Samsung has kicked off the One UI 9 beta program for Galaxy S26 owners, with the update rolling out this week across six markets. Built on Android 17, the beta is the first look at what Samsung has planned before the stable release later this year.
Who Can Join and Where
The beta is currently open to Galaxy S26, S26+, and S26 Ultra owners in the US, UK, Germany, South Korea, India, and Poland from May 26. To sign up, open the Samsung Members app, tap the One UI 9 Beta Program banner, and follow the enrollment steps. Once registered, the update is available as an over-the-air download in Settings> Software Update. The first beta build weighs in at around 3.6GB and includes the May 2026 security patch.
What's New
Since One UI 8.5 already brought the biggest visual overhaul in recent memory, One UI 9 is a more iterative update in terms of appearance. The Quick Panel gets a redesign that separates brightness, system volume, and media controls independently, with thicker sliders and a cleaner layout. The lock screen media player now displays colorful waveform animations and shows a “This Phone” label instead of “Media Output” when selecting audio output.
Samsung Notes gains decorative tape tools and a wider selection of pen line styles, while the Contacts app now connects directly to Creative Studio for building personalized profile cards without switching apps. Parental Controls have also been removed from the Digital Wellbeing menu and moved to a dedicated section in Settings.
Accessibility and Security
Accessibility improvements are a genuine highlight here. TalkBack has been integrated with Google's own screen reader, Text Spotlight lets you zoom and clarify selected text in a floating window, and mouse key speed is now adjustable for external keyboard users. On the security side, One UI 9 can detect high-risk apps, warn you before installation, and block them outright if they meet Samsung's internal risk threshold.
Android 17 Under the Hood
As an Android 17 build, One UI 9 also inherits platform-level changes. Any app can now be opened in a floating bubble, multitasking has been improved, and Google's new adaptive layout system means apps should behave better across phones, foldables, and tablets without developers having to lock them to a specific orientation.
What Comes Next
Samsung has confirmed the full One UI 9 experience, including the advanced AI features, will arrive with upcoming flagship devices later this year. All signs point to the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Flip 8, with a summer Unpacked event widely expected. Older Galaxy devices are not yet confirmed for the beta, and stable One UI 8.5 updates are still rolling out to earlier models in the meantime.
