The iPhone 16 lineup is here, and the best iPhone you can buy in 2024 (for most people) is the iPhone 16. The newest flagship phone has everything that most users will need: the all-new A18 chip built for Apple Intelligence, handy Camera Control button, upgraded camera system, increased battery life, and the Action button brought down from the previous generation’s Pro lineup.
While it’s the best option for most people, it won’t be the best option for everyone. If you prefer a larger screen or a bigger battery, the extra $100 for the iPhone 16 Plus will be worthwhile. For photographers, both amateur and professional, upgrading to the iPhone 16 Pro or Pro Max will be worth every penny. If having Apple’s best battery yet is your priority, iPhone 16 Pro Max is the way to go. At the other end of the spectrum, if the iPhone 16 feels a bit pricey, you can save some money with the previous generation’s excellent iPhone 15. If money is the only consideration, the iPhone SE 3 (2022) is a viable option for under $350.
This is the best iPhone in 2024
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If I were still working at the Apple Store when the iPhone 16 was released, this is the model I’d recommend to most of my customers. It’s a bit of everything for everyone. Pricewise, it’s the cheapest way into the brand new lineup, and I always advocate buying the newest technology that fits your budget. The newer the tech you buy now, the longer you can hang onto it before you start running into issues running the latest operating systems.
The iPhone 16 sports a whole host of new features, some brand new, and some brought down from the previous generation’s Pro lineup. The most notable new feature is the Camera Control button, which makes the iPhone feel more like a high-end point-and-shoot camera. This button is like a mini trackpad that gives you detailed control over your camera app without even touching your screen. The camera system is all new, featuring a 48 MP Fusion camera with 2x telephoto option. The ultra-wide camera lens enables macro photography.
The new A18 represents a big jump from the iPhone 15’s A16 chip, which brings a lot more power to the iPhone. The A18 enables some Apple Intelligence features, demanding AAA games, and an increase in battery life. For an extra $100, the iPhone 16 Plus will be the right fit for you if you want just a bit more screen and/or a bit more battery life.
As always, Apple saves some features for its Pro lineup. This year, some of the Apple Intelligence features won’t make it to the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus. You’ll still need to go Pro if you want the 120Hz refresh rate and 5x telephoto lens.
The “regular” iPhone always comes in some great colors but I think the iPhone 16 colors are the best yet. You can get black or white, but there’s also a gorgeous teal, a perfectly yummy Barbie pink, and a stunning blurple shade called ultramarine.
2024 Runner up: iPhone 15
The iPhone 15 was basically like the iPhone 14 Pro, with many of those Pro features making their way down to the regular iPhone. The iPhone 15 got the iPhone 14 Pro’s A16 chip, which is impressive even if it won’t run the new Apple Intelligence features. The iPhone 15 also got the previously Pro-only model’s Dynamic Island, which is much more useful and less of an eyesore than the old notch. This model also got the convenient USB-C charging port, although charging and data transfer speeds weren’t improved.
The camera system is impressive, and shoots 48MP photos. The 60Hz display is typical for a regular phone, as Apple saves the 120Hz display for its Pro lineup.
The best iPhone for photography in 2024
Are you a photographer? Whether you’re an amateur or a professional, into still photography or videography, the iPhone 16 Pro lineup is the way to go. The Camera Control button both allows you to tap into visual intelligence features and gives you granular control over the camera without even touching your screen. Yes, the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus also have the Camera Control button, but the camera lenses in the Pro lineup are on another level. The new 28MP Fusion camera has a faster quad-pixel sensor that enables 4K120 fps video recording in Dolby Vision. Studio-quality mics record more true-to-life audio. The new 48MP Ultra Wide camera allows higher-resolution photography, including macro for those extra close-ups of tiny things. The 5x Telephoto camera makes its way down to the regular iPhone 16 Pro; last year it was only available on the larger iPhone 15 Pro Max.
While the iPhone 16 Pro aims to replace your point-and-shoot camera entirely, it’s more than just a camera. It has all of the features of the iPhone 16, including the improved battery life, plus a 120Hz display. The 6-core GPU, 6-core CPU, 16-core neural engine A18 Pro chip enables more Apple Intelligence features than are available on the iPhone 16. Titanium is a strong but lightweight material. The Pro models have the thinnest bezels yet, allowing for maximum display size: a whopping 6.3-inch display on the regular size iPhone 16 Pro and 6.9-inch display on the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The color selection is similar to last year’s but with one notable difference. The natural, black, and white titanium shades are back, but blue has been replaced by a mysterious golden desert titanium shade. I say mysterious because it looks so different in different light. It definitely gives gold iPhone XS vibes, which was probably the most beautiful iPhone I ever owned.
