How to see battery percentage on your iPhone

If you have a newer iPhone with a notch, you may have noticed that the battery indicator in the status bar no longer shows the amount of battery life remaining. To check the battery percentage, you would have to swipe down and access the Control Center. However, older iPhones with a Home button, such as the iPhone 8 and iPhone SE, have always had the option to display the battery percentage in the status bar.

Excitingly, Apple has introduced the long-awaited option to display battery percentage on the latest iPhones with the release of iOS 16. So you no longer have to worry about the question "What's my battery level?"

In this article, you'll learn how to display battery percentage on iPhones using several methods. 

And since we're talking about battery levels, you might want to prevent your charge from going down too low before you charge.

How to turn on battery percentage on iPhone 15

Apple has made significant improvements to the battery life and capacity of iPhone 15. By turning on the battery percentage indicator, you can better manage your iPhone 15 usage and know if battery life has really improved.

As we mentioned, it's possible to show iPhone battery percentage directly next to (or inside) the battery icon in the upper right corner at any time. Here's how you turn on the feature:

1. On your iPhone, open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down to Battery and tap on it.
3. Turn on the toggle next to Battery Percentage. 

   

Note that all iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models include a new Battery Health feature. Once activated, it ensures that the device will never exceed 80% charge during a charge cycle. Implementing the 80% hard limit can extend the life of an iPhone battery by minimizing the amount of time it remains fully charged.

Here's how to turn on 80% limit on the iPhone 15:

1. On your iPhone, open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down to Battery and tap on Battery Health & Charging.
3. Next, tap Charging Optimization. You'll be presented with three options:
   • Optimized Battery Charging: Intelligently delays charging beyond 80% until a more appropriate time.
   • 80% Limit: charging will stop at 80%.
   • None: Keeps the iPhone's charging capabilities flexible.
4. Tap on 80% Limit to turn it on.

   

While you're on the Battery Health & Charging screen, you'll also find the maximum battery capacity of your iPhone.

Also, in the past, understanding the relationship between battery health and iPhone usage was difficult. Now, it's much simpler, thanks to the iPhone 15 series, which enables users to view the battery cycle count.

Here's how to check the number of battery cycles on your iPhone 15:

1. First, go to Settings > General. 
2. Under General, go to About and scroll down to locate Battery. 
3. Here you will find comprehensive information about your battery, including the date of manufacture, when it was first used, and of course, the Battery Cycle Count.

Display battery percentage on all iPhone models

Note that you need iOS 16 for the option to show the battery percentage. The steps on how to turn battery percentage on are as follows:

1. On your iPhone, open the Settings app.
2. Scroll down to Battery and tap on it.
3. Turn on the toggle next to Battery Percentage. 

You may wonder how to see iPhone battery percentage if you run an older iOS version. Well, you'll need to use one of the ways outlined below to quickly access your battery status.

Method 1: View from iPhone battery status widgets

One way to quickly view your iPhone battery percentage is to add the respective widget to one of your Home screens. To do that, simply long press on the home screen and tap on the + button in the top left corner. Scroll down to find Batteries widget option and tap on it to choose your widget shape.

Tap Add Widget > Done, and now your screen shows your battery charge at all times.

If you don't want the widget right on your Home screen, you can add it to Today View.

To do that, simply go to Today View by swiping right on your Home screen. Next, tap and hold on an empty space anywhere on your Today View. Tap the + button in the top right corner. Browse widgets and add Batteries as shown above.

Now your battery widget is available on your iPhone Today View.

Now you know how to add a battery widget on an iPhone. Easy? 

Method 2: See battery percentage in Control Center

You can see the exact battery percentage left by opening the Control Center. Drag your finger down from the top-right corner of the screen to open your iPhone's Control Center (this can be done whether your phone is locked or unlocked).

iPhone battery percentage will show up right next to your battery indicator.

Method 3: Connect to a charger to see iPhone's battery percentage

Another easy way to check your phone battery is by connecting the phone to a charger. Battery percentage will show up on your screen.

Method 4: Ask Siri for battery level on iPhone

And finally, you can just ask!

Make sure you have set up Siri (pull down on your unlocked iPhone screen to reveal Search, type in Siri, click on Siri & Search, check that the toggle is on for Listen for "Hey Siri" and say something along the lines of "Hey Siri, what's my battery percentage?" The cool thing about this is, of course, that you don't even need to unlock your iPhone for the battery check (unless you choose in settings to prevent Siri from reacting when the phone is locked).

You do need to be connected to the internet for Siri to work.

Show battery percentage on iPhone and Mac: Final thoughts

As you can see, there are several ways for you to check the exact battery percentage on your phone. You can view it in the Control Center, ask Siri, use battery widgets, and connect a charger. iPhones running iOS 16 allow you to show battery indicator percentage directly next to (or inside) the battery icon in the upper right corner at any time.

Even better, all iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro models include a new Battery Health feature. Once activated, it ensures that the device will never exceed 80% charge during a charge cycle. This can extend the life of an iPhone battery by minimizing the amount of time it remains fully charged. 

And since we're talking about battery levels, we recommend you try two handy apps (Batteries and AirBuddy) to track battery levels of all your devices from the most convenient spots on your Mac and to get notified when your devices need charging. Both apps are part of Setapp, a platform with more than 240 unique apps for Mac, iPhone, and iPad that can solve any problem you might have. Sign up to Setapp to try all these apps with your seven-day free trial.

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