Three years separate the iPhone 15 Pro Max, the first Pro Max with a 5x telephoto, from the iPhone 18 Pro Max, and Apple’s spec sheets show the big lens changing rather than simply growing: the 12MP 5x at 120 mm becomes a 48MP 4x at 100 mm with a 12MP 8x crop at 200 mm that Apple calls optical quality. Around it, titanium becomes an aluminum unibody, video playback rises from 29 hours to 45, and 256GB moves from $1,199 to $1,299.
The iPhone 15 Pro Max went on sale on September 22, 2023, and Apple no longer sells it; Apple’s trade-in page quotes an estimated value of up to $455. It already has USB 3 and full Apple Intelligence under iOS 27, so this comparison is about hardware, not software access. Our iPhone 18 Pro announcement roundup covers the new phones in full.
Key facts: iPhone 18 Pro Max vs iPhone 15 Pro Max
| Spec | iPhone 15 Pro Max (2023) | iPhone 18 Pro Max (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Telephoto | 12MP 5x, 120 mm, f/2.8 | 48MP 4x, 100 mm, f/2.8, plus 12MP 8x at 200 mm |
| Main camera | 48MP, 24 mm, f/1.78 | 48MP Fusion, 24 mm, variable f/1.48 to f/4.0 |
| Frame | Titanium | Aluminum unibody, Ceramic Shield 2 front, Ceramic Shield back |
| Chip | A17 Pro, 6-core GPU | A20 Pro, 2nm, 7-core GPU, dual 16-core Neural Engine |
| Display | 6.7-inch OLED, ProMotion | 6.9-inch OLED, 2868 x 1320, 460 ppi, ProMotion |
| Video playback | Up to 29 hours | Up to 45 hours |
| Weight | 221 g | 249 g |
| Launch price | $1,199 (256GB) | $1,299 (256GB) |
Telephoto: 5x at 120 mm vs 4x at 100 mm and 8x at 200 mm
The 15 Pro Max’s telephoto is a 12MP lens at 120 mm and f/2.8, giving 5x optical zoom in and, with the Ultra Wide, 2x out. The 18 Pro Max’s telephoto is a 48MP tetraprism lens at 100 mm and f/2.8 with 3D sensor-shift stabilization; Apple lists it as 4x optical and adds a 12MP crop at 200 mm as 8x optical quality, for a 16x optical zoom range. The new phone trades a little native reach at 5x for four times the resolution at 4x and a longer optical-quality option at 8x.
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The main camera keeps 48MP and 24 mm but the fixed f/1.78 aperture becomes a variable one with stops at f/1.48, f/1.8, f/2.8 and f/4.0, with manual aperture and shutter speed controls in the Camera app. The Ultra Wide stays at 13 mm and f/2.2 but goes from 12MP to 48MP, and the front camera moves from 12MP to 18MP Center Stage, both f/1.9. Our variable aperture guide explains what each stop does.
Video on the 18 Pro Max reaches 4K Dolby Vision at 120 fps and ProRes up to 4K at 120 fps with external recording.
Titanium to aluminum unibody: 221 g to 249 g
The 15 Pro Max is 159.9 x 76.7 x 8.25 mm and 221 g with a titanium frame, Ceramic Shield front and textured matte glass back. The 18 Pro Max is 163.4 x 78.0 x 8.75 mm and 249 g with an aluminum unibody, Ceramic Shield 2 front, Ceramic Shield back and 40 percent recycled content: 3.5 mm taller, 0.5 mm thicker and 28 g heavier, with a display that grows from 6.7 to 6.9 inches.
Both have the Dynamic Island, smaller on the 18 Pro Max with up to three Live Activities, and both have USB-C at USB 3 speeds of up to 10 Gb/s. The 18 Pro Max adds Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread through the N1 chip and the C2 modem, and in the US and 11 other countries it drops the SIM tray.
A17 Pro to A20 Pro, and battery from 29 to 45 hours
The 15 Pro Max’s A17 Pro has a 6-core GPU. The A20 Pro, on Apple’s first 2-nanometer process, has a 6-core CPU, a 7-core GPU and a dual 16-core Neural Engine, and sits on a vapor chamber Apple says has about three times the cooling performance of the prior design. Apple’s published gains compare only with the A19 Pro: a GPU up to 40 percent faster, double the AI processing and 50 percent more memory bandwidth. Apple has not published an A17 Pro to A20 Pro figure.
Apple rates the 15 Pro Max at up to 29 hours of video playback, 25 hours streamed and 95 hours of audio. The 18 Pro Max is rated at up to 45 hours of video playback, 40 hours streamed and 30 hours of typical use. Charging moves from 50 percent in around 30 minutes with a 20W adapter to 50 percent in around 15 minutes with a 60W USB-C adapter, and wireless from 15W MagSafe and Qi2 to 25W.
Price: $1,199 then, $1,299 now
| Storage | iPhone 15 Pro Max (launch, 2023) | iPhone 18 Pro Max (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| 256GB | $1,199 | $1,299 |
| 512GB | Not quoted at launch | $1,499 |
| 1TB | Not quoted at launch | $1,899 |
| 2TB | Not offered | $2,499 |
Both phones start at 256GB, so the like-for-like gap is $100. Apple’s up-to $455 trade-in estimate brings the 256GB 18 Pro Max to $844 before tax at the top value, or Apple lists it at $54.12 a month over 24 months. Our trade-in value guide covers how the estimates work, and the 18 Pro vs 15 Pro comparison handles the smaller phones.
What Apple has not said
- No direct A17 Pro to A20 Pro performance comparison; Apple’s figures are relative to the A19 Pro.
- No audio playback rating for the 18 Pro Max in the specs Apple has published so far, against 95 hours for the 15 Pro Max.
- No side-by-side statement on how the 12MP 8x crop compares in quality with the 15 Pro Max’s native 5x lens.
- No per-condition trade-in value for the 15 Pro Max beyond the up-to $455 estimate.
Pre-orders open Saturday, September 12 at 5 a.m. PT, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max ships Friday, September 18 from $1,299. A 15 Pro Max owner already has Apple Intelligence and USB 3, so the decision comes down to the camera, the battery and 28 extra grams; our pre-order guide covers ordering with trade-in.