The best cheap iPhone in 2024
You don't have to spend a fortune to get the iPhone experience, and there's no greater example than Apple's best cheap iPhone, the iPhone SE. Clocking in at just 4.7-inches tall, this tiny iPhone still features a Home Button and the legacy design of the iPhones of yesteryear. However, it's no slouch, and features the same processor as the iPhone 14, a 2MP wide-angle camera with 5x digital zoom, Deep Fusion, Smart HDR 4, Photographic Styles, 4K video recording, 5G connectivity, and an improved battery over the previous model.
This is also a great pick for seniors and young children, because of its accessibility and its cheap price respectively. It's most certainly the model I would recommend to my mom. She's used to using a Home button and isn't particularly interested in learning new tech. She doesn't take a ton of photos, nor does she care about having "the latest" tech with all the bells and whistles. She just wants a phone to keep in her purse in case of emergencies, for texting with her grandkids, or to play the occasional game of Solitaire.
The smaller form factor is great for smaller hands, and the lower price point makes it an attractive option for kids who tend to drop or lose things more often than their parents would like.
If you're new to the smartphone game or upgrading from an older model, this is newer tech at an incredibly low price.
The best iPhone for battery life in 2024
There’s no room for opinion here, Apple said it straight out: the iPhone 16 Pro Max has the biggest battery of any iPhone. Where the iPhone 16 offers up to 22 hours of video playback on a single charge, the iPhone 16 Pro offers up to 27 hours and the iPhone 16 Pro Max: a whopping 33 hours.
Other than the maxed out battery, the larger screen (6.9” as opposed to 6.3”), and larger form factor in general, the iPhone 16 Pro Max is identical to the iPhone 16 Pro. Of course it comes with a larger price point as well. It starts at $1199, which is $200 over the starting price of the iPhone 16 Pro.
The best small iPhone in 2024
Apple doesn't sell the diminutive mini anymore, but you can still get the iPhone 13 mini from carriers. It's available in Midnight, Starlight, Blue, PRODUCT(RED), Pink, and the mid-cycle refresh color: Green.
As a smaller phone, it has a 5.4-inch Super Retina XDR display. That screen has a Ceramic Shield which offers four times the drop performance of older iPhones. It also has a glass back and aluminum design on the rest of the body, although it makes sense to still set aside some cash for one of the best iPhone 13 mini cases or one of the many wallets compatible with it.
As expected from an iPhone of this age, it has no problem running the latest iOS including iOS 17.
Similar to the iPhone 12 lineup, the iPhone 13 mini comes with super-fast 5G connectivity, but this time with more band support. This means even faster download speeds and high-quality streaming, as long as your carrier offers it. The iPhone 13 mini also has the A15 Bionic chip, a 6-core CPU with two high-performance cores and four efficiency cores. You also get a 4-core GPU that gives you 30% faster graphics, and overall, the iPhone 13 is 50% faster than competing devices. It also has a 16-core Neural Engine for machine learning, allowing it to do 15.8 trillion operations per second. Pretty fast, right?
The iPhone 13 mini can also use the Apple MagSafe charger and the entire MagSafe ecosystem of accessories that debuted with the iPhone 12. This means you can get MagSafe wireless chargers too.
The best iPhone is one that fits your needs
When I worked at Apple, I always got to know my customers and their needs before suggesting a specific model. There really is no one best model, the best model for you is the one that best suits your own needs. You have to take into consideration your budget and how you really plan to use your phone. Though not mentioned above, Apple does still sell the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus models in store and online. I wouldn’t generally recommend buying two-year-old tech new, but if you want a phone with a more modern form factor than the iPhone SE 3 for not much more money, that’s the way to go. It’s a decent pick for a budget iPhone at this point.
I do think that the iPhone 16 will fit the majority of people’s needs at a fairly reasonable price point, especially when you consider that you’ll be able to use it for many years to come, or resell it for a decent price in the future. If you specifically need a larger screen and/or larger battery, the iPhone 16 Plus will do it for you. And this year’s color array on the iPhone 16 is really special.
Whether you’re the family photographer, a content creator, or a professional photographer of any kind, the iPhone 16 Pro or iPhone 16 Pro Max will be the way to go. The feature set, including the 5x telephoto lens, is on both sizes this year, so the only reason to go Pro Max is if you need the bigger screen and/or bigger battery. Besides the camera, the other reason you might go Pro is if you prefer the 120Hz display over the iPhone 16’s 60Hz refresh rate.
Whichever way you go, the phone that’s been carefully selected to suit you will serve you well for years to use. There’s an iPhone for everyone.
