Welcome to this guide where we will explore how to maintain your iPhone’s battery health in 2023. The iPhone is renowned for its user-friendly and seamless experience, which is only possible thanks to its advanced technologies and engineering. One crucial aspect of this is its battery and performance. However, batteries are complex technology, and many factors contribute to their performance and related iPhone performance. Since all rechargeable batteries are consumable and have a limited lifespan, eventually, their capacity and performance decline, necessitating replacement. As batteries age, they can also impact changes in iPhone performance. In this guide, we aim to provide information for those who wish to learn more about maintaining their iPhone’s battery health.

About lithium-ion batteries

Lithium-ion technology is utilized in iPhone batteries. This technology offers numerous advantages over older battery technologies, including faster charging, longer lifespan, and a higher power density, allowing for increased battery life in a more lightweight package. Currently, rechargeable lithium-ion technology is considered the most advanced and optimal technology for your iPhone’s battery. Learn more about lithium-ion batteries.

How to maintain your iPhone’s battery health

1. Check Your Battery’s Health

Apple provides an indication of your iPhone’s battery health when it falls below 80% by notifying you via the Settings -> Battery menu. However, if you own a Mac, you have the option of monitoring your iPhone’s battery health using the CoconutBattery app, which allows you to check it at any time. In the event that your iPhone’s battery health falls below 80%, it may be a good idea to visit a local Apple store or a service station to get the battery replaced.

2. Enable Optimised Battery Charging

Apple has introduced a new Optimized Battery Charging feature in iOS 16, which is designed to extend the lifespan of your iPhone’s battery even further. To activate this feature, you can navigate to Settings > Battery > Battery Health, and toggle on the Optimized Battery Charging option.

Once enabled, your iPhone will learn your charging patterns and charge up to 80%, and then wait to charge the remaining 20% until it anticipates you will use the phone. This means that when you pick up your iPhone in the morning, it will still be fully charged, but the final 20% will be charged right before you need to use it. For more information on this feature, please refer to our article on the Optimized Battery Charging feature.

3. Reduce Brightness

You can decrease the stress on your iPhone’s battery by opening Control Center and lowering the brightness level. If feasible, dim the screen entirely, and avoid using full brightness consistently. This will minimize the strain on your battery in the long run.

4. Use Auto-Brightness

If you’ve disabled Auto-Brightness, enable it again from Settings -> General -> Accessibility -> Display Accommodations. This feature makes sure that the brightness level corresponds to the environment you’re in. So when you’re in your house or workspace, the brightness will be reduced automatically and you’ll end up saving battery life.

5. Reduce Auto-Lock Time

Auto-Lock feature automatically turns off the screen (and locks your phone) when you’re not actively using it. Go to Settings -> Display & Brightness -> Auto-Lock and choose the 30-seconds option. This way, your phone won’t unnecessarily use the battery when you’re looking at it.

6. Use Wi-Fi When Possible

Wi-Fi uses way less energy than cellular radio. When possible, try to use Wi-Fi instead of cellular data. From Control Center, tap on the Wi-Fi toggle to turn on the feature.

7. Use Low Power Mode

iOS prompts you to enable Low Power Mode when your phone hits 20%. You can turn it on manually right after fully charging your phone. Low Power Mode saves energy by disabling background processes and throttles your CPU to deliver more battery life.

When you use Low Power Mode, you’re not pushing the battery at all times. This reduces the chances of degrading your battery quickly.

8. Don’t Use iPhone in Extreme Temperatures

iOS devices function best between 32° to 95° F (0° to 35° C). Extreme cold and heat might affect the battery negatively and it might degrade faster.

9. Tips for Storing iPhone for Long Term

When you’re going to store your iPhone for a long time, Apple recommends you only charge it till 50%. Don’t keep the iPhone idle for a long time with a full charge or a zero charge. If the battery is fully charged, you might end up shortening the battery life. If the battery is empty, it might fall into a deep discharge state which renders it incapable of holding a charge.

10. Charging Tips

A Lithium-ion battery’s health depends on how it was charged. Heat and overcharging degrade the iPhone’s battery life. If you’re using a thick rugged case, or a battery case, make sure you remove it when charging the phone. Because these cases are bulky, they trap in the heat, which is not good for the battery.

Also, try using slow chargers. While you can use a 29W MacBook charger on your iPhone to charge it faster (the difference isn’t that big either), it’s best to use the 5W charger that came with the iPhone. If you’re charging your phone overnight, the speed difference won’t matter.

You should also avoid leaving your iPhone in the car while running errands as the interiors of the car can get very hot if it is a sunny day, which can negatively impact its battery.

