Updated 01/10/22: We have updated our recommendations to account for the new iPhone 13 lineup.
Picking out an iPhone used to be easier—just get the newest one with all the storage you can afford. We still recommend buying as much storage as you can afford, but the choice of which iPhone to get it on isn’t quite so simple. Apple currently sells five “new” iPhone models and you can still buy an iPhone 11 or iPhone XR, not to mention older refurbished models. Apple offers all this choice because, quite simply, different people have different priorities.
Apple’s latest iPhone lineup includes the iPhone 13, iPhone 13 mini, iPhone 13 Pro, and iPhone 13 Pro Max. The “best” iPhone depends on your own personal preferences, so we have several recommendations for different groups of users. We’ll summarize our choices here, and provide links to articles explaining each choice in more detail.
With the iPhone 13 lineup released in the fall of 2021, and iOS 15 alongside it, we don’t expect another major release until late in 2022 (typically in September). The one exception may be the iPhone SE, which often gets a new release in the spring (but not every spring). We think we might see the release of a new iPhone SE in 2022 that has 5G networking and a faster processor, but not a lot of other major changes.
iPhone specs compared
Apple sells five current-generation model iPhones: four iPhone 12s and the iPhone SE. Here’s how their most important specs compare, but remember specs aren’t everything!
| iPhone SE | iPhone 13 mini | iPhone 13 | iPhone 13 Pro | iPhone 13 Pro Max | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $399 | $699 | $799 | $999 | $1099 |
| Screen size | 4.7″ | 5.4″ | 6.1″ | 6.1″ | 6.7″ |
| Size (H x W x D) | 5.45″ x 2.65″ x 0.29″ | 5.18″ x 2.53″ x 0.30″ | 5.78″ x 2.82″ x 0.30″ | 5.78″ x 2.82″ x 0.30″ | 6.33″ x 3.07″ x 0.30″ |
| Weight | 5.22 oz | 4.97 oz | 6.14 oz | 7.19 oz | 8.46 oz |
| Colors | black, red, white | pink, blue, midnight, starlight, red | pink, blue, midnight, starlight, red | sierra blue, silver, gold, graphite | sierra blue, silver, gold, graphite |
| Display | LCD (326 ppi) | OLED with HDR (476 ppi) | OLED with HDR (460 ppi) | OLED with HDR (460 ppi), ProMotion 120Hz | OLED with HDR (458 ppi), ProMotion, 120Hz |
| Processor | A13 Bionic | A15 Bionic | A15 Bionic | A15 Bionic (5-core GPU) | A15 Bionic (5-core GPU) |
| Storage | 64/128/256GB | 128/256/512GB | 128/256/512GB | 128/256/512GB/1TB | 128/256/512GB/1TB |
| Authentication | Touch ID | Face ID | Face ID | Face ID | Face ID |
| Rear Camera | 12MP f/1.8 Wide camera | 12MP f/1.6 Wide camera, 12MP f/2.4 Ultra Wide camera |
12MP f/1.6 Wide camera, 12MP f/2.4 Ultra Wide camera |
12MP f/1.5 Wide camera, 12MP f/1.8 Ultra Wide camera (macro), 12MP f/2.8 Telephoto (3x) |
12MP f/1.6 Wide camera, 12MP f/2.4 Ultra Wide camera (macro), 12MP f/2.8 Telephoto (3x) |
| Front Camera | 7MP f/2.2 camera, 1080p | 12MP f/2.2 camera, 4K HDR | 12MP f/2.2 camera, 4K HDR | 12MP f/2.2 camera, 4K HDR | 12MP f/2.2 camera, 4K HDR |
| Battery capacity | 1821mAh | 2348mAh | 3240mAh | 3095mAh | 4352mAh |
| Wireless features | 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC |
5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Ultra Wideband |
5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Ultra Wideband |
5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Ultra Wideband |
5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, Ultra Wideband |
| MagSafe | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Best overall: iPhone 13
If you want a new iPhone and you just aren’t sure about what’s most important to you at all, you should just get an iPhone 13. This is the sweet spot in terms of design, size, features, performance, and cost (starting at $799). The iPhone 13 Pro is definitely a better phone, with 120Hz ProMotion, a somewhat better camera system (including the ability to take macro shots), and slightly better battery life. But it’s hard to justify paying $200 more for those things unless you really know you need it. For most people, the regular iPhone 13 is the sweet spot for price, features, performance, and longevity.
