If money is no object, the iPhone 15 Pro is the best iPhone for most people. It offers pretty much all the premium features of the 15 Pro Max, but has a much more manageable 6.1-inch display.

Not only is the screen a crystal-clear OLED with a 120Hz refresh rate, it gets incredibly bright. You’ll be able to see the display on even the brightest of days.

The 12Mp 5x periscope lens being exclusive to the Pro Max is a shame, but the 3x one on the iPhone 15 Pro is still very good. It’s joined by a 48Mp main, 12Mp ultrawide and 12Mp 2x telephoto, all of which take excellent photos.

Apple’s updated A17 Pro chipset takes already-great performance to the next level, while the titanium build and action button are nice touches.

Then there’s the much more versatile USB-C port, with Apple finally shifting away from Lightning. Battery life is fine and charging is slow, but this is still a superb phone, and will be for many years to come.

The iPhone 15 Pro is the best Apple phone to get, but only if you can afford it. With a starting price that’s £200/$200 less at launch, the regular iPhone 15 is a more realistic option.

And it offers good value for money, even if the specs aren’t quite top-tier. Apple’s A16 Bionic chip from 2022 still delivers great performance, and it’s nice to see the useful Dynamic Island come to non-Pro models.

The 6.1-inch display below it is impressive, though you’ll still have to make do without a high refresh rate. You can still get some great shots with the 48Mp main, 12Mp ultrawide and 12Mp selfie cameras, but there’s no telephoto of any description here.

Ultimately, you’re getting an iPhone 15 Pro design in a much more affordable. Despite some compromises, it’s still a great phone.

The iPhone 14 Pro Max was the best showcase of Apple’s smartphone technology in 2022, and it remains a superb choice. But it’s also very expensive, which prevents it from being at the very top of this list.

Still, all that cash will get you a top-tier iPhone experience with Apple’s Dynamic Island tech, a game-changing always-on display and one of the very fastest processor on the market, the A16 Bionic. There’s also the same upgraded rear-facing camera setup as the iPhone 14 Pro, including a heavily upgraded 48Mp main snapper.

Where the iPhone 14 Pro Max truly stands out is with the screen; the 6.7in Super Retina XDR display is simply stunning. It’s bright, vivid and there’s enough screen space to really enjoy watching video content such as TikTok and Netflix. It also benefits from a larger battery than the iPhone 14 Pro for true all-day battery life without battery anxiety – though it’s not the best iPhone for battery life. That award now goes to the iPhone 14 Plus, featured below.

But you may now prefer to buy the iPhone 15 Pro Max, which gets a new A17 Pro chip and titanium build.

Prior to the iPhone 15 range, the iPhone 14 Pro was the best iPhone for most people. It offers key improvements over the iPhone 13 Pro not only in terms of raw performance but new features, with the 14 Pro sporting key new tech including Apple’s Dynamic Island camera cut-out.

Replacing the standard Face ID notch, the oblong-shaped cut-out is an impressive blend of software and hardware that brings the notch into the iOS experience, displaying timers, music controls and more without having to access your lock screen. It’s utterly charming and a true highlight of Apple’s keen eye for software and hardware design.

That’s not all, though: it’s also the first iPhone to offer an always-on display, and in true Apple form, it’s much better than the Android competition. While it dims the display, you’ve still got full access to your wallpaper, time, widgets, notifications and music controls without any real impact on overall battery life.

The 48Mp rear snapper is another highlight of this year’s Pro model; using 4-in-1 pixel binning tech, the new main camera offers an impressive boost not only to overall detail but low-light photography. That’s a trend of all cameras on the 14 Pro, with Apple claiming a general 2x improvement.

The only real disappointment is battery life; while it’ll keep on going if left on standby, you’ll likely only be able to squeeze about a day’s use out of the phone before it’ll need a top-up – a stark difference to the big-screen iPhone 13 Pro Max and the iPhone 14 Plus & Pro Max.

But you may now prefer to buy the iPhone 15 Pro, which gets a new A17 Pro chip and titanium build.

