iPhone 18 Pro sells 30% better in China than iPhone 17 Pro
On the first day of retail sales in China, more than 322.8 thousand iPhone 18 Pro and 18 Pro Max units were sold, which is 30% more than iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max over a comparable period.
The more expensive iPhone 18 Pro Max proved more popular than the compact model. It accounted for 55.5% of sales, or approximately 179 thousand devices. The share of iPhone 18 Pro was 44.5%, corresponding to about 144 thousand smartphones. For comparison, based on the published ratio of 130%, the iPhone 17 Pro series sold around 248 thousand devices on its first day a year ago.
It is important that this refers specifically to sales to end customers, not to shipments from Apple to distributors and retailers. The data was published by the Chinese account RD观测, which tracks the local smartphone market. Apple has not disclosed its own sales statistics for new models, so the figure of 322,800 devices should be regarded as an independent estimate.
The result looks more significant given the rise in smartphone prices. In China, the iPhone 18 Pro with 256 GB of storage starts at 9,999 yuan (≈ $1493), while the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at 10,999 yuan (≈ $1642). A year ago, the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max launched at 8,999 and 9,999 yuan respectively, so both new models have increased by 1,000 yuan.
New data supplement the pre-order results. By September 15, revenue from iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max on Tmall was approximately double that of the iPhone 17 Pro series for the same period. That figure referred specifically to revenue, which could have been boosted by price increases alone. Now, third-party statistics indicate growth in the number of devices sold on the first day of official sales.
Sales of the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max began on September 18 in more than 65 countries and regions. In France, the iPhone 18 Pro starts at €1479, and the iPhone 18 Pro Max starts at €1629. Both models are available with storage capacities of 256 GB, 512 GB, 1 TB, and 2 TB.