11. Other Tips

Make sure you’re not running betas on your phone and avoid installing the first release of a new iOS version. Usually, the bugs get squashed in a couple of weeks after release. Disable Background App Refresh and location access for apps that don’t need it. We’ve talked about other ways to increase your battery life in this post.

How to maximize battery performance

“Battery life” is the amount of time a device runs before it needs to be recharged. “Battery lifespan” is the amount of time a battery lasts until it needs to be replaced. One factor affecting battery life and lifespan is the mix of things you do with your device. No matter how you use your device, there are ways to help. A battery’s lifespan is related to its “chemical age,” which is more than just the passage of time. It includes different factors, such as the number of charge cycles and how it was cared for. Follow these tips to maximize battery performance and help extend battery lifespan. For example, keep iPhone half-charged when it’s stored for the long term. Also avoid charging or leaving iPhone in hot environments, including direct sun exposure, for extended periods of time.

When batteries chemically age

As rechargeable batteries age, they become less effective and eventually need to be replaced. The same holds true for lithium-ion batteries. As they age, their maximum capacity, which is the amount of charge they can hold, decreases, resulting in shorter periods before a device must be recharged. In addition, the battery’s ability to provide maximum instantaneous performance, or peak power, may diminish.

For a phone to function properly, it must draw on instantaneous power from the battery. One factor that affects this instantaneous power delivery is the battery’s impedance. A battery with high impedance may be unable to provide enough power to the system that needs it. A battery’s impedance can increase as its chemical age rises. A battery’s impedance also temporarily increases at low states of charge and in cold temperatures, and when coupled with a higher chemical age, the impedance increase is even more significant. These battery chemistry characteristics are common to all lithium-ion batteries in the industry.

When a battery with a higher level of impedance supplies power, its voltage will drop to a greater degree. Electronic components require a minimum voltage to function correctly, including the device’s internal storage, power circuits, and battery itself. The power management system determines the battery’s ability to provide this power and manages the loads to maintain operations. When operations can no longer be sustained with the full capabilities of the power management system, the system will perform a shutdown to protect these electronic components. Although this shutdown is intentional from the device’s perspective, it may come as a surprise to the user.

Preventing unexpected shutdowns

With a low battery state of charge, a higher chemical age, or colder temperatures, users are more likely to experience unexpected shutdowns. In extreme cases, shutdowns can occur more frequently, thereby rendering the device unreliable or unusable. For iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE (1st generation), iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus, iOS dynamically manages performance peaks to prevent the device from unexpectedly shutting down so that the iPhone can still be used. This performance management feature is specific to iPhone and does not apply to any other Apple products. Starting with iOS 12.1, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X include this feature; iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR include this feature starting with iOS 13.1. Learn about performance management on iPhone 11 and later. The effects of performance management on these newer models may be less noticeable due to their more advanced hardware and software design.

This performance management works by looking at a combination of the device temperature, battery state of charge, and battery impedance. Only if these variables require it, iOS will dynamically manage the maximum performance of some system components, such as the CPU and GPU, in order to prevent unexpected shutdowns. As a result, the device workloads will self-balance, allowing a smoother distribution of system tasks, rather than larger, quick spikes of performance all at once. In some cases, a user may not notice any differences in daily device performance. The level of perceived change depends on how much performance management is required for a particular device.

In cases that require more extreme forms of this performance management, the user may notice effects such as:

• Longer app launch times
• Lower frame rates while scrolling
• Backlight dimming (which can be overridden in Control Center)
• Lower speaker volume by up to -3dB
• Gradual frame rate reductions in some apps
• During the most extreme cases, the camera flash will be disabled as visible in the camera UI
• Apps refreshing in background may require reloading upon launch

Many key areas are not impacted by this performance management feature. Some of these include:

• Cellular call quality and networking throughput performance
• Captured photo and video quality
• GPS performance
• Location accuracy
• Sensors like gyroscope, accelerometer, barometer
• Apple Pay

For a low battery state of charge and colder temperatures, performance management changes are temporary. If a device battery has chemically aged far enough, performance management changes may be more lasting. This is because all rechargeable batteries are consumables and have a limited lifespan, eventually needing to be replaced. If you are impacted by this and would like to improve your device performance, replacing your device battery can help.

For iOS 11.3 and later

Starting with iOS 11.3, Apple has made improvements to the performance management feature, which periodically evaluates the level of performance management required to prevent unexpected shutdowns. If the battery’s health is able to meet the observed peak power demands, the amount of performance management will be reduced. If an unexpected shutdown happens again, performance management will be increased. This assessment is ongoing, enabling more adaptive performance management.

