Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed in a recent interview that the company may have to raise prices on some of its products due to the ongoing memory shortage. While he did not elaborate on the scale of the price hikes, new estimates suggest that Pro iPhone models could become significantly more expensive this fall.
The Wall Street Journal and research firm TechInsights have come up with an educated estimate of how much the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro could cost after its launch in September. The estimate is based on current increases in memory and storage chip prices.
For starters, the iPhone 18 Pro base model is expected to feature 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. According to TechInsights estimates, 12GB of DRAM for the iPhone 17 Pro cost Apple $39 last year. However, for the iPhone 18 Pro, the cost of the same amount of DRAM could soar to $145. Likewise, 256GB of flash storage that previously cost $13 could now cost around $51.
Producing a base iPhone 17 Pro reportedly cost Apple around $582, but TechInsights estimates that the production cost of the iPhone 18 Pro could rise to $726. If Apple wants to maintain the roughly 47% profit margin it enjoys on the iPhone 17 Pro, the base price of the iPhone 18 Pro would need to reach $1,371. After standard pricing adjustments, customers could end up paying around $1,299 for the base model.
However, that may not be the end of the story. As we previously reported, the iPhone 18 Pro is said to feature a variable-aperture lens, which could cost Apple at least 50% more than the current camera system. The estimated $1,299 price tag does not include the additional cost of this upgraded camera hardware. Once that expense is factored in, the base model could cost at least $1,399.
A $1,399 price tag for the base iPhone 18 Pro would represent a significant increase over the current $1,099 starting price of the iPhone 17 Pro. If Apple wants to keep its upcoming iPhones competitive, it may need to accept lower profit margins.