How fast can an iPhone actually charge?

As much as smartphone makers like to brag about features like faster processors or sharper cameras, it’s often the subtle changes that improve the experience of a new device. Fast charging is a prime example — it hardly matters that you can load an app five seconds faster if your phone isn’t powered enough to make it through a workday or cross-country flight. It’s the flexibility to use a device anytime, anywhere.

Apple is a little more opaque than some of its rivals when it comes to sharing charging specs. So, how fast can you expect to charge the current iPhone lineup, really?

A quick primer on iPhone charging

What do specs actually mean?

Apple doesn’t always share specs in terms of duration. In its fast charging guide, the company notes that you can typically get an iPhone to 50% in about 30 minutes using a USB-C charger, but iPhones have varying battery sizes and charging capabilities — the 18W charger you used for an iPhone 8 won’t get you as far with an iPhone 16 Pro.

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As a rule, the higher the wattage an iPhone is rated for, the faster it’ll charge, as long as you’ve got a cable and charger combo that matches (or exceeds) that number. It’s possible to charge with accessories below an iPhone’s rated specs, but the process will be noticeably slower and sometimes impractical.

Note also that there are separate specs for wired (USB-C/Lightning) and wireless (MagSafe/Qi) charging. The first option is almost always faster, especially on older iPhones.

How fast can I charge my iPhone?

A quick breakdown

Here’s what you can expect from all the iPhones currently on sale as of October 2024:

• iPhone 16 and 16 Plus: 50% charge in 30 minutes using 20W USB-C adapter, or 25W+ adapter paired with MagSafe Charger; Qi wireless up to 7.5W, Qi2 up to 15W
• iPhone 16 Pro and 16 Pro Max: 50% charge in 30 minutes using 20W USB-C adapter, or 25W+ adapter paired with official MagSafe Charger; Qi wireless up to 7.5W, Qi2 up to 15W
• iPhone 15 and 15 Plus: 50% charge in 30 minutes using 20W USB-C adapter; 15W MagSafe or Qi2 charging, 7.5W with Qi
• iPhone 14 and 14 Plus: 50% charge in 30 minutes using 20W USB-C adapter; 15W MagSafe charging, 7.5W with Qi
• iPhone SE (2022): 50% charge in 30 minutes using 20W USB-C adapter; Qi wireless charging available (presumably 7.5W)

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As you can see, you should be able to fully recharge any recent iPhone in an hour or less with Apple’s official 20W USB-C adapter. You do have to buy that separately, however, or else turn to one of the many third-party adapters on the market. The only thing Apple itself includes in the box is a USB-C cable. In the case of the iPhone 14 and SE lineups, that’s specifically a USB-C-to-Lightning cable, though we’re expecting the iPhone SE 4 to join later models in dropping Lightning completely.

Something else to emphasize is that you need an iPhone 16 if you want MagSafe speeds comparable to USB-C. Even then you’ll need a more powerful adapter (usually 30W or higher), and most MagSafe accessories still top out at 15W. The main exception is Apple’s official MagSafe Charger, which was recently updated to support 25W output.

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