Google Pixel 7a vs Pixel 6a: What’s the difference?

Here is how the Google Pixel 7a compares to the Pixel 6a. Should you upgrade, or which should you buy if you’re in the market for a mid-range Pixel?

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  Google / Pocket-lint

  Google Pixel 7a

  Our top choice

  The Pixel 7a is Google’s latest mid-range phone. It succeeds the Pixel 6a, and sits alongside the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, offering a number of great specs and features and bridging the gap even more between flagship and mid-range.

  Pros

  • Flagship power
  • Pixel camera (with a caveat)
  • Good clean software

  Cons

  • Ultrawide camera switching bug
  • Display not the brightest

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  Google / Pocket-lint

  Google Pixel 6a

  Excellent value

  The Pixel 6a is no longer Google’s latest affordable phone, but it still offers incredible value for money, taking much of the Pixel 6 experience and condensing it down to a more affordable package. It’s still a great mid-range phone.

  Pros

  • Great looking phone
  • Flagship power
  • Good updates

  Cons

  • Storage limited to 128GB
  • Display only 60Hz

Google announced its latest mid-range smartphone – the Pixel 7a – at its I/O developer conference on 10 May. In the months leading up to the event, there were numerous rumours and leaks surrounding the device, but now everything has been made official and we have ourselves a new mid-range marvel.

The Pixel 7a sits alongside the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro, and it succeeds the Pixel 6a, though you will still be able to buy the 2022 model through Google and a number of other retailers.

With that in mind, we’ve compared the specifications of the the Pixel 7a to the Pixel 6a to help you work out what the differences are, whether it is worth upgrading, and if you’re in the market for a mid-range Pixel, should you get the Pixel 7a or the Pixel 6a?

Price, availability, specs

Let’s start with pricing and availability. The Google Pixel 7a was announced on 10 May at Google I/O and it was made available immediately after. The Pixel 6a remains in the Pixel line-up, much like what Apple does with its iPhone models.

The Google Pixel 6a cost $449 in the US when it first launched, £399 in the UK and €459 in Europe, though it is typically available for less now. The Pixel 7a meanwhile, starts at $499 in the US, £449 in the UK and €509 in Europe, so its base price is a little more than the Google Pixel 6a.

Below you’ll see a table of the Pixel 7a’s specs compared to the Pixel 6a’s specs. We’ve gone into more detail about the differences a little further down though as specs aren’t everything so that’s worth keeping in mind.

• 	Google Pixel 7a	Google Pixel 6a
  SoC	Tensor G2	Tensor G1
  Display	6.1-inch OLED, Full HD+, 90Hz	6.1-inch, OLED, Full HD+, 60Hz
  Battery	4385mAh, 18W fast charging, 7.5W wireless charging	4410mAh, Fast charging
  Front camera	13MP, f/2.2	8MP, f/2.0
  Rear cameras	64MP f/1.89 main, 13MP f/2.2 ultra-wide	12.2MP f/1.7 main, 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide
  Dimensions	152.4 x 72.9 x 9mm, 193g	152.2 x 71.8. x 8.9mm, 178g
  Colors	Charcoal, Snow, Sea, Coral	Charcoal, Chalk and Sage
  IP Rating	IP67	IP67
  RAM and Storage	8GB / 128GB	6GB / 128GB

Design and build

The Google Pixel 7a shares an almost identical design to the Pixel 6a, with a couple of minor tweaks. It features a flat display like the Pixel 6a, offering a centralised punch hole camera at the top and an under-display fingerprint sensor at the bottom.

The rear meanwhile, has a dual rear camera system within a camera housing that spans the width of the device, again like the Pixel 6a. Where the Pixel 6a has a dual-colour rear though, with the top of the rear a different colour to the bottom, split by the camera housing, the Pixel 7a has just one colour like the Pixel 7 and 7 Pro. The camera bar is a lot more premium, however, so it looks like a better quality phone.

