Home > Smartphone comparison > iPhone XR vs iPhone SE (2022) – which one to choose?

Apple iPhone XR vs SE (2022)

48 out of 100
Apple iPhone XR
VS
55 out of 100
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
Apple iPhone XR
Apple iPhone SE (2022)

Here we compared two smartphones: the 6.1-inch Apple iPhone XR (with Apple A12 Bionic) that was released on September 12, 2018, against the Apple iPhone SE (2022), which is powered by Apple A15 Bionic and came out 3 years and 7 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Select the amount of RAM to evaluate performance and value for money more precisely
Memory
  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery life
  6. Camera
  7. Comments (1)

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone XR
  • Has a 1.4 inches larger screen size
  • Comes with 924 mAh larger battery capacity: 2942 vs 2018 mAh
  • Thinner bezels – 14.6% more screen real estate
  • Shows 17% longer battery life (20:45 vs 17:41 hours)
Reasons to consider the Apple iPhone SE (2022)
  • 76% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1346K versus 762K)
  • Fingerprint scanner
  • Compatible with Wi-Fi 6 wireless networks
  • Has 33% more RAM: 4GB versus 3GB
  • The phone is 3 years and 7 months newer
  • Better grip in hands – the body is 8.4 mm narrower
  • More energy-efficient CPU – Apple A15 Bionic
  • 2.1x faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 2404 and 1167 points
  • Weighs 50 grams less

Review

Evaluation of Apple iPhone XR and SE (2022) crucial features
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
Select your primary usage scenario to get a more accurate NanoReview Score
📱 Primary usage:

Value for money (Beta)

Should I update?
No 29% Yes
Mostly no. The difference is too small to matter in everyday use.
The overall difference between Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone SE (2022) is not big enough to justify updating.
Main improvements: performance, connectivity, and gaming.
Be aware: the newer phone is weaker in battery life.

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests
Phone:
iPhone XR
vs
iPhone SE (2022)

Display

Type IPS LCD IPS LCD
Size 6.1 inches 4.7 inches
Resolution 828 x 1792 pixels 750 x 1334 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 16:9
PPI 326 ppi 326 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No No
Max rated brightness 625 nits 625 nits
HDR support Yes, Dolby Vision Yes, Dolby Vision
Screen protection Tempered glass Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio 79.9% 65.3%
Display features - - DCI-P3
Display tests
RGB color space 100% 99.9%
PWM Not detected -
Response time 32.8 ms 38 ms
Contrast 1920:1 1655:1
Screen space comparison
iPhone XR
6.1″ (19.5:9 ratio) = 14.2 in2
iPhone SE (2022)
4.7″ (16:9 ratio) = 9.4 in2
~49% more screen space
Peak brightness test (auto)
iPhone XR
645 nits
iPhone SE (2022) +1%
649 nits
Sources: NotebookCheck [3], [4]

Design and build

Height 150.9 mm (5.94 inches) 138.4 mm (5.45 inches)
Width 75.7 mm (2.98 inches) 67.3 mm (2.65 inches)
Thickness 8.3 mm (0.33 inches) 7.3 mm (0.29 inches)
Weight 194 g (6.84 oz) 144 g (5.08 oz)
Waterproof IP67 IP67
Rear material Glass Glass
Frame material Metal Metal
Colors White, Black, Blue, Red, Orange, Yellow White, Black, Red
Fingerprint scanner No Yes, in-button
Screen-to-body ratio
iPhone XR +22%
79.9%
iPhone SE (2022)
65.3%

Performance

Chipset specifications of Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone SE (2022)
SoC
Chipset Apple A12 Bionic Apple A15 Bionic
Max clock 2490 MHz 3223 MHz
CPU cores 6 (2 + 4) 6 (2 + 4)
Architecture - 4 cores at 1.6 GHz: Tempest
- 2 cores at 2.49 GHz: Vortex		 - 4 cores at 2.02 GHz: Blizzard
- 2 cores at 3.23 GHz: Avalanche
Manufacturing TSMC TSMC
Lithography process 7 nanometers 5 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU) Neural Engine Apple Neural Engine
GPU
Graphics Apple A12 Bionic GPU Apple GPU
GPU shading units 256 640
GPU clock 1125 MHz 1338 MHz
FLOPS ~576 GFLOPS ~1712.6 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Benchmark comparison of Apple iPhone XR and Apple iPhone SE (2022)
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
iPhone XR
1167
iPhone SE (2022) +106%
2404
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
iPhone XR
3020
iPhone SE (2022) +100%
6040
Compute Score (GPU)
Compute Score (GPU) - 17777
Single-core score 1167 2404
Multi-core score 3020 6040
Sources: Geekbench [3]
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
iPhone XR
762903
iPhone SE (2022) +76%
1346035
CPU 274052 396583
GPU - 363070
Memory 119287 162337
UX 369464 424045
Total score 762903 1346035
Samples Less than 3 [8 tests]
3DMark Solar Bay
Stability - 75%
Graphics test - 11 FPS
Section 1 - 16 FPS
Section 2 - 11 FPS
Section 3 - 7 FPS
Graphics score - 2969
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
iPhone XR
1294
iPhone SE (2022) +84%
2387
Stability 68% 70%
Graphics test 7 FPS 14 FPS
Graphics score 1294 2387
Sources: 3DMark [5], [6]
Submit your benchmark results

