Which iPhone 16 Model Should You Buy?

In a surprising twist, Apple has expanded the iPhone 16 range months after launch with the new iPhone 16e. Unlike the iPhone SE it replaced, the iPhone 16e is a part of the “iPhone 16 family,” according to Tim Cook. That means you have a staggering five different iPhone 16 models to choose from: iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max, and they range from $599 unlocked to $1,199.

If you're planning to upgrade and aren't sure which model is right for you, don't worry, I'm here to help. I’ll break down the differences and similarities of each model in this guide so you can make a more informed choice about your next iPhone.

Updated February 2025: We've added details about the iPhone 16e and updated the carrier deals.

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Should You Upgrade?

Ah, the age-old question. Should you get the new iPhone? Our philosophy here at WIRED is that you should only upgrade if you need to. Is your current phone operating perfectly fine? If the experience is OK for the most part but maybe your battery life has deteriorated, try doing a battery swap first—Apple offers a battery replacement program for a modest fee—and this could breathe new life into your device. There are also more ways to repair an iPhone than ever before.

But if your current phone is frustrating to use, upgrade! Like the iPhone 15 range, the entire iPhone 16 lineup has a USB-C port. These devices can also take advantage of Apple Intelligence (alongside the iPhone 15 Pro)—if that's something you care about.

If you've decided to do it, read our guide on how to sell your iPhone. Make sure you back up your iPhone first, and factory-reset it to erase your data from the device. We also have tips on how to set up your new iPhone to get the most out of your new handset.

Which iPhone 16 Model Is Right for You?

The iPhone 16 range includes the iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max. The iPhone 16 and 16 Plus are identical except for screen size and battery life. The same is true for both Pro models. Between those two pairs, the decision comes down to whether you want a small or big phone.

How does the iPhone 16e compare? It's the same size as the iPhone 16, but since it's the cheapest, Apple has cut a few features to hit that $599 price. The design is notably different—there's no color-infused glass back here. It's powered by the A18 chip, but it lacks one GPU core for a total of four as opposed to the five-core GPU on the standard iPhone 16. That means a slight hit to graphics performance, impacting games and other demanding tasks. Unlike the rest of the range, this iPhone does not have the Dynamic Island floating selfie camera system but instead uses the notch camera design like on the original iPhone X.

The bigger iPhones tend to have the best battery life. The iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Plus handily gave me hours of extra run time over their smaller siblings. You can take the bigger phones into the morning of a second day on a single charge, even with heavy use. If battery life is your top priority, choose between the largest models.

However, the iPhone 16e supposedly beats the iPhone 16 in battery run time despite being the same size. This is because it's the first time Apple is using its own modem—the C1 chip—which the company claims is more efficient, thereby saving battery life. Apple says the iPhone 16e can last up to 21 hours of streamed video playback, whereas the iPhone 16 hit 18 hours. The 16e even comes close to besting the iPhone 16 Pro, which lasts 22 hours, but this Pro model is slightly bigger this year at 6.3 inches, so it has a bigger battery.

All of these iPhones have the Action button, which replaces the Mute switch and is now configurable, so you can replicate the Mute switch functionality or execute another action, like turning on a flashlight or triggering a shortcut. All of them except for the iPhone 16e sport the new Camera Control button. You can use it to open the camera and take a photo, but a light press shows different camera modes, and you can slide your finger left or right across the button's surface to cycle through various modes, zoom levels, and more.

You can use this button to trigger Visual Intelligence, Apple's version of Google Lens—point your iPhone at something in the real world to get more information about it. iPhone 16e users can still access this feature through the Action Button or Control Center, and that capability will also be rolling out to the iPhone 15 Pro in the coming weeks.

Every iPhone 16 model can now take advantage of a cool video feature called Audio Mix. This lets you change how your videos sound when you're editing them by choosing a sound profile. These include In-Frame, which focuses the audio on whoever is in the frame; Studio, which makes it sound like you were in a studio, cutting all background noise; and Cinematic, which makes sure whoever is at the center of the frame comes in clear, with a little bit of ambient noise mixed in. This feature performs slightly better on the iPhone 16 Pro models, since they have upgraded microphones.

The redesigned Photographic Styles are also available in the entire range except the iPhone 16e. These are almost like filters but better—instead of changing the look of the whole image, these Styles can maintain skin tones so they don't look weird and can adjust other parts of the photo like shadows and highlights. They're among the standout features, so play around with them! Apple is also giving you more control over how your skin tone looks, instead of going for more of a one-size-fits-all approach like Google does with its Pixel phones.

