Apple today launched Apple Upgrade, a new hardware leasing program for iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac, and iPad that replaces the iPhone Upgrade Program after 11 years, with monthly payments starting as low as $17.99 for iPhone.
The program is available now through the Apple Store online, the Apple Store app, and at Apple retail locations in the United States. Apple is partnering with Klarna on the backend, which handles billing and lease management through the Klarna app.
What the program actually costs
Leasing prices vary by product category, with shorter terms for iPhone and Apple Watch and longer terms for Mac and iPad:
- iPhone: from $17.99/month, available on 12 or 24-month terms
- Apple Watch: from $11.99/month, available on 12 or 24-month terms
- iPad: from $11.99/month, available on 24 or 36-month terms
- Mac: from $24.99/month, available on 24 or 36-month terms
Not every device qualifies, the Apple Watch SE, the entry-level iPad, the iPhone 16, and the MacBook Neo are all excluded from the program. The iPad mini, by contrast, is eligible given it sits above the entry-level tier.
At the end of the lease, customers can upgrade to the latest model, pay a one-time fee to keep the device, or return it and exit entirely. All lease details, including the billing schedule and remaining payments, are visible in the Klarna app.
What you lose compared to the old program
The most notable omission is AppleCare+, the previous iPhone Upgrade Program bundled AppleCare+ coverage into the monthly payment; Apple Upgrade does not. Whether you add protection is now a separate decision and a separate cost.
The credit inquiry process is better on one metric, though. Apple Upgrade uses a soft credit pull that will not affect your credit score, replacing the hard inquiries the old program required.
Customers currently enrolled in the iPhone Upgrade Program are not cut off immediately. Apple is giving them four options: lease a new device through Apple Upgrade, finance with Apple Card Monthly Installments, purchase outright, or go through carrier financing.
Apple raised prices on iPads and Macs last month, and the iPhones arriving in September are expected to cost more as well. A leasing program that emphasizes low monthly payments is a straightforward way to make those higher sticker prices feel less immediate to buyers focused on what comes out of their account each month, rather than what a device costs over its full term.
The shift from ownership financing to leasing also changes the long-term relationship Apple has with its customers. Under a lease, the device remains Apple’s property, which keeps customers in a more structured upgrade cycle. Klarna’s involvement has drawn skepticism from some buyers, given that the BNPL company’s customer service track record with dispute resolution is not viewed as favorably as the traditional banking partners Apple used previously.
The iPhone Upgrade Program launched in September 2015 alongside the iPhone 6s and was a genuinely useful product for people who wanted the latest iPhone every year with predictable payments. Its replacement is more flexible across product categories, but removing AppleCare+ and switching to a lease structure rather than a financing arrangement makes it a meaningfully different deal, not simply an updated version of what came before.
