Tariffs, production costs and the economy could all impact the price of the new iPhone but don’t panic just yet.
Tariffs, production costs and the economy could all impact the price of the new iPhone but don’t panic just yet.
For a brief moment, it looked like a federal trade court would halt President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs, leaving everyone to wonder what that could mean for price hikes. But by the end of the following day another court had stepped in so we’re back to wondering when and if reciprocal tariffs and Trump’s proposed 25% Apple tariff will kick in. So you’ll forgive us if we don’t sound very certain about how all of this could affect the price of the new iPhone.
We can’t even guarantee that it will be called iPhone 17, considering Apple may rebrand its operating system this fall so that the current iOS18 is replaced by iOS 26.
Apple spent much of the early part of this year dodging tariffs, stockpiling phones before tariffs took effect and making an exemption list for many of its products. But its luck appeared to run out after Apple CEO Tim Cook announced during a May 1 earnings call that US iPhone production would mostly be sourced from India. A few weeks later, Trump threatened Apple with a 25% tariff on all iPhones made outside the US.
Is that tariff on top of the paused reciprocal tariffs? While it may be unrealistic for Apple to pass along the total cost of the tariff to consumers (who’s going to buy a $4,000 iPhone?), it also seems unlikely that the tech giant could absorb the costs of a 170% tariff hike (that’s 25% Apple tariff + 145% reciprocal tariff on China, where Apple has produced most of its iPhones).
Plus, there are plenty of factors that can affect the price of an iPhone, including production costs and the overall health of the US economy. My colleague Patrick Holland has been reviewing phones for CNET since 2016 and tracking prices over the years. He says the new iPhone is due for a price hike regardless of what happens with tariffs.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment for an earlier version of this story.
We won’t know the exact price for the next iPhone until its release, which is expected to be in September. But we’ve pored over all the leaks, rumors and predictions about prices and we found ways to help you save if a new iPhone is in your future.How tariffs could affect the cost of the next iPhone
Amid Trump’s ongoing tariff bender, higher reciprocal tariffs are currently on pause. However, Trump took to social media on May 28, threatening Apple with a 25% tariff on all iPhones made outside the US, although the timeline is unclear. There’s currently a 10% baseline tariff on all imports and a 30% tariff on goods from China, where Apple still manufactures most of its products. Those rates may also start to rise in July when the initial tariff pause expires, which could lead to higher prices on everything — including the rumored iPhone 17.
The tech giant has moved some US iPhone production from China to India, which currently has a lower tariff rate.
