If there’s anything that is going to need repair or replacement on the iPhone during its lifetime it’s going to be the battery. Talk to anyone you know and if you ask someone if they’ve replaced their iPhone’s screen or their iPhone’s battery, they’ll almost always say the battery.

iPhone Battery Replacement Service FAQs

Best Place To Get It Done? Apple’s official iPhone battery replacement service (you can view all options for this here)
How Much Does It Cost? Apple charges £49 for all iPhones below the iPhone X; from the iPhone X onwards replacement batteries cost £69.
Is My iPhone Supported? Yes, all iPhone models are covered in Apple’s battery replacement service, though you will pay £20 more for newer models
Can I Do It Myself? Yes, you can replace your iPhone’s battery yourself, though you will need a battery replacement kit – this one is for the iPhone 6s, for instance. Also, we DO NOT recommend this. iPhones are complex pieces of technology and easy to break if you don’t know what you’re doing, so if you do decide to go this route, please, proceed with caution.

Your iPhone’s battery is one of the most things inside the phone. Over time, though, the battery degrades and this affects both your iPhone’s performance and usability – it’s also why your iPhone might start dying at 25% all of sudden. If this is happening to you, it means your battery is dying.

I’ve done this once before. I had the battery in my iPhone 6 replaced; I got it done via Apple’s battery replacement service. All in, I think it extended the usability of the phone by 100%. It ran like new. And the battery life improved massively compared to before, so if you have an old iPhone lying around, rather than swapping it out for a new one, maybe just spend $50 on a new battery instead.

Getting a new battery installed on the iPhone is actually quite easy, though, especially if you do it via Apple’s official battery replacement service. If your phone is out of warranty, having the battery replaced inside your iPhone will cost £49 for non-iPhone X models and £69 for any iPhone from the iPhone X up (this includes XS, XR, and iPhone 11 models).

Benefits of Replacing iPhone Battery?

Your iPhone will regain its 100% battery efficiency
Your battery life will go back to what it was when the phone was brand new
Your iPhone will perform better
Intensive tasks like recording and editing video and using GPS won’t kill your battery life half as much

But the #1 reason for replacing your iPhone’s battery is that it is so much cheaper than getting a new iPhone. For instance, if you have an iPhone 6 or iPhone 7 (even an iPhone 8), replacing the battery will get you another couple of year’s worth of usage from the phone. And it’ll only cost £49 versus £600 to £1200 for a brand new iPhone.

For me, this is the #1 reason to replace your iPhone’s battery regularly – at least once every 12 to 18 months. You’ll save a fortune by not having to buy a new phone and your current iPhone will last about 3X longer. 99.9% of the issues that plague older iPhones are associated with battery degradation. Fix this by getting a new battery installed and you’ll have far fewer issues with your iPhone – even if you’re using an older model.

But just when do you need to replace an iPhone battery and how do you go about it? Read this before you do anything first!

Why Do iPhone Batteries Need To Be Replaced?

OK, first things first: ALL smartphone batteries eventually need to be replaced. It doesn’t matter if it’s an iPhone, a Samsung Galaxy, a Google Pixel, or any other smartphone out there. After a long enough timeline, you’ll need to either buy a new phone or get the battery in your current phone replaced.

But why? Simply put, as powerful as Apple and Google and other tech companies are, they still have to obey the laws of physics and chemistry. And batteries are dependent on physics and chemistry. Matter of fact, all a battery does is use chemical processes to store energy.

The reason batteries hold less charge as time goes on is because those chemical processes naturally deteriorate as time goes on, meaning the battery can hold less and less of a charge. In other words, every battery in any device out there today will ultimately degrade and fail over time. It is 100% completely normal.

Here’s how long iPhone batteries can typically last.

How Long Do iPhone Batteries Last?

The battery in your iPhone (and any other smartphone) should hold a stated charge (such as 18-hour battery life) for at least 12-18 months considering you haven’t caused any physical damage to the battery.

After that timeframe, the storage charge capacity (the time it can keep the device running) will naturally begin to degrade. This means that even though the battery is “fully charged” it won’t be able to power your device as long. For example, if you bought a new iPhone with an 18-hour battery life, after 19 months you may find it only has a 15-hour battery life. And after 3-4 years it’s possible the battery life could be down to 10-12 hours.

But again, that’s just the natural course batteries take.

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Can You Repair An iPhone Battery?

Technically we’re sure scientists and engineers can on an individual level, but “repairing” a battery isn’t viable or economically feasible for users or tech companies. It’s just cheaper and faster to buy a new battery.

Will A New Battery In My iPhone 6 Or iPhone 7 Be As Good As The Original?

In theory, yes. That depends on a few factors: the quality of the replacement battery used and who did the replacement.

There are plenty of third-party shops and online services that will offer to replace your iPhone battery for cheap. And while many of those services are on the up and up, there are plenty of technician services who will rope you in by low costs, but replace your original iPhone battery with a cheaper, newer one.

Cheap battery replacements could mean the replacement battery will wear down sooner than the original–and in extreme cases could be dangerous. Why dangerous? If iPhone replacement batteries aren’t in good shape or installed incorrectly, they could heat up and explode.

Where Should I Get My iPhone Battery Replaced?

If you have the option, go to an actual Apple Store. Apple is going to use Apple-approved batteries to replace your old iPhone battery. Plus Apple technicians are trained by Apple so you know it’s being installed correctly. If you don’t, use Apple’s online service. Or, you can use third-party companies to get a replacement battery – though this isn’t recommended!

How Much Does An iPhone Battery Replacement From Apple Cost?

If your iPhone is still covered by its warranty or if you bought AppleCare+ Apple will replace your battery for free.

If your iPhone is out of warranty and you don’t have AppleCare+ it will cost $69 for a replacement battery if you have one of the following iPhones: iPhone X, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone 11 Pro, or the iPhone 11.

If your iPhone is out of warranty and you don’t have AppleCare+ it will cost $49 for a replacement battery if you have one of the following iPhones: iPhone SE, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and all other eligible models.

You can check out all the details of getting a new battery via Apple by contacting its battery replacement service – you can do this here.

Michael Grothaus

Apple expert and novelist, Michael Grothaus has been covering tech on KnowYourMobile for the best part of 10 years. Prior to this, he worked at Apple. And before that, he was a film journalist. Michael is a published author; his book Epiphany Jones was voted as one of the best novels about Hollywood by Entertainment Weekly. Michael is also a writer at other publications including VICE and Fast Company.

iPhone Battery Replacement: The #1 Way To Improve Your Old iPhone