iOS 15, which Apple unveiled at WWDC back in June and becomes available to install today, is packed with new features. From Focus to SharePlay, from live photo text-scraping to Android and Windows users being welcomed into FaceTime (given surprisingly little fanfare, that one), it looks like another bumper year for iPhone owners.
But it doesn’t matter how good the software is if you can’t install it on your phone. And the question is this: is your iPhone sufficiently new and powerful that it will be able to update to iOS 15?
The good news is that, contrary to expectations, all the iPhones that were capable of running iOS 14 can also run iOS 15. (Amazingly, this is the same list of devices that could run iOS 13 as well!) That means owners of an iPhone 6s or later are in luck.
However, you should remember that just because your iPhone can run iOS 15 doesn’t mean that you will get all the features. Read: Which iOS 15 features run on my iPhone to find out which iOS 15 features your iPhone supports.
Here’s the full list of iOS 15-compatible iPhones and iPods at time of writing:
- iPhone 6s
- iPhone 6s Plus
- iPhone SE (2016)
- iPhone 7
- iPhone 7 Plus
- iPhone 8
- iPhone 8 Plus
- iPhone X
- iPhone XR
- iPhone XS
- iPhone XS Max
- iPhone 11
- iPhone 11 Pro
- iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone SE (2020)
- iPhone 12 mini
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 13 mini
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPod touch (seventh-gen)
Note that new models bought from now on – most notably the iPhone 13, 13 mini, 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max – will have iOS 15 preinstalled. You shouldn’t need to update them yourself (to iOS 15, at any rate – smaller point updates may have come along by then).
The same applies to the rumoured new iPod touch – if such a device ever launches, which is far from certain.
Author: David Price, Editor
David has loved the iPhone since covering the original 2007 launch; later his obsession expanded to include iPad and Apple Watch. He offers advice to owners (and prospective owners) of these devices.