iPhone 15 Pro Max is $100 more than predecessor, but only costs $38 more to make

The team at Counterpoint Research has torn down the iPhone 15 Pro Max and analyzed its total bill of materials (BoM). According to the market research firm, Apple’s latest top-of-the-line flagship phone costs only $37.7 more to make compared to the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Still, the device costs $100 more for consumers compared to the older flagship.

The iPhone 15 Pro Max comes in at $1,199 compared to the $1,099 launch price of the 14 Pro Max. Counterpoint’s analysis shows the cost to produce an 8GB + 256GB iPhone 15 Pro Max is 8% higher than the 6GB + 256GB version of the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

“With an increase of $100 in the starting retail price, the iPhone 15 Pro Max is expected to give Apple more profit as it has the highest gross margin in the iPhone 15 family, despite being the costliest model,” notes Counterpoint.

The latest report varies quite a bit from a previous BoM analysis conducted by Japanese research firm Fomalhaut Techno Solutions and Nikkei Asia. Their investigation concluded that the base iPhone 15 Pro Max is 12% more expensive to make than its predecessor, with a component cost of $558.

The most expensive iPhone 15 Pro Max components

According to Counterpoint, the new 3nm A17 Pro processor on the iPhone 15 Pro Max costs Apple $30 more compared to the A16 processor. The overall cost of the camera system in the iPhone 15 Pro Max, including its new 5x telephoto shooter and 3D sensor-shift OIS, is also 34% higher than the camera costs of the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

Apple’s new Titanium alloy frame on the iPhone Pro Max also brought up costs this year. It’s reportedly 18% more expensive than the stainless steel frame of the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

That said, the cost for the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s higher base 8GB memory chip is 34% lower than what Apple paid for the 6GB memory of the iPhone 14 Pro Max. Counterpoint explains that the downward trend in the global memory market worked in Apple’s favor as prices for DRAM and NAND flash dropped from Q4 2022 to Q3 2023.

Apple also saved money on the iPhone 15 Pro Max display by adding LG Display as a supplier apart from Samsung Display. This resulted in a 4% display cost reduction compared to the iPhone 14 Pro Max.