Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Deals - September 2026
54 refurbished deals available - SIM-free from £179.00.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Pay Monthly (Lease) deals
The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G is in our catalog but no UK retailer currently stocks it.
Expert reviews
4.5
(5)
Spec scores
£1000-£1499 Phones · 36 phones
Performance
2.7
/5
Display
4
/5
Rear Camera
2
/5
Measured by DXOMARK · 115
Front Camera
4.4
/5
Battery
2.5
/5
Color
All
Black
Brown
Silver
Storage
All
128GB
512GB
256GB
Photography-focused buyers hunting a refurbished flagship who want genuine 10x optical zoom and a huge high-resolution screen, and who can live without ongoing software updates.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Pay Monthly (Lease)
Photos
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Images: Samsung
About the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G
The Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G was Samsung's kitchen-sink flagship for 2021, and it is aged well enough to still be a sensible refurbished buy. The headline act is the camera array: rather than one long lens, you get two, a 3x telephoto and a separate 10x periscope, which means genuinely usable reach at both portrait distance and across a football pitch. That dual-zoom setup is still rare, and it is the main reason people hunt this phone down years later. The 6.8-inch QHD+ panel is enormous and can run its adaptive 120Hz refresh rate at full resolution, unlike the S20 Ultra before it. It was also the first non-Note Galaxy S to accept an S Pen, though the stylus is a separate purchase and there is nowhere on the phone to store it. The trade-offs are real: at 227g it is a genuinely heavy phone, Samsung removed the microSD slot, and the UK's Exynos 2100 chip runs warmer than the Snapdragon version sold elsewhere. Its update window has now closed, so treat it as a camera-led bargain rather than a long-term phone.
Expert Rating
4.5
(5 reviews)
Price History
Tracking the best prices since 27 Apr 2026.
SIM-Free (Refurb)
Lowest price in 30 days (£179)
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G vs Galaxy S21+ 5G - Key Differences
| Feature | Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G | Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 3200×1440, 120Hz | 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 2400×1080, 120Hz |
| Rear camera | 108MP wide + 12MP ultrawide + 10MP 3x tele + 10MP 10x periscope | 12MP wide + 12MP ultrawide + 64MP telephoto |
| Front camera | 40MP | 10MP |
| Battery | 5,000 mAh, 25W wired / 15W wireless | 4,800 mAh, 25W wired / 15W wireless |
| Weight | 227 g | 200 g |
| Dimensions | 165.1 × 75.6 × 8.9 mm | 161.5 × 75.6 × 7.8 mm |
| Memory | 12GB or 16GB RAM, 128/256/512GB | 8GB RAM, 128/256GB |
| SIM-free price | Not available | From £129.00 |
Frequently asked questions
Is the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G worth buying?
It is worth buying second-hand or refurbished if you want serious zoom range without paying current flagship money, since the dual 3x and 10x optical telephoto setup still beats most modern mid-range phones. The catch is software: Samsung's promised four Android upgrades and five years of security patches ran out in early 2026, so it no longer receives updates. Buy it for the cameras and the screen, not for longevity.
How long will the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G receive updates?
Samsung committed to four major Android upgrades and five years of security patches from the January 2021 launch, taking it from Android 11 to Android 15. Both windows have now expired, so the phone no longer receives new Android versions or security patches. If ongoing security updates matter to you, look at a newer Galaxy S or A series model instead.
Does the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G have expandable storage?
No. Samsung dropped the microSD card slot across the entire S21 range, so whatever storage you buy is what you are stuck with. Choose the 256GB or 512GB version if you shoot a lot of video, because the 128GB model fills up quickly at these camera resolutions.
Does the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G work with the S Pen?
Yes, it was the first Galaxy S phone to support the S Pen stylus. However, the S Pen is sold separately and there is no slot in the phone to house it, so you need a compatible case or a pocket to carry it in. It is a genuine feature rather than a gimmick, but far less convenient than the Note series implementation.
Is the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G camera good?
Yes, and the zoom is the reason. It pairs a 108MP main sensor and a 12MP ultrawide with two separate telephoto cameras, a 10MP 3x and a 10MP 10x periscope, so both portrait crops and distant subjects stay sharp rather than relying on digital upscaling. The 40MP front camera is also unusually high resolution for a phone of this era.
Should I get the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G or the Galaxy S21+ 5G?
