6 Reasons To Choose The Google Pixel 9a Over The Moto G (2025)

It’s harder than ever to pick a new budget Android phone. If you live outside the US, the Nothing 3a offers phenomenal value, while Samsung’s Galaxy A16 offers good performance at rock-bottom prices. But it’s the Pixel 9a that’s caught our eye with its distinctive redesign and impressive hardware. However, at $500, it’s still not cheap; it’s easy to find good Android phones for less.

Enter the Moto G (2025). It can’t beat the Pixel 9a’s hardware, but we wouldn’t expect anything else for a $200 phone. However, even if you prefer value over performance, we still wouldn’t recommend choosing the Moto G (2025) over the Pixel 9a. The extra $300 is well worth it, and here’s why.

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6 You can’t trust Motorola’s support promises

Why buy a device that’s not built to last?

No matter what Motorola phone you’re buying, you’re at the mercy of Motorola’s inconsistent support cycle. Motorola is notorious for promising extended software support but not releasing updates on time. It wouldn’t be surprising for the Moto G (2025) to receive Android 16 a year too late. But even if Motorola does manage to release its updates on time, you’ll only get two OS updates and three years of security updates. We get that this is a budget phone, but longevity matters for software as well as hardware.

Enter the Pixel 9a with its whopping seven years of Android OS and security updates. If you want to keep your phone secure (which you should), then you would have to replace your Moto G (2025) in 2028. Even if you manage to only spend $200 again, you’re still most of the way to the cost of the Pixel 9a.

Picking up a Pixel 9a over the Moto G (2025) means you will have a device that is more secure for longer. But even if Motorola did offer extended software support, the Moto G (2025)’s hardware probably wouldn’t be able to keep up.

5 Performance matters, even for budget phones

The Moto G (2025) compromises too much

On an average day, you’ll probably never come close to utilizing the full power of the latest iPhone Pro model or Samsung Galaxy Ultra. These devices offer phenomenal processing power, but they just aren’t necessary for most people. Unfortunately, the Moto G (2025) tilts too far in the other direction.

While nobody expects the ability to play the most demanding Android games from a sub-$500 phone, we do expect smooth and consistent performance. In our review, we found that the Moto G (2025)’s MediaTek Dimensity 6300 processor and 4GB of RAM weren’t enough to stop the phone from stuttering on simple actions like scrolling a web page or closing an app. It makes a mockery of the phone’s 120Hz display and is a frustrating experience. As the performance degrades over time, you’ll find the phone struggling more often.

The Pixel 9a’s Tensor G4 processor also won’t be able to handle Genshin Impact at max settings, but it’s more than capable of everyday tasks. In our review, we found that it never stuttered when multitasking or under heavy use. This hardware could easily last for the seven years of software support.

4 The Pixel 9a’s camera system is worth the money

For casual photography, it’s hard to find a better phone

Strangely, the Pixel 9a might have the best primary camera out of all its siblings. We noticed that it produced images with bolder colors than those taken with the Pixel 9 Pro XL. They’re also crisp and clear, and thanks to Google’s behind-the-scenes wizadry, it’s easy to snap a great looking photo for social media without spending time balancing lighting levels.

If you’re not a professional photographer, you’ll find the Pixel 9a is perfect for all your photography. But even if you only take photos of your dog to show your grandma, we still wouldn’t recommend the Moto G (2025).

The Moto G (2025) produces muddy images that are low in detail. The overall effect is somewhat gloomy in normal lighting, and downright miserable in dim settings. It’s a camera system you won’t want to use. The Pixel 9a’s post-processing isn’t without its flaws, but you’ll struggle to spot them if you aren’t looking for them.

3 The Pixel 9a has better battery life

It’s not much more, but it’s noticeable

One of the few things the Moto G (2025) has going for it is its impressive battery life. In our review, the 5,000mAh battery gave us eight hours of screen-on time, and only needed to charge every two days. By comparison, the Pixel 9a’s 5,100mAh cell ended the day at 60-70%.

If you plug your phone in every night, there isn’t much difference between the battery life of the two phones. Nevertheless, the Pixel 9a does beat the Moto G (2025) slightly, thanks to its more efficient processor.

2 The brighter and bolder display is worth the higher price

Average meets stunning

The Pixel 9a has a beautiful display. It’s the same hardware we saw on the Pixel 9, where we also loved it, thanks to its excellent color saturation, high maximum brightness (2,700 nits), and 1080p resolution. It’s a stunning display for gaming, watching movies, or video calls.

The Moto G (2025)’s display is another strong point of the phone, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the Pixel 9a. The LCD panel doesn’t come close to the Pixel 9’s Super Actua OLED display, and its brightness can’t go above 1000 nits. The 6.7-inch display is noticeably larger than the Pixel 9’s 6-inch screen, but in practice, it doesn’t make much difference.

To clarify, the Moto G (2025)’s display isn’t bad. In fact, it’s impressive considering the price. But it doesn’t come close to the Pixel 9a.

1 You won’t need to wait long to pay less for a Pixel 9a

Sales are frequent, and you can wait for years

The Pixel 8a launched in June 2024 for $500, and by November, it was on sale for $400. This isn’t even considering the various carrier deals and trade-in offers over the months, which reduced the price further.

If you’re not convinced that the Pixel 9a is worth $500, you can easily find it for less. At the time of the Pixel 9a’s launch, Google Fi offered a free Pixel 9a if you signed up for 24 months of the service, and Verizon and AT&T had similar offers. If you keep your eye out, you can pick up the Pixel 9a for a significant discount.

Assuming you don’t need a new Android phone right now, we recommend waiting if you’re still on the fence about which new budget Android phone to buy. The Pixel 9a will only get better with age, while the Moto G (2025)’s twilight months are fast approaching.

Buy the better phone that’ll last you for longer

In the long run, the Moto G (2025) might end up costing you more than picking up a brand-new Pixel 9a. You’ll want to replace it earlier to keep your digital life secure, and that’s if the performance issues don’t drive you away before then.

The Pixel 9a is designed to last. It’s a phone that could last you until 2032 when its software support ends, but we wouldn’t be surprised if you want to keep it around for longer. Just wait for the inevitable $100 discount to get the best value.

Google Pixel 9a

Google’s Pixel 9a takes everything that was great about the Pixel 8a and looks to modernize it. With an all-new Pixel 9-inspired look and no camera bump, this might be the best $500 smartphone we’ve seen yet.

SoC

Google Tensor G4

Display type

pOLED, 120Hz

Display dimensions

6.3 inches

Display resolution

1080 x 2424

RAM

8GB

Storage

128GB, 256GB