Apple is preparing to increase the prices of its upcoming iPhone 18 Pro series by 10 to 20 percent. The Cupertino-based tech giant was forced to make this dramatic decision, particularly due to the massive increases in DRAM costs.

According to the latest data published by market research firm TrendForce, Apple’s memory costs as of the third quarter of 2026 have increased by 400 percent compared to last year.

Although the company is engaged in intense negotiations with manufacturers to offset this cost pressure, changes in the global memory market continue to significantly strain Apple’s profit margins.

DRAM Costs Strain Company Budget

For companies with high sales volumes like Apple, the DRAM supply chain is of strategic importance. However, in current market conditions, the change in the financial objectives of memory manufacturers has largely rendered Apple’s cost control efforts ineffective.

Although the company is doing its best to avoid passing on the astronomical prices it pays for LPDDR5X RAM chips to the end consumer, this situation seems to have lost its sustainability under a cost burden that has increased 400 times.

Experts state that Apple’s usual cost-saving policies were not enough this time, and the price increase became a necessity, not a choice.

Technological Innovations Are Trying to Optimize Costs

Apple, wanting to reduce price pressure, is striving not only with the cost of chips but also with in-device architectural designs. While the company is switching to 2nm manufacturing technology for the A20 Pro processor to be included in the iPhone 18 Pro series, it is also following an innovative path on the memory side.

Thanks to the newly developed WMCM (Wafer-Level Multi-Chip Module) packaging technology, Apple can offer a 96-bit memory bus width with its existing LPDDR5X modules instead of switching to the more expensive LPDDR6 memory standard.

This engineering achievement helps increase memory bandwidth while avoiding the high cost of next-generation memory standards.

Sales Prices Remain Uncertain

Industry reports suggest that Apple needs to increase the price of the entry-level iPhone 18 Pro by up to $270 to maintain its current profit margins.

How much of these costs the company will absorb internally and how much will be passed on to the consumer will become clear at the “Surprise and Shine” event on September 9th. Technology enthusiasts are eagerly awaiting to see how Apple will manage user loyalty in this strong economic climate.

Do you think Apple should keep the iPhone 18 Pro prices constant despite this massive increase in production costs, or are such increases inevitable for technological advancements? You can share your opinions with us in the comments section below.