Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G

The Google Pixel 5a 5G launched back in August 2021. Plenty of you probably still carry that phone, and some of you may be wondering whether it’s time to upgrade. Google announced a new mid-ranger during this year’s Google I/O, the Pixel 7a. That may actually be the perfect phone to upgrade to from the Pixel 5a 5G. In order to help you with that decision, we’ll compare the Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G here.

We’ll first list their specifications, and will then move to compare the two phones across a number of categories, including design, display, performance, battery, cameras, and audio. These two phones do have some things in common, but the Pixel A series did change quite a bit in the last two years. So, if you’re wondering whether the Pixel 7a is worth upgrading to, read on.

Specs

Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G: Design

These two phones do look considerably different. The Pixel 5a 5G was the last Pixel A series phone that had that minimalistic, understated design. The Pixel 7a includes a camera visor on the back, which is covered by metal, which makes the phone easily recognizable as a Pixel device. The Pixel 5a, on the other hand, has a regular camera island in the top-left corner, with two cameras on the inside.

The Pixel 7a is made out of metal and plastic (it has a plastic back), while the Pixel 5a 5G is made out of aluminum, but it has a different coating on the back, so you’re not touching aluminum directly. The Pixel 7a has more of a squarish design, and a centered display camera hole. The Pixel 5a 5G has rounded corners, and display corners, and a display camera hole in the top-left corner. Both phones do include flat displays.

The Pixel 7a is a bit shorter, a bit narrower, and thicker. It does have a smaller display, so that is to be expected. It is also about 10 grams heavier than the Pixel 5a 5G. Both smartphones offer IP67 certification for water and dust resistance. They both feel good to hold and use, but a bit different due to the different builds and materials used. The Pixel 7a is slightly smaller, but not by a lot. It does look and feel more premium, though.

Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G: Display

The Pixel 7a has a 6.1-inch fullHD+ (2400 x 1080) OLED display. This panel is flat, and it comes with HDR support. It also offers a 90Hz refresh rate, and has a 20:9 aspect ratio. The display is protected by the Gorilla Glass 3. That is not the best protection around, as it’s kind of prone to microscratches, but there you have it.

On the flip side, the Pixel 5a 5G, has a 6.34-inch fullHD+ (2400 x 1080) OLED display. This display also has HDR support, but it doesn’t offer a high refresh rate. It is a 60Hz display. It does have the same aspect ratio as the Pixel 7a, though, and also the same display protection. Using a screen protector on both of these phones is definitely recommended.

Both displays do look good, though. They do offer vivid colors, and the viewing angles are not bad either. Both of them are more than sharp enough, and have good touch response. The Pixel 7a does have the advantage due to its higher refresh rate, and it also does get a bit brighter than the Pixel 5a 5G’s panel. Having said that, both of these displays will serve you well, even though they’re not amongst the best out there. That is normal, though, these are budget phones.

Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G: Performance

Google’s Tensor G2 SoC fuels the Pixel 7a. The phone also includes 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 128GB of UFS 3.1 flash storage. The Pixel 5a 5G, on the flip side, is fueled by the Snapdragon 765G SoC. The device also includes LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.1 flash storage on the inside. The Pixel 7a is, without a doubt, a more powerful smartphone. That’s not surprising considering it’s almost two years newer.

The phone does a great job when it comes to regular, everyday performance. That processor is also used by Google’s flagship phones, by the way. Gaming is also not an issue for the device, although the most demanding titles will not run on the top level. This chip is not made for gaming after all. The Pixel 5a 5G, on the other hand, does a good job when it comes to performance, but when used side-by-side, it’s easy to notice the Pixel 7a is the most powerful smartphone.

The Pixel 5a 5G does a good job when gaming is concerned, but the Pixel 7a has it beat in that regard. For most people, however, both of these phones will be more than sufficient enough. The Pixel 7a is an improvement performance-wise, though, for sure.

Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G: Battery

A 4,385mAh battery sits inside the Pixel 7a, while a 4,680mAh battery can be found inside the Pixel 5a 5G. Both devices offer really good battery life, but the Pixel 5a 5G has the Pixel 7a beat. We haven’t really used that phone in some time now, but when we did, it was able to cross the 9-hour screen-on-time mark. It was one of the best smartphones when it comes to battery life back then.

The Pixel 7a doesn’t exactly come close to that. The phone can provide around 7 hours of screen-on-time, at least it was possible for us. It took the battery some time to stabilize, but getting around 7 hours of screen-on-time is not a problem now. Your mileage may, of course, vary. We don’t really play a lot of games on these phones, other than when we’re testing gaming performance, so… take that into account.

Both of these devices support 18W wired charging, though the Pixel 7a supports PD3.0 standard, while the Pixel 5a 5G is using PD 2.0. The Pixel 7a also supports 7.5W wireless charging, in case you were wondering. It is worth noting that the Pixel 5a 5G does include a charger in the box, unlike the Pixel 7a.

Google Pixel 7a vs Google Pixel 5a 5G: Cameras

The Pixel 7a comes with a 64-megapixel main camera, and a 13-megapixel ultrawide unit. This is the first time Google is using these sensors. The Pixel 5a 5G, on the flip side, comes with a 12.2-megapixel main camera, and a 16-megapixel ultrawide camera. We’ve seen that main camera on many Pixel phones thus far, and even though it’s dated, it still does a great job overall.

Having said that, Google’s image processing plays a huge role when it comes to Pixel smartphone photography. That’s what makes that 12.2-megapixel camera sensor, which is quite dated at this point, still be able to perform and compete without a problem. How does that 64-megapixel camera from the Pixel 7a stack up in comparison? Well, it does offer similar, and yet different results.

You’ll see a lot of similarities in good lighting. The images do come out well-balanced, and quite sharp, though you may notice some differences in high dynamic range scenarios. Quite frankly it’s a tossup, depending on the scene. In low light, the Pixel 7a tends to emphasize warmer tones, making the images look a bit more realistic. The Pixel 5a 5G usually provides colder tones in low light images. The video recording is better on the Pixel 7a, but quite frankly, neither phone is great when it comes to video recording.

Audio

Yes, you will find stereo speakers on both of these smartphones. Those speakers are good enough on both phones, but the Pixel 7a does have a slightly louder output. The sound overall is good on both devices.

The Pixel 5a 5G, unlike the Pixel 7a, also has a 3.5mm headphone jack. You can hook up your wired headphones to the Pixel 7a too, but via a Type-C port, so chances are you’ll need a dongle. The Pixel 7a supports Bluetooth 5.3, while the Pixel 5a 5G comes with Bluetooth 5.0 support.