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Snapdragon SoC guide: All of Qualcomm's smartphone processors explained
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors are among the most ubiquitous SoCs in the Android smartphone space. Samsung uses Snapdragon for its Galaxy S line in various markets, but these chips also power the vast majority of flagship Android phones on the market. There’s a good chance that you’re reading this on a device using a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor right now.
Snapdragon chips aren’t just found in expensive flagship smartphones though. There’s a whole portfolio of processors built for handsets at various price points. Performance and features differ a fair bit between these models, so let’s break down how the company’s latest SoCs compare and what capabilities you should expect.
Snapdragon 8 series — Premium tier
Looking for the very best Qualcomm smartphone processor family? That will be the Snapdragon 8 range. The flagship chip for 2024 is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, which was announced in October 2023. It powers a host of high-end phones in 2024, such as the Galaxy S24 Ultra, OnePlus 12, and the Xiaomi 14 series.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 brings a host of upgrades. For one, it packs a super-powerful CPU on paper. This is a 1+5+2 CPU consisting of one Cortex-X4 core, five Cortex-A720 cores, and two Cortex-A520 cores. In fact, Qualcomm says it’s 30% faster than its predecessor while being 20% more efficient.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 is built with on-device generative AI tasks in mind.
Qualcomm is also going all-in on generative AI capabilities this time out, offering text-to-image generation in under a second, photo expansion capabilities (using image generation to expand the borders of an image), and support for large language models with over 10 billion parameters running at close to 15 tokens per second. In plain English, this is an AI powerhouse.
Other upgrades worth knowing include an Adreno GPU that’s 25% faster and 25% more efficient, support for global illumination graphics tech, night mode video support, and video object eraser capabilities.
Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 | |
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CPU Config | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 1x 3.3GHz (Cortex-X4) 3x 3.2GHz (Cortex-A720) 2x 3GHz (Cortex-A720) 2x 2.3GHz (Cortex-A520 Refresh) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 1x 3.19GHz (Cortex-X3) 2x 2.8GHz (Cortex-A715) 2x 2.8GHz (Cortex-A710) 3x 2.0GHz (Cortex-A510) | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 1x 3.19GHz (Cortex-X4) 4x 2.8GHz (Cortex-A720) 3x 2.0GHz (Cortex-A520) |
GPU | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Adreno (ray tracing support) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Adreno 740 (ray tracing support) | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Adreno (ray tracing support) |
DSP | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Hexagon (fused scalar, tensor, and vector) Mixed precision INT8/INT16 INT4 support | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Hexagon (fused scalar, tensor, and vector) Mixed precision INT8/INT16 INT4 support | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Hexagon (fused scalar, tensor, and vector) Mixed precision INT8/INT16 INT4 support |
RAM support | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 LPDDR5X 4,800MHz | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 LPDDR5X 4,200MHz | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 LPDDR5X 4,200MHz |
Camera support | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 • 200MP single shot • 108MP single with zero shutter lag • 64MP+36MP with zero shutter lag • Triple 36MP with zero shutter lag • Hybrid AF • 10-bit HEIF image capture • HDR video • Dolby HDR photo • Multi-frame noise reduction • Real-time semantic segmentation for photos and videos (up to 12 layers) • Video super resolution | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 • 200MP single shot • 108MP single with zero shutter lag • 64MP+36MP with zero shutter lag • Triple 36MP with zero shutter lag • Hybrid AF • 10-bit HEIF image capture • HDR video • Multi-frame noise reduction • Real-time semantic segmentation for photos and videos (up to 8 layers) • Video super resolution | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 • 200MP single shot • 108MP single with zero shutter lag • 64MP+36MP with zero shutter lag • Triple 36MP with zero shutter lag • Hybrid AF • 10-bit HEIF image capture • HDR video • Multi-frame noise reduction • Real-time semantic segmentation for photos and videos (up to 12 layers) • Video super resolution |
Video capture | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 8K @ 30fps (HDR) 4K UHD @ 120fps 720p @ 960fps Night Vision Video Capture (4K/60fps) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 8K @ 30fps (HDR) 4K UHD @ 120fps 720p @ 960fps | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 4K UHD @ 60fps 4K UHD @ 60fps (HDR) 1080p @ 240fps |
Charging | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Quick Charge 5 | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Quick Charge 5 | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Quick Charge 5 |
4G/5G Modem | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 X75 LTE/5G (integrated) 10,000Mbps down 3,500Mbps up | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 X70 LTE/5G (integrated) 10,000Mbps down 3,500Mbps up | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 X70 LTE/5G (integrated) 5,000Mbps down 3,500Mbps up |
Other networking | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Bluetooth 5.4 Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi 6/6E (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), 802.11a/b/g/n | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Bluetooth 5.3 Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi 6/6E (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), 802.11a/b/g/n | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 Bluetooth 5.4 Wi-Fi 7, Wi-Fi 6/6E (802.11ax), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), 802.11a/b/g/n |
Process | Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 TSMC 4nm (N4P) | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 TSMC 4nm | Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 TSMC 4nm |
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3’s predecessor is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, and most of 2023’s flagship Android phones were powered by this chip. It’s still a beast in 2024, bringing a powerful 1+4+3 CPU, a top-class GPU, and upgrades in plenty of other areas. So it’s no wonder that we’ve seen this chipset in the likes of the recently released OnePlus 12R.
