Every new Samsung flagship smartphone's launch is accompanied by the question of how long Samsung will support it with software updates. The question is on people's mind's again with this week's launch of the Galaxy Z Fold 5, the fifth horizontal-folding flagship from Samsung (or the sixth, if you consider the first Fold's recall and re-release back in 2019).
But first, for those who might be wondering: the Galaxy Z Fold 5 comes with Android 13 out of the box, not Android 14. All of Samsung's premier flagship phones launched in the same year come with the same version of Android. However, they do get newer versions of One UI, and that's version 5.1.1 in the case of the Z Fold 5.
Major Android and One UI upgrades for four years, security updates for five
Alright, so how many software updates will the Galaxy Z Fold 5 get, or rather, how long will it get updates? Nothing has changed in this regard compared to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 and Galaxy Z Fold 3: the Z Fold 5 will get four major Android OS upgrades.
Each of those will, as you would expect, be accompanied by a major update to Samsung's One UI skin, and the phone will also get the minor One UI updates that debut every year with Samsung's new flagship devices in between. The first of those major Android and One UI updates will naturally be Android 14 and One UI 6.0, which will most likely be rolled out before the end of the year.
As for security updates, the Z Fold 5 will get them regularly for five years. For at least three of those years, security updates will come every month, following which the device will be downgraded to quarterly security updates, likely till the end of the five year support period. After that five year period, security updates will only come if some critical vulnerability is discovered and needs to be patched, though this is not something that happens too often.
So there you have it. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 will get OS upgrades, which can include new features, UI improvements and changes, and bug fixes, for four years, and security updates for five years. Whether or not you're in the habit of buying a new phone every couple of years, the duration of Samsung's software support will keep you happy.
