Understanding Samsung’s Galaxy A-Series Naming Scheme

Samsung launched new midrange and budget phones this past weekend which you can read about here. However, I realise that Samsung’s naming scheme on the A-series is a bit confusing if you aren’t already acutely familiar with it.

Let us clear it all up so that even when armed with just device name, you would know a lot about a device.

Logic in the madness

It doesn’t look like it but Samsung’s Galaxy A series is logical, but it can be confusing at first. Here’s a simple way to understand it:

The First Number (Tens Digit) – Series Level

This tells you how premium the phone is:

• A10–A30 series → Entry-level (budget-friendly, basic features). (This includes the A00 series which started at A01)
• A30–A50 series → Mid-range (better screens, cameras, and performance)
• A70–A90 series → Upper mid-range (larger displays, better cameras and performance, premium build)

A higher first number = better features (but not necessarily newer).

The Last Digit – Release Year

Samsung follows a clear pattern where you can determine the release year using this simple rule:

Last Digit – 1 = Release Year

For example:

• A51 → (1 – 1) = 2020
• A52 → (2 – 1) = 2021
• A53 → (3 – 1) = 2022
• A54 → (4 – 1) = 2023
• A55 → (5 – 1) = 2024
• A56 → (6 – 1) = 2025

This means:

• An A26 is newer than an A55, even though the number is lower.
• An A73 (from 2022) is older than an A55 (from 2024) despite the 70-series sounding more premium.

5G & “s” Versions

• “5G” → Indicates a 5G version of that model (e.g., A55 5G vs. regular A55).
• “s” models → Slightly improved versions of an existing phone (e.g., A12s).
• “e” models → Largely done away with now but the ‘e’ stood for ‘essential’, meaning a more affordable or stripped-down version of a phone

How to Quickly Identify a Galaxy A Phone

If you’re confused about a Galaxy A model:

1. Check the first number → Tells you the feature level (higher = better).
2. Check the last digit → Subtract 1 to get the release year.

So, now I think we can all get a sense of what an A32 is all about just from the name. It’s an entry level one from 2021.

Caveats

One of the major reasons there is confusion is that Samsung revamped the A series naming scheme in 2019 to be what we described above.

That means older A series phones had their own scheme going. So, you could find a Galaxy A9 on the market and be confused where it fits in.

First off, if it doesn’t have a double digit name, it means it’s from 2018 going backwards. I would not advise buying a midrange, let alone entry level phone from 2018 in 2025. So, you best look away if you see that.

The last thing to note is that Samsung has not consistently released phones under a digit name. For example, the A90 series appears to have been discontinued after the A91.

The same applies to the A80, A60 and A40 series which are no longer being released. However, they still might release phones in these series.

That’s it. Hopefully you can now make sense of the Galaxy A Series naming scheme.