The Galaxy S10+ has one of the largest displays Samsung has ever made — in fact, it’s the same size as the Note 9, which means there is so much more to scratch up and mar. That’s why a screen protector is a prudent investment to help extend the lifespan of your phone. These are the best screen protectors (so far!) for the Samsung Galaxy S10+.
UV curing
Whitestone Dome Glass (2-Pack)
Top protection
Dome Glass is the premium option when it comes to screen protectors, and right now it seems to be just about the only option for a tempered glass screen protector that works with the ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. Tempered glass protects your S10+’s screen from scratches and shatters, and if you manage to minorly scuff or scratch your screen, Whitestone claims that Dome Glass can fill those minor cracks.
$70 at Amazon
Fingerprint-free
Qoosea Ultra-Thin Explosion-Proof (3-Pack)
Best value
Qoosea’s plastic screen protector has an oleophobic coating, which means it helps to repel fingerprints, keeping your screen clean and clear. This plastic film protector should work with the in-screen fingerprint sensor, and it comes with a lifetime warranty in case of any defects. There’s a cutout for the front cameras, too, so that you don’t have to worry about any smudges or film futzing with your selfies.
$7 at Amazon
Tested, tried and true
ZAGG InvisibleShield Ultra Clear
“Designed for Samsung” ZAGG’s InvisisbleShield Ultra Clear film protectors are shiny, clear, and work perfectly with the ultrasonic sensor. Granted, most of us turn to Zagg for tempered glass screen protectors, but ZAGG would rather give you a film protector that works than a glass protector that doesn’t. As usual, ZAGG offers a lifetime warranty, so you can get a replacement if yours tears.
$30 at ZAGG
Pack of protection
LK HD Clear Screen Protector (3-Pack)
LK’s film protectors are thin, clear and clean, with good margins for cases and precise cutouts for those hole-punch cameras and the top earpiece. This pack comes with 3 protectors, so if you screw up applying yours — or if you’re just hard enough on your phones that you wreck the first protectors — you’ll be protected for a while without having to wait on replacements to ship out to you.
$13 at Amazon
Smooth as water
IQ Shield LiQuidSkin (2-Pack)
IQ Shield usually turns out some great film screen protectors at affordable prices, and this 2-pack will protect your phone without getting in the way of selfies, cases, or that ultrasonic in-screen fingerprint sensor. IQ Shield’s smart little screen protectors are self-healing, meaning that if your keys or coins scuff it on accident, you shouldn’t have to look at them for long.
$8 at Amazon
Unabashedly ultrasonic incompatible
ESR Tempered Glass Screen Protector (2-Pack)
White Dome has the market cornered on ultrasonic-compatible tempered glass protectors right now, so ESR is choosing to offer affordable, traditional adhesive tempered glass protectors that won’t work with the in-screen sensor. What it will do is offer up top-notch protection of that 6.4-inch screen in your shiny new $1000 phone, and that’s a trade-off I’m willing to make.
$16 at Amazon
That ultrasonic sensor can’t stand gaps
Because that swanky new ultrasonic fingerprint sensor uses sound pressure waves to map and read your finger, there absolutely, positively cannot be any air gaps between your screen and its screen protector. The Whitestone Dome Glass uses a patented UV-drying application system that ensures no air pockets or gaps between tempered glass and your Galaxy S10+’s screen, so it works fine. Unfortunately, other tempered glass screen protectors that use traditional adhesives around the edges leave gaps that disrupt the ultrasonic sensor’s readings and make it impossible to get clean, consistent readings of your prints.
If you can’t stomach $70 to cover your screen, you’ll have to settle for film screen protectors like the ZAGG Ultra Clear or the Qoosea 3-Pack. That’s just the way the cookie crumbles with cutting-edge tech sometimes.
The sensor or the screen: which do you value more?
While the ultrasonic fingerprint sensor is neat, it’s also finicky and slow, and I’m betting that protecting that screen means more to you than using it. If that’s the case, you may want to consider disabling the ultrasonic fingerprint sensor and instead using Smart Lock, Facial recognition, and a PIN/Pattern/Password to secure your phone instead. As someone who has used Smart Lock since the old Moto X days when it was called Trusted Bluetooth, this is a useful feature that’s made me care a little less about the fingerprint sensor overall.
Especially since it means that I can ignore this glitchy new sensor and grab myself an affordable traditional tempered glass protector like the ESR Tempered Glass Screen Protector 2-pack to protect the screen on my new $1000 beautiful beast of a phone.
