Head to head
Apple iPhone 16vsApple iPhone 15
The short answer
Neither the iPhone 16 nor the iPhone 15 wins a 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 2030–2034 for the iPhone 15, 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
- 2023-09-22endoflife.date, retrieved 2026-08-19
- Security updates until
- Not published by the makerendoflife.date — iPhone, retrieved 2026-08-19
0 wins for iPhone 160 wins for iPhone 153 gaps borderline3 differences you won’t notice
Verdict: nothing you’d notice between them
On the makers’ figures and the named third-party sources, neither the iPhone 16 nor the iPhone 15 wins a row by a gap you would notice. 3 gaps are borderline, differences most people would not notice: claimed video playback (22 h against 20 h) for the iPhone 16, wireless charging (25 W against 15 W) for the iPhone 16 and Geekbench 6 (CPU, multi-core) (7,558 against 5,967, both from Geekbench Browser) for the iPhone 16. The differences in weight, RAM and battery capacity are below the thresholds you would notice. Both state the same display size, peak brightness, typical brightness, 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 15?
On the figures, neither: no row has a gap between them you’d notice. The differences that exist are borderline, too close to notice, or not ranked.
Which has the better battery?
The iPhone 16 is ahead, narrowly: claimed video playback, 22 h against 20 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 3,349 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 171 g (Apple Support UK).
Which has the brighter screen?
Neither: both state 2,000 nits for peak brightness (Apple UK and Apple Support UK). Both state 1,000 nits for typical brightness (Apple UK and Apple Support UK). 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 2030–2034 for the iPhone 15, 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.