A 120Hz screen, new cameras, more storage, same price: the iPhone 17 sounds almost too good to be true.
The iPhone 17 brings a 120Hz ProMotion display, a new 48 MP ultrawide camera, and a sharper 18 MP Center Stage selfie camera.
But you might be asking yourself: how does it stack up against the iPhone 17 Pro, a phone that adds a 48 MP 4X telephoto, vapor-chamber cooling, and creator-grade video tools?
If you already own the iPhone 17 Pro (or if you’re choosing between the two today) the big question is whether the iPhone 17 offers enough for less, or if the Pro gives you features you’ll actually use.
To find out, we put both phones through our in-house tests for battery life, camera quality, display performance, and raw speed. Beyond the numbers, we also lived with them to see how they behave day-to-day. In this detailed comparison, we’ll share our results and help you decide which phone is the smarter choice for your needs.
iPhone 17 vs iPhone 17 Pro differences:
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Unlike the Pro model, the iPhone 17 has the same look as its predecessor. It’s also still rocking an aluminum frame and a glass back, but introduces Ceramic Shield 2 on the front, which Apple says is three times more scratch resistant than before. The back remains reinforced glass.
The iPhone 17 Pro moves away from last year’s titanium and also adopts an aluminum body. Apple highlights this as a lighter, stronger, and more thermally efficient approach, as it integrates the new vapor chamber cooling system directly into the frame.
Unlike the base model, the Pro is protected by Ceramic Shield 2 on both the front and the back, making it more resistant to scratches and cracks. That said, you’ll quickly come to find that anything besides the glass part on the Pro’s back is pretty easily chipped and scratched, so if you want it to stay prestine and keep its resale value, you better slap on a case on it.
The Pro also debuts a redesigned rectangular «camera plateau», which houses its triple 48 MP camera system and sets it apart visually from the dual-camera iPhone 17.
When it comes to size and weight, the iPhone 17 comes in at 149.6 x 71.5 x 7.95 mm and weighs 177 grams. The iPhone 17 Pro is slightly taller, wider, and thicker at 150.0 x 71.9 x 8.75 mm, and it’s also noticeably heavier at 206 grams. You can feel the Pro’s heft when you hold it, but both feel similar in the hand as far as ergonomics go.
The iPhone 17 and 17 Pro colors:
iPhone 17: Black, Lavender, Mist Blue, Sage, White
iPhone 17 Pro: Black, Silver, Gold, and a new standout Orange
One of the biggest upgrades this year is that the iPhone 17 now has a 120Hz ProMotion OLED display. Apple withheld this feature for years, leaving the base iPhones stuck at 60Hz, but it’s finally here. The result is smoother scrolling, animations, and gaming.
Both models use 6.3-inch OLED panels with the same resolution (2622 × 1206, 460 ppi) and peak brightness of 3000 nits outdoors, making them much easier to read under sunlight compared to the 2000 nits of the iPhone 16 series. In HDR content, both peak at 1600 nits, and typical brightness remains 1000 nits.
Apple even added LTPO technology to the new base model, allowing the refresh rate to scale down to 1Hz. This unlocks Always-On Display support and greater power efficiency.
Apple has added a seven-layer anti-reflective coating to the iPhone 17 series.
It is not quite as effective as the coating on the Galaxy S25 Ultra, but it noticeably reduces reflections compared to the iPhone 16 series.
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In our lab results, both models achieved above 2,600 at 20%APL and roughly 1,050 nits while the screen is completely white.
