Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could be much more expensive to make, possibly driving up phone prices

During the launch of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in October last year, Qualcomm told us that the eventual Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 would be more expensive than the 8 Gen 3. Today, we learned a little more about how much more expensive the flagship Android processor might be.

According to reliable leaker Ming-Chi Kuo, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could be 25-30% more expensive than the 8 Gen 3. This is a major jump, putting the chip’s cost somewhere in the $200 range.

While a significant increase in the chip’s cost doesn’t necessarily mean an increase in consumer costs for the phones that launch with it, it certainly doesn’t help. Smartphone OEMs might cut costs in other places to help offset this increase, for example. It’s also possible that other component costs will come down, allowing OEMs to even things out without increasing consumer costs.

However, an increase of up to 30% is a lot, so it’s reasonable to expect that at least a portion of this cost would trickle down to the consumer level.

Recently, we have seen price increases in the ultra-premium smartphone segment. The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Google Pixel 8 Pro, and iPhone 15 Pro Max all increased by $100 compared to their previous counterparts. Only one of these phones — the Galaxy S24 Ultra — comes with a Snapdragon processor, but it does show an upward trend for the most expensive phones.

It’s possible the expected price increase for the Snapdragon 8 Gen 4 could mean price increases for premium phones that aren’t at the top of the food chain. For example, in the United States, the Galaxy S series’ vanilla and Plus models have stayed the same price for years. It wouldn’t be surprising if, in 2025, those prices jumped by a bit for the first time in a while.

We reached out to Qualcomm for a comment on this story, but didn’t immediately hear back. We’ll update this article if and when we receive a statement.