Apple jacking up prices on post-AppleCare iPhone battery replacements

AppleInsider

Apple is significantly increasing prices for out-of-warranty battery replacements, this time for the iPhone 16 Pro models.

The new metal casing for the iPhone 16 Pro batteries could increase servicing costs. [X/KosumiSan]

The new cost of an out-of-warranty battery replacement for the two larger models of the latest iPhone is $119, up from the $99 cost for the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. The cost remains $99 for the regular iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus.

Apple last increased the cost of out-of-warranty battery replacement with the iPhone 14 models in 2022. Prices went up from $69 to $99.

As all new iPhones come with at least one year of AppleCare warranty, the change is not expected to be felt by new buyers anytime soon. AppleCare+ warranties can be purchased to cover the cost of most repairs for three years or longer.

Under AppleCare, users can request a free battery replacement service if the battery can no longer retain at least 80 percent of its original capacity. iPhone batteries are designed to retain 80 percent of their original capacity at 500 complete charge cycles under ideal conditions, while the batteries of the iPhone 15 and later models are designed to retain 80 percent of their original capacity at 1000 complete charge cycles under ideal conditions, according to Apple.

In addition to being larger, the batteries in the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max models are said to have a new metal shell to help improve heat dissipation. This might require extra labor to replace those batteries, which may explain the replacement cost increase, first noted by MacRumors.

The price for a replacement battery for older out-of-warranty iPhones varies by model. All models of the iPhone 15 and iPhone 14 can have batteries replaced for $99, while most now-vintage units will see charges of $89 -- with the exception of the iPhone SE and the iPhone 8, which retain their $69 battery replacement fee.



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Blizzard

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

jetpilot

Blizzard said:

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

So now someone is going to spend $1000 on a new phone over a $20 battery price increase? That doesn’t make mathematical sense.

macseeker

Lucky several months ago I had Apple replace the battery to my iPhone XS Max.

charlesn

I'm sure the torches and pitchforks crowd, upon reading this news, is already enroute to set fire to One Infinite Loop. But more rational and fact-based iPhone owners realize the following:

This only affects iPhone 16 Pro models, which will not need battery replacements for years to come. (More about that in a second.) This price increase has no effect on everyone else.

When Apple DOUBLED the expected useful lifespan of iPhone batteries from 500 cycles to 1000 cycles, it effectively halved the total cost of battery replacements for an iPhone held for very long-term use. (Of course, no one rushed to post about that.) And let's remember that "a cycle" counts as one complete restoration of your battery's total capacity. So, in a simple example, if you use 50% of your battery's capacity daily and charge it every night, two nights of charging will count as one cycle. My 15 Pro, now exactly one year old, is charged every night but has only 225 cycles on the battery which is still at 100% capacity. 

In addition to 1000 cycle battery life, the 16 Pro models have larger capacity batteries while maintaining energy efficiency. Meaning: the larger battery isn't being used to power a more energy-hungry phone that delivers the same specs as a 15 Pro. The 16 Pro model, for example, estimates 18% more video playback time than the 15 Pro. We'll have to wait for more precise estimates of how much more battery life the 16 Pro models deliver, but one thing is certain: you will end up with fewer cycles on your battery to deliver the same amount of energy, likely a reduction in cycles between 10-15%. 

Bottom line: in my case, a 16 Pro, charged every night, is likely to give me 5 years of use before I need a battery replacement. What is there to complain about?

schlack

jetpilot said:

Blizzard said:

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

So now someone is going to spend $1000 on a new phone over a $20 battery price increase? That doesn’t make mathematical sense.

This has always been the case. If you have a phone worth $400 and the batteries need to be replaced for $120, is it worth it, or should you just sell it and get a new one? It's the same reason people who spend $3K in repairs on a ten-year-old car consider buying a new one for $40K.  

chasm

charlesn said:

This only affects iPhone 16 Pro models, which will not need battery replacements for years to come. (More about that in a second.) This price increase has no effect on everyone else.
... (good stuff)
Bottom line: in my case, a 16 Pro, charged every night, is likely to give me 5 years of use before I need a battery replacement. What is there to complain about?

Indeed.

I'll just supplement your excellent post by saying that Apple doubled the cycle count with the iPhone 15 line, not just the iPhone 16 line. So yes, while the prices of the replacement batteries for those models have gone up far faster than the rate of inflation, your odds of needing to replace your battery after the warranty has ended but before you move on to your next iPhone model has gotten dramatically lower.

mikethemartian

jetpilot said:

Blizzard said:

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

So now someone is going to spend $1000 on a new phone over a $20 battery price increase? That doesn’t make mathematical sense.

