much alike. Their price points will play an important factor in determining the outcome of this battle.

So, which one is right for you? We’ll break everything down to help you make an informed decision. Let’s get started.

Short on time? Jump ahead

Google Pixel 7a vs. Pixel 6a: Price availability and specs

The Pixel 7a is available as of May 10, 2023, and can be found in the US, Canada, the UK, Germany, and France, as well as in 12 additional countries.

The Pixel 6a launched a year earlier, on May 11, 2022, and is available in the previously mentioned countries and eight additional countries.

Both devices are available at all major carriers in the United States and the typical retailers such as the Google Store, Amazon, and Best Buy.

The Pixel 7a will retail for $499 ($549 for Verizon’s mmWave version), while the Pixel 6a is getting a price cut to a ridiculous $350.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Design

The Google Pixel 7a and the Pixel 6a share a very similar design. Both have an aluminum frame and a plastic back. Google continues its recent horizontal camera visor design scheme with both devices. The Pixel 7a’s camera visor is covered in aluminum, while the Pixel 6a’s is covered in glass.

The Pixel 7a has a solid color scheme and is available in four colors: coral (Google Store exclusive), sea, charcoal, and snow.

Google uses a two-tone color scheme with the Pixel 6a, with the camera visor acting as the logical break between the two colors. The 6a is available in three colors: charcoal, chalk, and sage.

Both devices are about the same exact size. The Pixel 7a measures 152 x 72.9 x 9.0mm and weighs a slightly hefty 193.5g. The Pixel 6a is 152.2 x 71.8 x 8.9mm and weighs a bit less at only 178g.

Both devices are IP67 certified and should have no issues handling an accidental drop in water.

The power and volume buttons are also on both devices’ right side. The fingerprint sensor is located under the display on both devices.

The Pixel 7a has 5G, Wi-Fi 6e, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.3. The Pixel 6a has 5G, Wi-Fi 6, NFC, and Bluetooth 5.2 on board.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Display

The Pixel 7a features a 6.1-inch, OLED, 90Hz display with a 2400 x 1080 resolution. The 7a’s refresh rate can be set to stay at 60Hz or bounce between 90Hz and 60Hz, depending on the use case, to save some battery.

The Pixel 6a has a 6.1-inch, OLED, 60Hz display with a 2400 x 1080 resolution.

The difference of 30Hz may not seem like much between these two displays, but it makes a world of difference. The 7a will look significantly smoother when scrolling around on the web or in an app like Instagram.

Both devices are covered in Corning’s Gorilla Glass 3 for added glass strength and durability.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Performance

Both the Pixel 7a and the Pixel 6a run on custom-made Google chipsets. The Pixel 7a has the Tensor G2, while the Pixel 6a has the original Tensor. There is not a significant difference between the two chipsets, despite being released one year apart.

The Tensor G2 will be a little stronger than the original, but Google spent much more time optimizing it for AI. The Tensor G2 is about 12% faster in AnTuTu, with a score of 797k compared to 711k for the original Tensor.

Single-core Geekbench scores are almost identical, with the Tensor G2 getting a score of 1068 and the original Tensor getting a score of 1047.

The 7a is 14% stronger in the multi-core test with a score of 3265 compared to a score of 2860 for the Tensor. Gaming performance is about the same on both.

Both devices have 128GB of UFS 3.1 storage, but the Pixel 7a has 2GB more RAM than the Pixel 6a. The Pixel 7a has 8GB of RAM, while the Pixel 6a has 6GB of RAM.

You may notice more apps closing when not in use on the 6a due to the lower amount of RAM. In real-world usage, both phones are going to feel about the same.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Camera

The camera is where these two devices see their biggest divergence, as Google has overhauled the camera system used in the A-series devices.

The Pixel 7a has a dual camera setup with a 64MP f/1.89 main camera and a 13MP f/2.2 ultrawide lens with a 120-degree field of view.

The main lens can record video at up to 4K and 60 fps, while the ultrawide lens tops out at 4K and 30 fps. The 7a also has a 13MP f/2.2 front-facing camera that can record 4K or 1080P videos at 30 frames per second.

The Pixel 6a also has a dual camera system and uses Google’s dependable Sony Exmor IMX363 as its main sensor. The 6a has a 12.2MP f/1.7 main lens and a 12MP f/2.2 ultrawide lens with a 114-degree field of view.

The main camera can record video at 4K and up to 60 fps. The front-facing camera is 8MP f/2.0 and can record 1080p videos at up to 30 fps.

Due to Google’s excellent post-image software, both devices take amazing photos. The 7a will have the edge in low-light situations as it has the extra megapixels to bin its images. While the 7a will be the more capable shooter, the 6a can still give it a run for its money.

The biggest difference between the two will be when zooming in or cropping a photo. The 7a just has more megapixels at its disposal.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Software

With any Pixel device, you can expect to receive Google’s Pixel UI and virtually no bloatware on the device.

The Pixel UI is a mostly a stock experience with a few useful apps that take advantage of Google’s AI prowess. For example, a few software tricks up the Pixel 7a’s sleeve leave the 6a a little behind.

The 7a has Google’s Photo Unblur technology to help remove any blur taken in your pictures. It also has cough and snore detection while you are sleeping. Outside of these two features, the 7a and 6a are running the same version of Android.

The Pixel 7a launched with Android 13 and will receive three years of OS upgrades and five total years of security updates.

The Pixel 6a launched with Android 12, which has since been updated to Android 13, and has the same level of software support. The 7a being a year newer means it will get an additional year of software support.

Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: Battery life

The Pixel 7a has a 4,385mAh battery and can be charged via 18W wired or 7.5W wireless charging. The Pixel 6a has a 4,410mAh battery and is limited to 18W wired charging.

Both devices should easily last a full day and about six to seven hours of screen time.

You can expect charging speeds to be a bit slow thanks to the max 18W charging speed. Adding wireless charging to the 7a is a big deal for those who love the feature.

Which Pixel is right for you?

This battle will ultimately come down to a price decision and whether certain features are worth the $150 price difference.

If you want an inexpensive phone that checks all the boxes, the $350 Pixel 6a is a surefire bet. It has a good camera, all-day battery life, decent performance, and a great display.

The 7a is $150 more expensive, but you are getting a stronger and more capable camera setup, a slightly stronger processor with more RAM, the same all-day battery life, an excellent display, and an extra year of software support.

The $499 Pixel 7a really is as close to being a flagship device at this price as you can get.

If you already have the 6a, keep it and save your money. If you are in the market for a new device, you will need to determine if the slightly stronger performance and better camera are worth the asking price.

Either way, you are getting an excellent phone.

Have any thoughts on this? Drop us a line below in the comments, or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Google’s new Pixel Fold is here, and it costs a whopping $1,799
• Preorder the Pixel 7A and get a $50 Best Buy gift card
• Verizon will give you a Google Pixel 7 Pro for free. No trade-in req’d
• Latest Pixel Fold leak unveils almost every spec imaginable

Just a heads up, if you buy something through our links, we may get a small share of the sale. It’s one of the ways we keep the lights on here. Click here for more.