Not to be outdone by Samsung鈥檚 huge Galaxy phone sale, Amazon has slashed the price of the Google Pixel 9 and Pixel 8a.
The deal knocks $150 off the base Pixel 9, bringing the price down to $649鈥攁 19% discount. The Pixel 8a gets an even bigger 20% price cut, dropping the final price down to $399. The Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL are still at full price on Amazon and at the Google store.
Amazon has some of the best smartphone deals around if you鈥檙e not interested in bundle offers, or if you don鈥檛 have a phone to trade in. For example, it has undercut Samsung and Apple in previous sales, producing some of the lowest pricing I鈥檝e seen for Galaxy handsets and iPhones.
This is, however, balanced by the company鈥檚 poor trade-in pricing. In a December Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra sale, Amazon offered $5 for the 2017 Galaxy S8 Plus, compared to Samsung鈥檚 $300 valuation. Or $135 for the 2021 Galaxy S21 Ultra against Samsung鈥檚 $650 price.
The new Pixel 9 Amazon sale doesn鈥檛 even have a trade-in option, hence the size of the bargain. If you do have a phone to swap then it might be a good idea to wait for Google鈥檚 next sale. It won鈥檛 be long because the company has run a promotion almost every month over the last year.
Will The Google Pixel 9 Price Drop Again?
Don鈥檛 ever feel rushed to take advantage of a smartphone deal because they are discounted repeatedly in the modern age. Samsung, Google, Motorola, retailers and, to a lesser extent, Apple (via surprisingly competitive trade-in pricing) are locked in an increasingly aggressive price war as people hold on to their phones for longer.
Despite the size of the deal, this Pixel 9 and Pixel 8a price will surface again. The Pixel 8a could be even cheaper after the Pixel 9a lands this month. You may get a better price outside of Amazon if you combine a decent phone to trade in with a discount.
Google鈥檚 trade-in pricing doesn鈥檛 match Samsung鈥檚 insanely high valuations, but a recent sale showed that Amazon鈥檚 price can be beaten. Google鈥檚 January promotion also discounted the base Pixel 9 to $649, but included enhanced trade-in pricing. If you had a Pixel 6 Pro ($360) or Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max ($330) you could鈥檝e picked up the Google phone for under $350.
If you do decide to buy the Pixel 8a, it is worth pointing out that the Pixel 9a may not be a major generational leap from its predecessor. You may not miss out on much.
Google鈥檚 phones stand out because of their software. The company鈥檚 crown jewel features, such as seven years of software support, some of the best still photography on the market, AI image editing tools and quarterly feature drops are available on the Pixel 8a. In any case, it is worth waiting for the Pixel 9a launch before deciding because Pixel 8a prices will only go down from here.