Pros: Larger sensor, enhanced stabilization, better telephoto lens
Cons: Very big, expensive
Best iPhone for photography: iPhone 13 Pro / Max
Last year, the “Max” variant of the iPhone 12 Pro had a different camera system than the regular-size iPhone 12 Pro. With the iPhone 13 Pro, the standard size and Max versions have the exact same cameras, so pick the size that suits you.
Compared to the regular iPhone 13, the Pro models have a much larger sensor on the standard Wide camera, and a wider aperture, too (f/1.5 vs. f/1.6). It’s got the telephoto camera that the regular iPhone 13 lacks, with a more useful 3x zoom instead of the 2x zoom found on previous models. And the Ultra-Wide camera has a wider aperture along with a fantastic 2-centimeter minimum focal distance, which allows you to take awesome macro shots.
Pros: Larger Wide sensor, 3x telephoto, better Ultra-wide camera, macro photography
Cons: Expensive
Best iPhone for gaming: iPhone 13 Pro Max
It seems like a cop-out to simply pick the newest and most expensive iPhone as “best” for gaming, but there are real benefits here. Yes of course it has the fastest new A15 processor, and the Pro models have 5 GPU cores instead of 4 on the standard and mini iPhone 13, which really comes into its own in high-end 3D games. While the iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max have identical performance, we chose the Max version for a reason: that huge battery means epic battery life (and nothing drains your battery like gaming), and on-screen virtual button and stick controls are much easier to manipulate on larger phones.
Pros: Top performance, huge display, longest battery life ever
Cons: Really big, really expensive
Best iPhone for kids
Most kids don’t need a large or an expensive phone. Let’s face it, kids are rough on electronics. The iPhone SE is plenty fast to run anything and will last several years. It’s also got Touch ID rather than Face ID, which sometimes struggles with very young faces (Apple says Face ID is only appropriate for people over 13). The smaller size fits better in young hands and pockets, and the $399 price tag will please parents.
There are rumors of a new iPhone SE to be released in the spring of 2022, so if you’re in no hurry you might want to wait for that. The rumors state it will be similar to the current model, only with the A15 processor and 5G networking capability.
Pros: Price, size, durability, performance
Cons: No Face ID, older design
Best iPhone for seniors: iPhone SE
The iPhone SE is a godsend for seniors or anyone else on a fixed income. Starting at only $399, it gives you a fully modern iPhone with an A13 processor, so it’ll likely get iOS updates for another four or five years. Even with just a single lens, the camera is quite good, and some seniors will find Touch ID easier to deal with than Face ID (especially if their previous smartphone was an older iPhone). Battery life is the biggest drawback, but your grandparents probably won’t be streaming as many YouTube and TikTok videos as we do.
Pros: Price, size, camera, Touch ID
Cons: Slightly, older processor, so-so battery life
Best small iPhone: iPhone 13 mini
Small phone fans are not that great in number—sales data consistently shows that most people prefer larger phones—but they are very sure of their preference for a small phone. Fortunately, the iPhone 13 mini is a no-compromise small phone for those who don’t want to buy an “old” design or dated technology just to get a phone that’s easier to hold and manipulate. Battery life suffers a bit, because you just can’t fit a big battery in a small phone, but you otherwise get everything you get in the larger iPhone 13, and the battery life is better than last year’s iPhone 12 mini.
Pros: Cheapest iPhone 13, small, full performance and features
Cons: Battery life isn’t as good as larger models
Best budget iPhone: iPhone SE
The words budget and iPhone don’t normally go together, but Apple flipped that script when it launched the original iPhone SE. Priced at just $399, the iPhone SE (now in its second generation) has a nice processor in the A13 Bionic, modern features such as wireless charging and portrait mode, and years of updates ahead of it. So what if it has a home button? It has an excellent retro design, gorgeous glass black, and build quality that’ll stand up to lots of abuse. You’re giving up a little in battery life compared to the iPhone 13 mini, but still, there really isn’t a better way to spend $400.
The only caveat here is that the iPhone SE might get an update in the spring of 2022, which rumors say will be very similar but with an A15 processor and 5G support. If you don’t need a budget iPhone right now, it could be worth waiting a bit to see if that materializes.
Pros: Speedy processor, solid camera, wireless charging
Cons: Battery life is just OK
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