Xiaomi Redmi 9 vs Redmi 12
38
out of 100
VS
41
out of 100
Here we compared two budget smartphones: the 6.53-inch Xiaomi Redmi 9 (with MediaTek Helio G80) that was released on June 10, 2020, against the Xiaomi Redmi 12, which is powered by MediaTek Helio G88 and came out 3 years and 1 month after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Select the amount of RAM to evaluate performance and value for money more precisely
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Xiaomi Redmi 9
- Has 50% more RAM: 3GB versus 2GB
Reasons to consider the Xiaomi Redmi 12
- Water-resistant body (IP53 classification)
- Higher display refresh rate β 90 Hz
- Delivers 27% higher peak brightness (544 against 427 nits)
- Newer Bluetooth version (v5.3)
- More recent OS version: Android 15 versus 12
- The phone is 3 years and 1 month newer
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
Select your primary usage scenario to get a more accurate NanoReview Score
Value for money (Beta)
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | IPS LCD | IPS LCD |
| Size | 6.53 inches | 6.79 inches |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2340 pixels | 1080 x 2460 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.5:9 | 19.5:9 |
| PPI | 395 ppi | 396 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 90 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 400 nits | 550 nits |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 83.2% | 88% |
| RGB color space | 93% | 96.3% |
| PWM | 500 Hz | Not detected |
| Response time | 35 ms | 26 ms |
| Contrast | 710:1 | 898:1 |
Screen space comparison
Redmi 12
6.79β³ (19.5:9 ratio) = 17.5 in2
Redmi 9
6.53β³ (19.5:9 ratio) = 16.2 in2
~8% more screen space
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 163.3 mm (6.43 inches) | 168.6 mm (6.64 inches) |
| Width | 77 mm (3.03 inches) | 76.28 mm (3 inches) |
| Thickness | 9.1 mm (0.36 inches) | 8.17 mm (0.32 inches) |
| Weight | 198 g (6.98 oz) | 198.5 g (7 oz) |
| Waterproof | No | IP53 |
| Rear material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Frame material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Colors | Gray, Green, Purple | Black, Silver, Blue |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, rear | Yes, in-button |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | MediaTek Helio G80 | MediaTek Helio G88 |
| Max clock | 2000 MHz | 2000 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (2 + 6) | 8 (2 + 6) |
| Architecture | - 6 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A75 |
- 6 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A75 |
| L3 cache | 1 MB | - |
| Manufacturing | TSMC | TSMC |
| Lithography process | 12 nanometers | 12 nanometers |
| Neural processor (NPU) | Yes | MediaTek APU |
| Graphics | Mali-G52 MP2 | Mali-G52 MC2 |
| GPU shading units | 48 | 48 |
| GPU clock | 950 MHz | 1000 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~91.2 GFLOPS | ~96 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
| Single-core score | 416 | 434 |
| Multi-core score | 1347 | 1223 |
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
| CPU | 144052 | 142919 |
| GPU | 27402 | 26174 |
| Memory | 77023 | 90544 |
| UX | 98311 | 110528 |
| Total score | 346788 | 370165 |
| Samples | [6 tests] | [5 tests] |
3DMark Steel Nomad Light
| Stability | - | 95% |
| Graphics test | - | 1 FPS |
| Graphics score | - | 81 |
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
| Stability | 98% | - |
| Graphics test | 1 FPS | - |
| Graphics score | 171 | - |
PCMark 3.0
| Web score | 8789 | 8703 |
| Video editing | 5624 | 6840 |
| Photo editing | 19468 | 18638 |
| Data manipulation | 6135 | 6312 |
| Writing score | 9169 | 8610 |
Recent User Tests
Xiaomi Redmi 9
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| π 2026-06-08 (Itsorif) | AnTuTu 11 | 312297 |
| π 2026-05-22 (klinton) | AnTuTu 11 | 374733 |
| π 2026-05-13 (β) | AnTuTu 11 | 388645 |
| π 2026-03-30 (WinFuck) | AnTuTu 11 | 344734 |
| π 2025-09-06 -> overcooked | AnTuTu 11 | 346788 |
Xiaomi Redmi 12
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| π 2026-09-27 (R12 User) | AnTuTu 12 | 445418 |
| π 2026-06-17 (StalinxQQ) | AnTuTu 11 | 375099 |
| π 2026-06-02 (Mpanpis) | AnTuTu 11 | 373290 |
| π 2026-05-29 (Sanul) | AnTuTu 11 | 370165 |
