iPhone 18 Pro just tipped for minor battery gains — but there's a hidden upgrade coming

Big batteries have never really been part of Apple's forte when it comes to the iPhone, but that has changed over the last few years. The larger and more premium iPhone models have seen a rapid rise in battery capacity, culminating in the eSIM-only iPhone 17 Pro Max's 5,088 mAh battery pack. That's over 400 mAh more than the iPhone 16 Pro Max's 4,685 mAh battery.

Sadly, you should not expect major capacity upgrades on the iPhone 18 Pro when it arrives late this year. According to leaker Digital Chat Station, the iPhone 18 Pro will feature a 4,056 mAh battery in its standard configuration — and a 4,288 mAh battery in the U.S. eSIM-only model. The leaker previously claimed the Pro Max would have a 5,000 mAh battery in China or between 5,100 and 5,200 mAh internationally.

For reference, the iPhone 17 Pro featured a 3,998 mAh battery if your phone has a physical SIM tray, and 4,252 mAh if it only supported eSIM. All U.S.-purchased iPhones since the iPhone 14 have been eSIM only, whereas various international markets kept the physical option. But battery size is only one factor that determines battery life, and Apple's new A20 chip for the iPhone 18 Pro series could provide a serious endurance boost.

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Lots of factors affect battery life

While the physical battery gains might be modest for the iPhone 18 Pro, that doesn't tell the full picture of what's going on. iPhone battery life has risen over the past several years, and while the phones don't top our best phone battery life page, there's no denying that the power performance is top-notch.

The first big factor to consider is that Apple has total control over iPhone hardware and software, so it can ensure iOS is as lean and energy-friendly as possible. That's not possible on Google-developed Android, since the phones are made by countless companies all over the world. However, the fact that Google's own Pixel phones offer mediocre battery life compared to its rivals proves that there's more to it than that.

It's also worth considering that the iPhone 18 Pro is rumored to be coming with a 2nm A20 Pro chip. The A20 will use TSMC's 2nm process, which should lead to power and efficiency improvements.

By transitioning from 3nm to 2nm, Apple will be able to pack more transistors into each chip. And it's estimated that the A20 will be 15% faster while also being 30% more efficient than the previous A19 chips.

In addition, because the A20 chip will reportedly integrate the RAM on to the same wafer as the CPU, GPU and Neural Engine, that will leave more room for other components, including a slightly larger battery and perhaps a bigger vapor chamber for cooling.

iPhone battery life through the years

As you can see in the chart, iPhone battery life has been inconsistent over the past seven years, especially with the transition from iPhone 11 to iPhone 12. It seems that the 5G modem really did a number on Apple's battery life statistics. There's a similar drop from iPhone 13 to iPhone 14, even if it wasn't nearly as dramatic. But for the most part, iPhone battery life has been trending upwards across all three major lineups.

Nowhere is that more true than with the Pro Max series, which has had some major increases, before leveling off a little bit between iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 17 Pro Max.

Obviously, this graph doesn't show exact battery life figures, or the extra iPhones released each year — like iPhone Air or iPhone 12 mini. Check out the table below if you want all the statistics.

Android phones have been catching up

Of course, as Apple's battery life gains start to level off, Android battery life has been on the rise. iPhone 17 Pro Max is currently in 10th place on our best phone battery life page, when just a few years ago it was sitting in third place. Part of this change is due to some Android phones offering enormous batteries, like the OnePlus 15's 7,300 mAh battery pack.

But once again, the bigger batteries don't tell the entire story. The Moto G (2026) lasted two and a half hours longer than the eSIM iPhone 17 Pro Max in our custom battery life test, even though its battery tops out at 5,200 mAh — just 122 mAh bigger than the 17 Pro Max. Clearly, the $200 phone is doing a lot more to reduce power consumption than Apple's flagship.

It's only a matter of time before Android phones start to push iPhones out of the top 15, and that means Apple's going to have to pull out all the stops to keep iPhone battery life growing. They can do this by either swapping lithium-ion batteries for the more energy-dense silicon carbon, increasing the amount of battery capacity, or simply whittling down iPhone energy requirements as much as humanly possible. Though it would ideally be a mixture of all three.

Here's hoping that the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max make some progress when they arrive later this year. Let us know in the comments if you're thinking of upgrading to the iPhone 18 Pro series this year and how important battery life is to you.

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