What’s the most important indicator of a smartphone maker’s success? Sales numbers? Profits? What about a wireless service provider? Do speeds matter more than coverage or the other way around?
For end users of both mobile devices and mobile networks, there might actually be another benchmark to measure and compare Samsung and Apple’s value or Verizon and T-Mobile‘s performance, and although that’s likely to sound a bit vague and difficult to scientifically assess, that’s where the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) comes in.
Samsung’s score is unchanged, but Apple is down one point
Despite holding a massive lead in US handset shipments, Apple seemingly provides (slightly) lower customer satisfaction compared to Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones. The gap between the two companies stands at a single percentage point, which is obviously not a huge advantage for the market leader.
US users are apparently more satisfied with Samsung handsets than iPhones. | Image by PhoneArena
Then again, this Samsung victory comes after two ties in 2025 and 2024, which must hurt Apple’s ego, especially as the Cupertino-based tech giant already saw its customer satisfaction score drop from 82 to 81 points last year and now that latter figure further slip to 80.
Of course, that also means Samsung’s new 81 rating is lower than the 82 points registered by the brand a couple of years ago, which is not the kind of trend the world’s number two smartphone vendor was likely aiming for.
Interestingly, cell phone satisfaction on the whole is actually up one point from 78 last year to 79 in 2026, and some of the brands responsible for the segment’s growth are without a doubt Google and Motorola. The two are tied in third place, with 77 percent customer satisfaction each, both scores representing a solid improvement of three points over the results of the 2025 study.
T-Mobile is the clear leader of wireless satisfaction
After sitting in second place (behind AT&T) in 2024 and holding a narrow one-point lead over Verizon in 2025, T-Mobile has a two-point advantage in the latest ACSI report. The silver medal goes to… both Verizon and AT&T this time around, and interestingly enough, all of the nation’s big three mobile network operators have managed to boost their customer satisfaction ratings from last year.
For the time being, no carrier can come close to T-Mobile’s 5G speeds and overall customer satisfaction. | Image by PhoneArena
We’re talking a jump from 76 to 78 percent for Magenta, a slight increase from 75 to 76 for Big Red, and a bounceback (of sorts) for Ma Bell from 74 points in 2025 to 76 now after standing at a dominant 78 score in 2024.
Overall, customers are clearly less satisfied with their wireless service providers than their smartphones, although the value MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) segment produces significantly higher average scores than the MNO (mobile network operator) division, at 79 and 76 percent, respectively.
In other words, if you’re dissatisfied with Verizon, AT&T, or T-Mobile, you might want to try out a smaller carrier like Xfinity Mobile, Spectrum Mobile, Cricket Wireless, Metro by T-Mobile, Boost Mobile, or Visible.
Samsung and Apple are now tied for smartwatch satisfaction
If you caught last year’s ACSI study, you were probably surprised to see Samsung top the smartwatch satisfaction category for its first-ever measurement with what looked like a comfortable advantage of three percentage points over silver medalist Apple.
The Galaxy Watch 8 and Galaxy Watch 8 Classic seem to have disappointed a lot of their owners. | Image by PhoneArena
But that lead has since evaporated, and the two traditional rivals hold the same 80-point score after a sudden and hard-to-explain drop for Samsung. You have to imagine the Galaxy Watch 8, Watch 8 Classic, and Watch Ultra (2025) didn’t connect with many customers in line with their expectations, allowing Fitbit to come dangerously close to the top spot as well after a spectacular jump of eight points to a 2025 tally of 78.
Garmin and Google Pixel watches follow in third and fourth places with decent but far from spectacular customer satisfaction averages of 76 and 74 points, respectively, while the category as a whole is praised for improvements across areas as varied as design, durability, connectivity, and app integrations.
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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian’s passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for ‘adequate’ over ‘overpriced’.