Choose the Ultra if photography is the priority, as it is the only one of the two with a 108MP sensor, a 10x periscope zoom and a sharper QHD+ screen. The S21+ is the easier phone to live with day to day, weighing 200g against the Ultra's 227g and using a smaller 6.7-inch panel. Both share the same chip, IP68 rating and charging speeds, so it comes down to camera reach versus comfort in the hand.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Specifications
Spec Scores
£1000-£1499 Phones · 36 phones
- Exynos 2100
- Octa-core (1x2.9 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.80 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x2.2 GHz Cortex-A55) - International
This phone
53%
Avg
83%
Best
100%
This phone
53%
Avg
50%
Best
100%
Based on calibrated CPU benchmark rankings (60%) and GFXBench GPU scores (40%). Apple chipsets included via editorial calibration since AnTuTu under-represents Apple's architecture.
- 6.8 inches
- 1440 x 3200 pixels
- AMOLED, 120Hz, 1500 nits peak
This phone
79%
Avg
84%
Best
98%
This phone
79%
Avg
61%
Best
98%
Based on panel type (LTPO is the modern flagship gold standard), resolution, refresh rate, peak brightness, screen size, and HDR10+ / Dolby Vision support. Marketing peak-brightness claims are capped at 3500 nits to prevent inflation.
Lab-measured by DXOMARK (115 on their scale). The measured result replaces our spec-sheet estimate for this category.
- Single camera setup
- 108 MP main camera
- 8K video recording
This phone
39%
Avg
69%
Best
95%
This phone
39%
Avg
41%
Best
95%
Based on main-sensor size (1-inch / 1/1.3" beats 1/2.0"), telephoto reach (periscope > 5x > 3x optical), image processing tier (Apple Pro, Pixel Pro, Galaxy Ultra, Honor Magic Pro, Xiaomi Ultra), pro video features (ProRes, Apple Log, Dolby Vision), camera-partnership branding (Leica, Hasselblad, Zeiss) and OIS. Older flagships are de-rated since image processing pipelines have advanced significantly each generation. Megapixel count is deliberately downweighted — it correlates poorly with real-world camera quality. Where DXOMARK has lab-tested the phone, its measured score replaces this estimate.
- 40 MP front camera
- 4K selfie video
This phone
88%
Avg
82%
Best
93%
This phone
88%
Avg
60%
Best
93%
Based on the image-processing tier (Apple Pro, Pixel Pro, Galaxy Ultra and Honor Magic lead on computational processing), sensor resolution in tiers rather than raw megapixels, autofocus, aperture and max selfie-video resolution. Calibrated against DXOMARK's selfie protocol.
- 5,000 mAh
- 25W wired, PD3.0
This phone
49%
Avg
66%
Best
94%
This phone
49%
Avg
53%
Best
100%
Based on battery capacity (mAh) adjusted for platform efficiency calibrated against NotebookCheck, Tom's Guide, GSMArena and CNET reviewer tests. Apple A-series gets +45% (iOS process freezing + LTPO 1Hz + tuned panels make iPhone Pro Max outlast many 6500+ mAh Android phones in measured tests). Top Snapdragon / Dimensity flagships get +15%, budget chipsets are penalised −15% to −25% to reflect less efficient displays and looser background limits. Charging speed is excluded — see the separate Fast charging tag for that.
General
Camera
Primary Camera Megapixels
108
Primary Camera Video
8K@24fs, 4K@30/60fs, 1080@30/60/120/240fs, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
Selfie Camera Features
HDR
Primary Selfie Camera
40 , f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8", 0.7µm, PDAF
Video Resolution
4320
Selfie Video Resolution
4K@30/60fs, 1080@30fs
Display
Type
Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1500 nits (peak)
Display Size
6.8
Display Resolution
1440 x 3200 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~515 ppi density)
Display Protection
Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
CPU & Memory
Sound
Loudspeaker
Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm Jack
No
Connectivity & Data
2G
GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G
HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100
4G
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 48, 66, 71 - SM-G998U1
5G
2, 5, 25, 41, 66, 71, 260, 261 SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - SM-G998U1
Network Speed
HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE (7CA) Cat20 2000/200 Mbps, 5G (5+ Gbps DL)
Network Technology
GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct
Bluetooth
5.2, A2DP, LE
USB
USB Type-C 3.2, OTG
NFC
Yes
GPS
GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
Battery
Battery
5000
Charging
25W wired, PD3.0 15W wireless (Qi) 4.5W reverse wireless
Other
Sensors
Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer