Which is the best iPad to buy right now? After 16 years of using them, this is our take
The Apple iPad 2025 (A16) (Image credit: Future/Apple) Jump To: 1. Best for most 2. Best step-up 3. Best for pros 4. Best small FAQs Share Copy link Email Share this article Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Choosing an…
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The Apple iPad 2025 (A16) (Image credit: Future/Apple) Jump To: 1. Best for most 2. Best step-up 3. Best for pros 4. Best small FAQs Share Copy link Email Share this article Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Choosing an iPad used to be a piece of cake. Now there are four families, different processors, and prices that jumped up in June 2026. So it’s important to pick the right one, and not pay through the nose for power you don't actually need.The good news is, for browsing, streaming, gaming and a bit of sketching, the classic 11-inch iPad (2025) does everything you probably need. If you have specific tasks beyond that, it might be worth shelling out for a more expensive iPad Air, iPad Pro and iPad mini. But for most people (including me) this is the best iPad to get.Below, I’ve compared the latest versions of all four models – because they are the best versions of all the families – drawing on both my own experience and reviews by the Creative Bloq team, which has been using iPads since Gen 1 in 2010.Let's get into it...The best iPad for most people (Image credit: Future / Ian Evenden)01. Apple iPad 2025 (A16) The basic iPad is the best choice for most peopleOur expert review: SpecificationsPrice: From $449 / £429Screen: 11-inch Liquid Retina LCD, 2360 x 1640, 60Hz, 500 nitsChip: Apple A16Storage: 128GB, 256GB or 512GBWeight: 477g (Wi-Fi), 481g (cellular)Stylus: Apple Pencil (1st generation), Apple Pencil (USB-C)Battery: Up to 10 hoursReasons to buy+Cheapest new iPad by some margin+Plenty of power for everyday use+Bright, colourful screen+Good for casual gaming and sketchingReasons to avoid-No Apple Intelligence-Doesn't support Apple Pencil Pro -Non-laminated, glossy screenOur top pick for most people is what people often call the basic iPad. But don't let that put you off, because "basic" is purely a relative term here. So yes, this is the cheapest iPad Apple sells, but it’s still a lovely tablet to use every day. Web browsing, streaming, video calls, note-taking and email are all fast and easy, and the bright, colourful screen is big enough to be comfortable without weighing you down.It’s a decent gaming tablet too, as long as you're not set on playing AAA titles at the highest frame rates. Call of Duty Mobile runs okay, for instance, until you go up to 120fps mode, while Infinity Nikki might need dropping to medium. The lack of an M-series chip also locks you out of some games entirely.For drawing, though, it does the job nicely. Add an Apple Pencil and you can sketch happily in Procreate, although the first-generation Pencil is the one to get, as the cheaper USB-C model doesn’t have pressure sensitivity. As our reviewer Ian Evenden says: “You don’t get desktop-level processing power, but you do get one of the friendliest, most useful tablets around, especially if you combine it with a Pencil for sketching.”A couple more things to point out: there’s no Apple Intelligence, the USB-C port is slow and the screen has an air gap beneath the glass, so it feels a little less refined under a stylus. In short, the compromises are there... but they won't be deal-breakers for most people. Finally, bear in mind that reports suggest a replacement could arrive in early 2027 – although Apple hasn’t confirmed anything so that's currently just speculation.Read more: Apple iPad 2025 (A16) reviewThe best step-up iPad (Image credit: Glen Southern)02. iPad Air (M4) The best iPad if you need more powerOur expert review: SpecificationsPrice: 11-inch from $749 / £749; 13-inch from $949 / £949Screen: 11-inch (2360 x 1640, 500 nits) or 13-inch (2732 x 2048, 600 nits) Liquid Retina LCD, both 60HzChip: Apple M4Storage: 128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TBWeight: 464g (11-inch), 616g (13-inch)Stylus: Apple Pencil Pro, Apple Pencil (USB-C)Battery: Up to 10 hoursReasons to buy+Much more power than basic iPad+12GB of memory on every model+Apple Pencil Pro support+Choice of two sizesReasons to avoid-More than the basic iPad-Not OLED screen-128GB base model can fill up fastThe Air costs $300 / £320 more than the basic iPad. In return you get a much faster chip, twice the memory, Apple Intelligence, Apple Pencil Pro support and the option of a 13-inch screen.That extra power is overkill if all you want to do on your iPad is check emails and watch Netflix. But if you want to run demanding creative software or games, then it may be worth it. In our Geekbench 6 tests, the M4 Air’s multi-core score of 13,168 was more than double the 6,338 we got from the basic iPad. Its