iPhone 15 vs iPhone 16: which should you buy refurbished in 2026?
This is the most common question we get on WhatsApp, and the honest answer surprises people: for most buyers the iPhone 15 is the smarter refurbished purchase in 2026, and the iPhone 16 is the right call for a specific minority. Here's how to tell which one you are.
Prices first, because they frame everything. On our shop today a tested & certified iPhone 15 starts at around £400 and an iPhone 16 at around £510. Both come with the same 24-month warranty, the same Phonecheck report and the same 14-day return window, so the decision is purely about the phone.
What's actually different
The two phones share the same 6.1-inch OLED screen, the same 60Hz refresh rate, the same USB-C port and the same basic design. The iPhone 16 adds four things: the A18 chip (versus the 15's A16), the Action button that replaced the mute switch, a dedicated Camera Control button on the side, and a rearranged rear camera that can shoot spatial video. It also has slightly better battery life on paper — Apple quotes 22 hours of video versus 20.
The A18 matters for one reason: Apple Intelligence. The iPhone 15 doesn't run Apple's AI features and never will; the 16 does. If you care about on-device writing tools, notification summaries and the newer Siri, that alone decides it. If you've never used them and don't feel you're missing anything, you aren't.
What's the same in daily use
Everything you'll notice. Face ID, the Dynamic Island, the 48MP main camera, MagSafe, water resistance, 5G, the screen brightness outdoors — identical or so close you'd need a spec sheet to tell them apart. Both phones will get iOS updates for years; Apple has historically supported iPhones for six to seven years from launch, which takes the 15 well past 2028.
Battery health is the one place where a refurbished 15 could lose to a 16 simply because it's a year older. That's why we print the battery percentage on every listing — a 15 at 90%+ is a better phone than a 16 at 82%, whatever the badge says.
The verdict
Buy the iPhone 15 if you want the best phone per pound. The £110 you save is a case, a screen protector, a fast charger and change — or most of the way to a battery replacement in three years' time.
Buy the iPhone 16 if you want Apple Intelligence, if you'll keep the phone four years or more (the newer chip ages better), or if you take a lot of photos and want the Camera Control button. If you're upgrading from an iPhone 12 or older, either will feel like a huge step up — spend on the 15 and enjoy the difference.
Still torn? Our side-by-side comparison lays the specs out in a table, and both are in stock: iPhone 15 and iPhone 16.
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Shop tested & certified phonesFrequently asked
Does the iPhone 15 get Apple Intelligence?+
No. Apple Intelligence needs the A17 Pro chip or newer, so among these two only the iPhone 16 supports it. The iPhone 15 Pro does as well, if you want AI features at a 15-generation price.
Is the iPhone 16 camera much better than the 15?+
Both use a 48MP main camera and the results are very close in good light. The 16's ultra-wide is better in low light and it adds the Camera Control button and spatial video — nice, not transformative.
Which holds its value better?+
The newer phone always loses more in pounds and the older one more in percentage. In practice the gap between them narrows every year, which is another reason the 15 is the better value buy today.