| π 2026-01-23 (vitya228) | AnTuTu 11 | 353817 |
Memory
| RAM size | 3 GB | 2 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | 1866 MHz | 1800 MHz |
| Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Storage size | 32 GB | 128 GB |
| Storage type | eMMC 5.1 | eMMC 5.1 |
| Memory card | MicroSD | MicroSD |
| Memory card max size | Up to 512 GB | Up to 1024 GB |
Software
| Operating system | Android 10 (Can be upgraded to Android 12) | Android 13 (Can be upgraded to Android 15) |
| ROM | MIUI 13 | HyperOS 2.0 |
| OS size | 13 GB | 18 GB |
| OS updates | - | 2 years |
| Security updates | - | 2 years |
Battery
| Capacity | 5020 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Max charge power | 18 W | 18 W |
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (50% in 80 min) | Yes (29% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 3:05 hr | 2:07 hr |
| Web browsing | 08:45 hr | 07:58 hr |
| Watching video | 13:56 hr | 12:45 hr |
| Gaming | 05:30 hr | 04:59 hr |
| Standby | 113 hr | 118 hr |
General battery life
Main camera
| Matrix | 13 megapixels | 50 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4128 x 3096 | 8150 x 6150 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | No | No |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 30FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| Slow motion | 120 FPS (720p) | 120 FPS (720p) |
| Angle of widest lens | 118Β° | 120Β° |
| Lenses | 1) Standard: 13 MP 2) Ultrawide: 8 MP 3) Macro: 5 MP 4) Depth: 2 MP |
1) Standard: 50 MP 2) Ultrawide: 8 MP 3) Depth: 2 MP |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
- Bokeh mode |
| Image resolution | 13 MP | 50 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/1.8 |
| Focal length | 28 mm | - |
| Sensor | Omnivision OV13B10 | Samsung S5KJN1 |
| Sensor size | 1/3.1" (β 0.32 inch) | 1/2.76" (β 0.36 inch) |
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | 0.64 micron |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus | Phase autofocus |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Image resolution | 8 MP | 8 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | 13 mm | - |
| Sensor | OmniVision OV8856 | Sony IMX355 |
| Sensor size | 1/4.0" (β 0.25 inch) | 1/2.8" (β 0.36 inch) |
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | 1.14 micron |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Image resolution | 5 MP | - |
| Aperture | f/2.4 | - |
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | - |
| Stabilization | Digital | - |
Selfie camera
| Megapixels | 8 megapixels | 8 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 3264 x 2448 | 3264 x 2448 |
| Aperture | f/2.0 | f/2.1 |
| Focal length | 27 mm | - |
| Sensor | CMOS | - |
| Sensor size | 1/4.0" (β 0.25 inch) | - |
| Autofocus | No | No |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS |
| Depth sensor (TOF 3D) | No | No |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5 | 5.3 |
| Bluetooth features | LE, HID, A2DP | LE |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging - USB-Storage mode |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo |
| NFC* | Yes | Depends on the region |
| Infrared port | Yes | Yes |
| Number of SIM* | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support* | No | No |
| Hybrid slot | No | Yes |
| LTE Cat* | 7 | 7 |
| 5G support | No | No |
Sound
| Speakers | Mono | Mono |
| Headphone audio jack | Yes | Yes |
| FM radio | Yes | Yes |
| Dolby Atmos | No | No |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Budget | Budget |
| Announced | June 2020 | June 2023 |
| Release date | July 2020 | June 2023 |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $130 | $159 |
| Successor | - Xiaomi Redmi 15 4G | - Xiaomi Redmi 15 4G |
| SAR (head) | 0.71 W/kg | - |
| SAR (body) | 1.06 W/kg | - |
| Sensors | - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
- Accelerometer - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Bundled charger | Yes, 10 W | Not included |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
If the display, software, and design are more important to you, then choose the Xiaomi Redmi 12. But if the performance and gaming are more of a priority β go for the Xiaomi Redmi 9.
Cast your vote
Total votes: 131