We put the Samsung Galaxy S23 through our rigorous DXOMARK Audio test suite to measure its performance both at recording sound using its built-in microphones, and at playing audio back through its speakers.
Overview
Key audio specifications include:
- Two speakers (1 top front under-screen, 1 bottom side)
- No jack audio output
- Dolby Atmos technology
Scoring
Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.
Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
audio
126
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (158)
129
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (149)
146
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
130
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
89
Asus ROG Phone 5
Best: Asus ROG Phone 5 (157)
127
Honor Magic3 Pro+
Best: Honor Magic3 Pro+ (147)
128
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (146)
109
Vivo X Fold
Best: Vivo X Fold (159)
120
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (170)
122
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (166)
Position in Global Ranking

39
th
4. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
149
12. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
142
17. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
140
21. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
139
21. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
139
29. Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon)
137
37. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
134
39. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5
133
39. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
39. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
133
39. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
133
39. Samsung Galaxy A54 5G
133
55. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
130
56. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
129
56. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
129
60. Realme GT Neo 5 (240W)
128
60. Xiaomi Redmi K50 Gaming
128
67. Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
127
67. Samsung Galaxy A52 5G
127
71. Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
126
76. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
125
76. Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
125
76. Vivo X80 Pro (MediaTek)
125
79. Lenovo Legion Phone 2 Pro
124
82. Apple iPhone SE (2022)
122
82. Apple iPhone SE (2020)
122
85. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
121
89. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
89. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon)
120
89. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
92. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Gaming
119
99. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
118
99. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
118
99. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
118
99. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
118
99. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
118
110. Motorola Edge 40 Pro
116
110. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
110. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
110. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Pro+
116
117. Motorola Edge 30 Pro
115
117. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
115
121. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
114
123. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Exynos)
113
123. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ (Exynos)
113
131. Nubia RedMagic 6 Pro
112
138. Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G
109
145. Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
108
152. Lenovo Legion Phone Pro
105
152. Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
105
152. Samsung Galaxy A23 5G
105
158. Nubia RedMagic 8 Pro
103
162. Motorola Edge 20 Pro
102
166. Honor Magic5 Lite 5G
97
166. Xiaomi Mi CC9 Pro Premium Edition
97
175. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
93
180. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
86
Position in Premium Ranking

11
th
11. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
19. Lenovo Legion Phone 2 Pro
124
22. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon)
120
22. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
26. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
118
26. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
118
26. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
118
41. Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
108
48. Xiaomi Mi CC9 Pro Premium Edition
97
50. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
93
51. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
86
Playback
Pros
- Timbre performance stable at all volumes
- Good dynamics performance
- Good wideness for its size
Cons
- Excessive treble boost
- Volume steps consistency needs fine-tuning
- Artifacts performance is a bit average
Recording
Pros
- Good timbre performance overall
- Good audio zoom despite the device missing a super tele zoom
- Very good wind noise performance in life video and selfie video
Cons
- The device is very sensitive to wind in memo
- Treble sounds a bit metallic with the recorder app
- General lack of brightness in all apps used
All the models in the S23 Series are equipped with the same audio specs, and performance results were relatively similar among all three models, except for a few minor differences. For example in playback, the S23’s sound was quite bright, but it lacked some bass and low-midrange. Upper treble was a bit resonant and not particularly pleasant.
In recording, all three devices provided an excellent audio-zoom performance, but the S23 Ultra had the upper edge over the other two because of its extensive tele zoom level, which allowed the S23 Ultra to gain significant points in the timbre attribute.
Listen to the tested smartphone’s playback performance in this comparison with some of its competitors:
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
Recordings of the smartphones playing some of our music tracks at 60 LAeq in an anechoic environment by 2 microphones in A-B configuration, at 30 cm
Here is how the Samsung Galaxy S23 performs in playback use cases compared to its competitors:
Playback use-cases scores
Because the Galaxy S23’s audio performance was the same in all other testing areas, we direct you to the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s audio test results for the full details.
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