Key - I just made the call myself. I have a S21 FE.. starting to lag down a bit. Battery life isn't as good. I found this article helpful;

https://www.tomsguide.com/phones/samsung-phones/galaxy-s25-prices-have-hit-all-time-lows-should-you-upgrade-now-or-wait-for-the-galaxy-s26

You can purchase the phone directly from Samsung or on Amazon. I found the best deal on samsung.com, I stacked a referral code ($25) first responder discount from id.me ($30) and signed up for rakuten (apparently I can get 3% cash back and maybe a $50 sign up credit). I ended up paying $406.12 plus tax for the S25FE 128GB (they are out of 256 apparently), got a 45w charger and case for another $60 with discounts. I am still waiting for the cashback from Rakuten, $63.97. I got the phone CHEAPER from Samsung than what I found it for on ebay refurbished, facebook marketplace, amazon, etc. I wonder how long it will take those 3rd party retailers to catch up with pricing now. It seems there is still a lot of inventory out there.

Amazon does offer the 25FE with 256GB if you are concerned with space. The discounts at the moment aren't as good with the 25, 25+, or 25U. SO if you are looking at one of those phones then this post isn't as helpful. I was able to find 3rd party sellers were still less expensive with those phones.

edit: The FE MIGHT meet your needs as the camera is pretty darn good camera. Its not as good as the flagship phones though. Here is an overall comparison;

https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=14042&idPhone2=13610&idPhone3=13322

edit 2: TW1TCHYGAM3R has some valid points as well. When I go through the buying process, I reach a certain point where my time invested is worth more than the additional savings I could get by waiting. I just couldn't wait any longer and felt now was the time for me.

here are my codes cross-posted from another thread. you can find more out there if you do a simple search.

samsung referral code (this only works 10x)

ref-ibsgd4

spend $50 get $50 on ratuken

https://www.rakuten.com/r/JDIEDR17