Motorola Moto G 5G vs Moto G Stylus

Motorola continued its Moto G series into 2022 with two budget-friendly phones; The Moto G and the Moto G Stylus. As the names suggest, one comes with a stylus pen while the other does not, but there are more differences than that between the two smartphones that could make all the difference. So, which phone should you buy? Find out in your Moto G 5G vs Moto G Stylus comparison.

Motorola Moto G 5G vs Moto G Stylus: At a glance

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Specs

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Size comparison

Both smartphones are nearly identical in terms of style and size. However, the Moto G Stylus is larger, with a 6.8-inch display, compared to the Moto G’s 6.5-inch display. It needs that extra room to fit the stylus, after all. Because of that, the Moto G Stylus also weighs ten grams more than the Moto G. Overall, The Moto G Stylus is the bigger of the two, and you may need two hands to use it.

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Camera

We wouldn’t blame you if you couldn’t tell the phones apart just by looking at their backside because the rear cameras are pretty much the same. Both phones feature a 50MP primary shooter, which is nothing new for the Motorola Moto G series, and are capable enough for everyday shots. The Moto G has a 2MP macro and a 2MP depth sensor above and below the primary camera, which leaves some flexibility to be desired. In our testing, we found the macro, in particular, to lack some detail.

The Moto G Stylus complements its primary shooter with an 8MP ultrawide with a 118-degree field of view and macro capabilities. You aren’t missing anything by not having the macro lens of the Moto G. Rounding it out is the same 2MP depth sensor to blur out backgrounds.

On the front, the Moto G features a 13MP selfie shooter, and the Moto G Stylus sports a slightly higher 16MP front-facing camera. Both have an aggressive beauty filter by default, but you can turn them off in the Settings menu. Both are housed in a punch-hole cutout at the top of the screen.

As for recording video, neither phone is the best in the mid-range market. The Moto G Stylus tops out at 1080p at 60fps while the Moto G is limited to 1080 at 30 fps, which is pretty poor even for a budget phone.

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Battery and charging

When it comes to battery and charging, both smartphones are equally matched, which isn’t necessarily a good thing. The Moto G and Moto G Stylus have a large 5,000mAh but are limited to 10W wired charging, which means you can expect to spend as much as two hours charging the battery from zero. There’s no wireless charging on either device, which we wouldn’t expect at this price point.

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Price

The Moto G Stylus launched in early 2022 for $299. In the Spring of that year, the Moto G 5G was released for $399. A Moto G Stylus 5G version was released around the same time as the Moto G 5G for $499, which also brought a better display and processor.

On Motorola’s website, the Moto G Stylus is currently selling for $179.99, and the Moto G is only $199.99, so both phones have seen significant price drops. At their launch prices, the competition for budget phones was more competitive, but as they are now, the asking prices are a lot more reasonable for the hardware.

Motorola Moto G vs Moto G Stylus: Which should you buy?

We felt that both the Moto G 5G and the Moto G Stylus came with a mixed bag of upgrades and downgrades. Both phones feature a 90Hz refresh rate, but the Moto G 5H dropped from an FHD+ resolution to HD+. Both phones also lost NFC support, which was disappointing, and the move from Qualcomm processors to MediaTek felt like a sidestep. The Moto G’s MediaTek Dimensity 700 is more powerful than the Moto G Stylus’ MediaTek Helio G88, having a much smaller size transistor (7 versus 12 nm), delivering 27% higher memory bandwidth and a 10% higher CPU clock speed.

If you’re searching for an affordable stylus phone, the Moto G Stylus (2022) is the cheapest you’ll find, especially as it’s currently less than $200. You get a higher-resolution display than the Moto G 5G and a more useful ultrawide camera. The only downside is that because the Moto G Stylus came out earlier, its software stops at Android 12. In contrast, the Moto G 5G will carry you into Android 13 and support 5G networks for faster connectivity.

If you want to stick with Motorola but can’t quite decide between either of the above, consider the Moto G Stylus 5G for $249.99 (50% off). Although more expensive, it offers the titular 5G performance, superior processing power, a 120Hz refresh rate, and NFC support. It matches the 2022 device’s hefty 5,000mAh battery and a sharp FHD+ display. It suffers from the same slow charging issues, but it is upgradable to Android 13 and is a much better phone if you want a device with a built-in stylus on a budget.

FAQs