The AirTag 2 leaves some iPhones behind – here's the full compatibility list and which models get its best upgrade

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Not all iPhones are equal here

An Apple AirTag 2 on a green background, next to a phone on a blue background showing Precision Finding
(Image credit: Apple)
  • The new Apple AirTag offers numerous upgrades
  • You need the right iPhone to use the extended range though
  • Any model from 2019 or later will work

Almost five years after the dinky tracker first came into our lives, there's a new Apple AirTag, with a louder speaker, a smarter chipset, and an improved range. However, the features you can access on it depend to some extent on the iPhone you have.

First of all, to connect to the second-generation AirTags, you need an iPhone running iOS 26 or later (or an iPad running iPadOS 26 or later). When it comes to iPhones, that means the iPhone 11 or later – any iPhone launched in 2019 or the years since.

Here's the full list of supported iPhones, so you can make sure yours is included:

  • iPhone Air
  • iPhone 17
  • iPhone 17 Pro
  • iPhone 17 Pro Max
  • iPhone 16e
  • iPhone 16
  • iPhone 16 Plus
  • iPhone 16 Pro
  • iPhone 16 Pro Max
  • iPhone 15
  • iPhone 15 Plus
  • iPhone 15 Pro
  • iPhone 15 Pro Max
  • iPhone 14
  • iPhone 14 Plus
  • iPhone 14 Pro
  • iPhone 14 Pro Max
  • iPhone SE (2022)
  • iPhone 13
  • iPhone 13 mini
  • iPhone 13 Pro
  • iPhone 13 Pro Max
  • iPhone 12
  • iPhone 12 mini
  • iPhone 12 Pro
  • iPhone 12 Pro Max
  • iPhone SE (2020)
  • iPhone 11
  • iPhone 11 Pro
  • iPhone 11 Pro Max

Apple no longer sells the original AirTag directly, so if you have an iPhone not on this list and want to do some tracking from it, you'll need to try and find a v1 AirTag from a third-party seller – which should still work fine.

Upgraded ultra-wideband

The back of the Apple iPhone Air

You'll be fine with the iPhone Air (Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)

There's an extra wrinkle here as well, which is that the new AirTag includes a second-generation ultra-wideband (UWB) chip. That enables precise AirTag finding from up to 50% farther away than the previous tracker.

However, your iPhone also needs the latest UWB chip for this to work properly. Specifically, you need a handset from the iPhone 15, iPhone 16, or iPhone 17 ranges, including the iPhone Air but excluding the iPhone 16e.

Other iPhones can still use the precision finding feature – which directs you right to the exact location of an AirTag (to within a few centimeters or inches) – but the range will be limited to that of the original AirTag (thought to be around nine meters or 30 feet, but as is often the case, Apple is a bit vague here).

If you're tracking from an Apple Watch meanwhile, the second-gen UWB chip can be found in the Apple Watch Series 9 or later, or the Apple Ultra 2 or later. In addition, you must be upgraded to watchOS 26.2.1 or later.

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TOPICS
David Nield
David Nield
Freelance Contributor

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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