The iPhone 8 and later models employ a more advanced hardware and software design, which allows for a more accurate estimation of power needs and the battery’s power capability. This results in a different performance management system that enables iOS to anticipate and prevent unexpected shutdowns more precisely. As a result, the impacts of performance management on iPhone 8 and later models may be less noticeable. It is important to note that over time, all iPhone models’ rechargeable batteries will deteriorate in capacity and peak performance, necessitating replacement.

Battery Health

For iPhone 6 and later, iOS 11.3 and later add new features to show battery health and recommend if you need to replace the battery. You can find these in Settings > Battery > Battery Health (with iOS 16.1 or later, find these in Settings > Battery > Battery Health & Charging).

Additionally, you can see if the performance management feature, which dynamically manages maximum performance to prevent unexpected shutdowns, is on, and you can choose to turn it off. This feature is enabled only after an unexpected shutdown first occurs on a device with a battery that has diminished ability to deliver maximum instantaneous power. This feature applies to iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone SE (1st generation), iPhone 7, and iPhone 7 Plus. Starting with iOS 12.1, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X include this feature; iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR include this feature starting with iOS 13.1. Learn about performance management on iPhone 11 and later. The effects of performance management on these newer models may be less noticeable due to their more advanced hardware and software design.

Devices updating from iOS 11.2.6 or earlier will initially have performance management disabled; it will be reenabled if the device subsequently experiences an unexpected shutdown.

All iPhone models include fundamental performance management to ensure that the battery and overall system operates as designed and internal components are protected. This includes behavior in hot or cold temperatures, as well as internal voltage management. This type of performance management is required for safety and expected function, and cannot be turned off.

Your battery’s maximum capacity

The Battery Health screen includes information on maximum battery capacity and peak performance capability.

Maximum battery capacity measures the device battery capacity relative to when it was new. A battery will have lower capacity as the battery chemically ages which may result in fewer hours of usage between charges. Depending upon the length of time between when the iPhone was made and when it is activated, your battery capacity may show as slightly less than 100%.

A normal battery is designed to retain up to 80% of its original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles when operating under normal conditions. The one-year warranty includes service coverage for a defective battery. If it is out of warranty, Apple offers battery service for a charge. Learn more about charge cycles.

As your battery health degrades, so can its ability to deliver peak performance. The Battery Health screen includes a section for Peak Performance Capability where the following messages may appear.

Performance is normal

When the battery condition can support normal peak performance and does not have the performance management features applied, you’ll see this message:

Your battery is currently supporting normal peak performance.

Performance management applied

When the performance management features have been applied, you’ll see this message:

This iPhone has experienced an unexpected shutdown because the battery was unable to deliver the necessary peak power. Performance management has been applied to help prevent this from happening again. Disable…

Note that if you disable performance management, you can’t turn it back on. It will be turned on again automatically if an unexpected shutdown occurs. The option to disable will also be available.

Battery health unknown

If iOS is unable to determine the device battery health, you’ll see this message:

This iPhone is unable to determine battery health. An Apple Authorized Service Provider can service the battery. More about service options…

This may be due to having an improperly installed battery or an unknown battery part.

Performance management turned off

If you disable the applied performance management feature, you’ll see this message:

This iPhone has experienced an unexpected shutdown because the battery was unable to deliver the necessary peak power. You have manually disabled performance management protections.

If the device experiences another unexpected shutdown, the performance management features will be re-applied. The option to disable will also be available.

Battery health degraded

If battery health has degraded significantly, the below message will also appear:

Your battery’s health is significantly degraded. An Apple Authorized Service Provider can replace the battery to restore full performance and capacity. More about service options…

This message does not indicate a safety issue. Your battery can still be used. However, you may be experiencing more noticeable battery and performance issues. A new replacement battery will improve your experience. More about service options.

Important Battery Message

If you see the message below, it means the battery in your iPhone is unable to be verified. This message applies to iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, and later.

Unable to verify this iPhone has a genuine Apple battery. Health information not available for this battery. Learn more…

Reported battery health information is not available. To have your battery checked, contact an Apple Authorized Service Provider. More about service options.

Learn more about this message as it appears on iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro and later.

Getting further assistance

If your device performance has been impacted by an aged battery and you would like to get help with a battery replacement, contact Apple Support for service options.

Learn more about battery service and recycling.

Recalibration of battery health reporting on iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max

iOS 14.5 and later includes an update where the battery health reporting system will recalibrate maximum battery capacity and peak performance capability on iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max to address inaccurate estimates of battery health reporting for some users.

Learn more about recalibration of battery health reporting in iOS 14.5.