Apple has announced an upgrade with new leasing options, but as with anything these days, it doesn’t come without controversy.
“Apple Upgrade” was announced on Tuesday, stating customers will now be able to lease eligible new iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch devices.
iPhone and Apple Watch will have 12- and 24-month leasing options, while 24- and 36-month options are offered for Mac and iPad.
Apple is working with the buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) payment provider Klarna on a new upgrade that lets customers use Apple Trade-In to lower monthly payments during the leasing term, Apple said, according to Fox Business.
Apple announced it will end its iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments with the launch of Apple Upgrade. Both programs let eligible customers buy an iPhone with a 24-month interest-free installment plan: the Upgrade Program also included AppleCare+ and the option to upgrade after 12 payments.
Apple has officially launched ‘Apple Upgrade,’ a new product leasing program provided by Klarna in the United States 🚨
Apple Upgrade offers 12 and 24-month leasing options for iPhone and Apple Watch, and 24 and 36-month leasing options for Mac and iPad. Leasing prices start as… pic.twitter.com/twzdW4xOEd
— Apple Hub (@theapplehub) July 28, 2026
Apple’s announcement had some critics:
According to Aakash Gupta, of product-growth.com, the upgrade is all about controlling customer buying habits since Americans are now holding on to the iPhones for a record “3.79 years.”
“That number is Apple’s biggest problem,” he claimed.
Car dealers built this exact machine decades ago,” he continued. “The lease exists to control when you come back to the lot and what you drive off of it.”
Apple can’t make you want a new iPhone anymore. So it wrote a contract that expires the one you have.
Americans now hold their iPhones a record 3.79 years before buying a new one. That number is Apple’s biggest problem. Phones stopped breaking, cameras stopped mattering, and… https://t.co/5umLSs4wvc
— Aakash Gupta (@aakashgupta) July 29, 2026
Apple Upgrade will be available through its website and Apple Stores in the U.S.
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