iPhone Price Hikes Are Here, Apple Raises Prices by Up to 11% in Japan

iPhone price hikes are finally here. Apple has increased the prices of several iPhone models in Japan by as much as 11.3 percent, marking the latest expansion of the company's ongoing wave of price increases across its hardware and services portfolio. The revised prices apply to the iPhone 16, iPhone 17e, iPhone 17, iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max on Apple's online store in Japan.

The move comes after Apple increased prices across its Mac and iPad lineups globally last month. The company has also raised prices for Apple Music in several markets and iCloud+ in select countries.

iPhone 17 Pro Max Now Costs 214,800 Yen

The iPhone 17 Pro Max has increased in price from 194,800 yen to 214,800 yen, representing a hike of about 10.3 percent. The iPhone 17 Pro now costs 194,800 yen, up from 179,800 yen, an increase of about 8.3 percent.

Apple has raised the price of the iPhone Air from 159,800 yen to 177,800 yen, making it the biggest percentage increase among the affected models at about 11.3 percent.

The standard iPhone 17 now costs 142,800 yen, compared with its previous price of 129,800 yen, representing an increase of about 10 percent.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 17e has gone from 99,800 yen to 107,800 yen, an increase of about 8 percent. The older iPhone 16 now costs 124,800 yen, up from 114,800 yen, representing a hike of about 8.7 percent.

Why Has Apple Increased iPhone Prices?

Apple has not announced a specific reason for the latest iPhone price increases in Japan. The hikes, however, come against the backdrop of the Japanese yen's depreciation against the US dollar, which may have contributed to Apple's decision to adjust local prices.

The company has not introduced similar iPhone price increases in the US, and there are currently no indications of a broader global revision to existing iPhone prices. However, the development is notable because it comes shortly after Apple raised prices across several other product categories.

Apple's Wider Price Hike Continues

Last month, Apple increased prices across its Mac and iPad lineups, citing the ongoing global memory chip shortage and sharply rising component costs.

Apple CEO Tim Cook had previously warned that price increases were becoming unavoidable as the company could no longer fully absorb rising memory and storage costs.

The company subsequently increased prices across products including the MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio, iPad, iPad mini, iPad Air and iPad Pro, among others.

Apple has also increased Apple Music subscription prices in several markets, including India, while iCloud+ prices have been revised in select countries.

Could iPhone Prices Rise in Other Countries?

For now, the latest iPhone price hikes appear to be limited to Japan, and there is no confirmation that Apple plans to increase prices for its existing iPhone lineup in India or other major markets.

However, the timing will inevitably raise questions about pricing for Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 lineup.

With Apple facing higher component costs due to the global memory shortage, the company could potentially adjust prices when it introduces its next generation of iPhones.

The iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are expected to launch in September alongside Apple's first foldable iPhone. Whether the latest price increases in Japan are an isolated adjustment or an early indication of broader iPhone price hikes remains to be seen.