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That $1,599 iPhone 15 Pro Max you’ve been eyeing? It might look like a bargain soon. Analysts are warning that Apple could be forced to hike iPhone prices significantly—possibly pushing the iPhone 16 Pro Max up to a jaw-dropping $2,300—thanks to a new round of import tariffs introduced under former President Donald Trump’s trade policies. These tariffs, aimed at goods coming from China and Taiwan, are already shaking up the global electronics market, as highlighted by PCMag.
Why such a steep jump? The answer lies in Apple’s deeply entrenched supply chain. The company still assembles the vast majority of its iPhones in China, which now faces a punishing 54% tariff. That could jack up production costs on an iPhone 16 Pro from around $550 to over $820, according to industry analysts. And with Apple no longer receiving the tariff exemptions it once had under Trump’s first term, the fallout is being felt directly.
Apple isn’t standing still, though. In an effort to cushion the blow, the company has been ramping up iPhone production in India—where the tariff rate is a slightly less brutal 26%. Apple hopes to produce 25 million iPhones there this year, but even with this shift, the Indian supply chain isn’t yet capable of fully replacing China, as detailed in this report.
One potential solution floated by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick? Assemble iPhones in the U.S. But that’s easier said than done. Labor costs alone would jump from around $30 to $300 per unit, and the tariffs on imported components wouldn’t go away. So, the math just doesn’t work, as critics have pointed out.
In short, if you’re planning to upgrade this fall, brace yourself. The sleek glass-and-metal status symbol in your pocket might soon come with an even steeper price tag—and this time, it’s not just Apple’s margins you’re paying for.