What Do the Green, Teal, Blue Circles, and Lightning Icons Mean When Charging a Samsung Phone?

Samsung Galaxy smartphone users often notice a circular animation in green, teal, or blue when charging their devices. This animation is typically accompanied by lightning bolt icons, either one or two. Many users have raised questions in Samsung's community forums about the meaning of these colors and the number of lightning icons. The circular animation and lightning bolts are designed as charging indicators to reflect different charging speeds. According to KompasTekno's findings, Samsung introduced this feature on smartphones running OneUI 5.0 or newer.

Samsung offers three different charging speeds for its Galaxy lineup: 15 watts, 25 watts, and 45 watts. The circular animation colors act as indicators for each speed. Here’s what they mean:

Green circle with one lightning icon: Indicates Fast Charging (15 watts). In this mode, a 5,000 mAh battery takes approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes to fully charge from 0 to 100 percent.
Teal circle with two lightning icons: Represents Super Fast Charging (25 watts). In this mode, a 5,000 mAh battery can fully charge in about 80 to 100 minutes.
Blue circle with two lightning icons: Signifies Super Fast Charging 2.0 (45 watts), where a 5,000 mAh battery can fully charge in 50 to 60 minutes.

However, charging speeds also depend on the phone model, adapter, and cable being used.

Most Samsung entry-level and mid-range phones support fast charging up to 25 watts. Meanwhile, the Super Fast Charging 2.0 feature at 45 watts is typically available only on flagship models like the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, and similar devices.

There are a few scenarios where a Samsung Galaxy phone might not charge at its maximum speed:

Using an incompatible adapter or cable. If users do not use an adapter and cable that support 25 watts or 45 watts, the charging speed will default to the standard 15 watts. In this case, the user will see a green circle with one lightning icon.
The Fast Charging feature is turned off. By default, Samsung enables the fast charging feature on its devices, but users can deactivate it through settings. To ensure this feature is active, users can follow these steps: go to Settings > Battery > Charging Settings > Fast charging, and ensure the option is toggled on.

By understanding the color indicators and the conditions affecting charging speeds, users can optimize the charging process for their Samsung Galaxy devices.