The Best iPhone 17 Cases to Protect That Ultrawide Camera Bump

Two years ago, Apple made the commendable determination to get escaped of leather cases; arsenic large arsenic leather is arsenic a material, it’s inactive wrapping your telephone successful the processed tegument of an animal. But its replacement, FineWoven, proved to beryllium a dud, with materials that aged poorly for a batch of people. The institution says that this caller lawsuit uses aggregate colored yarns to springiness the telephone a “dimensional texture with a affluent extent of color." On the outside, you’ll find textured TPU for enhancing your grip, and the lawsuit features anodized aluminum buttons.

Being an Apple first-party product, TechWoven cases are guaranteed to acceptable your telephone and their magnets should beryllium perfectly aligned with the MagSafe magnet wrong the telephone itself. They besides person a caller feature: dual transportation points for attaching the telephone to 1 of Apple’s (and, surely, galore upcoming third-party) cross-body straps.

These cases travel successful 5 colour options, including blue, green, and a brownish Sienna colour that looks an atrocious batch similar leather. They’re boring colors, if you inquire me, but if you similar the thought of the caller Cosmic Orange iPhone 17 Pro’s camera barroom popping done the ample model astatine the apical of the case, it could beryllium fun. TechWoven cases are disposable now, conscionable for the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max, and a spot pricey astatine $59 – but that’s hardly an antithetic terms constituent these days.

2. Apple iPhone 17 Silicone Case

Best iPhone 17 Case

If there’s 1 changeless for each caller iPhone, it’s the Apple first-party silicone case. It ever fits well, ever feels bully (at first), and it usually comes successful a mates of bully colors. This year’s harvest is simply a small muted connected that past front, for now, but it does travel with astatine slightest 1 caller trick: it has transportation points for the caller Apple Crossbody Strap.

Other than that, Apple hasn’t made immoderate caller claims astir these cases. Its silicone cases thin to beryllium bully until they’re not – anyone who has owned 1 knows the scourge of trying to gaffe them successful and retired of choky jeans pockets; they tin beryllium frustratingly sticky. Over time, grime tends to physique up connected their exterior, rubbery aboveground that’s hard to cleanable off.

But if you similar a silicone case, they’re among the champion you tin get. These cases travel successful astatine $49 and Apple is shipping them retired earlier the phones spell up for sale, with the earliest shipments delivering by September 11th for me. That way, you tin beryllium and look astatine your telephone lawsuit portion you hold respective much days for your caller iPhone 17 to travel successful the mail. Yay!

3. Apple iPhone Air Bumper

Best iPhone Air Case

Boy ohio boy, I’m unreasonably excited that Apple has brought backmost the bumper case. Remember those things? The institution released its archetypal bumper mode backmost successful the halcyon days of the iPhone 4. Although backmost then, it wasn’t astir protection: it was due to the fact that the iPhone 4 would driblet telephone calls if you held it conscionable so. In this case, its raison d’etre is astir apt to fto you support the telephone portion simultaneously admiring its thinness. Which, fair; 5.6mm is wildly thin, beating retired Samsung’s likewise waif-y 5.8mm Galaxy S25 Edge.

Apple’s caller bumper lawsuit comes successful 4 colors: Sky Blue, Tan, Light Gray, and Black, and, I’m atrocious to say, it’s not escaped similar the iPhone 4’s bumper was. It’ll acceptable you backmost $39. But it’s besides apt to hug the telephone amended than immoderate third-party bumpers that whitethorn travel along, making it perchance worthy the cost. And what’s $39 erstwhile you’re already plunking down a 1000 clams for the telephone itself?

4. Bullstrap Minimalist Case

Best Leather iPhone 17 Case

Folks person had to crook to different companies for leather cases ever since Apple ditched the worldly successful favour of the disastrous FineWoven case. There are a fewer companies that capable the gap, and 1 of the champion ones has been Bullstrap. The company’s leather forms a bully patina and doesn’t ace easily, it has a microfiber lining, it has ever acceptable my phones snugly, and has ever held up superbly to drops, successful my experience.

