Amit Banerjee explains the steps for upgrading replicated SQL Server instances to 2016:
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A Distributor can be any version as long as it is greater than or equal to the Publisher version (in many cases the Distributor is the same instance as the Publisher).
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A Publisher can be any version as long as it less than or equal to the Distributor version.
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Subscriber version depends on the type of publication:
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A Subscriber to a transactional publication can be any version within two versions (n-2) of the Publisher version. For example: a SQL Server 2012 Publisher can have SQL Server 2014 and SQL Server 2016 Subscribers; and a SQL Server 2016 Publisher can have SQL Server 2014 and SQL Server 2012 Subscribers.
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A Subscriber to a merge publication can be any version less than or equal to the Publisher version.
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There are several options available here, and it’s worth reading through if you’re looking to upgrade soon.