Apple Upgrade: leasing iPhones and Macs with Klarna

On July 28, 2026, Apple launched Apple Upgrade in the United States: a Klarna-provided leasing program for iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac, and iPad, available on the Apple Store online, in the Apple Store app, and in U.S. Apple Stores.

Official announcement: Apple Newsroom.

With it, Apple is ending the iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments for new enrollments in the U.S. Existing IUP customers keep their path until they are ready to move; then the choices are Apple Upgrade, Apple Card Monthly Installments, buying outright, or carrier financing.

How the lease works

Terms:

• iPhone and Apple Watch: 12 or 24 months
• Mac and iPad: 24 or 36 months

Apple’s launch examples put monthly payments starting around $17.99 (iPhone), $11.99 (Watch), $24.99 (Mac), and $11.99 (iPad), before taxes and after any trade-in credit. Real quotes depend on model and term. A 256GB iPhone 17 Pro example in Apple’s fine print lands near $31.99 / month for 24 months or $45.99 for 12.

Enrollment: Soft credit check via Klarna (Apple says it should not ding your score the way a hard pull would). Approval is still credit-based. Manage billing and remaining payments in the Klarna app.

Trade-in and Apple Card: Trade-in can lower the monthly payment. Paying the lease with Apple Card can earn 3% Daily Cash on those payments (Apple Card eligibility applies).

End of term: Upgrade into a new lease (return the old device), buy out with a one-time purchase fee, or return the device and leave. Do nothing long enough and Apple’s lease language describes month-to-month extension risk and eventual purchase-fee charges. Read the Klarna lease before you assume “it just rolls forever for free.”

AppleCare: Not baked into the lease. You can add AppleCare+ / AppleCare One separately; for leased gear, insurance matters because damage, loss, and return-condition fees are real.

What is not on Apple Upgrade

Apple’s footnotes exclude several SKUs from the program, including (at launch) iPhone 16 / 16 Plus, Apple Watch SE, MacBook Neo, Mac mini, iPad (A16), and Studio Display. Always check the current product page. Exclusion lists change.

Also notable for businesses: Apple’s eligibility notes say leases are not available through Apple at Work / education / government special storefronts the way consumer Apple Store checkout is. This is a consumer lease, not a classic business leasing contract with your MSP or bank.

SMB and staff-device angle

Monthly payments feel friendlier than a $2,000 MacBook Pro hit on a card. That does not make leasing automatically smarter for a company.

Lease can make sense when:

• You want predictable refresh every 12-36 months and will actually return or upgrade on schedule.
• Cash flow matters more than asset ownership on the books.
• You are buying personally for a contractor/owner and treating it like a household phone plan.

Buy (or use proper business financing) when:

• You need the device as a depreciable company asset with clear ownership.
• You keep machines past three years (many SMBs do).
• You need MDM-enrolled fleet gear procured through business channels, volume pricing, or DEP/ABM. Apple Upgrade is not that program.
• Early exit risk is high. Ending a consumer lease early can mean paying remaining months; that is a bad surprise when an employee leaves in month four.

Process tips if someone on the team still leases personally:

1. Document who holds the Klarna/Apple Account tied to the device.
2. Require AppleCare on anything that travels.
3. Plan the end-of-lease path (upgrade vs buyout vs return) before the last payment, not after.
4. Wipe and remove MDM/iCloud locks cleanly before any return. Leased returns fail on activation locks the same way carrier returns do.

Bottom line

Apple Upgrade is Klarna leasing for mainstream Apple hardware in the U.S., replacing the old iPhone Upgrade Program and expanding beyond phones to Watch, Mac, and iPad. Convenient for households that want lower monthly payments and a clean upgrade path. For businesses, treat it as a consumer finance product, not a substitute for proper fleet procurement, and read the buyout, return, and early-termination terms before the monthly number sells you.