Google confirms: Pixel smartphones are becoming more expensive across the board

Anyone who wants to buy a Pixel smartphone from Google will soon have to dig deeper into their pockets. Higher procurement costs for memory components are now forcing the manufacturer to increase prices. This applies not only to future models, but also to current models.

Memory costs are rising

On August 14th, Google will present its new Pixel 11 series smartphones. There were already a few leaks in advance that showed both the Pixel 11 Pro and the upcoming foldable. Even the Pixel 11a, which is not expected until spring 2027, has already been seen. As the manufacturer has now officially announced, the prices for the upcoming smartphones will rise noticeably. According to its own statements, Google is reacting to the global storage crisis. The exact prices for the new devices are expected to be announced at the hardware event in California in mid-August. In addition to the new cell phones, models that are already available are also expected to become more expensive in the near future.

The cost of RAM has risen sharply in recent months. While a gigabyte of RAM cost 2.80 US dollars (around two euros) in 2025, the price is currently twelve US dollars (around eleven euros). The background is the high demand for memory chips for servers in the field of artificial intelligence. Google has so far absorbed such fluctuations internally, but now has to pass on the additional costs to end customers, said Shakil Barkat, vice president of devices and services at Google 9to5Google.

Concrete effects

The current leaks about the upcoming smartphones indicate that the Pixel 11 and the Pixel 11 Pro will cost around $100 (around €88) more than their predecessors at launch. To compensate for customers, the basic memory of the devices should increase from 128 to 256 gigabytes.

Models like the Pixel 11 Pro XL and the foldable Pixel 11 Pro Fold are also expected to be more expensive by the same amount. In order to control overall prices, the entry-level model of the Pixel 11 Pro could only be equipped with twelve instead of 16 gigabytes of RAM. Even the current mid-range device Pixel 10a is facing a possible price increase in the global market.

Software should relieve hardware

Despite this development, the situation has a positive aspect. Software developers at Google are actively working to reduce the storage footprint of Android and the entire app ecosystem. In the future, the operating system should work much more memory-efficiently thanks to clean code. All users could benefit from this in the long term. In contrast to Apple, where the iPhone traditionally requires less RAM due to the close integration of hardware and software, Android has to support a variety of manufacturers and chipsets.

At least with the Pixel devices, Google can rely on its own Tensor processors and device-internal artificial intelligence to run resource-hungry applications much more efficiently in the future. In order to keep its own smartphones attractive in the highly competitive market, the company is also planning to increase special promotions and bundle offers with services such as Google One. This would at least indirectly provide buyers with financial compensation for the increased purchase costs of cell phones.