10 best Apple iPhone 14 cases that’ll protect your tech in style

Mous products get better and better. At its heart, there’s exceptionally good protection thanks to the company’s bespoke technology, AiroShock, which acts as a bumper if you drop the phone. Clever design means that subtly raised corners add protection, but lower profiles on the long sides mean you can hold it to your face easily (assuming you actually still use your iPhone for, you know, calls).

There’s a version with a back that’s completely clear apart from the magnets that make MagSafe work, or a more colourful option called iridescent. If you’d prefer a different material for the back cover, Mous has several, including leather, aramid fibre or even walnut – see below under best protection. Outstanding impact protection comes as a standard.

One benefit of buying your case from the company that makes the phone is that it guarantees a perfect fit. The button coverings move perfectly, without the clickiness or resistance found in some brands. The MagSafe magnets stand out on any clear case, and encircle the Apple logo precisely. Clear cases can suffer from yellowing over age, but we have never seen this with this model of case. It also has scratch-resistant coating so that it stays looking good for longer.

Silver Pearl is one of the newest finishes for the company’s best-protecting Limitless case, now in its fifth generation and like the Mous clarity 2.0 (from £39.99, Mous.co), fitted with AiroShock, created by Mous. AiroShock works by absorbing and dispersing the energy caused by a drop, limiting the effect on the phone inside the case. Mous has tested this with stunts including hurling iPhones skywards so they crash to the pavement, or dropping them 45 feet from a crane! The iPhones survived in both cases.

The materials are tough and rigid, with a solid raised area around the camera panel to protect the lenses that protrude from the iPhone. There are also twin eyelets so you can attach a wrist strap if you wish, and the rippled finish helps you keep the phone in your grip. Attractive and effective. Plus, they normally retail at £49.99, but the phone case is currently on sale and available from £19.99.

Apple’s leather cases look great, with the company logo indented in a way that looks good and has a satisfying tactile feel to it. The leather gets the balance of soft and strong just right. Leather cases change patina over time, and the addition of the magnetic ring that makes MagSafe work (hidden on the inside in this case) can mean that a ring on the outside eventually appears, though in my experience it still looks good.

Apple’s MagSafe cases have a hidden extra too: as you put them on, the home screen momentarily flashes the colour of the case. This year’s choices are umber (a deep brown), forest green, a very dark blue called ink, midnight – which is a solid black – plus a fiery, punchy orange which is hard to resist. As you’d expect, the fit is sublime, with buttons performing as smoothly as if there were no case in the way.

Be warned, there is so much choice on the Lucrin website, you need to set a little time aside to work your way through it. After all, do you want regular smooth leather, or granulated leather. Then there’s a new addition, square granulated, which has regular shapes in it. Or vegetable-tanned leather, crocodile style calfskin, calf leather or – the priciest of all at £319 – real ostrich leather. And don’t get us started on the colour range, with up to 25 different shades, depending on your chosen finish.

The wallet has slots for three credit cards and a place for notes. Close the front of the folio for maximum protection and a small flap snaps closed magnetically to hold it in place. Lucrin’s build quality is second to none and the materials used are opulent and appealing.

Nomad makes a wide range of products, characterised by sumptuous quality and thoughtful design. The Modern Leather Folio comes in two versions, leather (available for all iPhone 14 variants) and Horween leather, which is for the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max only. This costs £16 more, but the tactile smoothness of it is hard to overstate. It is still tough, despite its soft feel, and the look changes as it ages.

There are slots for three credit cards and another for notes. On both leather and Horween leather options, a magnetic clasp holds the case closed, though this is removable if you prefer to use it without. Nomad says that the combination of the internal case and leather wraparound means it is protected to a drop of up to 10ft.

Apple’s silicone is smooth and soft to the touch without being slippery. These are MagSafe cases, so there’s a ring of magnets in the case matching the ones on the MagSafe charger. Apart from the onscreen colour flash when you put the case on, the magnets make it easier to slip on and off without reducing the security of fit. You’re spoilt for choice with colours: there are 12 of them. Midnight, elderberry and storm blue are dark and discreet, succulent, iris, chalk pink, lilac, olive and sky are all pastel shades, and there are three bright options – red, a delicious sunglow and a satisfyingly citrus canary yellow.

The iPhone is a beautifully designed device and feels great in the hand. No case quite comes close to using the phone naked, as it were. But the phone is as expensive as it is attractive, so you need to protect it. Which is where a sleeve is a brilliant solution, sliding off instantly when you get a call, cladding the phone again when you need to ensure it’s safe.

Harber London makes a great range of stunningly made leather products, including smartphone sleeves. The smartphone sleeve – available for each current iPhone and several phones from other manufacturers – has a handy pocket for a credit card on the outside. The wool-felt interior makes you confident the iPhone is safe inside and it’s snug enough that it won’t topple out.

Ryan London’s products include sleeves for tablets, laptops and iPhones, not to mention AirPods cases, wallets, dog leads and, we kid you not, leather dog poop bag holders. The iPhone sleeves are made from a super-soft leather that is hard to keep your hands off – it’s so tactile. Part of the success of the design is the contrasting colour used on the inside: avocado green leather is complemented by orange wool felt lining, and the navy blue option has a mint green innard. The sleeves wear well over time and are a precise fit. You can even have the case embossed with your name or initials for an extra £6.