Here’s What the iPhone 16 Colors Actually Look Like

Wondering what the iPhone 16 and 16 Pro colors look like outside of marketing materials? If you can’t get yourself down to an Apple Store, we took a trip instead.

iPhone 16 Colors

The iPhone 16 is available in five colors this year, with significantly more saturated hues than were available with last year’s iPhone 15.

The color extends from the aluminum-chassis that wraps around the edge of the display, to the color-infused glass back. Even if you have your iPhone in a case, you should still see a pop of color around the edge of the vertically-arranged camera array.

Ultramarine

Arguably the most eye-catching of this year’s colors, ultramarine is particularly vibrant around the edge of the camera bump. I was expecting it to look a bit more purple, but it’s very blue in real life.

Teal

A subdued green, teal is great if black or white is a bit boring for you and the other colors feel too loud. It’s a nice middle-ground between the loud ultramarine and clinical black and white.

Pink

An acquired taste but arguably the most fun color of the lot, pink is just as vibrant as ultramarine this year.

White

A bright white iPhone that will appeal to anyone who misses their iPod a bit too much. It looks bright and clean, and the contrast between the camera lenses and white surround looks great.

Black

Black goes with everything, right?

iPhone 16 Pro Colors

The iPhone 16 Pro is available in four colors, but they’re a bit different from the colors that were released with 2023’s iPhone 15 Pro.

The titanium chassis is available in desert, natural, white, and black. The color extends from the edge of the device all the way to the textured matt finish glass back. The color can be seen surrounding the triple camera array, even when the device is in a case.

Desert

Desert is basically gold, though it feels a bit more subdued than Apple’s previous gold color offerings. The exception here is the titanium band that wraps around the device, which does a good job of catching the light.

Natural

Natural replaces the signature blue that appeared last year, and it’s basically a natural titanium finish. It’s a bit boring, to be honest.

White

It’s not as white as an old plastic MacBook or an Apple charger, but it’s the lightest of all the Pro finishes and it suits the shiny titanium chassis.

Black

The signature iPhone finish, black titanium isn’t jet black and maintains a bit of a sheen on account of its reflective finish. It looks a lot like the iPhone 16 black, despite having a textured matte glass finish.

What’s the Best iPhone 16 and 16 Pro Color?

There is no objective measure of the “best” color since this comes down to your personal tastes. If you want an iPhone that will stand out as an iPhone 16, the ultramarine is hard to pass up since it’s brand new (and the closest I could find was the purple iPhone 12).

The iPhone 15 was available in pink, albeit a far more muted shade, and a sickly green for which teal is a great replacement. White is another solid choice if you want to stand out, being notably brighter than the iPhone 14’s starlight and a color we haven’t (officially) seen since the iPhone 12.

As for the iPhone 16 Pro, desert is a more eye-catching natural tone this year, but white would be my second choice since. To me, nothing looks as good as my personal favorite Sierra blue iPhone 13 Pro, which I’m still rocking in 2024.

Is the Camera Control Button Color Matched?

Yes, the Camera Control button, a new recessed touch and pressure-sensitive input for controlling various Camera functions is color matched on all devices.

Is the Action Button Color Matched?

Just like the Camera Control button, the Action button is also color-matched on all models.

How to Pick a Color

These photos might help, but they’re no substitute for having a look yourself. If color is important to you, head to an Apple Store or other retailer and check out the colors for yourself. Don’t forget that you’ll likely be wrapping your iPhone up in a case, so it might not make a huge difference anyway.

Sometimes it doesn’t hurt to narrow down your choice to two colors, just in case your number one pick is out of stock.