Apple iPhone 16 vs OnePlus 13
Overall: OnePlus 13. Their chips, the Apple A18 (flagship) and the 8 Elite (flagship), are close in speed. The OnePlus 13 starts with more RAM (12 GB against 8 GB). The OnePlus 13 has the bigger battery (6,000 mAh against 3,561 mAh).
Apple
iPhone 16
Apple A18
OnePlus
OnePlus 13
Snapdragon 8 EliteWhat matters to you?
Tap what you use your phone for. The overall pick then counts only those.
Overall: OnePlus 13
Better for gaming, camera and content creation, work, study and ai and more. Score: OnePlus 13 5, iPhone 16 0 (clear win 2, slight edge 1, same 0).
Backed by facts100% of areas
Pick this for…
Who wins for each way you use a phone. Tap a card for the evidence.
Social media
Chats, calls, lives and feeds
Same in practiceEither oneBenchmarksOfficialPublic infoWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Social media
Chats, calls, lives and feeds
- Everyday speed: Apple A18 5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Memory: 8 GB against 12 GB, so more apps stay open when you switch between chats and feeds.
- Front camera video for calls and lives: 4K@60fps against 4K@60fps.
Gaming
Light games to heavy 3D, online and offline
Slight edgePick OnePlus 13BenchmarksOfficialWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Gaming
Light games to heavy 3D, online and offline
- Gaming power: Apple A18 4 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Graphics: Apple GPU (5-core graphics) (3 nm) against Adreno 830 (3 nm).
- Screen: not listed against 120 Hz.
- Light games run well on both. The gap shows in heavy 3D games. How long a phone holds its speed when hot needs testing, so it is not judged.
Camera and content creation
Photos, video recording and editing
Slight edgePick OnePlus 13OfficialBenchmarksPublic infoWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Camera and content creation
Photos, video recording and editing
- Video recording: 4K@60fps against 8K@30fps.
- Front camera video: 4K@60fps against 4K@60fps.
- Editing and export: Apple A18 4.5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5. Storage: not listed for either phone.
- Photo and video quality need side-by-side testing, so we do not judge them from megapixels.
Work, study and AI
Learning, research, writing and AI assistants
Slight edgePick OnePlus 13BenchmarksOfficialWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Work, study and AI
Learning, research, writing and AI assistants
- Heavy work: Apple A18 4.5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Memory: 8 GB against 12 GB. On-phone AI features need plenty of memory; most AI assistants run online and work on any phone.
- Screen: 6.1″ OLED against 6.82″ AMOLED.
Movies, music and streaming
YouTube, Netflix, sport, music and podcasts
Slight edgePick OnePlus 13OfficialBenchmarksPublic infoWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Movies, music and streaming
YouTube, Netflix, sport, music and podcasts
- Screen: 6.1″ OLED against 6.82″ AMOLED.
- AV1 video decoding (smoother YouTube and Netflix, less battery): not listed against yes.
- Sound: stereo speakers, against stereo speakers.
Everyday life
Maps, ride-hailing, payments and banking
Slight edgePick OnePlus 13OfficialPublic infoWhy? See the evidenceHide the evidence
Everyday life
Maps, ride-hailing, payments and banking
- Tap to pay (NFC): yes against yes.
- Location: single-band GPS against dual-band GPS (L1 + L5). Dual-band GPS stays accurate between tall buildings.
Phone basics
What every use depends on, side by side.
Battery life
iPhone 163,561 mAh
OnePlus 136,000 mAh100 W charging
Efficiency: Apple A18 5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5
Storage
iPhone 16128 GBType not published
OnePlus 13256 GB / 512 GBType not published
UFS opens apps and files far faster than eMMC
Speed
iPhone 16Apple A188 GB RAM
OnePlus 138 Elite12 GB / 16 GB RAM
Everyday speed: 5 of 5 against 5 of 5
Screen
iPhone 166.1″ OLEDRefresh rate not published
OnePlus 136.82″ AMOLED120 Hz
Bigger is not better; pick the size you like
Toughness
iPhone 16IP68
OnePlus 13IP68
IP68 survives dust and a dunk in water
Years of updates
iPhone 16No promise publishedLaunched September 2024
OnePlus 13Until about 20284 Android upgrades, 4 years of security updates
From the maker’s written update promise
Side by side
Show differences only
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 6.1″ | 6.82″ |
| Type | OLED | AMOLED |
| Resolution | 1179 × 2556 | 3168 × 1440 |
| Refresh rate | — | 120 Hz |
| Peak brightness | 2000 nits | 4500 nits |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Apple A18 | Snapdragon 8 Elite |
| RAM | 8 GB | 12 GB / 16 GB |
| Storage | 128 GB | 256 GB / 512 GB |
| Storage type | — | — |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Main camera | 48 MP | 50 MP |
| Zoom | None | 3x optical |
| Video recording | 4K@60fps | 8K@30fps |
| Front camera | 12 MP | 32 MP |
| Front video | 4K@60fps | 4K@60fps |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | 3561 mAh | 6000 mAh |
| Wired charging | — | 100 W |
| Wireless charging | 25 W | 50 W |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Stereo speakers | Yes | Yes |
| Headphone jack | — | — |
| NFC (tap to pay) | Yes | Yes |
| Dual-band GPS | No | Yes |
| 5G | Yes | Yes |
| eSIM | Yes | Yes |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 170 g | 213 g |
| Thickness | 7.8 mm | 8.5 mm |
| Water resistance | IP68 | IP68 |
| Spec | iPhone 16 | OnePlus 13 |
|---|---|---|
| At launch | iOS 26 | Android 15 |
| OS upgrades | Not stated | 4 years |
| Security updates | Not stated | Not stated |
Quick answers
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for social media?
- For social media, there’s no real difference between them. Everyday speed: Apple A18 5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for gaming?
- The OnePlus 13 has a slight edge for gaming. Gaming power: Apple A18 4 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for camera and content creation?
- The OnePlus 13 has a slight edge for camera and content creation. Video recording: 4K@60fps against 8K@30fps.
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for work, study and ai?
- The OnePlus 13 has a slight edge for work, study and ai. Heavy work: Apple A18 4.5 of 5, 8 Elite 5 of 5.
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for movies, music and streaming?
- The OnePlus 13 has a slight edge for movies, music and streaming. Screen: 6.1″ OLED against 6.82″ AMOLED.
- Is the iPhone 16 or the OnePlus 13 better for everyday life?
- The OnePlus 13 has a slight edge for everyday life. Tap to pay (NFC): yes against yes.
What we don’t judge on
Security patch level, charging watts, megapixels, benchmark scores and guessed values.
- Security patch level and other software settings change with every update, so one reading can’t judge a phone. We use the maker’s written update promise.
- Charging watts, megapixels, screen size and weight are shown, never scored as better: faster charging doesn’t make a battery last longer, and more megapixels don’t make better photos.
- Chip estimates (1 to 5) come from published design facts: core design and year, graphics, manufacturing and video features. Photo quality and how long a phone holds its speed when hot need testing, so they aren’t judged.
- Values with no source show “not published” and stay out of the verdict.
Apple iPhone 16 specsOnePlus 13 specsCompare with another phone