The latest Snapdragon 8 series chip, however, is the Snapdragon 8S Gen 3. This was announced in March 2024 and is meant to power affordable flagship smartphones. It features a powerful CPU (one Cortex-X4, four Cortex-A720, and three Cortex-A520) and a tweaked version of the beefy Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 GPU. The chipset offers on-device generative AI support too, but Qualcomm acknowledged that AI performance was slower than the 8 Gen 3. The SoC also lacks 8K and super-slow motion video support as seen on the 8 Gen 2 and 8 Gen 3.
The Galaxy S24 series launched with the so-called Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipset in some models. It offers slightly higher CPU clock speeds compared to the vanilla chip. That may translate to negligibly better performance in some demanding tasks.
Notable Snapdragon 8 series phones
Snapdragon 7 series — Bridging the gap
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 7 series isn’t quite as straightforward as its flagship 8 series. This is due to the sheer number of them, as well as the older, lower-end chips crossing into Snapdragon 6 territory. The Snapdragon 7 series was originally conceived as an upper mid-range family of processors, but the Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 blends high-end and mid-range features like few other processors.
The Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 was announced in March 2024 and brings a 4nm design and a powerful, flagship-grade CPU. Qualcomm didn’t specify the GPU details bar saying it was 45% faster than the Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2. Otherwise, the 7 Plus Gen 3 also brings features like support for on-device generative AI features (e.g. Gemini Nano, image generation), 4K/60fps HDR video, and Wi-Fi 7. Just don’t expect AV1 support, 8K video recording, and the greatest modem.
The Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 brings a flagship-grade CPU and generative AI support, but dials back the GPU, camera, and multimedia capabilities.
Prior to the Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3, we had the Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2. This was 2023’s best mid-range chip by Qualcomm, and it looked more like a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor than anything else. You’ve got the same TSMC 4nm design, a very similar CPU (one Cortex-X2, three Cortex-A710, four Cortex-A510), and what seems like a similarly powerful ISP. We do see some compromises though, such as a less impressive but still powerful GPU, the mid-tier Snapdragon X62 modem, and missing features like 8K recording. Unfortunately, only one phone launched with this chipset.
One rung down from these two chipsets is the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3, announced in late 2023. Expect a notable drop in CPU and GPU performance compared to the Plus chips, but the CPU is still good for a mid-ranger (4x Cortex-A715 and 4x Cortex-A510). This chip does, however, lack features like 4K/60fps video support, Ultra HDR capabilities, generative AI, and Snapdragon Seamless.
Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 | |
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CPU | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 1x Cortex-X4 4x Cortex-A720 3x Cortex-A520 | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 1x Cortex-X2 3x Cortex-A710 4x Cortex-A510 | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 1x Cortex-A715 3x Cortex-A715 4x Cortex-A510 | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 4x Cortex-A78 4x Cortex-A55 |
GPU | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 Adreno | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 Adreno | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 Adreno | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 Adreno |
DSP | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 Hexagon | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 Hexagon | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 Hexagon | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 Hexagon |
Modem | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 Snapdragon X63 5G/LTE 5G - 5Gbps down, 3.5Gbps up | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 Snapdragon X62 5G/LTE 5G - 4.4Gbps down, 1.6Gbps up | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 Snapdragon X63 5G/LTE 5G - 5Gbps down | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 Snapdragon X62 5G/LTE 5G - 2.9Gbps down |
Cameras | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 108MP single 64MP+36MP dual 36MP+36MP+36MP triple 200MP snapshot | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 108MP single 64MP+36MP dual 32MP+32MP+32MP triple 200MP snapshot | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 64MP single 32MP+21MP dual 21MP+21MP+21MP triple 200MP snapshot | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 48MP single 32MP+16MP dual 16MP+16MP+16MP triple 200MP snapshot |
Quick Charge | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 5 | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 5 | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 5 | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 4+ |
Bluetooth | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 5.4 | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 5.3 | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 5.4 | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 5.2 |
Process | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 4nm | Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 4nm | Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 4nm | Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 4nm |
Qualcomm also announced the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 in September 2023. This is the least capable recent Snapdragon 7 series processor on the list. You’ve got a good but aging CPU setup (4x Cortex-A78 and 4x Cortex-A55) and a 4nm design, but this chip lags behind as far as connectivity and camera capabilities are concerned.
Notable Snapdragon 7 series phones
Snapdragon 6 series — Value for money
Where the Snapdragon 7 series tries to bridge the gap between mid-range and flagship, the Snapdragon 6 series is mostly focused on the ~$300 and under segment. And the most notable processor in this family is the Snapdragon 6 Gen 1.
The Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 is a significant step up from previous Snapdragon 6 series SoCs, offering a more powerful CPU (4x Cortex-A78, 4x Cortex-A55) and an improved Adreno GPU. In fact, Qualcomm claims a 40% and 35% performance boost over the Snapdragon 695’s CPU and GPU respectively. Other notable features include a 4nm design, 200MP snapshot support, and 4K video capture.
Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 | Snapdragon 695 | Snapdragon 690 | Snapdragon 680 | |
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CPU | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 4x Cortex-A78 4x Cortex-A55 | Snapdragon 695 2x Kryo 660 (Cortex-A78) 6x Kryo 660 (Cortex-A55) | Snapdragon 690 2x Kryo 560 (Cortex-A77) 6x Kryo 560 (Cortex-A55) | Snapdragon 680 4x Kryo 260 (Cortex-A73) 4x Kryo 260 (Cortex-A53) |
GPU | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 Adreno | Snapdragon 695 Adreno 619 | Snapdragon 690 Adreno 619L | Snapdragon 680 Adreno 610 |
RAM | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 LPDDR5 | Snapdragon 695 LPDDR4X | Snapdragon 690 LPDDR4X | Snapdragon 680 LPDDR4X |
DSP | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 Hexagon | Snapdragon 695 Hexagon 686 | Snapdragon 690 Hexagon 692 Hexagon Tensor Accelerator | Snapdragon 680 Hexagon 686 |
Modem | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 X62 5G 2.9Gbps down TBC up | Snapdragon 695 X51 5G 2.5Gbps down 0.9Gbps up | Snapdragon 690 X51 5G 2.5Gbps down 0.9Gbps up | Snapdragon 680 X11 4G 390Mbps down 150Mbps up |
Cameras | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 48MP single 25MP+16MP dual 13MP+13MP+13MP triple 200MP snapshot | Snapdragon 695 32MP single or 16MP dual 192MP snapshot | Snapdragon 690 32MP single or 16MP dual 192MP snapshot | Snapdragon 680 32MP single 16MP dual 13MP+13MP+5MP triple 64MP snapshot |
Quick Charge | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 4+ | Snapdragon 695 4+ | Snapdragon 690 4+ | Snapdragon 680 3.0 |
Bluetooth | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 5.2 | Snapdragon 695 5.2 | Snapdragon 690 5.1 | Snapdragon 680 5.1 |
Process | Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 4nm | Snapdragon 695 6nm | Snapdragon 690 8nm FinFET | Snapdragon 680 6nm |
The previous top-end processor in this series was the Snapdragon 695, it turn being an incremental upgrade over 2020’s Snapdragon 690. The 695 brings a middling octa-core CPU (2x Cortex-A77 and 6x Cortex-A55), and an aging Adreno 619 GPU. We also get 13MP triple camera support, 108MP single camera support, and Wi-Fi 6 connectivity. But the big disappointment here is that it lacks 4K video recording.
