The Pro models will launch alone in 2026, months ahead of the standard iPhone
Apple is reported to be splitting the iPhone launch, with the Pro models arriving in September 2026 and the standard iPhone following months later. The Pro is also where the reported price rise lands.
Similar reports have held up 57% of the time in our historical data.
Based on how reporting on Apple iPhone 18 Pro has held up, across 28 settled reports.
This does not mean this claim has a 57% chance of happening.
9 outlets
How the reporting has spread
This started with independent reporting and was later carried by other outlets. Repeats don’t count as new independent sources.
Outlets
9
How strongly each outlet put it
Definite5
Likely4
Possible0
What to know
What to know
Apple's September 2026 lineup is expected to include iPhone 18 Pro, iPhone 18 Pro Max and the foldable iPhone, according to 9to5Mac.
MacRumors says the standard iPhone 18 is not expected to launch that fall, and would follow months later. The Pro models are also where the reported price rise lands.
Apple has sent the invitations. The event runs on Wednesday September 9 at 10am PT under the tagline "Surprise and shine", and the keynote streams on apple.com, YouTube and the Apple TV app, with press at Apple Park. That settles a date the roadmap had been carrying as September 8 on reporting rather than on Apple's word. It is also John Ternus's first iPhone launch as chief executive, a week after he takes the job on September 1.
Macwelt says a source told it pre-orders open on Saturday, September 12, a day later than Apple's usual Friday slot, and at midnight Pacific rather than the normal 5am. Apple confirmed the Saturday date, with pre-orders opening at 5 a.m. PT, so Macwelt had the day right and the time wrong.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported on the morning of the event that the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max will each cost $100 more than the phones they replace, putting the Pro's starting price at $1,199. It is the first iPhone rise in a year of memory-driven increases across the Mac and iPad lines.
Right
The Pro models are expected to cost more, but nobody agrees how much
Right on the rise, at the low end of the estimates. iPhone 18 Pro starts at $1,199 on Apple's store, $100 more than iPhone 17 Pro's $1,099. Jeff Pu's estimate of $250 to $300 was too high.
Right
How we know this
How we know this
What changed, newest first.
Apple officially announces iPhone 18 Pro and foldable iPhone event: ‘Surprise and shine’9to5Mac · Aug 26, 2026 · reports this
No iPhone 18 announced today: Here’s why9to5Mac · Sep 9, 2026 · treats this as fact
The iPhone 18 Pro gets Apple’s first 2nm chip, bigger batteries, and a surprisingly restrained priceDigital Trends · Sep 9, 2026 · treats this as fact
Which do you plan to buy: iPhone 18 Pro or foldable iPhone Ultra? [Poll]9to5Mac · Aug 22, 2026 · reports this
How Apple’s iPhone 18 Pro Launch Date Crushes The CompetitionForbes · Aug 22, 2026 · treats this as fact
