Between the Galaxy Tab A9+ and iPad Air 11 M3, the Galaxy Tab A9+ comes out ahead in refresh rate, while the iPad Air 11 M3 wins on ram and storage. Overall, the Galaxy Tab A9+ scores 48.4 and the iPad Air 11 M3 scores 50 on our Mars Score.
Which should you buy?
These two are nearly even on the Mars Score (48.4 vs 50). The decision isn't about overall quality — both clear the bar — it's about which specific trade-offs fit your use.
Pick the Galaxy Tab A9+ if the display is what you stare at all day — refresh rate, brightness, or sharpness is where the difference will be most visible. The biggest gaps in its favor are refresh rate.
Pick the iPad Air 11 M3 if you push the hardware — gaming, on-device AI, heavy multitasking — and the extra compute headroom is worth the trade-offs. Its strongest claims are ram, storage, weight, among others.
Both ship with comparable screen size, so those specs don't separate the two — focus on the differences below.
Bottom line: there is no wrong answer here — match the spec advantages to how you actually use the product. The Mars Score parity tells you both are well-rounded; the differences are about trade-offs, not quality.
Why Samsung - Galaxy Tab A9+ wins
- ▲Refresh rate — 50.00% more. 90 Hz vs 60 Hz.
Why Apple - iPad Air 11 M3 wins
- ▲RAM — 100.00% more. 8 GB vs 4 GB.
- ▲Storage — 100.00% more. 128 GB vs 64 GB.
- ▲Weight — 31.00 g less. 460 vs 491.
- ▲Peak brightness — 4.17% more. 500 nits vs 480 nits.
- ▲Has Stylus support.
Spec comparison
Display
| Spec | Samsung - Galaxy Tab A9+ | Apple - iPad Air 11 M3 |
|---|---|---|
| Screen sizeⓘ | 11 " | 11 " |
| Refresh rateⓘ | 90 Hzlead | 60 Hz |
| Panelⓘ | LCD | LCD |
| Peak brightnessⓘ | 480 nits | 500 nitslead |
Performance
Design
| Spec | Samsung - Galaxy Tab A9+ | Apple - iPad Air 11 M3 |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 491 g | 460 glead |
| Stylus support | false | truelead |
| Cellular | true | true |
| OS | Androidlead | iPadOS |
Frequently asked
Spec-level deep dives
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