Apple has officially rolled out iOS 26.2, but don’t expect to see that update notification if you’re holding onto hardware older than the iPhone 11. In fact, you may not have access to the iOS 26 update at all. If that’s the case, it may very well be time to upgrade your phone entirely.
The new software demands the processing power of the A13 Bionic chip, meaning many older popular models have hit their ceiling. While you won’t get to experience the new Liquid Glass redesign or the advanced spam call blocking without an upgrade, Apple isn’t abandoning you entirely — older devices will continue to receive critical security patches for iOS 18 and iOS 16.
But is your device compatible with these updates? We’ve got everything you need to know below.
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Every iPhone that supports iOS 26
- iPhone 11
- iPhone 11 Pro
- iPhone 11 Pro Max
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 Mini
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 Mini
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- iPhone SE (second generation and later)
- iPhone 14
- iPhone 14 Plus
- iPhone 14 Pro
- iPhone 14 Pro Max
- iPhone 15
- iPhone 15 Plus
- iPhone 15 Pro
- iPhone 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 16
- iPhone 16 Plus
- iPhone 16 Pro
- iPhone 16 Pro Max
The phones left off this year’s list are the iPhone XS, XS Max and XR.
Heads-up: Apple Intelligence isn’t on all iPhone models
While all of the models above can install iOS 26, Apple Intelligence requires beefier hardware. Features such as Genmoji, Image Playground and the new Visual Intelligence search only work on:
- iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max
- iPhone 16 models
- iPhone 17 models
If you’re on an older device, you’ll still get all the design changes and everyday updates, but nothing involving Apple Intelligence.
Not sure which iPhone model you own?
On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > About and look at Model Name. If your phone isn’t on the compatibility list, it will keep receiving iOS 18 security patches for a while, but you won’t see any of iOS 26’s new features.