Apple Intelligence is the headline feature, and the only way to try out the new artificial intelligence capabilities is to use a phone that supports it: the iPhone 16 range, the iPhone 15 Pro, or the iPhone 15 Pro Max. I covered these features in broader detail in our iOS 18 guide and evaluated many of the features here. To summarize, it includes a revamped Siri experience, real-time audio transcription in Voice Notes and Notes (even call recording), and writing assistance features like proofreading and changing the tone of your messages. You can create custom emojis through Genmoji, generate images via Image Playground, and tap into ChatGPT via Siri.

The basics are otherwise the same across the board. They sport an IP68 water-resistance rating and have OLED screens that can hit a peak brightness of 2,000 nits in outdoor sunny conditions, though the iPhone 16e is restricted to 1,200 nits. Apple's new twice-as-strong Ceramic Shield glass on the front is available on all of them except the iPhone 16e, which uses an older version of Ceramic Shield (glass is still glass, so get a case).

Once again, all but the iPhone 16e feature MagSafe wireless charging, which supports the Qi2 standard for wider compatibility with accessories; Apple is selling a new MagSafe Wireless Charger that can juice up these phones even faster, and it finally has a longer cable. The iPhone 16e has basic Qi wireless charging, which is slower and less energy-efficient, but since there are no built-in magnets, you cannot enjoy the wealth of MagSafe accessories unless you use a MagSafe case.

Here's a quick breakdown of how they differ:

• iPhone 16e ($599): The 6.1-inch iPhone 16e omits several features from the iPhone 16. It doesn't have the ultrawide camera, MagSafe, Camera Control, or Dynamic Island, and cannot capture spatial photos and videos. It has the older version of Photographic Styles and portrait photos—it won't automatically capture depth information unless you specifically use the Portrait mode, unlike the iPhone 16, which enables this when it detects a person or pet. In video recordings, there is no Cinematic mode or Action mode. This iPhone also doesn't have the ultra-wideband chip, so you won't be able to precisely see where in the vicinity your AirTags are, just a general area.
• iPhone 16 ($829): The 6.1-inch iPhone 16 (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is powered by the A18 processor, which is 30 percent faster than the iPhone 15 and 60 percent faster than the iPhone 12. The USB-C port supports USB 2 data speeds (up to 480 Mbps), but that might not be an issue if you rarely transfer files via a cable. Apple has upgraded the 12-megapixel ultrawide camera to capture more detail, and since it has autofocus, you can use it as a macro camera to take pictures of subjects up close.
• iPhone 16 Plus ($929): The iPhone 16 Plus (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is identical to the iPhone 16 but has a larger 6.7-inch screen. The larger size also means it has a beefier battery, and it can last more than a day on a single charge. Both of these iPhones more closely match the Pro devices than ever, only missing out on a few things you might care about like a 120-Hz screen or the 5X optical zoom camera. Yes, there are other things the Pro devices can do, but many of them are fancy camera features you're unlikely to use.
• iPhone 16 Pro ($999): The 6.3-inch iPhone 16 Pro (8/10, WIRED Recommends) steps things up in a few ways. First, the screen is larger than its predecessor, with slimmer bezels around the screen. The build quality is titanium, which is more durable than the aluminum in the iPhone 16 models. The display also supports ProMotion, which means the screen can refresh 120 times per second, making it more responsive and smoother (this is the standard in most smartphones). The Pro iPhones are still the only ones that support the always-on display. They also feature the A18 Pro chipset, which has an extra graphics core for slightly better gaming performance, and the CPU cores in this chipset also have larger cache sizes, meaning this processor is a bit faster overall than even the A18 in the iPhone 16.
• iPhone 16 Pro Max ($1,199): Like the Plus, the Max (8/10, WIRED Recommends) is identical to the smaller iPhone 16 Pro, except it has a larger 6.9-inch screen and Apple claims it has the best battery life of the bunch. (Battery life is really great, but I surprisingly got better results with the iPhone 16 Plus.) The iPhone Pro models differentiate in the cameras. The 48-megapixel Fusion camera has a twice-as-fast sensor read-out time, so you can capture subjects in motion better than ever, and the new 48-megapixel ultrawide camera can dish out more detail in low light. The Pro models can shoot at 4K and 120 frames per second for better slow-motion footage, support the second-gen of Apple's sensor-shift stabilization technology for smoother footage and sharper images, and can capture Night mode portrait photos. This largely applies to creators, but they're also the only phones in the lineup that can capture ProRes video.

