We put the Apple iPhone 15 Pro through our rigorous DXOMARK Audio test suite to measure its performance both at recording sound using its built-in microphones, and at playing audio back through its speakers.
In this review, we will break down how it fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
Overview
Key audio specifications include:
- Two speakers: top-center, bottom right
- No Jack audio output
- Dolby Atmos technology
- Spatial Audio playback
Scoring
Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro
142
audio
140
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (158)
139
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (149)
147
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
141
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (162)
91
Asus ROG Phone 5
Best: Asus ROG Phone 5 (157)
137
Honor Magic3 Pro+
Best: Honor Magic3 Pro+ (147)
121
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (146)
110
Vivo X Fold
Best: Vivo X Fold (159)
140
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (170)
152
Black Shark 5 Pro
Best: Black Shark 5 Pro (166)
Position in Global Ranking

13
th
4. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
149
12. Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
143
13. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
142
22. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
140
27. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
139
27. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
139
35. Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon)
137
44. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
134
46. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5
133
46. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon)
133
46. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
133
46. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
133
46. Samsung Galaxy A54 5G
133
62. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
130
64. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
129
64. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
129
68. Realme GT Neo 5 (240W)
128
68. Xiaomi Redmi K50 Gaming
128
76. Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
127
76. Samsung Galaxy A52 5G
127
80. Motorola Razr 40 Ultra
126
80. Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
126
80. Samsung Galaxy A34 5G
126
87. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
125
87. Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
125
87. Vivo X80 Pro (MediaTek)
125
90. Lenovo Legion Phone 2 Pro
124
93. Apple iPhone SE (2022)
122
93. Apple iPhone SE (2020)
122
97. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
121
101. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
101. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon)
120
101. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos)
120
104. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Gaming
119
111. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
118
111. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
118
111. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon)
118
111. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon)
118
111. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos)
118
122. Motorola Edge 40 Pro
116
122. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
122. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
122. Xiaomi Redmi K40 Pro+
116
129. Motorola Edge 30 Pro
115
129. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
115
133. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
114
135. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Exynos)
113
135. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ (Exynos)
113
143. Nubia RedMagic 6 Pro
112
150. Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G
109
157. Oppo Reno6 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
108
166. Lenovo Legion Phone Pro
105
166. Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
105
166. Samsung Galaxy A23 5G
105
173. Nubia RedMagic 8 Pro
103
177. Motorola Edge 20 Pro
102
181. Honor Magic5 Lite 5G
97
181. Xiaomi Mi CC9 Pro Premium Edition
97
190. Vivo X70 Pro (MediaTek)
93
196. Vivo X60 Pro 5G (Snapdragon)
86
Position in Ultra-Premium Ranking

8
th
2. Asus Smartphone for Snapdragon Insiders
149
7. Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max
143
8. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max
142
15. Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max
140
18. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max
139
18. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
139
24. Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon)
137
30. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold4
134
31. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5
133
31. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon)
133
31. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos)
133
42. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4
130
44. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
129
44. Vivo X80 Pro (Snapdragon)
129
51. Motorola Razr 40 Ultra
126
52. Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max
125
52. Vivo X80 Pro (MediaTek)
125
54. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos)
121
58. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
120
62. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
118
62. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
118
66. Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
66. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Exynos)
116
70. Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
115
71. Samsung Galaxy Z Fold2 5G
114
72. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G (Exynos)
113
72. Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ (Exynos)
113
79. Huawei Mate 30 Pro 5G
109
84. Lenovo Legion Phone Pro
105
Playback
Pros
- Good performance in all attributes, with a great consistency across them
- Great timbre performance overall, enriched by a deep low-end extension
- Great dynamics performance overall
- Very good spatial performance
Recording
Pros
- Good timbre performance overall
- Good performance when recording loud content such as concerts
- Good dynamics performance
- Good handling of artifacts overall. Wind noise reduction needs some fine-tuning but it works decently
Cons
- Midrange rendition is too dependent on the use case, and can sound either canny or nasal depending on the app and use case
- SNR could be greater, as main vocal content is often a bit masked by the ambient noise
- Poor audio zoom performance
The differences between the iPhone models when it comes to audio playback and recording have usually been minimal. The same holds true now with the release of the iPhone 15 series.
Although the iPhone 15 Pro is smaller in size than the iPhone 15 Pro Max, it shares many of the same hardware specs, including the A17 Bionic chipset.
Given the similarities between the models, it’s no surprise that the iPhone 15 Pro’s overall audio score was very close to the 15 Pro Max’s score. We direct you to the full audio test results of the iPhone 15 Pro Max for all the details concerning the 15 Pro’s performance.
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