Here are the iPad models that will be able to run iPadOS 16

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iPadOS 16 is coming later this year with many new features, but not every iPad will be able to upgrade. These are all the supported models.

Apple announced iPadOS 16 during its WWDC 2022 keynote earlier today, and it's quite the beefy update. iPads are getting support for the new Metal 3 API for gaming, a new Stage Manager for multi-tasking, and the ability to run desktop-class apps, among other things. But while those are exciting features, they won't be coming to every iPad owner. Apple has revealed the iPad models that will receive iPadOS 16 later this year, and there are a couple of devices being dropped from the list.

While iPadOS 15 was available for all the same devices as iPadOS 14 had been, the latest version is dropping two iPad models from the list: The iPad Air 2, launched in 2014, and the iPad Mini 4, launched in 2015. These are both fairly old models, and they were supported for a long time. These are the only two models being dropped, meaning all models of the standard iPad and iPad Pro can still run iPadOS 16 (if they supported iPadOS 15, of course). Here's the full list of supported devices:

iPad (5th generation)
iPad (6th generation)
iPad (7th generation)
iPad (8th generation)
iPad (9th generation)
iPad Air (3rd generation)
iPad Air (4th generation)
iPad Air (5th generation)
iPad Mini (4th generation)
iPad Mini (5th generation)
iPad Pro (1st generation)
iPad Pro (2nd generation)
iPad Pro (3rd generation)
iPad Pro (4th generation)
iPad Pro (5th generation)

Even with the removals this year, that's a lot of devices being supported, and some of them are quite old, too. The oldest device on this list is the first-generation iPad Pro, which launched in November 2015. Of course, it's also one of the most expensive iPads, so it makes sense for it to be supported for longer. If you have any of the supported devices, iPadOS 16 will be generally available later this year, likely around September or October, if past years are any indication.

Of course, it's worth noting that some of the new features won't work on every iPad, specifically desktop-class apps and Stage Manager. Those are exclusive to iPads powered by the Apple M1 processor, which are the fifth-generation iPad Pro and iPad Air.