Head to head
Apple iPhone 16vsApple iPhone 13
The short answer
Choose the iPhone 16 for peak brightness, more RAM and Geekbench 6 CPU score. The iPhone 13 wins no row by a gap you’d notice. Apple publishes no date for either; its record with retired iPhones points to 2031–2035 for the iPhone 16 and 2028–2032 for the iPhone 13, our estimate, not Apple’s.
- Released
- 2024-09-20endoflife.date, retrieved 2026-08-19
- Price
- £699Apple UK store, retrieved 2026-08-19
- Security updates until
- Not published by the makerendoflife.date — iPhone, retrieved 2026-08-19
- Released
- 2021-09-24endoflife.date, retrieved 2026-08-19
- Security updates until
- Not published by the makerendoflife.date — iPhone, retrieved 2026-08-19
3 wins for iPhone 160 wins for iPhone 133 gaps borderline2 differences you won’t notice
Verdict: iPhone 16 ahead on 3 rows, iPhone 13 on none
On the makers’ figures and the named third-party sources, the iPhone 16 wins on peak brightness (2,000 nits against 1,200 nits), RAM (8 GB against 4 GB, both from GSMArena) and Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) (7,558 against 4,991, both from Geekbench Browser). 3 gaps are borderline, differences most people would not notice: typical brightness (1,000 nits against 800 nits) for the iPhone 16, claimed video playback (22 h against 19 h) for the iPhone 16 and wireless charging (25 W against 15 W) for the iPhone 16. The differences in weight and battery capacity are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same display size, HDR peak brightness, storage (base) and fast charging. The other 35 rows have no threshold or no direction to judge by, so nobody wins them.
True to scale
Outlines from each maker’s published dimensions, drawn to scale. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.
Specifications
A win is marked only where the figures can be ranked and the gap is one you could notice. A row the site has no threshold for says whether the two differ, and that it is not ranking them. = marks the same figure on both, ≠ not ranked a difference with no ranking. Every figure carries its source.
Body
Display
Platform
Memory
Camera
Battery
Connectivity
Benchmarks
4 attributes neither phone has a sourced figure for
Refresh rate · Google Mobile Services · AnTuTu benchmark · 3DMark Wild Life Extreme. Rows appear as sources are cited — a gap in our data, not a statement about either phone.
Questions
Is the iPhone 16 better than the iPhone 13?
On the figures, the iPhone 16 is ahead wherever there is a gap you’d notice: peak brightness, 2,000 nits (Apple UK) against 1,200 nits (Apple Support UK), RAM, 8 GB against 4 GB (both GSMArena) and Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core), 7,558 against 4,991 (both Geekbench Browser). The iPhone 13 wins no row by such a gap. That is a count of rows, not an overall score.
Which has the better battery?
The iPhone 16 is ahead, narrowly: claimed video playback, 22 h against 19 h (both Apple UK), a borderline gap most people would not notice. The iPhone 16 is ahead on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: battery capacity, 3,561 mAh against 3,240 mAh (both GSMArena).
Which is lighter?
The iPhone 16 is lighter on paper, but not by a gap you’d notice: weight, 170 g (Apple UK) against 173 g (Apple Support UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
The iPhone 16, by a gap you’d notice: peak brightness, 2,000 nits (Apple UK) against 1,200 nits (Apple Support UK). The iPhone 16 is brighter, narrowly: typical brightness, 1,000 nits (Apple UK) against 800 nits (Apple Support UK), a borderline gap most people would not notice. Both state 1,200 nits for HDR peak brightness (Apple UK).
Which gets updates for longer?
Apple publishes no date for either; its record with retired iPhones points to 2031–2035 for the iPhone 16 and 2028–2032 for the iPhone 13, our estimate, not Apple’s. Sources: Apple’s record from endoflife.date and Apple security releases.
Other comparisons
The pairs a buyer of either phone would also weigh. Any two phones in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.