The Samsung Galaxy A36 5G is a well-rounded mid-range phone with a great display, long battery life, and reliable performance for everyday use. It’s ideal for casual users who want a big, bright screen, AI-powered features, and long-term software support without the premium price tag.
With its 6.7-inch AMOLED display, 120Hz refresh rate, and 5,000mAh battery with 45W fast charging, it covers the essentials well. The cameras are functional but unremarkable, and while performance is smooth for daily tasks, it’s not built for demanding gaming. There’s no microSD slot, no headphone jack, and no Samsung DeX, but for social media, streaming, and general use, it’s a dependable choice that will stay relevant for years.
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Design
At first glance, the A36 looks almost identical to other devices in the new Samsung A series lineup, like the A56 (5G). It has a minimalistic design with a simple camera array on the back. It has a lightweight build at 195g and a slim size at only 7.4mm thick.
When looking at it, there’s not much to differentiate it from more premium devices; it’s sleek and classy, however, it does feel a lot more like a phone in the midrange class when picking it up. The plastic frame isn’t quite as premium as an aluminium option, and the back feels a little more “plasticky” than other more expensive phones. But this is to be expected from a phone in this range.
The camera array does stick out quite a bit, which can make the phone rock to the left when using it on a flat surface, and it doesn't look particularly great. I prefer a camera bump that seamlessly blends into the back of the phone, while here it looks like it’s simply stuck on. But that’s really the only negative with the design; overall, it’s a decent-looking phone.
It boasts a Gorilla Glass Victus+ front and back, a plastic frame and an IP67 dust/water resistance rating, so it’s durable and capable of surviving a few drops.
Display
For a mid-range phone, the display is excellent, and it's the standout feature here. It’s a 6.7-inch Super AMOLED screen offering Full HD+, 1080 x 2340 resolution with an impressive 120Hz refresh rate.
Scrolling and animations are smooth and responsive, and it also supports a peak brightness of 1,900 nits, making it easily visible outdoors.
There’s no HDR10+ support though, meaning you won’t get the full dynamic range in streaming apps like Netflix, but, for everyday use, browsing, social media, and gaming, it’s one of the best displays in its class.
Performance
Powered by the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 chipset, paired with 6GB or 8GB of RAM, the A36 delivers decent day-to-day performance. Apps open quickly, and multitasking is smooth, but this isn’t a powerhouse device. Don’t expect to be able to play the most graphically intense games or perform resource-demanding tasks like video editing.
Storage options include 128GB or 256GB, but there’s no microSD slot this time around.
We used Geekbench 6 to test the CPU and 3DMark Wildlife Extreme to test the GPU, which are intense benchmarking tests designed for more premium devices, so we weren’t expecting great results here.
The Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 achieved a single-core CPU score of 1920 and a Multi-core CPU score of 2938. It also achieved a 3DMark score of 909 with an average FPS of 5.45.
These results show the CPU is capable of handling everyday tasks smoothly, including web browsing, social media, and multitasking. However, its graphics performance is quite limited, meaning demanding 3D games will struggle, especially at higher settings.
It’s fine for casual gaming and general use, but not a powerhouse for heavy gaming or intensive workloads.
Cameras
The cameras are serviceable for a mid-range phone, allowing you to take decent everyday photos without much effort, but there’s nothing particularly exciting about the setup. Shots come out punchy and bright, with Samsung’s usual tendency to oversaturate colours.
The 50MP main camera with Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) does most of the heavy lifting, and in decent lighting, it produces clear and well-balanced shots. In lower light, Samsung’s AI helps smooth out noise, but finer details still take a hit, and dynamic range isn’t the best.
The 12MP ultra-wide lens is handy for group shots or landscapes, but like most mid-range ultra-wides, it softens details and struggles in dimmer conditions. There’s also a 5MP macro lens, which isn't particularly useful outside of very specific close-up scenarios; it’s more of a fun extra than a genuinely good camera.
On the front, the 12MP selfie camera takes sharp enough shots, though Samsung’s default processing tends to smooth out skin a little too aggressively. It does support 4K video recording, which is a nice touch for a mid-range phone, and Samsung’s AI tools, like Object Eraser and Best Face, come in handy as well.
AI & Features
Samsung’s AI features are here, and they work well, introducing additional functionality, which is great in a mid-range device. If you have specific use cases for them, they’re genuinely helpful rather than just gimmicks.
Circle to Search is one of the most practical tools, letting you draw a circle around anything on your screen to instantly look it up. Object Eraser allows you to remove unwanted objects from photos with just a tap, and there’s a whole lot more.
Samsung is promising six years of Android updates and security patches, and the A36 also comes with 5G, Wi-Fi 6, an in-display fingerprint scanner, stereo speakers, and dual SIM + eSIM support, so it’s well-equipped for everyday use.
Unfortunately, Samsung DeX isn’t included, so you won’t be using this as a desktop replacement, but for most people, the A36’s AI tools and long-term software support make it feel like a well-rounded, future-proof device.
Battery
The Galaxy A36 is powered by a 5,000mAh battery that keeps it running all day. For normal usage like scrolling social media, sending messages and watching videos, you’ll easily be able to use this for a day without having to charge it. For more demanding tasks like gaming, the battery will drain more quickly, as expected, so you might have to give it a top-up during the day.
A nice addition is that the A36 supports 45W Super Fast Charging, which allows you to charge from 0 to 65% in 30 minutes and reach 100% in just over an hour. Unfortunately, there’s no wireless charging, which is still reserved for higher-end devices.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy A36 5G gets the fundamentals right, with a bright and smooth 6.7-inch AMOLED display, solid battery life, and 45W fast charging. Samsung’s AI features add real functionality, and six years of software updates make it one of the most future-proof options in its class.
That said, performance is just decent, with limited gaming power, and the cameras, while serviceable, don’t stand out. The design is clean but feels more mid-range in the hand, and the camera bump sticks out more than some might like.
For anyone who wants a dependable phone for social media, streaming, and general everyday use, the A36 5G is a solid choice. It’s not exciting, but it’s practical, offering a great display, long battery life, and useful software features in a well-rounded package.