Qualcomm also offers the Snapdragon 685, and this is actually a 4G-only SoC. This is a tweaked version of the Snapdragon 680, which in turn was derived from the older, budget Snapdragon 665 SoC. Expect an ancient CPU (four Cortex-A73 and four Cortex-A53), the Adreno 610 GPU which first appeared in 2020, and obsolete Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging. There are a couple of upgrades though, namely a smaller 6nm manufacturing process and Bluetooth 5.2 support.
Notable Snapdragon 6 series phones
- Motorola Moto G Play 2024
- Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G 2023
- OnePlus Nord N30
- Samsung Galaxy A23
- Sony Xperia 10 V
Snapdragon 4 series — Entry-level
Now we come to the least capable Snapdragon series (aside from the shuttered/dormant Snapdragon 200 family), designed for cheap phones. But there’s good news here, as the Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 actually looks decent for a low-end chipset.
The Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 was announced in mid-2022 and offers a 6nm design, a solid but unspectacular CPU (2x Cortex-A78, 6x Cortex-A55), and a 10% faster GPU than the earlier Snapdragon 480. Otherwise, this SoC has quite a few things in common with the Snapdragon 695. We’ve got the same X51 5G modem, similar camera capabilities (no 4K recording here), 120Hz support at FHD+ display resolution, and Wi-Fi 5.
The Snapdragon 4 series lacks features like a powerful GPU and 4K recording but gains high refresh rate support and 5G.
This isn’t the latest Snapdragon 4 series processor, though, as that would be the Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 (announced in June 2023). It delivers a few upgrades like a 4nm design for greater efficiency, a more capable X61 5G modem, and a slightly faster CPU clock speed. Unfortunately, there are also a couple of downgrades compared to the Snapdragon 4 Gen 1, namely the somewhat inferior GPU and Bluetooth 5.1 instead of 5.2. No, there’s no 4K recording support here, either.
Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus | Snapdragon 460 | |
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CPU | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 2x Cortex-A78 6x Cortex-A55 | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 2x Cortex-A78 6x Cortex-A55 | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus 2x Kryo 460 (Cortex-A76) 6x Kryo 460 (Cortex-A55) | Snapdragon 460 4x Kryo 240 (Cortex-A73) 4x Kryo 240 (Cortex-A53) |
GPU | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 Adreno | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 Adreno | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus Adreno 619 | Snapdragon 460 Adreno 610 |
DSP | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 Hexagon | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 Hexagon | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus Hexagon 686 | Snapdragon 460 Hexagon 683 |
Modem | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 Snapdragon X51 5G 2.5Gbps down, 0.9Gbps up | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 Snapdragon X61 5G 2.5Gbps down, 0.9Gbps up | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus Snapdragon X51 5G 2.5Gbps down, 660Mbps up | Snapdragon 460 Snapdragon X11 LTE 390Mbps down, 150Mbps up |
Cameras | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 32MP single 25MP+13MP dual 13MP+13MP+13MP triple 108MP snapshot | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 32MP single 16MP+16MP dual 108MP snapshot | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus 25MP single or 25MP+13MP dual 64MP snapshot | Snapdragon 460 32MP single or 22MP dual 192MP snapshot |
Quick Charge | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 4+ | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 4+ | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus 4+ | Snapdragon 460 3.0 |
Bluetooth | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 5.2 | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 5.1 | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus 5.1 | Snapdragon 460 5.1 |
Process | Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 6nm | Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 4nm | Snapdragon 480/480 Plus 8nm | Snapdragon 460 11nm FinFET |
Go down a notch and we’ve got the Snapdragon 480. This was the first 5G-enabled processor in the Snapdragon 4 series, being announced in early 2021. This is essentially a cut-back Snapdragon 750G chipset, featuring mmWave 5G support, the same Adreno 619 GPU, the same 8nm manufacturing process, Quick Charge 4 Plus tech, and support for FHD+ 120Hz displays. It does, however, feature an older CPU and less impressive camera capabilities. The 480 was succeeded by the Snapdragon 480 Plus in late 2021, but that’s only a mild upgrade.
Notable Snapdragon 4 series phones
- Motorola Moto G62
- OnePlus Nord N100
- Nokia XR21
- Redmi Note 12 5G
That’s all for our Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC guide! Let us know your thoughts on the silicon giant’s portfolio in the comments. You can also check out our article charting the history of the Snapdragon 8 family.