How to update my iPhone 7 Plus to iOS 16?

If you have an iPhone 7, you can update it to iOS 15.8, but you CANNOT update it further to iOS 16.

Go to Settings > General > Software Update and you are offered the opportunity to update to iOS 15.8, choose update. You need to be connected to Wifi and its advisable to be plugged in.

If you want an iPhone which can run higher than 15.8, then you need to buy a newer, more modern iPhone.

husnain735 wrote:

Some app didn’t work on 7 plus due to non update to IOS 16, So what can i did?

If you need or want to use the app, buy a new iPhone. The fact is NOT going to change that an nearly 9 year old iPhone 7 will NEVER update further. And as time goes on, more app developers will drop support for apps on iOS 15

reda253 wrote:

I want iOS 16

If you are running iOS 15 (currently 15.8.1), then you are running the latest available iOS version.

iPhone 7 Plus is not supported on iOS 16 and later.

If you have an app that requires iOS 16 or later, you will need a newer (used, refurb) or new iPhone.

Any recent iPhone will be substantially more capable than an iPhone 7 Plus, as well.

RayanX wrote:

I need ios 16 in my phone

Hello and welcome to the thread.

If you are running iOS 15 (currently 15.8.1), then you are running the latest available iOS version.

iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus are not supported on iOS 16 and later.

If you have an app that requires iOS 16 or later, you will need a newer (used, refurb) or new iPhone.

Any recent iPhone will be substantially more capable than an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus, as well.

sunu258 wrote:

I want to update my iPhone 7plus

You can update it to the latest release of iOS 15. Currently, that is iOS 15.8.2.

About iOS 15 Updates - Apple Support

Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

You cannot update it to iOS 16 or higher.

tolani240 wrote:

I want to update iOS 7plus

iOS 15.8.2 is as high as an iPhone 7 Plus can be updated to. If you need an iOS version higher, then you'll need to buy a newer, modern iPhone.

As everyone else has said, iOS 16, nor any newer update will run on the iPhone 7 Plus. The iPad 6th Generation has the same A10 Fusion processor, but can run iPadOS 16 and 17. The iPhone 7 Plus would be more unstable than the iPad 6 because of hardware limitations and feature iOS 16 has that can’t work with iPhone 7. (Note that the iPad 6 got iPadOS 16 with less features than the newer iPads) So, final answer: iOS 16 is not supported on the iPhone 7 Plus, only iOS 15.8

You aren't writing Apple here on this user to user only forum. But even if you did, they COULD NOT grant your request. The iPhone models you listed lack the hardware required to run iOS 16, so it is NOT POSSIBLE to give it to you. If you need a higher level iOS version at this point, your ONLY option is purchase a newer, more modern iPhone.

It is impossible for your iPhone 7 to install iOS 16. This answer has now been repeated multiple times on the 22 pages of this thread

If you want to install iOS 16, you will need to have an iPhone 8 or higher model.

HawaiinIce wrote:

I have an I Phone 7 Plus that looks like it just came out of the box. I had several apps stop working recently, and upon investigation, found out it is due to my not being able to upgrade the devices software to ios 16 or higher that is now required for these apps.

Can Apple not create a patch that will allow my apps to run on my otherwise perfectly fine phone, or is this just more planned obsolescence in order to force me to spend another $1200 or more on a new phone I don’t really need because I take care of my stuff???

This is not $12, or $120, it is $1200 that I don’t really have to throw away on another phone… And in actuality, we (my family and I) have 4 phones that would all need to be replaced, so we are talking more like $5000, soooo WTF Help…

The app vendors decided to drop support for their apps for iPhone 7, not Apple. The app vendors can absolutely support their apps running on older iOS versions, if they want to expend the time and effort required for that support.

For the hardware, iPhone 7 is a 2016-era design with low performance, and is lacking the necessary hardware features and memory expected and needed for newer iOS.

iPhone 7 with A10 system-in-a-chip processor (A10 is a 2016-era 2P2E design with two performance and two efficiency cores, and with 2 GB RAM) with a rating of ~757 single-core and ~967 multi-core performance, versus iPhone XS and iPhone XR with A12 (2P4E with 4 GB RAM) with ~1300 and ~2234. Basically, that means half the RAM memory and half the single-core performance of the oldest iPhones supported with iOS 17. With much older A10 processor hardware features.

The choice here being the extra effort for an older design or for hobbling iOS or quite probably both, or dropping the older devices and fully using the features and capabilities of the newer A12 processors in the newer iPhones. Supporting and testing and providing work-arounds for older and more limited devices is not without associated cost, and those older devices just aren’t going to get iOS and app features requiring newer hardware.

Percentages of older versions are dropping fast, too. Per: https://telemetrydeck.com/blog/ios-market-share-02-24/ “iOS 14 and 15 are now a negligibly small percentage of the TelemetryDeck data set.” and those already-small percentages are dropping. (Would you as a developer invest in supporting those small and quickly shrinking versions, or spend on those people spending on iPhones that can, for instance, run the three most recent iOS versions?)

jefryn wrote:

My iPhone 7 Plus I Need iOS 16

The iPhone 7 Plus will never run iOS 16 or above. It sounds like you're telling us that you need a new iPhone.

Note that new iPhones sold today will probably have some version of iOS 17 installed. (The iPhone 15 family certainly will.)

It is impossible to install iOS 16 on an iPhone 7, no matter how much you might need it.

An iPhone 8 or higher model will run iOS 16.

That is correct.

The iPhone 7 cannot update to iOS 16.

To update to iOS 16, you need to have an iPhone 8.

acheampong227 wrote:

How can I update my iPhone

If your iPhone is an iPhone 7 Plus, it is not compatible with iOS 16 or higher, and you can't update it to iOS 16 or higher.

You can update an iPhone 7 Plus to the latest version of iOS 15.

About iOS 15 Updates - Apple Support

Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

Updating iOS: common issues and solutions - Apple Community

BigSnem wrote:

But why can't we install iOS 16 updates on iPhone 7 plus

“Why?” gets answered in this thread too, though not as often.

So… Why?

iPhone 7 has low performance, and is lacking the necessary hardware features for newer iOS.

iPhone 7 with A10 (2016-era 2P2E two performance and two efficiency cores, with 2 GB RAM) with ~757 single-core and ~967 multi-core performance versus iPhone XS and iPhone XR with A12 (2P4E with 4 GB RAM) with ~1300 and ~2234. Basically, that means half the RAM memory and half the single-core performance of the oldest iPhones supported with iOS 17. With much older A10 processor hardware features.

The choice here being the extra effort for an older design or for hobbling iOS or quite probably both, or dropping the older devices and fully using the features and capabilities of the newer A12 processors in the newer iPhones. Supporting and testing and providing work-arounds for older and more limited devices is not without associated cost, and those older devices just aren’t going to get iOS and app features requiring newer hardware.

Percentages of older versions are dropping fast, too. Per: https://telemetrydeck.com/blog/ios-market-share-02-24/ “iOS 14 and 15 are now a negligibly small percentage of the TelemetryDeck data set.” and those already-small percentages are dropping. (Would you as a developer invest in supporting those small and quickly shrinking versions, or spend on those people spending on iPhones that can, for instance, run the three most recent iOS versions?)