Best iPhones in 2024: The top iPhones you can buy now

With one of the best iPhones in your pocket, you can rest assured that you're getting a top-quality smartphone experience, however much you decide you're willing to pay.

Apple operates a bit differently from other phone makers, offering not only its latest models for sale but also a couple of years' worth of older devices, still brand-new and box-fresh, for users who want to spend less. It's an unusual approach, but one that helps you get a good iPhone even when your budget is limited.

As of October 2023, the iPhone 15 line makes up our top four spots, with the iPhone 15 Pro Max at number 1. However we still like the iPhone 13 and iPhone SE, which is why you'll find them lower down on this list.

Read on for full descriptions of the best iPhones, and who we'd recommend each of our selected models to.

The quick list

The best iPhones you can buy right now 

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The best iPhone overall

iPhone 15 Pro Max shown in hand

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
The best iPhone you can buy today

Specifications

Starting price: £1,199
Screen size: 6.7-inch OLED (120Hz)
Processor: A17 Pro
Cameras: 48MP main (ƒ/1.8), 12MP ultrawide (ƒ/2.8) 12MP telephoto (ƒ/2.2) with 5x optical zoom, LiDAR / 12MP front (ƒ/1.9)
RAM/Storage: 8GB/256GB, 512GB, 1TB

Reasons to buy

+
Excellent photos and new 5x zoom
+
Mighty performance
+
Excellent battery life
+
New titanium design with Action button

Reasons to avoid

-
More expensive than last year
-
Slow charging

The iPhone 15 Pro Max our top pick of all iPhones on sale today, and it's not hard to see why: it's got the best and most advanced features out of any iPhone, with even the smaller iPhone 15 Pro not fully matching up.

Apple added a 5x zoom lens to the Pro Max for the first time, which allows for greater versatility when taking photos. It's also received a more powerful and efficient A17 Pro chipset, and a titanium body that brings with it an Action button for a greater choice of shortcut commands. 

You do need to pay a little extra on top of previous year's iPhone Pro Max prices to get a hold of the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but if you can look past that, and the slow charging speed, you won't go wrong by picking one up for yourself.

Read our full iPhone 15 Pro Max review.

The best iPhone for most people

Apple iPhone 15 review.

(Image credit: Future)
The best iPhone for most people

Specifications

Screen size: 6.1-inch OLED (2556 x 1179)
CPU: A16 Bionic
Cameras: 48MP (f/1.6) main, 12MP (f/2.4) ultrawide / 12MP front (f/1.9)
RAM/Storage: 6GB/128GB, 256GB, 512GB

Reasons to buy

+
Strong battery life
+
48MP main camera with 2x virtual zoom
+
Much improved display

Reasons to avoid

-
60Hz display
-
Slow charging

The iPhone 15 is still a premium phone, but one with a price and feature set that will please the vast majority of potential users.

Compared to a similarly-priced Android phone, the iPhone 15's slow charging and 60Hz display are not good value. But unless you've used a recent Pro iPhone, you won't notice a difference. And besides, you'll still get great performance, battery efficiency and display quality from the iPhone despite that.

The best part is the new 48MP camera. This not only unlocks more detailed photos but can be used as a virtual 2x telephoto camera. Handy if paying for an iPhone 15 Pro with its dedicated telephoto camera is out of your reach.

Read our full iPhone 15 review.

Best iPhone battery life

Apple iPhone 15 Plus review.

(Image credit: Future)
Best low-cost big-screen iPhone

Specifications

Screen size: 6.7-inch OLED (2796 x 1290)
CPU: A16 Bionic
Cameras: 48MP (f/1.6) main, 12MP (f/2.4) ultrawide / 12MP front (f/1.9)
RAM/Storage: 6GB/128GB, 256GB, 512GB

Reasons to buy

+
Lasts 14+ hours on our battery test
+
New 48MP camera
+
Android-beating performance

Reasons to avoid

-
20W charging is on the slow side
-
60Hz display is bad value
-
iPhone 15 cheaper but nearly identical

All iPhones have good battery life, but the iPhone 15 Plus stands out among the rest. Because of its large size and less-advanced display, it offers users hours upon hours of streaming, scrolling and gaming without needing a visit to a charging outlet.