Just because there are new iPhones doesn't mean you have to buy one of these models. Apple is still selling the iPhone 15 for $699 and the iPhone 15 Plus for $799, and there are some potential reasons to buy them over the iPhone 16e. But I strongly suggest you look at websites that sell used phones, such as Swappa, Gazelle, or Backmarket. You can probably snag a relatively recent model at a lower price and in good condition.

I recommend you buy your iPhone 16 unlocked. This lets you easily switch carriers—when you buy from a carrier like AT&T, the device is locked to that network, and the unlocking process can be a hassle. Apple says the iPhones available at its store are unlocked, but there are two exceptions. If you buy an iPhone on an AT&T installment plan directly from Apple, it will stay locked for the duration of the installment plan. And if you buy an iPhone through Boost Mobile's financing, it will be locked to Boost for the first 60 days after activation.

Keep in mind that there are no more physical SIM card slots in iPhones. The company pivoted to eSIM technology a few years ago, so you can transfer your eSIM between iPhones. You will likely need to contact your carrier if you are going from Android to iPhone (or vice versa).

Don't forget to take advantage of Apple's promotions: You get three free months of Apple News+, Apple Fitness+, Apple TV+, and Apple Arcade. It'll auto-bill you after the trial, so set a reminder to cancel if you don't want to continue subscribing to these services.

• The iPhone 16e starts at $599 at Apple for 128 GB
• The iPhone 16 starts at $829 at Apple for 128 GB
• The iPhone 16 Plus starts at $929 at Apple for 128 GB
• The iPhone 16 Pro starts at $999 at Apple for 128 GB
• The iPhone 16 Pro Max starts at $1,199 at Apple for 256 GB

If you buy the carrier version, you’ll automatically get a $30 discount off the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus, bringing the prices down to $799 and $899.

Here are a few promotions from carriers and retailers carrying the iPhone 16 range. These are network-locked. Many of these “deals” come in the form of monthly bill credits on your phone plan—if it says “$800” off an iPhone when you open a new line, you'll see your monthly bill lowered over several months.

• T-Mobile says new and existing T-Mobile customers can get up to $1,000 off an iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max when trading in an eligible device on a Go5G Next plan. If you have the Go5G Plus plan, you can get up to $830 off. The savings come in the form of bill credits spread over 24 months. T-Mobile also has a new Savings Calculator that shows the price difference of the company's plans compared to AT&T and Verizon. For the iPhone 16e, you can get $630 off in bill credits when you switch to T-Mobile (on most plans).
• Best Buy is selling the iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 16 Pro Max locked to either AT&T or Verizon.
• AT&T says new and existing customers with a qualifying unlimited plan can get an iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Pro for free with an eligible trade-in, up to $830 off an iPhone 16 Plus with an eligible trade-in, or up to $1,000 off an iPhone 16 Pro Max. For the iPhone 16e, you can snag it for $6 per month if you buy it on an installment plan with any unlimited plan, no trade-in required. You have to buy the phone at full price though, and the savings come in bill credits.
• Verizon customers on the Unlimited Ultimate plan can get up to $1,000 off the entire iPhone 16 lineup (iPhone 16e, iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max) when trading in any phone in any condition (it has to be a device from Apple, Google, or Samsung). The savings come in the form of bill credits. If you get the Unlimited Plus or Unlimited Welcome plans, you can get up to $830 or $415 off with an eligible trade-in, respectively. New and current customers can also snag the iPhone 16e for $5 a month for 36 months with a new line on myPlan.
• Boost Mobile is offering one year of its wireless service for free when you purchase an iPhone 16 at full price on the $25 per month unlimited plan (for new and existing customers). There's no trade-in or new line requirement. Alternatively, you can get $1,000 off the iPhone 16 lineup if you get Boost's $65 per month Infinite Access plan (which also gets you an upgrade to the latest iPhone every year). No trade-in is required. If you shop directly at Apple and choose Boost at checkout, you can combine this latter offer and get up to $1,650 spread out over bill credits. For the iPhone 16e, you can get it for $300 if you upgrade to the Unlimited Premium plan.