It is going to shift the demand curve a bit. Most consumers don’t do a rigorous mathematical analysis when making decisions.

avon b7

charlesn said:

I'm sure the torches and pitchforks crowd, upon reading this news, is already enroute to set fire to One Infinite Loop. But more rational and fact-based iPhone owners realize the following:

This only affects iPhone 16 Pro models, which will not need battery replacements for years to come. (More about that in a second.) This price increase has no effect on everyone else.

When Apple DOUBLED the expected useful lifespan of iPhone batteries from 500 cycles to 1000 cycles, it effectively halved the total cost of battery replacements for an iPhone held for very long-term use. (Of course, no one rushed to post about that.) And let's remember that "a cycle" counts as one complete restoration of your battery's total capacity. So, in a simple example, if you use 50% of your battery's capacity daily and charge it every night, two nights of charging will count as one cycle. My 15 Pro, now exactly one year old, is charged every night but has only 225 cycles on the battery which is still at 100% capacity. 

In addition to 1000 cycle battery life, the 16 Pro models have larger capacity batteries while maintaining energy efficiency. Meaning: the larger battery isn't being used to power a more energy-hungry phone that delivers the same specs as a 15 Pro. The 16 Pro model, for example, estimates 18% more video playback time than the 15 Pro. We'll have to wait for more precise estimates of how much more battery life the 16 Pro models deliver, but one thing is certain: you will end up with fewer cycles on your battery to deliver the same amount of energy, likely a reduction in cycles between 10-15%. 

Bottom line: in my case, a 16 Pro, charged every night, is likely to give me 5 years of use before I need a battery replacement. What is there to complain about?

The doubling of the cycle count was needed because people were using their phones for more and more tasks and infinite scrolling has become common over the years. That alone, is a massive energy drain that even impacts carrier energy usage.

More usage potentially leads to more cycles. YMMV but people are using their phones for longer periods during the day. 

Apple got burnt with the iPhone 6 'batterygate' partly because it skimped on capacities and around that time we were all becoming more digital in what we did.

Looking at a comparable flagship phone here in Spain, it's somewhat jarring that a battery replacement for the Pura 70 Pro is 64€ including sales tax.

If most users are likely to get five years of iPhone use without needing a battery swap, why not keep the price lower? 

I'm sure they could do that and still make a decent profit. 

mfryd

I have an iPhone XS that's still covered under AppleCare.  The battery capacity was slowly going down.  A little over a year ago, it hit 80%.  I brought it into Apple for a warranty battery replacement.  They refused, saying it had to be below 80%.

It's been a year, and the iPhone still reports exactly 80% capacity.    I am not convinced that iOS correctly reports battery capacity, and Apple does not seem to allow third party software to probe the battery and report capacity.

Apple says that I am welcome to pay for a battery replacement, but as long as iOS is still reporting 80%, they won't replace it under warranty.

chasm

mfryd said:

I have an iPhone XS that's still covered under AppleCare.  The battery capacity was slowly going down.  A little over a year ago, it hit 80%.  I brought it into Apple for a warranty battery replacement.  They refused, saying it had to be below 80%.

It's been a year, and the iPhone still reports exactly 80% capacity.    I am not convinced that iOS correctly reports battery capacity, and Apple does not seem to allow third party software to probe the battery and report capacity.

Apple says that I am welcome to pay for a battery replacement, but as long as iOS is still reporting 80%, they won't replace it under warranty.

I was in the same boat with my XR. I just checked today because of this story, and found that it had FINALLY moved to 79.1 percent. I'm no longer under AppleCare, and don't need this particular phone much anymore, so I will likely replace it later this year or sometime next year. It still functions on battery decently for something its age.

If I thought that the XR would be able to run iOS 19 in late 2025, it might be worth the battery replacement cost to make it a hand-me-down, but that doesn't seem likely. It will (at some point) get recycled instead.

YP101

That's why I don't hold Apple products more than 2-3 years. I just trade in and get new replacement products.
Pretty much 2 years old iPhone Pro trade in value is $400. So, you spent $600 for 2 years and less than $30 per month.
Currently I have iPhone 15 Pro set to 80% charge and so far, battery health shows 100%.
I am look forward to iPhone 17 Pro.

