Phone Comparisons: Google Pixel 9 Pro Vs Xiaomi 15

Xiaomi announced a rather compelling compact smartphone alongside its ‘Ultra’ flagship at MWC 2025. The Xiaomi 15 arrived, its global variant. That is also a high-end smartphone, and in this article, we’ll compare it to its counterpart. We’ll be comparing the Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15. Both of these smartphones are high-end devices, but they also belong in the company smartphone category.

They both look different and have different internals, while they’re equivalents in terms of price tags. So, this comparison is kind of perfect in terms of balance. Let’s see what each phone has to offer, starting with specifications. Following that, we’ll compare them across a number of other categories.

Specs

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15, respectively

– Screen size:
6.3-inch QHD+ OLED (flat, adaptive 120Hz, HDR, 3,000 nits max brightness)
6.36-inch LTPO AMOLED display (flat, adaptive 120Hz, 3,200 nits max brightness)
– Display resolution:
2856 x 1280
2670 x 1200
– SoC:
Google Tensor G4
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite
– RAM:
16GB (LPDDR5X)
12GB/16GB (LPDDR5X)
– Storage:
128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB (UFS 3.1)
256GB/512GB/1TB (UFS 4.0)
– Rear cameras:
50MP (wide, f/1.7 aperture, 1.2um pixel size, OIS, EIS), 48MP (ultrawide, f/1.7 aperture, 123-degree FoV), 48MP (periscope telephoto, f/2.8 aperture, OIS, EIS, 5x optical zoom)
50MP (wide, f/1.6 aperture, 23mm lens, 1.2um pixel size, OIS, 1/1.31-inch sensor size), 50MP (ultrawide, 115-degree FoV, f/2.2 aperture, 1/2.76-inch sensor size), 50MP (telephoto, f/2.0 aperture, 60mm lens, OIS, PDAF, 2.6x optical zoom, 10cm macro)
– Front cameras:
42MP (f/2.2 aperture)
32MP (wide, f/2.0 aperture, 0.7um pixel size)
– Battery:
4,700mAh
5,240mAh
– Charging:
27W wired, 21W wireless (Pixel Stand), 12W Qi wireless, 5W reverse wireless (no charger)
90W wired, 50W wireless, 10W reverse wireless (charger included)
– Dimensions:
152.8 x 72 x 8.5 mm
152.3 x 71.2 x 8.1/8.4/8.5 mm
– Weight:
199 grams
189/191/192 g
– Connectivity:
5G, LTE, NFC, Wi-Fi, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.3/5.4
– Security:
Ultrasonic in-display fingerprint scanner
Ultrasonic in-display fingerprint scanner
– OS:
Android 14 (upgradable)
Android 15 with HyperOS 2
– Price:
$999+
€999+
– Buy:
Google Pixel 9 Pro (Best Buy, Google Store)
Xiaomi 15 (Amazon)

Both of these devices are made out of metal and glass, and both of them have a flat frame all around. The Xiaomi 15 does come in different build variants in China, other than glass. They both also offer a flat display, while the backplate is completely flat on the Pixel 9 Pro. The one on the Xiaomi 15 is also flat, but unlike the Pixel 9 Pro, its frame curves into the backplate on the back. Both devices have rather considerably curvature on their corners, and rather thin bezels around the display. They’re thinner on the Xiaomi 15, though.

You’ll find the power/lock and volume rocker buttons on the right-hand side on both smartphones. The thing is, the power/lock key sits above the volume rocker keys on the Pixel 9 Pro, while it’s the other way around on the Xiaomi 15. A centered display camera hole is included on both devices. The one on the Pixel 9 Pro is placed lower, however, and it’s slightly larger.

If we flip them around, you’ll notice two very different camera islands. The one on the Pixel 9 Pro is pill-shaped and horizontally stretches across the top of the device’s backplate. The Xiaomi 15 has a rectangular camera island in the top-left corner. Both of them have three cameras inside of those modules, and both modules do protrude on the back.

The two phones are very similar in terms of dimensions. The Pixel 9 Pro is, however, ever so slightly taller and wider. It is also a bit heavier in comparison. Both phones come with IP68 certifications for water and dust resistance.

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15: Display

The Google Pixel 9 Pro features a 6.3-inch LTPO OLED display. That panel is flat, and it supports an adaptive refresh rate (1-120Hz). HDR10+ content is also supported, and the peak brightness goes up to 3,000 nits, in theory. The screen-to-body ratio is around 87%, while the display aspect ratio is 20:9. The resolution this phone’s display offers is 2856 x 1280. The Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protects this phone’s display.

The Xiaomi 15, on the other hand, has a 6.36-inch LTPO AMOLED display, which offers an adaptive refresh rate (1-120Hz). Dolby Vision is supported, as is HDR10+ content. Its peak brightness is 3,200 nits, in theory. The screen-to-body ratio is around 90%, while the display aspect ratio is 20:9. The resolution you’re getting here is 2670 x 1200, while the Xiaomi Shield Glass protects this phone’s display.

