The iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 with 256GB, and the three capacities above it add $200, $400 and $600 to that figure. What Apple does not publish anywhere is how much of any tier is actually free once iOS 27 is preinstalled, which is why the tier has to be chosen from the way you use a phone rather than from the headline number.
Pre-orders open on Saturday, September 12 at 5 a.m. PT and nothing has been sold yet. Apple’s Store page is still in configure-and-wait mode, reading only “Get ready for iPhone 18 Pro pre-order,” so there is time to settle this one line. Capacity is fixed in the hardware, and Apple’s tech specs list no expandable storage, so it is the only choice on the order that cannot be revisited later.
Key facts
| Item | What Apple publishes |
|---|---|
| iPhone 18 Pro (6.3-inch) | $1,199 / $1,399 / $1,799 / $2,399 |
| iPhone 18 Pro Max (6.9-inch) | $1,299 / $1,499 / $1,899 / $2,499 |
| Capacities offered | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB on both models |
| In the box | iPhone with iOS 27, 1 m USB-C cable |
| Usable capacity after iOS 27 | Not published |
| Pre-order | Saturday, September 12, 5 a.m. PT |
| Availability | Friday, September 18 |
What each step actually costs
The steps are not evenly priced. Going from 256GB to 512GB costs $200 for an extra 256GB. Going from 1TB to 2TB costs $600 for an extra 1TB. In dollars per gigabyte the middle steps are the cheapest and the top step is the most expensive, which is the opposite of how bulk pricing usually works.
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The same steps apply on both sizes, because the Pro and the Pro Max are $100 apart at every tier rather than diverging as capacity climbs. Choosing the bigger phone does not change the storage arithmetic, it just moves the whole ladder up by $100.
The figure Apple does not publish
Apple’s tech specs page lists the four capacities and nothing about free space. The box contains an iPhone with iOS 27 already installed, and Apple has published no figure for what is left of a 256GB device once the system is on it. Any number you see quoted for usable space on iPhone 18 Pro did not come from Apple.
That gap matters most at the bottom of the range, where the difference between a comfortable 256GB and a full one is a few tens of gigabytes. It matters least at 1TB and 2TB, where the system footprint is a rounding error.
The formats that fill a phone fastest
Apple does publish what the iPhone 18 Pro camera system can record, and the heavy formats are all on the list: 4K Dolby Vision at up to 120 fps, ProRes RAW, Apple Log 2, Genlock, Cinematic mode up to 4K Dolby Vision at 60 fps and spatial video at 1080p and 30 fps.
Apple does not publish a file size per minute for any of them. If you shoot in those formats regularly, that unpublished number is the one that decides your tier, and the safe move is to buy above the capacity you think you need rather than below it.
Choosing by how you actually use the phone
| How you use a phone | Tier that fits | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Photos, messages, a few apps, video streamed rather than stored | 256GB at $1,199 | Nothing on Apple’s spec list grows quickly at this pattern |
| Large photo library kept on device, some 4K clips | 512GB at $1,399 | The $200 step is the cheapest insurance on the ladder |
| Regular 4K Dolby Vision at 100 or 120 fps, offloaded weekly | 1TB at $1,799 | High frame rate 4K is the format Apple prices no ceiling for |
| ProRes RAW or Apple Log 2 work kept on the device | 2TB at $2,399 | The only tier Apple offers above 1TB, and the last one added |
Those rows are our reading of Apple’s published format list, not guidance Apple gives. Apple publishes no recommended tier for any type of buyer.
Colour can be lived with, a case can be bought in October, and coverage can be considered separately. Capacity is soldered in. The $100 increase across the iPhone 18 Pro line already moved the entry point, and a tier chosen too small on Saturday cannot be corrected without buying another phone.
This is also the choice that survives the whole ownership period. The A20 Pro chip and the camera hardware are the same at every capacity, so the tier is the only spec you personally set.
What has not been confirmed
Apple has not published usable free space for any capacity, has not published file sizes for ProRes RAW, Apple Log 2 or 4K at 120 fps, and gives no recommended tier by use case. It has also published no policy for changing a saved configuration once pre-orders open. Everything above that is not a price or a format name is our arithmetic on Apple’s own figures.
Pre-orders open on Saturday, September 12 at 5 a.m. PT, with the first deliveries and store stock on Friday, September 18. iOS 27 arrives on Monday, September 14, two days after the tier is locked in.
