Should you’re anxious Apple is about to boost iPhone 18 costs, that’s possible unavoidable in some kind. However the excellent news is that any improve could also be extra measured than the hikes Samsung has rolled out throughout a number of Galaxy flagships this 12 months. Google’s determination to maintain Pixel 10 pricing comparatively aggressive presents a helpful clue about how Apple may attempt to deal with iPhone 18 pricing.
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Apple To Be ‘Aggressive’ On iPhone 18 Pricing
Apple will reportedly attempt to hold iPhone 18 costs as steady as doable when the vary launches this 12 months, in keeping with a analysis be aware seen by 9to5Mac. Analyst Jeff Pu says Apple may take an “aggressive pricing technique” with the iPhone 18 Professional and Professional Max base storage fashions.
The Apple iPhone 17 Professional Max’s successor, the iPhone 18 Professional Max won’t see a worth improve. (Photograph by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto by way of Getty Pictures)
NurPhoto by way of Getty Pictures
That would imply the beginning costs keep on the similar ranges because the iPhone 17 Professional lineup. As an alternative, Apple could take in some rising reminiscence prices strain by pushing worth will increase into greater storage tiers, which has similarities to Samsung’s Galaxy S26 launch technique. The Korean firm saved the Galaxy S26 Extremely worth regular, then made up the distinction with worth rises for the bottom mannequin and Galaxy S26 Plus.
However Samsung wasn’t carried out there. Weeks later, the worth of the eight-month-old Galaxy Z Fold 7 climbed by $80, as did the Galaxy Z Flip 7 by $80. Hikes have additionally landed on the Galaxy S25 Edge by $80 and Galaxy S25 FE by $40.
Even the Galaxy Tab S11 Extremely 1TB jumped by an enormous $280. Mix that with extra pedestrian reductions and it’s clear Samsung is squeezing the place it could.
That is smart for an organization like Samsung, the place {hardware} remains to be the core enterprise. Apple and Google, nonetheless, have extra room to maneuver.
Google’s Pricing May Be A Clue About Apple’s iPhone 18 Future
Should you solely watched Pixel 10 worth fluctuations, you’d haven’t any clue there was reminiscence chip scarcity chaos taking place behind the scenes. Google has repeatedly slashed the worth of your entire Pixel 10 sequence (it’s operating one other promotion now). The corporate appears to have dropped any pretence of normal pricing.
That is one thing the corporate can (for now) get away with as a result of Pixel {hardware} isn’t the bread and butter of its enterprise. Search and cloud are. Google treats {hardware} as a distribution channel for Gemini and the Google One AI Premium subscription. Extra Pixel 10 customers means extra subscribers, whereas Samsung has to keep up {hardware} margins as a key income driver.
Apple is in an identical place. Companies income rose to $30.98 billion in Apple’s Q2 2026 outcomes, up 16% 12 months over 12 months, and accounted for 27.9% of whole quarterly income. iPhone nonetheless introduced in essentially the most cash at $56.99 billion, however companies stay enormously worthwhile, with margins which can be far greater than {hardware}.
With caveats that Apple takes a a lot bigger market share than Google when it comes to international cellphone gross sales, the Pixel’s worth blueprint provides us some perception into how Apple can hold iPhone 18 worth rises at bay for a restricted period of time. It doesn’t make the corporate resistant to price pressures, however it does imply Apple has extra choices than a pure {hardware} participant.
How Lengthy Can Apple Maintain iPhone 18 Costs Flat?
The true query isn’t whether or not Apple can keep away from each worth improve. It’s how lengthy it could hold the ache out of the headline worth and conceal it someplace much less apparent, like storage upgrades or accent bundles. Which will work for some time, particularly if Apple needs the constructive headlines that include unchanged costs for the iPhone 18.
However reminiscence pricing isn’t getting simpler anytime quickly. IDC Analysts don’t anticipate aid till late 2027, and Gartner has warned of a 130% surge in DRAM and SSD prices by the tip of 2026. So Apple might be able to delay an iPhone 18 worth hike, however it most likely can’t keep away from it eternally. For now, although, the early indicators are good for iPhone 18 consumers who don’t need to pay the reminiscence tax.