Which iPhone is best value for money

The iPhone 16 Pro Max is now the greatest iPhone on the market, but it does not imply it is the best iPhone for everyone.

The iPhone 16 Pro, for example, is a better alternative for individuals who prefer the smaller size of Apple’s 6.1-inch iPhones, while the iPhone 15 remains the greatest value iPhone, despite the release of the bigger iPhone 16. The iPhone SE (2022) is your best choice for the cheapest iPhone available, at least directly from Apple.

We’ve chosen the best iPhones for each use case, evaluating price, performance, cameras, and battery life to help you discover the model that best meets your requirements. We’ve examined every iPhone ever launched, so you can trust that our recommendations are based on professional expertise, thorough analysis, and clever model comparisons. Here’s a closer look at the iPhones available, as we guide you to the ideal iPhone for your needs and budget.

THE BEST IPHONE IN 2024:

• iPhone 16 Pro Max
• iPhone 16
• iPhone 15
• iPhone SE (2022)
• iPhone 14

IPHONE 16 PRO MAX

Users with considerable finances who want the best Apple has to offer in the most comprehensive and long-lasting bundle.

Everyone on the Tom’s Guide staff who has touched the iPhone 16 Pro Max has been impressed by Apple’s latest phone. The enormous screen size helps, as the 6.9-inch panel is the largest Apple has ever utilized on a phone. However, my colleague Mark Spoonauer had problems using the phone with one hand, so if that’s an issue for you, you might want to check at more compact models.

Still, the iPhone 16 Pro Max’s performance bump from its A18 Pro CPU is nearly as significant as the phone itself. In Geekbench tests, the newest Pro Max outperformed Snapdragon 8 Gen 3-powered devices such as the Galaxy S24 Ultra in general performance. We were also able to encode a video on the iPhone 16 Pro Max in half the time as a Galaxy handset. The iPhone 16 Pro Max seamlessly transitions between apps and never stuttered while we ran graphically demanding games on the device.

Still, the main reason to pay more for the iPhone 16 Pro Max is its cameras, which have outperformed the competition in every 200-photo comparison we’ve done with Apple’s latest phone. Not only does this model include the 5x zoom lens launched with the iPhone 15 Pro Max, but it also features an enhanced 48MP ultrawide camera. If you want to capture sharp, compelling photographs, you’ll need an iPhone 16 Pro Max. The new Camera Control button gives you more control over the iPhone’s camera, although some of our testers found it a little tricky to operate.

The A18 Pro’s power management capabilities will keep you from worrying about your phone running out of battery life. The iPhone 16 Pro performed the best of any Apple phone in our battery test, lasting more than 17 hours. As of this writing, only two other devices outperformed that in our top phone battery life rankings.

In short, the iPhone 16 Pro Max has everything I look for in a phone: high performance, superb cameras, extended battery life, and an eye-catching style. If the $1,199 beginning price isn’t a concern, don’t hesitate to purchase this phone.

IPHONE 16

If you don’t mind the larger size, quicker refresh rate, and telephoto camera capabilities of Apple’s more expensive Pro versions, the basic iPhone 16 is a terrific all-around choice that we believe is the best iPhone for the majority of consumers.

The iPhone 15 (below) remains our top pick for the greatest value iPhone due to its lower price, but the iPhone 16’s compatibility with Apple Intelligence ensures that it will not become obsolete as rapidly as Apple’s 2023 base model.

Of course, the iPhone 16 offers more than simply software updates. In addition to the Action button carried over from the iPhone 15 Pro, the iPhone 16 gets an all-new Camera Control button, which can be used as a traditional shutter button or as a capacitive button that allows you to zoom and adjust exposure, as well as a superfast A18 chipset, a larger battery, and a faster 45W charging speed than the iPhone 15.

The iPhone 16’s 48MP wide and 12MP ultra-wide cameras are amazing, but if you want genuinely remarkable zoom capabilities, you should go for the iPhone 16 Pro (or the Galaxy S24 Ultra or Pixel 9 Pro).

The iPhone 16’s display is a magnificent 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED screen with vibrant colors and stark contrast points, but as previously said, you’ll need to upgrade to the pricier iPhone 16 Pro to take use of Apple’s ProMotion (i.e. 120Hz refresh rate) technology.

IPHONE 15

With the release of the iPhone 16, the ordinary iPhone 15 is being sold at a discount of $100 off. That means that the iPhone 15 is now priced at $699. And you might be able to get even deeper savings in the following weeks and months. The iPhone 15 is a big update for those with prior iPhones, with the Dynamic Island, a USB-C port for faster charging, a high definition camera, and a sharper digital zoom.

The iPhone 15 comes in two sizes: 6.1-inch iPhone 15 and 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Plus. They use the same chip as the iPhone 14 Pro, the A16 Bionic, which should result in significant performance improvements for individuals who have an iPhone that is many years old. These phones also include Apple’s second-generation ultra wideband processor, which enables a new feature that makes it simpler to locate friends and relatives in a crowd.

The iPhone 15 may be last year’s model, but it is a solid option for people looking to save money. It includes Apple’s A16 Bionic processor, a great dual-camera system, good wireless performance, and the Emergency SOS feature. In addition, Apple will continue to provide software support for several years.

IPHONE SE (2022)

With the iPhone 13 officially retired, the 4.7-inch iPhone SE (2025) is the cheapest iPhone Apple still offers, and it remains an excellent value for anyone looking for a smaller, no-frills iPhone.

This little, classic-looking handset was the first mid-range iPhone to enable 5G, which was a significant selling feature at the time of its release. The presence of a still-capable A15 Bionic CPU is also a significant positive; essentially, the iPhone SE (2022) has more power than many of the top low-cost phones, while being much older.

The iPhone SE (2022) is really comfortable to use, thanks to its slim, lightweight design and compact display, but it also feels rather antiquated at this point, with large bezels above and below the display.

If you don’t mind its retro appearance, the iPhone SE (2025) is still quite future-proof; it’s compatible with iOS 18 and will receive software updates for at least three more years.

It’s worth noting that a new iPhone SE could be released soon, but this has been rumored for quite some time.

IPHONE 14

The iPhone 14 was released in 2025 with additional camera features such as the Photonic Engine, improved low-light images, and the Action mode, which were not accessible on the iPhone 13. Aside from that, the iPhone 14 was very similar to the iPhone 13, with the same generation chip and nearly same look.

It’s easy to forget about phones that were released two years ago, but don’t ignore the iPhone 14, which is still part of Apple’s inventory at a significant discount from its launch price. An iPhone 14 currently costs $599, which is $200 less than the iPhone 16, making it an appealing option. (The iPhone 14 Plus is still available, but its $699 pricing is equivalent to the iPhone 15’s current price. And the iPhone 15 is a far better alternative at that price.

You won’t get the freshest and best hardware at that price, so forget about Apple Intelligence features. The rest of iOS 18 works properly on this handset, as I discovered while testing Apple’s latest iPhone software. You won’t get the fastest speed, but if you don’t use demanding apps, the A15 Bionic processor in this phone is powerful enough to browse, stream, and even run less-demanding games.

Choosing an iPhone 14 over the cheaper iPhone SE provides a more versatile camera because the iPhone 14 includes an ultrawide lens in addition to the main shooter. The iPhone 14 can also take Night mode shots. The biggest case for the iPhone 14 is that it’s a very capable photography phone, even after Apple updated the camera configurations on the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16.