Google Pixel 11 Pro vs 11 Pro Fold: What’s the difference?

Specs Comparison Table

Price and Availability

At the time of writing, both the Pixel 11 Pro and Pixel 11 Pro Fold are available for pre-order and will officially launch on August 20th. 

The Pixel 11 Pro is the cheaper of the two, with a starting RRP of £1079/$1099 for the 256GB handset. Alternatively you can opt for the XL iteration, which will cost you from an additional £200/$200. To learn the differences between the two, our Pixel 11 Pro vs Pixel 11 Pro XL guide will help. 

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The Pixel 11 Pro Fold is the most expensive of Google’s line-up, with a starting price of £1799/$1999 for its 256GB model.

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Pixel 11 Pro Fold has two displays

Let’s get the most obvious difference out of the way. While the Pixel 11 Pro is a regular “candybar” smartphone with just one screen, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold is a book-style foldable that’s equipped with two. 

Its external display is larger than the Pixel 11 Pro’s own, measuring at 6.5-inches compared to 6.3-inches. There are a few other differences with the screens too, as the Pixel 11 Pro Fold’s has a 19.5:9 aspect ratio whereas the Pixel 11 Pro’s a more standard 20:9 ratio. In addition, the Pixel 11 Pro is fitted with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 whereas the Pixel 11 Pro Fold has an “ultra-durable ceramic cover glass”. Otherwise, both displays promise to be Pixel’s brightest ever, with a peak of 3600 nits.

Open the Pixel 11 Pro Fold and you’ll find its mighty eight-inch panel. Like its external screen, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold’s internal display promises up to 3600 nits of peak brightness and HDR support too. It also benefits from a redesigned hinge that’s promised to be stronger yet lighter than the Pixel 10 Pro Fold’s own – but we’ll wait until we review the Pixel 11 Pro Fold to verify this.

Pixel 11 Pro promises slightly longer battery life

Google has never been known to equip its Pixel handsets with particularly mighty batteries, and the Pixel 11 series is no exception. However, the Pixel 11 Pro slightly bests the Pixel 11 Pro Fold, with a 4850mAh cell that promises over 30 hours of life. In comparison, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold has a slightly smaller 4806mAh capacity that should see around 24 hours between charges.

Otherwise, both support 30W fast charging and are Qi2.2-certified for up to 25W wireless charging too.

Pixel 11 Pro has a Pro rear-camera set-up

Although both handsets have three rear cameras, they differ with their exact offerings. The Pixel 11 Pro has a Pro camera system that’s made up of 50MP main, 48MP ultrawide and 48MP 5x telephoto lenses. It also supports Pro Zoom up to 120x and 8K video recording too.

In comparison, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold has an Advanced camera system that includes a 48MP main, 10.5MP ultrawide and 10.8MP 5x telephoto set-up. While it can’t quite reach 120x zoom, it does support Super Zoom of up to 30x.

That’s not where the camera differences end. While the Pixel 11 Pro has just one 42MP selfie lens, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold has two. Both are 10MP, but one sits on the external display while the other can be found on the inner panel.

As we’re yet to review either the Pixel 11 Pro nor the Pixel 11 Pro Fold, we can’t verify how well they can actually shoot photos. However, given that Pixel phones usually end up in our best camera phones list, and Google claims the Pixel 11 Pro in particular sports its best camera yet, we have pretty high expectations. 

However, and like all Pixel handsets, the hardware is just half the story when it comes to photographic ability, as Google also has a suite of photo editing software that’s genuinely brilliant. Alongside Camera Coach, which gives you live tips on how to take a better photo, there’s tools for post-production tweaks that allows you to move and even completely remove objects from images.

Both run on Tensor G6

Something that unites the entire Pixel 11 series is the fact all phones run on Google’s Tensor G6 processor. Like its predecessors, Tensor G6 prioritises AI capability over sheer performance and enables the running of Google’s extensive AI-powered toolkit. This toolkit is arguably one of the reasons to opt for a Pixel, as it covers everything from the aforementioned photo editing tools to productivity tasks like Circle to Search and access to voice assistant Gemini. 

Google promises that Tensor G6 will see faster web browsing and app launches compared to its predecessor, and will run on-device AI tasks up to 3.5x faster than before too. We’ll be sure to update this versus once we review the chip. 

Both have IP68 ratings

While it’s pretty standard for a smartphone to sport an IP68 rating, which means it’s dust-tight and can survive continuous submersion in water, the Pixel 11 Pro Fold is one of the only foldables to boast such a rating. 

Not only that, but the Pixel 11 Pro Fold is also made from multi-alloy steel with an aerospace-grace, high-strength aluminium alloy cover, while its ultra-durable back has a satin-finish, spacecraft-grade aluminium frame too. While we haven’t reviewed the Pixel 11 Pro Fold, it certainly sounds like a durable handset.

Early Verdict

Choosing between the Pixel 11 Pro and Pixel 11 Pro Fold will ultimately come down to how you want to use a smartphone. If you want a foldable phone, whether that’s because you want a larger screen for watching videos, gaming or even for casual working, then the Pixel 11 Pro Fold will appeal to you. On the other hand, if you aren’t sold on a foldable, and want a standard smartphone that’s fitted with a promising camera set-up, longer battery and AI smarts, then the Pixel 11 Pro is a no-brainer.

We’ll update this versus once we review both handsets.