The iPhone 14 replaced the iPhone 13 in Apple’s line-up, and even though the iPhone 15 has now arrived, it’s still a great choice for most people.

It has very good cameras (despite missing out on the 48Mp snapper of the Pro models), outstanding battery life that comfortably lasts all day, and a great, if only 60Hz, display.

The phone big enough to enjoy the display without being unwieldy like the iPhone Plus and Max models, and it isn’t a lead weight in a pocket or bag. That’s down to the use of an aluminium frame in place of the stainless steel of the Pro models, but the aluminium sides of the iPhone 14 feel great, and they don’t pick up greasy fingerprints like the Pro models either.

Throw in other features including full waterproofing, wireless charging, satellite connectivity and car crash detection and you have a solid iPhone that will last you for several years.

It’s not quite enough for iPhone 13 owners to upgrade, however, and for this price should have a high refresh rate display and the ability to shoot in RAW format so people can use the camera as a professional tool – it was possible on the iPhone 13 Pro, and the iPhone 14 shares the same camera and chipset.

But you may now prefer to buy the iPhone 15, which gets the A16 Bionic chip and Dynamic Island.

If battery life is a priority for you, the iPhone 14 Plus is a great option. Most of the time, you can expect it to last longer than even the iPhone 14 Pro Max. But unlike the other iPhone 14 handsets, it’s not easy to recommend.

That’s despite its impressive 6.7in Super Retina XDR display, something you’ve traditionally had to get the top-end iPhone Pro Max to experience, and the still-capable Apple A15 Bionic under the hood. Throw in decent camera performance with the same main lens as the iPhone 13 Pro, the solid iOS experience and great build quality and, on paper, it seems like the ideal iPhone.

The problem is its price – at full price, it’s $899/£949. That’s not much cheaper than the iPhone 14 Pro that has plenty of upgrades over the Plus, including the 120Hz dynamic refresh rate, Apple’s Dynamic Island tech, an upgraded 48Mp rear camera and more premium materials. It’s also very expensive for what it is compared to the Android competition, with the 60Hz refresh rate in particular really holding the iPhone 14 Plus back.

So, while it’s a solid performer that delivers a great experience with the best battery life ever on an iPhone, it’s hard to argue that the value for money is there compared not only to the Android competition but the iPhone 14 Pro, which only cost $100/£150 more at launch.

But you may prefer to buy the iPhone 15 Plus, which gets the A16 Bionic chip and Dynamic Island. It’s not clear what battery life is like, though.

If even the 6.1in display of the regular and Pro iPhones are too big for your liking, the iPhone 13 mini is the device for you.

It offers the same experience as the standard iPhone 13, complete with an A15 Bionic chip, Apple’s Super Retina XDR display (albeit at a smaller 5.4in) and excellent main and ultrawide lenses, sporting sensor-shift OIS like the more premium models, but in a much smaller form factor.

The iPhone 13 mini is the perfect iPhone to use one-handed, but the smaller display also means it’s not the best for watching YouTube videos and movies on Netflix.

The small dimensions also mean that battery life isn’t the greatest, while charging via MagSafe is limited to just 12W.

But with Apple having discontinued the mini from the iPhone 14 and 15 range, it’ll remain the small iPhone to beat for a while.

Apple’s iPhone SE range is devoted to function over form, prioritising raw performance over design or aesthetics, and that’s just as true with the latest variant – but possibly to its detriment.

Sporting the same A15 Bionic chipset and 5G connectivity as the iPhone 13 series, the iPhone SE outperforms every Android competitor in its price range and 5G connectivity is a welcome addition, but that performance comes at a cost.

The dated design of the iPhone SE feels older than ever, and the 720p LCD display seems not only small but increasingly unable to render apps and webpages designed for bigger mobile displays. 

There’s also the single 12Mp snapper on the rear. It’ll take decent photos in good and even marginally low light, but it lacks advanced shooting modes like Night Mode and Cinematic Video mode despite featuring a chipset more than capable of doing so. 

The iPhone SE is really only for those who must have an iPhone, but can’t afford other models or don’t want to goodbye to Touch ID. For practically everyone else, there’s a better iPhone available.