iPhone 17 charging speed tested — here's how long each new iPhone takes to recharge

If you're looking to pick up one of the new iPhone 17 series phones, odds are you're concerned about keeping your phone alive. iPhone battery life has improved a lot over the years, but the charging speed hasn't been particularly great. So, should you ever find yourself running low on power, the last thing you want is to have to wait around to recharge.
Thankfully, Apple has promised a significant upgrade to charging speed this year, claiming you can restore a 50% charge in just 20 minutes, or 50% in 30 minutes for the iPhone Air. We've also tested the charging speed of all four new iPhones ourselves, using Apple's new 40W charging brick.
For the most part, Apple's promises seem to be accurate, and the iPhone 17 lineup has significantly better charging performance compared to its iPhone 16 counterparts.
iPhone 17 charging speeds
Row 0 - Cell 0 | 15 minutes | 30 minutes | Battery Life (hrs:mins) |
iPhone 17 | 39% | 71% | 12:47 |
iPhone 16 | 29% | 57% | 12:43 |
iPhone Air | 30% | 55% | 12:02 |
iPhone 16 Plus | 29% | 55% | 16:29 |
iPhone 17 Pro | 40% | 72% | 15:32 |
iPhone 16 Pro | 29% | 56% | 14:07 |
iPhone 17 Pro Max | 35% | 64% | 17:54 |
iPhone 16 Pro Max | 29% | 55% | 17:35 |
Strangely, the iPhone 17 has one of the fastest recharge speeds of any of the new iPhones, hitting 39% in 15 minutes and 71% in half an hour. You'd have thought the iPhone Air, which has the smallest battery of the group, might get an edge in overall charging speed. But since Apple doesn't offer the same charging estimates, it means the phone hit 30% after 15 minutes, and 55% at the half-hour mark.
These results also mean the iPhone Air charges slightly more slowly than the iPhone 16, which hit 29% after 15 minutes and 57% after 30 minutes. It also charges at a similar rate to the iPhone 16 Plus, which hit 29% after 15 minutes and 55% after 30.
The iPhone 17 Pro edges just ahead of the iPhone 17, and pulled in a 40% charge after 15 minutes and 72% after 30 minutes. That is significantly faster than the iPhone 16 Pro, which hit 29% and 56% in the same time window.
iPhone 17 Pro Max was a little bit slower, no doubt because its battery is so big. Even the largest batteries take time to recharge at faster speeds, after all. We recorded the phone hitting 35% in 15 minutes and 64% after 30 minutes. Again, this is considerably faster than the iPhone 16 Pro Max, which recharged to 29% and 55% in the same period of time.
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How likely are you to need to recharge quickly?
The increased battery life of 17 hours and 54 minutes means that you'll really have to push the iPhone 17 Pro Max to run out of power. The same goes for the iPhone 17 Pro, with its improved 15 hours and 32 minutes of battery life.
That said, the iPhone 17 and iPhone Air, which recorded battery lives of 12 hours 47 minutes and 12 hours 2 minutes, respectively, may need to take advantage of faster charging more regularly. Especially the Air, which already has a considerably smaller battery, on account of its ultra-thin design. Sadly, that's also the model that'll take the longest to recharge. Which is ironic in the worst kind of way.
Naturally, the fastest speeds are only available with Apple's new $39 Dynamic Power Charger, which supports the USB Power Delivery 3.2's new Adjustable Voltage Supply (AVS) protocol. This also means that you won't be able to get those same speeds without an AVS-compatible charging brick. This makes the process slightly more complicated than many of us would like.
More from Tom's Guide
- iPhone 17 Pro Max should be the last of its kind — bring on the iPhone Ultra
- iPhone 17 vs iPhone Air vs iPhone 17 Pro vs iPhone 17 Pro Max: Here’s how they stack up
- iOS 26 makes it safer to use public chargers — here’s how it combats Juice Jacking

Tom is the Tom's Guide's UK Phones Editor, tackling the latest smartphone news and vocally expressing his opinions about upcoming features or changes. It's long way from his days as editor of Gizmodo UK, when pretty much everything was on the table. He’s usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or complaining about how terrible his Smart TV is.
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