New iPhone battery shows 723 cycles

From my understanding, a new iPhone should have close to 0–5 cycles, not hundreds.

That is correct.

Is it possible for an iPhone advertised as new to have this many cycles

No. Actually, I can think of a hypothetical highly unlikely event where a new phone would have a battery with a high charge cycle count.......(because someone installed a used battery in a new phone).....but it really would make no sense.

723 Charge Cycles would indicate that the Battery Health is approximately 85% when it should be 99-100%. You very likely have a used phone. Even if you had a used phone with a new battery, there would be very few Charge Cycles displayed for the battery.

What is the Model Name of your phone? Settings > General > About > Model Name

What is the Model Number of your phone? Settings > General > About > Model Number

We ask for this information because you may have a phone that was discontinued years ago, meaning that it could not be "new".....unless it sat on a shelf in a warehouse for years. Even if it did, that would not explain the charge cycles on the phone.

We do not need a Serial Number, so please do not provide that info.

It means the seller lied to you. Return it and get your money back. It's over 2 years old. Either the battery was replaced by an unauthorized party or the device was 'hacked' to display an inaccurate battery health or both.

Chances are that it not only doesn't have a warranty, Apple probably won't touch it at all for service as it's undoubtedly been tampered with.

The warranty coverage shows it expired on September 2, 2024, but I bought the phone in 2025 from a seller sealed in a new box with all accessories, like a brand-new device.

That means that the phone was purchased by the prior owner in September of 2023. The phone is well over 2 years old. That would explain a battery count of 700+ charge cycles.

There is also no Apple warranty on your phone, because it is used. You will have to pay for any repairs or service if you decide to keep the phone.

Yes, it is possible for dishonest dealers to alter the readings on a phone to make a battery appear to be "new" when it is not.

It is also not difficult for a dealer to clean and repackage a phone to make things look new using special shrink wrap equipment. Unfortunately, countless numbers of used phones are being sold as "new" all the time.

Exactly where did you purchase it? What model phone is it?

Did you check the warranty status in settings or at https://checkcoverage.apple.com

My gut reaction is that you probably bought a used phone from a scam artist.

Used. Looks like roughly daily charging from time of original purchase, too.

Purchased from which vendor?

iPhone 14?

If this is an iPhone 14, those were sold between September 2022 and February 2025, which likely means new-old-stock. It’s likely somewhere between most of a year, and three years old.

Apple can apparently charge an iPhone while still in the box too, which is goodness as fully-depleted iPhone batteries can and do eventually fail.

As for any claims the seller might have made, you will want to discuss those with the seller.

Is your tag line correct that you own an iPhone 14? If yes, iPhone 14 was released by Apple in 2022 and fully discontinue in February 2025. The chances of buying a brand new iPhone 14 from anyone at this point aren't too good.

The phone was sold to the original owner in September 2023.

• A new phone purchased from Apple or Authorized Apple Seller will not have hundreds of charge cycles on it.
• Of course it is possible that a third party seller can advertise a phone as new and it not be true. Return the device if possible. If purchased from a platform such as Facebook Marketplace or Amazon, contact them as it is their platform that was used and allowed the fraudulent transaction to occur.
• It is also easy for the Battery Health indicator to show 100% even though it is used, just by using illegitimate software tools.
• Sealed in a box means nothing when it comes to determining if the phone is actually new.

If you are looking to buy an iPhone, only purchase from Apple or Authorized Apple Seller. With anything else you are taking a risk and without a way to return the device you may be stuck with the device. Apple also sells refurbished phones on their website at a discount and those include brand new original batteries.