Can You Use The Same Charger For Your iPhone & iPad?

In today's world, you practically need a smartphone like the iPhone to get by, and adding a tablet like the iPad to your arsenal definitely doesn't hurt. But can you use the same charger for both?

It may seem like a no-brainer question, especially for younger generations, but it's not necessarily as simple yes or no. By now, everyone's familiar with Apple's lightning cable. While the company required users to buy into the unorthodox charging cable for over a decade, that's no longer the case. iPhones now have to comply with the European Union's USB-C rule, meaning lightning cables are on their way out — at least for newer models of Apple's popular handheld products.

Thanks to the surprising yet helpful ruling by the EU, Apple introduced the iPhone 15 with USB-C for charging and data, ensuring the company complies with the industry standard cable. However, it also means you might not use the same charger for your iPhone and iPad anymore. It all depends on the models of your smartphone and tablet. If you're using a new iPhone and an old iPad (from before 2018), the former will have a USB-C charger while the latter still uses a lightning cable. Similarly, if you have an iPhone older than the 15 but a newer iPad, they'll also use different chargers. But if you use an iPhone 15 or a newer model with an iPad released after 2018, you can use the same USB-C charger for both.

If you're still reading, you're probably still confused about whether or not you can use the same charger for your iPhone and iPad, and that's understandable. If all you've ever had are Apple products, lightning cables are likely all you know. However, Apple's transition to USB-C aligns the company with the rest of the tech industry, making USB-C the standard charging cable. So, let's clarify which iPhones and iPads use USB-C so you know if you can use the same charger once and for all.

Here are the iPad models that use USB-C:

• iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation or later)
• iPad Pro 12-inch (3rd generation or later)
• iPad Air (4th generation or later)
• iPad mini (6th generation)
• iPad (10th generation)

If you're buying or have already purchased the latest iPad model, it will use a USB-C charger. As for iPhones, the iPhone 15, 15 Plus, 15 Pro, and 15 Pro Max all use a USB-C for charging. So, if you're using any combination of those models, you can use the same charger. If one of your devices still uses a lightning cable, you may consider picking up a lightning to USB-C adapter to save you the headache of having two different chargers.