Order to any company keep parts for old products cost money. Specially anything older than 3 years or so. Unless every iPhone design battery the same, every release of battery holding for just in case replacement request is logistic issue. That's why it cost you.

Apple doing iPhone business over 15 years now. They have enough data for how many people request swap through Apple and how long people actually replace their phone.
So, if that replacement request by Apple is less than 5% of iPhone sales why would Apple lower their cost for replacement?

Once handphone become carry internal battery format instead pop off external battery, it is become replace phone instead battery. Just trade in and buy new one.

zone

This is dumb. Who cares! My car needs GAS and new BREAKS and new TIRES and new WIPER BLADES and all of the prices have all gone up. Wait it's out of its warrenty and I need a new transmition. Gee come on people there are more things to worry about. Apple is here to make money just like the rest of us and no one complains that a auto manufacturer doesn't cover those items above and more. They are usuable items, move on...

charlesn

mfryd said:

It's been a year, and the iPhone still reports exactly 80% capacity.    I am not convinced that iOS correctly reports battery capacity, and Apple does not seem to allow third party software to probe the battery and report capacity.

Hold off on going down the Apple conspiracy rabbit hole. My 15 Pro is a year old, a year of being charged nightly, and the battery still shows 100% capacity. So staying at 80% for a year doesn't seem nefarious to me. 

macseeker said:

Lucky several months ago I had Apple replace the battery to my iPhone XS Max.

The price increase only affects iPhone 16 Pro models, none of which will need battery replacements for years. And by that time, I expect we will have batteries with a cycle lifespan that will essentially cover the entire useful life of a phone, so battery replacement will no longer be an issue. The iPhone battery has already doubled from 500 cycles to 1000 cycles--if the next iteration can double again to 2000 cycles, that should do it. 

eriamjh

The good news is no one should need an IPhone 16 battery for at least a year from now that isn’t under the basic warranty.  

So this is really next year’s price.   

chasm

eriamjh said:

The good news is no one should need an IPhone 16 battery for at least a year from now that isn’t under the basic warranty.  

So this is really next year’s price.   

Not even — a lot of people are (apparently) on the iPhone Upgrade Program, so they hold onto their iPhones for no more than a year. Many, many more trade in their iPhone for a newer one at the two- or three-year mark, and that’s all covered under AppleCare+ if they bought that, and unlikely to need replacing even if they didn’t.

It’s the people who plan to buy an iPhone 16 and hold onto it for dear life (or 4-5+ years, whichever comes first) that might — MIGHT — be subject to an increased cost for the battery replacement.

mknelson

Blizzard said:

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

That's not expensive. A better reason - a battery replacement takes about an hour*, and service techs are expensive.  Prices need to go up to cover labour, particularly for Apple Authorized Service Providers.

*devices must be signed in, inspected, entry diagnostics run (MRI), repair, exit diagnostics (another MRI), device signed out.

brianjo

mknelson said:

Blizzard said:

Here is what I think, I think Apple is making it that expensive to change the calculas between keeping the phone and buying a new iPhone.

That's not expensive. A better reason - a battery replacement takes about an hour*, and service techs are expensive.  Prices need to go up to cover labour, particularly for Apple Authorized Service Providers.

*devices must be signed in, inspected, entry diagnostics run (MRI), repair, exit diagnostics (another MRI), device signed out.

Apple authorized service providers can't make a profit replacing batteries unless they have minimum wage techs.  You're correct that there's about an hour of labor involved in a proper battery replacement if you follow Apple's guidelines and paperwork procedures.  The cost Apple charges for the battery leaves very little for the provider to make any money at all.

dicebier1

This is all a load of garbage! Bottom line, if you buy AppleCare but your battery isn’t below 80% AND it passes Apple’s diagnostics….regardless of how fast you are losing charge, regardless of any lack of extended usability…they will NOT replace the battery via AppleCare. It is flat out bs. Apple sets the price, Apple sets the terms, Apple makes it highly inconvenient for many to replace the battery themselves. It is a money grab. Of course you can buy android, but you won’t. Apple used to be customer service based (this alone justified their premium pricing). Now however, it’s all about the benjamins. The ladder pricing etc…. The ONLY way for you to benefit is to own Apple stock.

JFC_PA

I’m at 272 cycles with 94% remaining capacity in my 15 pro max. So pretty much on track given I run it through about a cycle a day. (Got it last December)

I routinely carry a MagSafe pack or Anker for backup, when traveling they come in handy, vital when things like railroad tickets are digital.