Both devices have very good displays, there’s no doubt about that. They’re not only very sharp, but are also very vivid and get more than bright enough. The touch response is good on both, as are viewing angles. The blacks are also as deep as you’d expect them to be. Xiaomi’s handset does have one advantage, though. It has high-frequency PWM dimming, unlike the Pixel 9 Pro. If your eyes are sensitive to it, keep it in mind.

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15: Performance

Google’s handset is fueled by the Google Tensor G4 processor. That is the company’s 4nm processor. The phone includes 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 3.1 flash storage. Google, for some reason, decided to go with slower storage speeds. The XIaomi 15, on the flip side, is fueled by the Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, while it includes up to 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 flash storage. Neither phone supports expandable storage, by the way.

The Xiaomi 15 has the hardware advantage of having a faster storage and a considerably more powerful processor. The thing is, the Tensor G4 is very well adapted to the Pixel 9 Pro, so the performance is really not an issue on either phone. Yes, the Xiaomi 15 is a bit snappier when you compare them head-to-head, but that difference is very minimal, and quite frankly, you would not notice it unless you are comparing them directly. Both of these phones are very snappy in day-to-day performance, regardless of what you throw at them.

When it comes to gaming, the Xiaomi 15 is the better choice. It has a more powerful processor, and faster storage, which does result in better performance with high-end games. We had absolutely no issues. The Pixel 9 Pro does well with gaming, but when it comes to truly demanding titles, the Xiaomi 15 has the edge. Both of them do get quite warm during gaming, but we did encounter any overheating.

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15: Battery

A 4,700mAh battery sits inside the Google Pixel 9 Pro. The Xiaomi 15, on the other hand, includes a 5,240mAh battery in its global variant. The Chinese model has a 5,400mAh battery on the inside. Google’s phone uses a regular Li-Ion battery, while Xiaomi opted for a silicon-carbon unit, which offers higher density while remains the same battery size. More and more companies are now using silicon-carbon batteries.

Having said that, both of these phones do offer very good battery life, but the Xiaomi 15 flies above the Pixel 9 Pro. It actually offers considerably better battery life than its predecessor, which is also nice to see. We did not have issues reaching high screen-on-time levels with this phone, above 8 hours of screen-on time, and even crossed the 9-hour mark. Your mileage may vary, of course, but it offers great battery life, that’s for sure. That’s always nice to see on “smaller” smartphones.

It also has the advantage in the charging department, compared to the Pixel 9 Pro. The Xiaomi 15 comes with 90W wired, 50W wireless, and 10W reverse wireless charging. The Pixel 9 Pro offers 27W wired, 21W wireless (with Pixel Stand), 12W wireless (Qi charging), and reverse wireless charging. On top of that, the Xiaomi 15 also ships with a charger included in the box, unlike the Pixel 9 Pro.

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs Xiaomi 15: Cameras

Both of these smartphones have three cameras on the back. The hardware here is quite different, though. The Pixel 9 Pro features a 50-megapixel main camera (1/1.31-inch sensor), a 48-megapixel ultrawide unit (1/2.55-inch sensor size, 123-degree FoV), and a 48-megapixel periscope telephoto unit (1/2.55-inch sensor size, 5x optical zoom).

The Xiaomi 15, on the other hand, comes with a 50-megapixel main camera (1/1.31-inch sensor size), a 50-megapixel ultrawide camera (1/2.76-inch sensor size, 115-degree FoV), and a 50-megapixel telephoto unit (1/2.76-inch sensor size, 2.6x optical zoom). Leica is also a part of the offering here, both its lenses and other expertise.

Both smartphones are very capable when it comes to shooting photos. The results are vastly different, though. The images from the Xiaomi 15 tend to look closer to reality, as the Pixel 9 Pro hits a lot more on processing. It’s all a matter of preference, of course. The Pixel 9 Pro also prefers more contrasty shots. Both can capture outstanding photos, especially their main cameras, and they trade blows depending on the scene.

We preferred the results from the Pixel 9 Pro’s ultrawide camera more often than not. The telephoto results are interesting. Both telephoto cameras mimic the main camera well, up to a certain level. They both do a great job. If you do go over 3x, however, especially over 5x, the Pixel 9 Pro will offer better results. The Xiaomi 15 has a regular telephoto camera.

Audio

There are stereo speakers included on both of these phones. The audio quality is really good from both, though there are some differences, of course. We did ultimately prefer the Xiaomi 15 a bit more, but the Pixel 9 Pro has slightly louder speakers.

Neither phone offers a 3.5mm headphone jack. Both do support wired audio connections via the Type-C port, though. If you prefer to go wireless, you‘ll be glad to know that Bluetooth 5.3 is supported on the Pixel 9 Pro, while the Xiaomi 15 supports Bluetooth 5.4.