Apple's upcoming iPhone 18 lineup will carry a 20 to 43% price hike in India compared to its predecessor series, driven primarily by surging global memory component costs and a depreciating rupee, market analysts said.
Apple has entered into a new category of foldable smartphones with Duo, which it will sell in India in the price range of around Rs 3 lakh to Rs 4.5 lakh apiece, matching the price of some of the top-selling Maruti Suzuki hatchback car models in the country.
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Analysts estimate that iPhone Duo will be able to capture around 24% of market share in the foldable device segment, where it will compete with the Samsung Z Fold 8 series, available in India in the price range of Rs 1.79 lakh to Rs 2.6 lakh (1 TB storage variant) apiece.
Apple plans to start selling the ultra-premium iPhone 18 Pro in the price range of Rs 1,64,900 to Rs 3,14,900 apiece, and iPhone 18 Pro Max in the price range of Rs 1,79,900 to Rs 3,29,900 apiece, according to the company's website.
The new devices are 20-43% more expensive compared to the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max.
"The iPhone Duo and iPhone 18 Pro series command a distinct premium in India, driven by underlying memory-cost inflation, specifically DRAM and NAND pricing pressures, compounded by local variables such as basic customs duties, tax structures, channel margins, and rupee depreciation," CyberMedia Research (CMR), Vice President-Industry Research Group, Prabhu Ram said.
Counterpoint Research Director Tarun Pathak said iPhone prices in India add 18% GST (goods and services tax), along with 5-7% forex headwinds over US prices.
iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be available from September 12 across 65 countries, including India.
Talking about Apple's foldable smartphone iPhone Duo, Pathak said India pricing is very steep, and the difference is primarily due to the fact that Duo will not be manufactured in India for some time.
"Consequently, imported units attract full import duty, making them significantly more expensive, along with GST and the impact of a weaker rupee. So, in all, at over 40% net impact (Import duty) with 18% GST and 5-6% forex impact," he said.
iPhone Duo, the most expensive mobile phone from the company's stable, will be available in India from October 23 in the price range of Rs 2,99,900 with 256 GB storage to Rs 4,49,900 apiece with 2 TB (terabyte) storage.
All the new iPhones will be available with storage capacity of 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB and 2 TB.
Pathak said the initial adoption of Duo will be driven by an excellent form factor, the bigger screen value proposition and a great UI experience, which will make loyal Apple users and early adopters of technology go for it, especially those who have been waiting for an Apple foldable form factor for a long time.
"Overall, we believe that the iPhone Duo is set to expand India's foldable segment by value rather than volume initially and bring the spotlight on the foldable segment," he said.
iPhone Duo in its folded state will have a 5.4-inch display that provides 90% of the screen area of the iPhone 18 Pro.
In open or unfolded status, it has a 7.6-inch display, which is 50% larger than the iPhone 18 Pro Max.
iPhone 18 Pro comes with a display of 6.3 inches, and iPhone 18 Pro Max with a display size of 6.9 inches.
CMR estimates Apple shipments could account for around 40% in the launch quarter and festive season, compared to around 20% during the lean first quarter.
"We anticipate shipments to grow 4% year-on-year. Within the new portfolio, the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max are expected to command meaningful shares of launch-quarter shipments at around 8% and 5%, respectively, reinforcing the importance of the Pro lineup to Apple's commercial volumes.
"More significantly, the iPhone Duo could capture around 24% of India's foldable smartphone market in its launch quarter," Ram said.
Counterpoint's Pathak said Apple is expected to keep leading in revenue terms, while volume is likely to take a hit, especially with a difficult comparison from last festive season and absence of base 18.
"Apple grew by 2% year-on-year in January-July 2026, while the Pro series grew 32%. Overall, we now expect a low single-digit decline in volume, but value-wise will still increase by 6-7% in India," he said.
Pathak said value growth will be driven by new foldables, and also the mix of pro series within Apple portfolio is increasing- from 11% in 2025 to expected 15% by end of 2026, but still large part of sales are driven by base models, which have become now expensive starting from iPhone 16, iPhone 17.
"A lot will also depend on the upcoming festive season, where we think older iPhones, including 15, will still be selling," he said.
Apple has been posting record performance in India.
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Its revenue in India is estimated to have crossed $10 billion due to record shipments of iPhones in FY26.
In rupee terms, it was somewhere close to the Rs 1 lakh crore revenue mark.
According to Counterpoint research, Apple's iPhone shipments for FY26 grew to 14 million units, up 24% year-on-year.
The iPhone accounts for the majority of Apple's revenue in India and is also the top exported smartphone from India.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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