Apple released iOS 18, the next iteration of its iPhone operating system, on Monday, September 16. The new update will bring exciting features like Apple Intelligence, customization capabilities, animated text in Messages, and plenty of other improvements and tweaks. But, will your iPhone support iOS 18 and will it be able to utilize all the new features? Here’s a guide to what you should expect if you want to upgrade to iOS 18.
iPhone compatible with iOS 18
Here are the iPhones that Apple will support iOS 18:
iPhone 16 Plus
iPhone 16 Pro
iPhone 16 Pro Max
iPhone 15
iPhone 15 Plus
iPhone 15 Pro
iPhone 15 Pro Max
iPhone 14
iPhone 14 Plus
iPhone 14 Pro
iPhone 14 Pro Max
iPhone 13
iPhone 13 mini
iPhone 13 Pro
iPhone 13 Pro Max
iPhone 12
iPhone 12 mini
iPhone 12 Pro
iPhone 12 Pro Max
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
iPhone 11 Pro Max
iPhone XS
iPhone XS Max
iPhone XR
iPhone SE (2nd generation)
The features that require newer iPhones
Dominik Tomaszewski
While most of the new features Apple brings to iOS 18 will work on all iPhones, there are particular ones that have hardware requirements that mean they will only be available on certain models. Here are the features that will only be supported on newer devices.
Apple Intelligence
Apple’s new AI capabilities might grab the headlines, but the hardware demands mean that it will only be available for a handful of iPhones. These are the models that will be able to support Apple Intelligence:
iPhone 16
iPhone 16 Plus
iPhone 16 Pro
iPhone 16 Pro Max
Live Audio Transcription
This feature allows you to record notes and have your iPhone turn the speech into text you can use afterward. The feature will only be available for iPhone 12 or later devices. This means if you have any of the iPhone 11, XR, XS or SE range then you won’t be able to use this capability.
Accessibility Eye Tracking
This impressive new addition in iOS 18 allows users to control their iPhone just with eye movements. It’s available on iPhone 12 and later models including iPhone SE (3rd Gen), but won’t be supported on any of the iPhone 11, XR, XS range.
Accessibility Music Haptics
Another accessibility feature coming in iOS 18 is Music Haptics, which uses the iPhone’s Taptic Engine to tap along to the beat of the music that’s playing, so hearing-impaired users can still enjoy the beats. It’s available on all iPhone 12 models and later, but again if you have any of the iPhone 11, XR, XS or SE range then you won’t be able to use this feature.
iPhones that have iOS 17, but won’t get iOS 18
Apple does an amazing job of keeping older iPhones on the latest software and that continues with iOS 18. If your current iPhone has iOS 17 then it will also be getting iOS 18, simple as that. Obviously, as you can see from the section above, you might not get all the cool new features, but there will still be plenty to explore in the latest upgrade.
To see what Apple has in store, take a look at our iOS 18 vs iOS 17 comparison guide. For other iOS versions see our iOS compatibility checker.
