Phone comparison · UK prices · October 2026
iPhone 18 Pro or iPhone 17: which should you buy?
The short answer
The iPhone 18 Pro leads on the camera and speed. The iPhone 17 is lighter. The iPhone 18 Pro costs £155 more than the iPhone 17.
Comparing 2 phones
iPhone 18 ProOverall score 87/100
iPhone 17Overall score 84/100
What the extra money buys
The iPhone 18 Pro costs £155 more than the iPhone 17.
You get: a zoom lens, a faster chip and more memory (RAM).
You give up: a lighter body.
Worth it if you want a zoom lens and a faster chip. Keep the money if a lighter body matters more to you.
Differences in daily life
Battery and charging
EvenBoth have similar battery sizes (4,056 mAh and 3,692 mAh), close enough not to matter much day to day.
Camera
Best: iPhone 18 ProThe iPhone 18 Pro is the only one with a zoom lens (4x), so it can get closer to faraway subjects without cropping the photo.
Speed
Best: iPhone 18 ProThe iPhone 18 Pro's chip (Apple A20 Pro) scores higher in benchmark tests than the one in the iPhone 17 (Apple A19), so it should feel quicker in demanding apps and games.
It also has more memory (12GB vs 8GB on the iPhone 17), which helps it keep more apps open at once.
Size and weight
Best: iPhone 17The iPhone 17 is lighter (177 g vs 211 g on the iPhone 18 Pro), so it is easier to hold and carry.
Still can't decide?
Up to 2 quick questions, one tap each.
Scores
| Score | iPhone 18 Pro | iPhone 17 |
|---|---|---|
| Battery | 51 | 56 |
| Screen | 91 | 91 |
| Camera | 86 | 80 |
| Speed | 98 | 91 |
| Toughness | 95 | 95 |
| Connections and extras | 98 | 93 |
| Overall | 87 | 84 |
How these scores are made: Each score is calculated from the maker's published specs and benchmark results, using one fixed formula for every phone. We have not tested these phones in the hand. How we score phones
Specs side by side
Display
- Resolution
- 1206 × 2622 pixels1206×2622 pixels
- Screen-to-body ratio
- 89.4 %90.1 %
- Screen protection
- Anti-reflective coating, Ceramic Shield 2 Glass, Mohs level 5Ceramic Shield 2 Glass, Mohs level 5
Core Specifications
- Chipset
- Apple A20 ProApple A19
- Fabrication Technology
- 2 nm3 nm
- CPU max frequency
- 4.93 GHz4260 MHz
- Microarchitecture
- 2x 4.93 GHz – Super cores 4x 2.60 GHz – Efficiency cores2x 4.26 GHz – Performance cores 4x X.X GHz – Efficiency cores
- GPU
- Apple A20 Pro GPU (7 cores)Apple A19 GPU
- RAM
- 12GB8GB
- Storage
- 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB256GB, 512GB
- Expandable Storage
- NoN/A
Software
- Operating System
- iOS 27iOS 26
Main Camera
- Video Resolution
- 2160p @ 24/25/30/60/100/120 fps 1080p @ 25/30/60/120/240 fps2160p @ 24/25/30/60 fps 1080p @ 25/30/60/120/240 fps
- Video Features
- 10-bit HDR, 3D (spatial) video/audio, Apple Log 2, Cinematic from regular video, Dolby Vision HDR (up to 120fps), ProRes, ProRes RAW (up to 120fps), Stereo Sound RecDolby Vision HDR (up to 60fps), HDR, Stereo Sound Rec
- Features
- HDR (photo/panorama)High Dynamic Range (HDR) Panorama
- Lenses
- 48 MP , 24 mm ( Wide angle ), 1.22 μm , 1/1.28" Sensor size Dual-Pixel PDAF sensor-shift OIS (gen2) 48 MP , ƒ /2.8, 100 mm ( Periscope telephoto ), 0.7 μm , x4 Optical zoom, 1/2.55" Sensor size 3D sensor‑shift OIS PDAF 48 MP , ƒ /2.2, 13 mm , 120° ( Ultra-wide angle ), 0.7 μm , 1/2.55" Sensor size PDAF TOF 3D LiDAR scanner (depth)48 MP , ƒ /1.6, 26 mm ( Wide-angle ), 1.0 μm , 1/1.56" Sensor size - Dual-Pixel PDAF - sensor-shift OIS 48 MP , ƒ /2.2, 13 mm , 120° ( Ultra-Wide angle ), 0.7 μm , 1/2.55" Sensor size - PDAF
Selfie camera
- Lenses
- 18 MP , ƒ /1.9, 20 mm ( Ultra-wide angle )18 MP , ƒ /1.9 ( Wide-angle ) - Optical Image Stabilization (OIS) - PDAF
- Video Features
- 3D (spatial) audio, Apple Log 2, Gyro-EIS, ProRes RAW, Stereo Sound Rec3D (spatial) audio, Dolby Vision HDR, Gyro-EIS, HDR, Stereo Sound Rec
- Features
- Dolby Vision HDR High Dynamic Range (HDR)N/A
General
- Announced
- Wednesday, 09 September 2026Tuesday, 09 September 2025
- Released
- Friday, 18 September 2026Friday, 19 September 2025
Battery
- Capacity
- 4056 mAh3692 mAh
- Wired charging power
- 25 W25W
- Wireless charging power
- 25 W25W
- Fast charging support
- N/Ano
- Features
- Adjustable Voltage Supply (AVS) eSIM only model battery capacity is officially unconfirmed MagSafe wireless charging Qi2 wireless charging Reverse wired charging Wired charging from 0-50% in 15 minutes (as advertised) Wireless charging from 0-50% in 30 minutes (as advertised)MagSafe fast wireless charging, Qi2 wireless charging, Reverse wired charging, Wired charging from 0-50% in 20 minutes (official specs),
Battery Life Test
- Browsing
- N/A15:08 hh:mm
- Video watching
- N/A8:09 hh:mm
- Playing games
- N/A8:45 hh:mm
Design
- Height
- 150 mm149.6 mm
- Width
- 71.9 mm71.5 mm
- Thickness
- 8.8 mm8 mm
- Weight
- 211 g177 g
Network
- SIM cards
- Dual SIM (Nano-SIM + eSIM + eSIM) Dual SIM (eSIM + eSIM) Dual SIM (Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM + eSIM + eSIM)Dual SIM
- Network Type support
- 5G, LTE, HSPAEV-DO Rev.A 3.1 Mbps, 5G, LTE, HSPA
- Network_2G bands
- GSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHzGSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz CDMA: 800 / 1900 MHz
Connectivity
- USB ports
- USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2 DisplayPortUSB Type-C 2.0, DisplayPort,
- USB connectivity
- USB charging, USB Mass Storage device (UMS)USB charging
Multimedia
- Audio type
- Stereo speakersStereo speakers,