Since nearly all the iPhone 15 Plus' features, such as the still impressive performance of the A16 Bionic chip or the dual rear cameras featuring a new 48MP main sensor, can be found on the iPhone 15 too, you may want to save £100 and buy the base model instead. But if you prioritize battery life over everything else, not even the iPhone 15 Pro Max will beat this one.

Read our full iPhone 15 Plus review.

The best iPhone under £1,000

iPhone 15 Pro shown in hand

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)
Apple’s best features for under $1,000

Specifications

Screen size: 6.1-inch OLED (2556 x 1179; 120Hz)
CPU: A17 Pro
Cameras: 48MP (f/1.78) main, 12MP (f/2.2) ultrawide, 12MP (f/2.8) telephoto with 3x optical zoom, LIDAR / 12MP front (f/1.9)
RAM/Storage: 8GB/128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB

Reasons to buy

+
Premium titanium design
+
A17 Pro chip is a beast
+
Fabulous photography

Reasons to avoid

-
3x zoom unlike Pro Max
-
20W charging is slow

It's sad to admit, but £1,000 has become the standard price of a new flagship smartphone. So if you want the most for that sort of money, the iPhone 15 Pro is your best bet.

It hasn't received the iPhone 15 Pro Max's 5x zoom camera, instead sticking with a familiar 3x model. Plus it's still smaller, impacting its display and battery size. But everything else, like the new titanium components, Action button and camera mode upgrades are the same, making this excellent value all the same.

Its 120Hz display, additional camera and better processor mean it's easily better than the iPhone 15 in a spec-to-spec comparison. But since it starts at £200 less, the iPhone 15 is likely a better buy unless these improved features mean the more expensive Pro is going to be worth more to you in the long run.

Read our full iPhone 15 Pro review.

The best iPhone value

iphone 13 camera green

(Image credit: Future)
A great iPhone value at a lower price

Specifications

Screen Size: 6.1-inch OLED (2532 x 1170)
CPU: A15 Bionic
Cameras: 12MP wide (ƒ/1.6), 12MP ultrawide (ƒ/2.4) / 12MP front (ƒ/2.2)
RAM/Storage: Unknown/128GB, 256GB, 512GB

Reasons to buy

+
Discounted price
+
Similar specs to iPhone 15
+
Several more iOS updates expected

Reasons to avoid

-
Lacks 120Hz display
-
12MP main camera

Apple's kept the two-year-old iPhone 13 around in its product portfolio, just with a $200 price cut from when it was new. Since the phone remains capable to this day, it's an excellent entry point for users who want to save money but still get a box-fresh iPhone.

With its 6.1-inch 60Hz OLED display, 20W charging and 12MP ultrawide and selfie cameras, the iPhone 13 still shares a lot in common with the iPhone 15 that succeeds it. But with a 12MP main camera and an older chipset, it's not as powerful or efficient, nor can it capture the same level of detail in its photos. 

Most of the software features are shared between the iPhone 13 and newer iPhone 15 thanks to Apple's long update schedule, meaning there's even greater parity between the two when you look past the hardware. It's why we still think the iPhone 13's worth buying today if you want the most iPhone for the least money.

Read our full iPhone 13 review.

The best small iPhone

iPhone SE 2022 back of phone against stone

(Image credit: Future)
The best iPhone for limited budgets

Specifications

Starting price: £419
Screen size: 4.7-inch Retina HD (1334 x 750)
Processor: A15 Bionic
Cameras: 12MP (f/1.8)/12MP front (f/2.2)
RAM/Storage: 4GB/64GB, 128GB, 256GB

Reasons to buy

+
More powerful than all rivals
+
Stronger materials than previous generation
+
Compact design with Touch ID

Reasons to avoid

-
Small display even for size
-
No Night mode photography

The new iPhone SE 2022 is here, and while it's not changed much from the last generation, it remains the best iPhone for users who don't want their phone over 6 inches in size.

Beneath the old-fashioned frame, you have the same A15 chipset you have in the iPhone 13 series. That means you get, by a huge margin, the best performance of any phone in its price category. Keeping Touch ID and the bezels means you don't get a lot of screen space for a modern phone, but perhaps that's preferable to having Face ID. Plus this is still a tiny phone, making it easily pocketable. 