graphics score of 53,071 also matched the 53,252 of the previous M4 iPad Pro.That will really make a difference, for example, if you want to run 3D software. Our reviever, Glen Southern, who has used iPad Pros for professional work since they launched, found that he could sculpt models of up to 16 million polygons in Nomad Sculpt. But he cautions that for some, all that power will be overkill. “For a lot of creative users, 12GB of memory and an M4 chip may be more iPad than they’ll ever actually need,” he says.On the other side of the equation, the Air isn't quite as capable as the Pro. For instance, it has an LCD screen rather than OLED, and a 60Hz refresh rate rather than 120Hz. For many people, though, that line won’t be worth paying to cross.The best iPad for creative pros (Image credit: Future / Ian Evenden)03. iPad Pro (M5) The most powerful iPadOur expert review: SpecificationsPrice: 11-inch from $1,199 / £1,199; 13-inch from $1,499 / £1,499Screen: 11-inch (2420 x 1668) or 13-inch (2752 x 2064) Ultra Retina XDR OLED, 120Hz, 1,000 nits (1,600 nits peak HDR)Chip: Apple M5Storage: 256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TBWeight: 444g (11-inch), 579g (13-inch)Stylus: Apple Pencil Pro, Apple Pencil (USB-C)Battery: Up to 10 hoursReasons to buy+Best iPad screen+Fastest iPad+Perfect for 3D, video and pro art+Very thin and lightReasons to avoid-Very expensive-More power than most people need-Still can’t fully replace a laptop The Pro is the absolute best tablet Apple makes, and so if price is no object then please, knock yourself out. It is very expensive, though, and for most people, it’ll be total overkill. However, if you have a specific work need for a Pro such as 3D modelling or video editing, then it may be worth the investment. And it truly is a lovely thing to have and use.The tandem OLED screen is the best on any iPad, with deep blacks, high contrast and a 120Hz refresh rate. And it’s the most powerful iPad by a distance, scoring 16,443 for multi-core and 74,046 for graphics in our Geekbench 6 tests. “Whether it’s for building up a lot of layers in Procreate or Illustrator, video editing in Final Cut Pro or Davinci Resolve or crazy stuff in Zbrush or Nomad Sculpt, the M5 iPad Pro barely breaks a sweat,” says our reviewer Ian Evenden.That price, though, is not to be sneezed at. And the cost climbs quickly once you add a Magic Keyboard, Apple Pencil Pro and extra storage. So unless you're certain exactly what the Pro would do for you, we'd say: get the Air.The best small iPad (Image credit: Apple)04. iPad mini (A20 Pro) The best iPad for portability and tight spacesOur expert review: SpecificationsPrice: 8.5-inch Super Retina XDR OLED, 2316 x 1512, 60Hz, 600 nits (1,200 nits peak HDR)Screen: 8.5-inch Super Retina XDR OLED, 2316 x 1512, 60Hz, 600 nits (1,200 nits peak HDR)Chip: Apple A20 ProStorage: 128GB, 256GB or 512GBWeight: 255g (Wi-Fi), 263g (cellular)Stylus: Apple Pencil Pro, Apple Pencil (USB-C)Battery: Up to 10 hours (Apple’s claim)Reasons to buy+Light and easy to carry +OLED screen+IP67 waterproofing+Apple Pencil Pro support Reasons to avoid-Small screen isn't for everyone-No 120Hz refresh rateThe iPad mini is, just as the name suggests, small and light. That makes it a great choice if you want something you can carry easily in a small bag. It's also useful for using in tight spaces, like a crowded railway carriage.If you’re a fan of small, and you want the best, the 2026 version is the one to choose. It's the first mini with an OLED screen, the first with IP67 water and dust resistance, and at 255g, it’s noticeably lighter than its predecessor.We haven’t tested it ourselves yet, but our sister site TechRadar praised both its screen and fast performance. So if you want an iPad for reading, travel, note-taking and sketching on the go, it's a great choice; especially if you opt for the paper-like nano-texture screen, which costs an extra $100 / £100 on the 256GB and 512GB models.The catch? It's a whopping $250 / £270 more than the basic iPad and only $50 / £50 less than the 11-inch Air, so you really are paying a premium for the smallness. The 8.5-inch screen is also stuck at 60Hz. However, if you want to save some cash and the upgrades aren't important to you, retailers still have the previous A17 Pro model, which has dropped to a record low.FAQsWhat's the best iPad?The best iPad overall is the iPad Pro, which is number three on our list above. It's the fastest, most powerful and has the best screen. So if money's no object, this the one you should buy, unless you're mainly interested in something small and portable (in which case, go for the iPad mini, number four on our list.) However, if you don't have endless cash to spare, the iPad Pro may well be overkill, so it's worth deciding whether you really need all that power. The basic iPad is much cheaper and, as discussed below, is actually the best pick for most people.
