VoltsyHow to Show the Battery Percentage on Your iPhone
Three built in places show the number: the status bar, Apple's Batteries widget and the Lock Screen. Here is how to switch each one on, and what Voltsy adds on top.
1. The status bar
- Open Settings.
- Tap Battery.
- Turn on Battery Percentage.
On an iPhone with Face ID the figure appears inside the battery symbol at the top right. A few older and mini sized models do not offer the switch at all; if you do not see it, use the widget below instead.
2. Apple's Batteries widget on the Home Screen
- Touch and hold an empty part of the Home Screen until the icons jiggle.
- Tap the plus button at the top of the screen.
- Scroll to Batteries and pick a size: small, medium or large.
- Tap Add Widget, then tap anywhere else to finish.
The medium and large sizes also show the level of paired accessories such as AirPods, an Apple Watch or a Magic Keyboard. This is the most reliable way to get a plain number on your Home Screen, it is free, and it is Apple's own. No third party widget improves on it.
3. The Lock Screen
Touch and hold the Lock Screen, tap Customise, choose the row under the clock and add Batteries there. You get the same reading without unlocking the phone.
What Voltsy shows, precisely
While charging: the percentage, on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island
Plug in and Voltsy starts a Live Activity. It shows the current percentage and an estimated time to the target, which is 80% while you are below it and 100% once you pass it. The estimate appears only after Voltsy has watched at least five minutes of an actual charge run, so it never guesses from a single reading. Unplug and the activity ends by itself.
On the Home Screen: Volt, not a number
Voltsy's own Home Screen widget is a small one that draws Volt. His body fills with your charge level and his expression follows your battery's situation, so you read the state at a glance rather than reading a figure. It does not print the percentage. If a number is what you are after, use Apple's Batteries widget above, and keep Volt beside it.
Why the numbers can disagree
Since iOS 17 the system reports the charge level to apps in steps of about five percent, while the status bar shows a finer figure. So a third party app can legitimately say 80% while your status bar says 78%. Apple's own Batteries widget is not subject to that rounding, which is another reason to keep it if you want precision. Voltsy states this in the app rather than hiding it.