Keep in mind that this phone only has one camera on its back, rather than the usual two or three most phones now have. This single camera can take good photos, but if you want a wider shot, a crisp zoom shot, or a low-light mode, you're out of luck.

Read our full iPhone SE 2022 review.

How we test iPhones

As with any smartphone we test at Tom's Guide, we evaluate iPhones for days in real-world use cases. We also benchmark Apple's phones using a gamut of performance-measuring apps that allow us to compare iPhone performance to what Android devices are capable of. In addition to synthetic benchmarks, we also run real-world tests, including a video transcoding test in Adobe Premiere Rush that compares the iPhone's processing speed with other devices.

In our lab, we use a light meter to ascertain display quality data, like brightness and color accuracy to help us evaluate the display of the best iPhones. Our proprietary battery test determines longevity on a charge by endlessly streaming webpages over 4G and 5G networks; we then recharge the iPhones to see how quickly they charge in 15-minute intervals.

To compare cameras, we take any iPhone we review out and shoot photos in a variety of settings. We also bring along a comparable smartphone to see how the iPhone's photographic output measures up.

We explore Apple's iOS improvements, test gaming performance and evaluate the phone's speakers — and each of these factors play a part in our final verdict.

How to choose the best iPhone for you

The first thing you need to consider when picking one of these iPhones is the size you need. The smallest iPhones are the iPhone SE and the mini models of the iPhone 12/13, although they have different-sized displays (4.7 inches and 5.4 inches respectively).

Next up is the 6.1-inch gang, consisting of the iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 Pro. Note that the iPhone 11 has curved sides, whereas the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 models have flat ones. 

Lastly are the two largest 6.7-inch models, the iPhone 12 Pro Max and the iPhone 13 Pro Max. Consider which size is most comfortable for your hands and pockets, but also how they impact display quality and battery size.

All current iPhones with the exception fo the iPhone SE use Face ID to unlock the phone. That has been tricky in an era where we're encouraged to wear masks, but iOS 15.4 and its mask-ready Face ID update should help with that.

The third thing  to consider when shopping for the best iPhone is weighing up whether it's better to save money by buying an older iPhone, or get a longer life out of your phone by buying a newer one. While Apple supports the iPhone for longer with software updates than Android companies typically do — often for five years or longer — you're going to hit the end of those full updates sooner if you buy a phone that was first put on sale several years ago. You'll have to take into consideration when you might replace your phone, and then decide if that makes it worth going without a year or two of big iOS updates to save a few hundred pounds.

FAQ

What is the best iPhone?

If money's no object, we reckon the best iPhone is the iPhone 15 Pro Max. The iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro aren't far behind though if you don't like how big Pro Max models are, depending on how much you're willing to spend.

Which iPhone has the best camera?

The iPhone 15 Pro Max offers Apple's best camera tech right now. The iPhone 15 Pro is a close second because lacks the same telephoto zoom level, but otherwise has the same camera configuration.

Which iPhone is the best value for money?

Arguably the iPhone SE is best value for money since it offers identical power  and software to an iPhone 13, but for several hundred pounds less. However we think when you take overall experience into account, the iPhone 13 best balances price and features.

Which is the most recent iPhone?

That would be the iPhone 15 series, consisting of the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, which all launched in autumn of 2023. Before that we had the iPhone 14 series, then the most recent iPhone SE, and before that the iPhone 13, iPhone 12 etc.

Which is the smallest iPhone?

The smallest screen on an iPhone belongs to the iPhone SE, which measures 4.7 inches. But the smallest modern iPhone, one with a modern design and fullscreen display, is any of the 6.1-inch iPhone 15, 15 Pro, 14 or 13 models.

Which iPhone is worth buying in 2023?

All the iPhones on this list are still good to buy this year, even if they're a couple of years old. Thanks to Apple's generous software update schedule, they'll keep working with all your favorite apps for years, and gain at least some new features every time Apple launches a big software update, such as 2023's iOS 17.

Richard Priday
Assistant Phones Editor

Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.