Earlier this morning, Apple made its new Upgrade program to essentially lease new devices official. The company hopes to offset more expensive products with a solution that makes it easier for consumers to get their hands on the latest Apple Watch, iPhone, iPad, and MacBook.
Apple has partnered with Klarna, who will be handling the financials and credit pulls, to provide up to 24-month leases for Apple Watches and iPhones and up to 36-month leases for iPads and Macs. For example, pricing starts at $12 monthly for the Apple Watch Series 11, $18 monthly for the iPhone 17e, $25 for the MacBook Air, and $12 for the iPad Air. At the end of the lease term, you’ll have the option to upgrade to the newest device, buy it with a one-time payment, or return it and leave the program—similarly to how you would do a vehicle lease.
Customers will be able manage their lease directly from the Klarna app to see their billing cycle and track payments. Users can also lower their monthly lease payments via trade-in and earn 3% daily cash back when they use their Apple Card to make their lease payments. This program was rumored via Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman last week and is now a reality.
With the introduction of Apple’s upgrade program, it also means the end of the company’s in-house financing and installment programs, which include the iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments.
The program is made to combat the increase of pricing for consumer electronics due to the component and RAM shortages. Apple recently boosted the prices for its iPad and Mac hardware. Yeah, so definitely expect the iPhone 18 to cost more when it arrives this fall.
