iPhone Battery Health: What Apple Says About Charge Cycles and Cold

Cycle life

Apple's battery support page states design targets under ideal conditions:

• Batteries of iPhone 14 models and earlier are designed to retain 80 percent of their original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles.
• Batteries of iPhone 15 models are designed to retain 80 percent of their original capacity at 1000 complete charge cycles.
• Apple notes that when some features are active, the battery capacity might show as slightly less than 100 percent.

Cold and low charge

Apple explains that a battery's impedance temporarily increases at a low state of charge and in a cold temperature environment, and that this is more significant with a higher chemical age. It says these are characteristics of lithium-ion battery chemistry common to all such batteries in the industry. Devices may experience unexpected shutdowns when the battery is low, older or in colder temperatures.

What you can do

• If your phone shuts off in the cold, warm it and charge it before blaming a fault.
• Remember Apple's figures are design targets under ideal conditions, not guarantees.

This is Apple's guidance for iPhones, so it does not cover other brands. Other manufacturers publish their own figures.

Fact-checked on 30 October 2026 against the sources listed below. Prices and plans change, so confirm with the provider before you buy.