I’m a large instrumentality of cases with a cutout astatine the bottommost – truthful galore of the gestures successful iOS hap astatine the bottommost of the display, and though they enactment conscionable good with a bumper that goes each the mode astir the screen, I find I similar not having to tally my thumb implicit the case’s borderline to usage them. Still, that’s not everyone’s cupful of tea. Bullstrap besides makes cases without the cutout.

One drawback, for some, whitethorn beryllium that Bullstrap’s cases usage a cutout for the Camera Control fastener connected these caller phones, alternatively than adding a fancy conductive fastener for its touch-sensitive features. Also, the company’s cases aren’t arsenic bladed arsenic Apple’s leather cases utilized to be. And, well, they’re expensive, astatine $99 – decent leather ain’t cheap, I guess. Bullstrap’s Minimalist Case volition beryllium disposable connected September 25th for each 3 iPhones 17, and October 15th for the iPhone Air.

5. Dbrand Ghost Case

Best iPhone 17 Clear Case

Back successful 2023, Dbrand released the Ghost Case, a wide telephone lawsuit it said would ne'er yellow, nary substance what. That assertion seems to person held up (although the cases did acquisition immoderate different issues astatine first.). It works due to the fact that the telephone uses a polycarbonate (read: plastic) worldly for the backmost of the lawsuit and flexible, opaque TPU – wide and vulnerable-to-yellowing TPU is usually the worldly of prime for these cases – for the bumper to support the lawsuit from being overly rigid.

This lawsuit works with MagSafe, and should acceptable your telephone beauteous well. Sure, you won’t get the chill graphics that travel with the company’s Grip Case, but if you’re picking up that agleam caller orangish iPhone 17 Pro, you whitethorn conscionable privation to beryllium capable to spot and bask it.

The Ghost Case is disposable to bargain present for $59.95 for the iPhone 17, 17 Pro and Pro Max, and the iPhone Air, and should vessel this month, according to the Dbrand’s website. If you’re looking for a wholly wide lawsuit instead, you mightiness beryllium champion picking up Apple’s archetypal enactment one.

6. Otterbox Defender Series

Best Rugged iPhone 17 Case

Phones these days are hardier than they utilized to be, but they’ll inactive shatter and dent if you driblet them enough. And protecting them from that is what Otterbox has ever done best. If you cognize you request a telephone lawsuit that’s afloat life-proof, the Defender Series is good worthy a look. This lawsuit comes with a hardy, heavy outer shell, grippy rubber outer edge, and a dual furniture plan that keeps your telephone snug portion absorbing impact. There’s adjacent 1 for the iPhone Air, if you privation to wholly wreck that full “thinnest iPhone ever” thing.

The Defender besides does each of that portion inactive maintaining MagSafe compatibility truthful you tin usage accessories and magnetic wireless chargers with your phone. And these days, they travel successful a assortment of colors and adjacent patterns that fto you prime much than conscionable a boring, utilitarian achromatic – though astatine the moment, the iPhone 17 lineup isn’t arsenic varied arsenic those for the iPhone 16 series.

Of course, determination are caveats. At $79.99, they don’t travel cheap, and their protective quality means they consciousness clunky and immense in-hand, peculiarly if you’re rolling with an iPhone 17 Pro Max. But if you cognize you request superior protection, they’re inactive the go-to.

7. Pitaka iPhone Air Ultra-Slim Case

Best full-coverage iPhone Air cases

The Pitaka Ultra-Slim lawsuit for the iPhone Air adds 0.99mm of thickness to the iPhone Air portion covering the backmost and sides of the telephone fully. If you’re not into the full bumper thing, this mightiness beryllium the champion enactment to support Apple’s thinnest telephone ever without adding excessively overmuch bulk.

That’s not conscionable due to the fact that of the look; the Pitaka lawsuit has immoderate truly neat-looking designs. There’s the c fiber-looking 600D Black/Grey (Twill) lawsuit for those who similar a acheronian look, but if you privation thing much colorful, there’s the Moonrise and Sunset phones, which person a banded gradient look that gives the phones a distinctive southwestern appearance.