The Pixel 6a measures 152.2 x 71.8 x 8.9mm and weighs 178g. It comes in Black, White and Green colour options. The Pixel 7a measures 152.4 x 72.9 x 9mm and weighs 193g – so nearly identical in measurements, though heavier in weight than its predecessor. The colour options are Charcoal, Snow and Sea, though there is also a Coral option available through the Google Store.

In terms of water and dust resistance, the Pixel 6a is IP67, which the Pixel 7a retains. The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro are both IP68 for reference.

Display

The Google Pixel 6a has a 6.1-inch OLED display sporting a Full HD+ resolution at 2400 x 1080 pixels, which delivers a pixel density of 429ppi.

The Pixel 7a offers the same size and resolution as the Pixel 6a, though it increases the display’s refresh rate from 60Hz to 90Hz, which puts it in line with the Pixel 7. The Pixel 7 Pro has a 120Hz refresh rate in case you’re wondering. This display is also a little brighter than the Pixel 6a.

The Pixel 7a offers the Face Unlock feature available on the Pixel 7 devices however, which means an additional biometric option to the under-display fingerprint sensor.

Elsewhere, the user experience is the same between the Pixel 6a and the Pixel 7a with features like an always-on display, At A Glance calendar/weather info and the Now Playing functionality offered on both devices.

Hardware

The Google Pixel 7a runs on the second generation of the Tensor chip called Tensor G2, like the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. This is an upgrade to the Pixel 6a, which runs on the first-generation of the Tensor chip. There’s also an upgrade in RAM on the Pixel 7a too.

The Pixel 6a has 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage as a base, while the Pixel 7a offers 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage in the base model.

When it comes to battery, there are some upgrades for the Pixel 7a here too, though not in terms of capacity. In fact, it sees a slight reduction in battery. The battery capacity of the Pixel 7a is 4385mAh compared to the Pixel 6a’s 4500mAh capacity. There is 7.5W wireless charging on board though, which is a first for a Pixel “a” device. Wired charging tops out at 18W, so it’s nowhere near the likes of the Realme GT 3 and it’s 240W charging, but that won’t be a deal breaker for most.

Camera

The Google Pixel 7a makes camera improvements over its predecessor too. It has a 64-megapixel main camera sensor, coupled with a 13-megapixel ultra-wide sensor.

The Pixel 6a has a similar camera setup to the Google Pixel 5 with a 12.2-megapixel main camera and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera. It therefore means Google has upgraded both the main camera and ultra-wide sensor on the Pixel 7a.

The Pixel 6a has a great camera offering overall, and while we did come across a little software bug in our Google Pixel 7a testing, results from the camera are excellent. There are some brilliant features too, including Magic Eraser for removing unwanted objects in the background, Real Tone for ensuring all skin tones are displayed accurately and Face Unblur, which essentially means no more blurry selfies. All of these are on the 7a and 6a.

When it comes to the front camera, the Pixel 6a has an 8-megapixel sensor, but the Pixel 7a upgrades to a 13-megapixel sensor so there have been some solid improvements here too.

Conclusion

The Google Pixel 7a offers a number of solid improvements over its predecessor, making it our top choice if your budget allows.

The design and display remain similar to the Pixel 6a, though there are a few tweaks, including a more seamless design, faster refresh rate and Face Unlock, bringing in a number of features from the Pixel 7

Google / Pocket-lint

Google Pixel 7a

Our top choice

The Google Pixel 7a is the company’s latest mid-range smartphone and it brings a number of excellent improvements over its predecessor, putting it closer in line with the Pixel 7.

The main camera and ultra wide camera both get an upgrade too, along with the processor, front camera and there are other extra features too, like wireless charging.

The Google Pixel 6a is still an excellent device though, with a fantastic price now so it’s a no brainer if your budget doesn’t stretch far enough for the Pixel 7a.

Google / Pocket-lint

Google Pixel 6a

Excellent value

$334.6 $449 Save $114.4

The Pixel 6a is Google’s latest affordable phone, taking much of the Pixel 6 experience and condensing it down to a more affordable package.