Apple Says iOS 16 Is Currently Running on 81% Of All iPhones

The Apple WWDC 2023 is just around the corner. And like before, the event will unroll the curtains on a brand new version of iPhone OS, iOS 17. But before the company bids goodbye to iOS 16, it has released some crucial statistics about the mobile operating system.

Apple says iOS 16 is currently running on 81% of all iPhones now. In comparison, nearly 72% of iPhones were running the latest operating system in early 2023. And in contrast, around 13% of total devices are currently running iOS 15, while 6% of phones are on unspecified earlier versions.

Apple’s Statistics Presents a Positive Outlook for iOS 16

81% of all phones running on the latest operating system is not a small deal. According to the most recently collected data (April 23, 2023), there are more than 1.8 billion active Apple devices around the globe. That means more than 1.458 billion devices are currently running iOS 16.

In the case of the iPhones that came out within the last four years, a total of 90% of the total devices are running on iOS 16. And as of the data collected on June 1, some 8% are running on iOS 15, while 2% of the recently released devices are still running older versions.

How Does This Data Compare to Android

Apple released the iOS 16 in September 2022. Google released Android 13 in the same time frame. To be exact, Android 13 became fully ready for adoption in October 2022. However, according to the data from Android Central, only 12.1% of active Android devices are running it.

Traditionally, Apple devices see greater adoption of the newest version of iOS. And the case is the same for iOS 16. But the success of the latest version is pretty impressive as it comes after iOS 15’s unexpectedly weaker performance across devices.

That said, Google has released a new version of Android OS within this timeline. And some major brands are pushing Android updates further and offering four years of Android updates. This change could make Android devices catch up with Apple in terms of offering long OS support.

iPadOS 16 Shares the Same Story

According to Apple, like iOS 16, iPadOS 16 saw a considerably greater adoption among Apple tablets. The latest data shares that 71% of all active iPads are currently running the latest operating system. This makes a notable rise from the adoption rate, which was at 50% in February.

Moreover, when you consider the iPads released in the last four years, 76% of the total devices are running the iPadOS 16. 15% of them are on iPadOS 15, while the other 6% are still on an early version of the operating system.

So, considering the report from February, there has been a significant increase in the adoption rate. But there’s a good reason why iPadOS 16 did not see a high adoption rate in early 2023. The operating system was pretty buggy. But it seems that Apple addressed the issue pretty quickly. And, of course, the operating system has more features than before.

Nonetheless, it goes without saying that the adoption of iOS 16 and iPadOS 16 has been going very well for Apple. And as we are slowly closing in towards iOS 17, it would be great to see similar rates for the new OS. Of course, iPhone users will definitely want to experience all the new features that it will bring.

That said, if you want to get an early glimpse of iOS 17, check out our coverage of the screenshots that got leaked back in April.