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To turn off your Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, press and hold the Side button and Volume Down together, then tap Power off on the screen. If the phone is frozen, the same button combination held for more than seven seconds forces a restart instead; it does not perform a normal shutdown.

Turn off the S23 Ultra with its buttons

  1. Press and hold the Side button and Volume Down at the same time until the power controls appear.
  2. Tap Power off. If the phone asks you to confirm, tap Power off again.

These are the model-specific steps in Samsung’s Galaxy S23-series user manual, which covers the S23 Ultra. Follow any confirmation prompt shown by your phone.

Use the Quick panel instead

  1. Swipe down from the top of the screen to open the notification panel.
  2. Tap the power icon.
  3. Tap Power off, and confirm if prompted.

This route avoids holding physical buttons. Samsung’s U.S. Galaxy power instructions also describe opening Quick settings with a two-finger swipe and selecting the Power icon.

When holding the Side button opens Bixby

The Side button’s press-and-hold action may be set to launch Bixby or another function rather than show the power menu. To change it, open Settings → Advanced features → Side button, then under Press and hold, select Power off menu. After that, holding the Side button by itself opens the power menu. The exact options can vary with software configuration.

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#1 Best Overall
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G, US Version, 256GB, Phantom Black - Unlocked (Renewed)
  • 6.8" Dynamic AMOLED 2X QHD+ display with 1–120 Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to ~1750 nits brightness, HDR10+ support, and ultra-smooth responsiveness for gaming and scrolling.

You can also use the Quick panel power icon without changing the Side button setting.

Turn off a frozen or unresponsive S23 Ultra

If the screen is frozen and the phone does not respond to the normal shutdown steps, press and hold the Side button and Volume Down together for more than 7 seconds. Samsung’s S23-series manual says this forces the phone to restart, so use it as a recovery step rather than a way to shut the phone down normally.

Rank #2
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G, US Version, 256GB, Green - Unlocked (Renewed)
  • 6.8" Dynamic AMOLED 2X QHD+ display with 1–120 Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to ~1750 nits brightness, HDR10+ support, and ultra-smooth responsiveness for gaming and scrolling.

Samsung’s general Galaxy troubleshooting guidance says that holding Power/Side and Volume Down until shutdown can take up to 60 seconds. That is broader guidance, not a separate S23 Ultra shutdown method. After a restart, a device secured with biometrics may ask for its backup PIN or password. If Maintenance Boot Mode appears, use the volume keys to select Normal Boot and confirm with the button indicated on screen. If the phone still will not turn off, Samsung recommends requesting service.

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Optional: ask Bixby to turn it off

If Bixby Voice is already set up, Samsung’s U.S. guidance says you can hold the Side button to call Bixby and say, “Turn off the phone.” This depends on your Bixby setup; the button or button combination is still needed to power the phone back on.

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Best Value
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G, US Version, 512GB, Green - Unlocked (Renewed)
  • 6.8" Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O QHD+, Edge Screen, 120Hz Refresh Rate, 500ppi, 1750nit (Outdoor Peak), 1440 x 3088 pixels, 5000mAh Battery
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  • 2G: GSM 850/900/1800/1900, CDMA 800/1900, 3G: HSDPA 850/900/1700(AWS)/1900/2100, CDMA2000 1xEV-DO, 4G LTE: 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/14/18/19/20/25/26/28/29/30/38/39/40/41/46/48/66/71, 5G: 1/7/28/41/66/71/78/258/260/261 SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - Single SIM
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SAMSUNG Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G, US Version, 512GB, Phantom Black - Unlocked (Renewed)
  • 6.8" Dynamic AMOLED 2X QHD+ display with 1–120 Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to ~1750 nits brightness, HDR10+ support, and ultra-smooth responsiveness for gaming and scrolling.
Rank #3
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G, US Version, 256GB, Lavender - Unlocked (Renewed)
  • 6.8" Dynamic AMOLED 2X QHD+ display with 1–120 Hz adaptive refresh rate, up to ~1750 nits brightness, HDR10+ support, and ultra-smooth responsiveness for gaming and scrolling.

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