The 2019 iPhone Index. Who Can Afford the New Apple Gadget?

This is an archived report. The latest ranking is available here.

The latest analysis by Picodi.com juxtaposes the price of iPhone 11 Pro and average salaries in several dozen countries around the world.

Apple’s pricing policy is causing more and more astonishment every year and is a beloved inspiration for internet memes. This is proof that sense of humour is not dependent on location: American jokes are also relevant in Hong Kong.

After the September presentation of Apple’s new devices, the analytical team of Picodi.com decided to compare an average salary in selected countries with the price of an iPhone 11 Pro (the 64GB model) in order to count the number of workdays required to buy it.

The official price of iPhone 11 Pro (64GB) in Hong Kong is going to be HK$8599. Assuming that, according to Census and Statistics Department, the average gross salary in this country is HK$16928 (HK$16730 net), a statistical Hongkonger would have to work for 10.8 days to afford this year’s iPhone (not counting living expenses). That is 0.7 of a day less than the previous year.

On the other hand, in Taiwan, where the iPhone 11 Pro price is going to be NT$35,900, citizens would have to work almost two times longer than Hongkongers. With the average salary amounting to NT$43,859 (NT$41,409.55 net), a statistical Taiwanese needs 18.2 workdays to afford the new Apple gadget.

In the lead of the rank are the Swiss, Americans and Luxembourgers, where the ratio of the iPhone’s price to the average salary is the most attractive. A statistical Swiss should be able to save up for iPhone 11 Pro in 4.8 days, an American – in 5.8 days, and a Luxembourger – in 6.7 days.

The reverse record belongs to Mexicans: a statistical resident of this country would have to lay aside 54.2 days worth of wages to buy the iPhone. In countries like Montenegro or Russia, the new gadget has got the value of 48.5 and 47 workdays, respectively.

Although the new iPhone can be a rather expensive gadget, it is possible to buy it cheaper through official resellers. All you have to do is sign up to Picodi.com and activate cashback while shopping in stores such as SmarTone, Aliexpress and eBay.

Methodology and Data Source

The iPhone Index 2019 has been calculated on the basis of iPhone 11 Pro prices announced publicly on local Apple or authorised seller websites. The average salaries (for residents and citizens employed full-time) come from the countries’ official ministry or statistical office pages. We divided the monthly wages by 21 – the average number of workdays in a month.

Public Use

Do you want to share our charts and graphs? Feel free to use the data and infographics from the report for both commercial and non-commercial purposes as long as you indicate the author of the research (Picodi.com) with a link to this subpage. If you have any questions, please contact us: research@picodi.com.