These cases besides usage capacitive covers for the Camera Control button, thing not each lawsuit makers volition do. That means the country astir the fastener isn’t exposed, yet you tin inactive usage it to rapidly entree your camera, and to set the camera’s settings, the aforesaid mode you would if the telephone is naked. Like a batch of cases here, they’re not cheap, coming successful astatine $59.99.

8. Spigen Thin Fit MagFit Case

Best Budget iPhone 17 Cases

Spigen makes immoderate of the astir reliable inexpensive cases I’ve ever used, and I don’t expect that volition beryllium immoderate antithetic with its iPhone 17 line. Now, this is simply a $39.99 lawsuit if you bargain it consecutive from Spigen, but the institution lone charges $21.99 for this lawsuit connected Amazon, nary substance which of the caller phones you buy.

The Thin Fit MagFit lawsuit covers the camera barroom for the iPhone 17 Pro, Pro Max, and iPhone Air, and they person integrated magnets for MagSafe. There is simply a bladed furniture of TPU implicit the Camera Control button, excessively – it’s not exposed similar it is connected different telephone cases. It’s disposable now, and ships wrong 2 days, astatine slightest for me, making it 1 of the faster-arriving telephone cases you tin bid – support successful mind, though, that this means the lawsuit was manufactured earlier the phones were adjacent announced. It could beryllium that a batch of guesswork and spot successful rumors was progressive successful its production.

How to Pick an iPhone 17 Case

Buying a telephone lawsuit tin beryllium tricky, particularly if you’re trying to prevention a buck. Amazon seems to person an endless proviso of alphabet crockery names you’ve ne'er heard of, and a batch of those won’t acceptable rather arsenic good arsenic you’d anticipation (or not astatine all), due to the fact that galore of them weren’t made with existent measurements from Apple itself, but by making champion guesses based connected what the rumor mill said. And immoderate of them conscionable ne'er look to get better.

The champion mode to spell is astir apt conscionable to bargain 1 of Apple’s first-party cases, which besides includes those from Apple-owned Beats. They’re beauteous overmuch guaranteed to person a snug acceptable that won’t pb to accidental harm conscionable due to the fact that your telephone popped retired erstwhile you dropped it. Otherwise, a trusted sanction marque similar Dbrand, Otterbox, Spigen, oregon 1 of the others successful this database is simply a large spot to start. (There are galore different bully lawsuit makers retired there, too, that I haven’t listed – what bash you deliberation I do, constitute telephone lawsuit lists each day?)

With the iPhone 17 bid and iPhone Air successful particular, determine what you privation retired of your case. Is it hardcore protection? A slim consciousness that doesn’t adhd a batch of bulk to your phone? And however important is it to you that the Camera Control fastener beryllium exposed versus sitting underneath a covering that promises to inactive fto you usage the buttons touch-and-pressure delicate features?

And finally, the iPhone Air presents caller challenges. iPhones person mostly been the aforesaid nonstop signifier factor, minus immoderate insignificant changes, for years. But this is simply a vastly slimmer telephone that doesn’t springiness cases overmuch to drawback onto. Case manufacturers mightiness request to iterate a mates of times earlier they get it right. Try to find first-hand reviews of cases from sources that you don’t deliberation are conscionable trying to merchantability you thing for affiliate cash. If they person nary criticisms astir the cases and don’t marque a bulletproof statement for wherefore that is, determination connected until you find idiosyncratic who does.

Wes is simply a freelance writer (Freelance Wes, they telephone him) who has covered technology, gaming, and amusement steadily since 2020 astatine Gizmodo, Tom's Hardware, Hardcore Gamer, and astir recently, The Verge. Inside of him determination are 2 wolves: 1 that thinks it wouldn't beryllium truthful atrocious to commencement collecting crippled consoles again, and the different who besides thinks this, but much strongly.

Originally posted:

Sep 10, 2025 7:50 pm