iPhone 18 Pro vs. iPhone 17 Pro: What's new?

The iPhone 18 Pro isn't a world-changing upgrade, but it has a few cool improvements to offer.

Despite their higher prices, the iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max aren't revolutionary upgrades. On one hand, they add enough new features and improvements to be named the "standard setter" by our iPhone 18 Pro review . But this year's batch is more akin to an incremental "S" iPhone than a major redesign. That gets clearer when you compare them with last year's iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max .

Fortunately, most of the changes in this year's Pro-series phones are identical on the standard and Max models. They have the same camera hardware, so you don't need to buy the bigger phone just to get the better camera. But the larger iPhone 18 Pro Max also gets a bigger battery life boost, along with a (less fortunate) weight increase. So while most categories are a wash between the two sizes, the larger model does have different pros and cons.

For the 2026 models, Apple stuck with the aluminum unibody design it introduced (or rather, reintroduced) with the iPhone 17 Pro series. The dimensions are also unchanged: the Pro stays at 5.91 x 2.83 x 0.34 inches, while the Pro Max stands pat at 6.43 x 3.07 x 0.34 inches.

But weight is another story. The iPhone 18 Pro is 2.4 percent heavier than the iPhone 17 Pro (7.44 vs. 7.27 ounces). The iPhone 18 Pro Max's increase is more dramatic: it's about 6.9 percent heavier than its predecessor (8.78 vs. 8.22 ounces). For the larger model especially, that's a difference you may feel in hand. The question is whether the newer model's battery gains make it worth the trade-off.

Both phone lineups still have Ceramic Shield 2 on the front, Ceramic Shield on the back and IP68 water resistance. Perhaps to make up for the lack of eye-popping upgrades elsewhere, Apple added new color options. The iPhone 18 Pro series trades in last year's Cosmic Orange, Deep Blue and Silver for Black, Silver, Glacier and Burgundy. (That Burgundy finish will be this year's "Look, I got the new iPhone" color.)

The core display specs are unchanged. The standard Pro retains its 6.3-inch OLED display, while the Pro Max uses a 6.9-inch OLED panel. Both 460 PPI displays support variable refresh rates up to 120Hz, always-on functionality and outdoor brightness up to 3,000 nits. It's thus the same as you've come to expect: the Pro is easier to carry and use with one hand, while the Pro Max gives you more screen real estate.

The one notable change is the smaller Dynamic Island on the iPhone 18 Pro series . Apple pulled this off with a region of brighter pixels that lets just enough infrared light through for Face ID to work beneath the display. This allows for a smaller black cutout. The Dynamic Island also now supports up to three ongoing Live Activities at once, compared to two on the iPhone 17 Pro.