Apple Limiting iOS 16 Beta 5 Battery Percentage Display to Select iPhones: Here Are the Supported Devices

Apple this week brought back one of the most highly requested features from iOS users since the launch of the iPhone X in 2017: the ability to see your battery percentage directly in the status bar.

iOS 16 battery percentage
Ever since the launch of the iPhone X with the notch, Apple has not allowed users to show their battery percentage directly in the status bar, forcing them to swipe down into Control Center to glance at their current battery level.

With the launch of iOS 16 in just a few weeks, that's set to change. The fifth developer beta of iOS 16 includes a new toggle that allows users to always show their battery percentage in the status bar.

ios 16 battery indicator 2
When Low Power Mode is enabled, the battery glyph and the percentage turn yellow, and when low on battery, it turns red. When charging your iPhone, it turns green. The battery percentage is visible in the status bar across the system, including on the Lock Screen.

All flagship iPhones since the iPhone X have had a notch, yet not all customers with notched iPhones will gain this new feature.

Here is the list of iPhones that will gain the ability to display the battery percentage directly in the status bar:

  • iPhone 13 Pro Max
  • iPhone 13 Pro
  • iPhone 13
  • iPhone 12 Pro Max
  • iPhone 12 Pro
  • iPhone 12
  • iPhone 11 Pro Max
  • iPhone 11 Pro
  • iPhone XS Max
  • iPhone XS
  • iPhone X

All other iPhones, including the smaller iPhone 13 mini and iPhone 12 mini, the iPhone 11, and the iPhone XR, do not have the battery percentage option. As iOS 16 is still in beta testing, Apple may decide to expand the list to include other iPhones in the future so we'll have to wait and see.

While it's not entirely clear why Apple has chosen to limit the availability of this feature, it may be due to space constraints on the smaller displays.

Related Forum: iOS 16

Popular Stories

iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3

Wednesday February 11, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3, the latest updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out in September. The new software comes almost two months after Apple released iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes, ...
m5 macbook pro deal

Why You Shouldn't Buy the Next MacBook Pro

Tuesday February 10, 2026 4:27 pm PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models as soon as early March, but if you can, this is one generation you should skip because there's something much better in the works. We're waiting on 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, with few changes other than the processor upgrade. There won't be any tweaks to the design or the display, but later this...
M3 iPad Air

Apple's Next Two Products Are Coming Soon

Thursday February 12, 2026 11:17 am PST by
Apple plans to release an iPhone 17e and an iPad Air with an M4 chip "in the coming weeks," according to the latest word from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. "Apple retail employees say that inventory of the iPhone 16e has basically dried out and the iPad Air is seeing shortages as well," said Gurman. "I've been expecting new versions of both (iPhone 17e and M4 iPad Air) in the coming weeks."...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Acquires New Database App

Wednesday February 11, 2026 6:44 am PST by
Apple acquired Canadian graph database company Kuzu last year, it has emerged. The acquisition, spotted by AppleInsider, was completed in October 2025 for an undisclosed sum. The company's website was subsequently taken down and its Github repository was archived, as is commonplace for Apple acquisitions. Kuzu was "an embedded graph database built for query speed, scalability, and easy of ...
iPhone 16e Bottom Crop

Apple Reportedly Unveiling a New iPhone Next Week

Tuesday February 10, 2026 1:51 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report said the iPhone 17e will be announced in a press release on the Apple Newsroom website, so do not expect an event for this device specifically. The iPhone 17e will be a spec-bumped successor to the iPhone 16e. Rumors claim the device will have four key...

Top Rated Comments

CrazyForCashews Avatar
46 months ago
Having the battery percentage exclusive to select iPhones is one of the dumbest things Apple has ever done.

Sometimes I believe Apple thinks with their butt first then their head.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
im_to_hyper Avatar
46 months ago
I bought a mini for a reason... let me squint
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)
46 months ago
Kinda stupid in my opinion I have a 12 mini and I don’t see why they can’t put it on that phone?
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
46 months ago
By comparison it’s available for 24,000+ android smartphones.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
46 months ago
So the iPhone X get that and iPhone 11 not and the iPhone 11 is bigger than the iPhone X. Nice Apple
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
46 months ago
What a stupid design decision to hide the Battery percentage in the first place! And now Apple only allows select devices to view the battery percentage!
Also, why can't the iPhone show battery percentage always on the Lock Screen? Just beneath the Date and Time.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)