The cheapest new iPhone you can buy from Apple this month is the iPhone 17e at $699, and it is the only phone in the lower half of the lineup whose headline price does not lean on activating a carrier plan at checkout. If you want a 120Hz display, the second answer is iPhone 17 at $899, with one condition explained below.
The usual advice fails this year because the older models got more expensive, not cheaper. On September 9 Apple discontinued iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max, and each of the four it kept is now listed $100 above the day before: iPhone 17e at $699, iPhone 16 at $799, iPhone 17 at $899 and iPhone Air at $1,099. The current figures are Apple’s own Store listings, and Apple announced no increase, so treat the rise as visible in the prices rather than stated.
Key facts on this month’s cheapest iPhone
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Cheapest new iPhone from Apple | iPhone 17e, from $699 at 256GB |
| Cheapest with a 120Hz display | iPhone 17, from $899 |
| Cheapest monthly figure Apple publishes | $17.99 a month, on an Apple Upgrade lease |
| Biggest single reduction Apple publishes | Trade-in, $175 to $885 in US credit, applied instantly |
| Education discount on iPhone | None, the Education Store lists the same prices |
| In hand this month | iPhone 18 Pro from Friday, September 18. iPhone Duo is October |
Why $699 really is the floor
Apple’s US lineup is now iPhone Duo, iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone Air, iPhone 17, iPhone 17e and iPhone 16. Nothing older is sold new, so iPhone 16e and earlier are resale or refurbished propositions.
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Apple Certified Refurbished does not beat $699 either. It publishes savings of up to 15 percent, a new battery and outer shell on refurbished iOS devices, a one-year warranty and AppleCare eligibility, but the newest listing recorded there as of September 10 was an iPhone 16 at 512GB for $909, and Apple publishes no restocking schedule.
The $30 on the two phones above it
Apple’s footnotes state that connectivity discounts are reflected in the advertised price of select iPhone models, require connecting with a participating carrier at purchase, and are not available to customers who connect later or use prepaid. Apple names the amount for exactly two models: $30 on iPhone 17 and $30 on iPhone 16.
So the $799 and $899 figures carry a condition. The unlocked figures recorded on Apple’s Store are $829 for iPhone 16 at 128GB and $929 for iPhone 17 at 256GB. Buying outright, choosing a carrier later or using prepaid means budgeting the higher number.
| Model | Apple’s headline price | Unlocked figure recorded | What the gap is |
|---|---|---|---|
| iPhone 17e | $699 (256GB) | No separate figure recorded | No connectivity discount named |
| iPhone 16 | $799 (128GB) | $829 | $30 AT&T connectivity discount |
| iPhone 17 | $899 (256GB) | $929 | $30 AT&T connectivity discount |
| iPhone Air | $1,099 (256GB) | $1,099 | No connectivity discount named |
| iPhone 18 Pro | $1,199 (256GB) | $1,299 | $100, and Apple never prints it |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max | $1,299 (256GB) | $1,399 | $100, same basis |
The same pattern sits on the new phones. iPhone 18 Pro at 256GB is $1,199 with carrier connectivity and $1,299 unlocked, and Apple does not label that $100 anywhere.
Five routes down, and the catch on each
- Trade-in. Apple’s published wording is a range: an iPhone 13 or later gets $175 to $885 in US credit, instantly. The catch is that the values fell on September 9, some by as much as $120, and Apple publishes no per-model table, so plan on the middle rather than the ceiling.
- Apple Card Monthly Installments. Zero percent APR over 24 months, plus 3 percent Daily Cash up front, which is $20.97 on a $699 phone and $35.97 on a $1,199 one. The catch is that Apple requires AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon and does not support prepaid.
- Veterans and Military, at 10 percent, so $69.90 off the 17e. The catch is that Apple states installments and Apple Upgrade are not available in that storefront.
- Carrier credits. Apple’s footnotes describe up to $1,200 for an iPhone 14 or later in any condition, in AT&T tiers of $350, $930 and $1,200 over 36 months. The catch is severe: those tiers sit in Apple’s footnotes, not on the carrier’s pages, and the credits are collected in full only by staying three years.
- Three months of Apple TV+, Apple Music, Apple Arcade, Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+ with any device purchase, plus free Personal Setup. Real value, no reduction in the price.
The cheapest monthly number is not the cheapest phone
Apple’s lowest published monthly figure is $17.99 for an iPhone, and it belongs to Apple Upgrade, the lease Apple launched with Klarna on July 28, 2026 in place of the retired iPhone Upgrade Program. The published lease figures for iPhone 18 Pro at 256GB are $34.99 a month over 24 months or $49.99 over 12, against $49.95 a month over 24 months on installments.
The lease is cheaper monthly because it is not a purchase. AppleCare is not included, the clearest break from the old programme, and at the end of the term you upgrade, pay once to buy the phone, or return it. Do nothing and Apple states the lease converts to month-to-month for up to six months. If you keep phones for years, buying costs less.
What has not been confirmed
The carriers have published almost nothing. Verizon’s iPhone 18 Pro page carries a pre-order time and no credit, plan requirement or trade-in terms, AT&T’s deals page still leads with last year’s Pro Max, and T-Mobile’s site could not be verified, so nothing here is attributed to it. Apple has also not published per-device AppleCare+ prices for any September 2026 product. Our event recap covers what was announced.
iPhone 18 Pro pre-orders opened at 5 a.m. PT today, Saturday, September 12, and stores stock the phone on Friday, September 18. iPhone Duo ships Friday, October 23, so it plays no part in a September decision.