Recent User Tests

The latest benchmark tests that have been submitted by users
Apple iPhone XR
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-05-02 (sp_ayz1)AnTuTu 11762903
Add View all (1)
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-09-18 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111336740
📘 2026-06-19 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111375075
📘 2026-06-14 (Bionic)Geekbench 6 CPU2404 / 6040
📘 2026-06-14 (Bionic)AnTuTu 111362289
📘 2026-03-13 (Mistral)AnTuTu 111342610
Add View all (12)

Memory

RAM
RAM size 3 GB 4 GB
Memory type LPDDR4X LPDDR4X
Memory clock 2133 MHz -
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage size 64 GB 64 GB
Storage type NVMe NVMe
Memory card No No

Software

Operating system iOS 12 (Can be upgraded to iOS 18.7) iOS 15.3 (Can be upgraded to iOS 26.5)
OS size 11.1 GB 12 GB

Battery

Capacity 2942 mAh 2018 mAh
Max charge power 15 W 20 W
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Ion
Replaceable No No
Wireless charging Yes, Qi (10 W) Yes
Reverse charging No No
Bypass charging No -
Fast charging Yes (50% in 30 min) Yes (61% in 30 min)
Full charging time 1:43 hr 1:18 hr
Battery life tests
Web browsing 08:01 hr 07:07 hr
Watching video 11:59 hr 10:31 hr
Gaming 04:34 hr 03:43 hr
Standby 106 hr 87 hr
General battery life
iPhone XR +17%
20:45 hr
iPhone SE (2022)
17:41 hr
Add your battery life

Main camera

Matrix 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Image resolution 4032 x 3024 4032 x 3024
Zoom Digital Digital
Flash Quad LED Quad LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K video recording No No
4K video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 60FPS
Slow motion 240 FPS (1080p) 240 FPS (1080p)
Lenses 1) Standard: 12 MP
1) Standard: 12 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- RAW support		 - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
Standard lens
Image resolution 12 MP 12 MP
Aperture f/1.8 f/1.8
Focal length 26 mm -
Sensor Apple iSight X -
Sensor size 1/2.55" (≈ 0.39 inch) -
Pixel size 1.4 micron 1.22 micron
Autofocus Phase autofocus Phase autofocus
Stabilization Optical Optical

DxOMark main camera tests

Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
Bokeh - 50
Preview - 71
Zoom - 29
Samples - Photo samples of Apple iPhone SE (2022) from DxOMark

Selfie camera

Megapixels 7 megapixels 7 megapixels
Image resolution 3088 x 2316 3088 x 2320
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length 32 mm -
Sensor CMOS -
Autofocus No -
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 60 FPS 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D) No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Hotspot		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5 5
Bluetooth features SPP, PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, HDP, GAP, GAVDP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP LE
USB type No -
USB version 2 2
USB features - Charging
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
GPS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared port No No
Network
Number of SIM* 1 1
Type of SIM card Nano Nano
eSIM support* Yes Yes
Hybrid slot No No
LTE Cat* 12 -
5G support No Yes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
Headphone audio jack No No
FM radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speakers test
Max loudness
iPhone XR +2%
87.3 dB
iPhone SE (2022)
85.9 dB

Other

Category Flagship Mid-range
Announced September 2018 March 2022
Release date October 2018 March 2022
Launch price (MSRP) $750 $429
Successor - Apple iPhone 11 - Apple iPhone 16e
SAR (head) 0.99 W/kg -
SAR (body) 0.99 W/kg -
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Face recognition sensor		 - Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint
Bundled charger - Not included
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

After analyzing all the data, we think that the Apple iPhone SE (2022) is definitely a better buy.

Cast your vote

So, which phone would you choose?
274 (34%)
532 (66%)
Total votes: 806

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User opinions

You can share your opinion or ask a question in the comments below
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Avatar
Mike July 15, 2022 at 03:44 PM
Yeah iPhone SE batter performance, but remember it has a much smaller display at 4,7inch while iPhone XR is a 6,1-inch display and the iPhone SE battery is much worse than the iPhone XR battery and the difference between A12 and A15 isn’t much since both them can run most games at 60 FPS except for Genshin impact on iPhone XR, it I’ll run it but you will have slight lag because it’s a demanding game, so mainly iPhone XR is better.
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