iPhone 16 release date — when can you buy a new iPhone?
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With apologies to Samsung and its Galaxy S flagships or Google and its Pixels, the iPhone 16 release date may be the most anticipated day of the year when it comes to smartphones. And one of the big dates — the moment when Apple reveals its new phones — is now set in stone.
The annual Apple fall product launch takes place Monday, September 9. Apple's sent out invitations for the event, which gets underway at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT/6 p.m. BST. Apple hasn't said what's launching, but it's a pretty safe bet that the iPhone 16 will show up at Apple's product launch.
Why? Not only are there enough rumors to suggest a phone launch is imminent, there's the fact that Apple always trys to roll out its new devices in September — the earlier the better for getting phones on the shelf for the holiday shopping season. In fact, you'll find the new iPhones heading the list of September 9 event predictions detailing what Apple could announce.
But September 9 is just one date to nail down when it comes to the iPhone 16 launch. We're still waiting to find out when Apple starts taking pre-orders for its new phones as well as the date they'll be available in stores. And that's before we get to iOS 18 — current available as a downloadable public beta — which should arrive just ahead of the iPhone 16's actual release.
You can understand why there's more interest than usual in this year's iPhones. First, there's the fact AI is taking a more prominent role in driving some of the iPhone's major features. (Those features — dubbed Apple Intelligence — are part of a separate iOS 18.1 beta, with a final version coming out after iOS 18 and the iPhone 16 arrive.)
Beyond the software, there could be some significant changes to the iPhone 16 lineup. We're anticipating new screen sizes and camera improvements for the iPhone 16 Pro models, while every iPhone should feature Apple's latest A18 system-on-chip, as the phone maker has faced stepped-up competition from the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 silicon powering the best Android phones this year.
Here's what we know about Apple's official product event date and what that means for the company's plans to roll out its new handsets based on what I've observed from covering every iPhone launch since the first one back in 2007.
iPhone 16 release date: Cheat sheet
Apple has set its fall product event for September 9.
In the past, products announced at Apple's events arrive in stores roughly 10 days later.
A new version of iOS — iOS 18 in this case — should be available as a full release just before the iPhone 16 arrives in stores.
We're expecting four iPhone 16 models, which should all go on sale at the same time.
iPhone 16 release date: When is Apple holding its event?
Apple has set a date for this year's product launch, with an event taking place at its Cupertino, Calif., headquarters on Monday, September 9. Tom's Guide will be attending to cover the event live, and you can also live stream the action on Apple's YouTube channel as well as its website.
The Apple event gets underway at 10 a.m. PT/1 p.m. ET/6 p.m. BST on September 9. Here's how you can watch the Apple Glowtime live stream.
It's unusual for Apple to schedule a Monday product event. Typically, Apple events take place on Tuesday (or Wednesday if there's a Monday holiday like Labor Day in the U.S.) Our guess is that Apple is holding this year's event on Monday in order to avoid sharing the news cycle with the U.S. presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump on Tuesday, September 10.
iPhone 16 release date: When will iPhones go on sale
After Apple wraps up its iPhone launch event, there are two dates to keep in mind — when iPhone preorders begin and when the phones themselves actually go on sale.
Usually, Apple starts taking pre-orders on the Friday immediately after ifs launch event. If it sticks to that pattern this year, iPhone 16 pre-orders would start Friday, September 13.
As for the actual release date, a look at past iPhone releases going back for a decade reveals a noticeable pattern to when new phones go on sale.
With few exceptions, once Apple announces a phone, it's generally on sale within about 10 days, with Apple once again favoring Friday release dates. If we assume Apple doesn't deviate from that pattern with the iPhone 16, you'd expect a September 20 release date for the phones. Indeed, MacRumors is reporting a September 20 release date for the iPhone 16 following Apple's September 9 announcement. That date also appears in a Bloomberg report.
For a dissenting voice, a German blog claims that everything's moving back a day because Apple's September 9 event is on a Monday and not a Tuesday. That would mean pre-orders going live on September 12 and the phones hitting stores on September 19. We don't put too much stock into this claim, given Apple's preference for Friday releases.
Apple has also announced the grand opening of a new Apple Store near Stockholm, in Sweden, scheduled for September 20. While it doesn't prove anything, it makes very little sense for Apple to open a brand new retail store the day after releasing its biggest product of the year.
There's one exception to Apple's usual release pattern that we should make note of — sometimes Apple staggers its phone releases, putting out different models on different days. Usually, this happens when supplies are limited for its new phones. Since 2015, there have been four times where Apple has had to stagger the releases of some phones.
With the iPhone 16 Pro display expected to grow to 6.3 inches while the iPhone 16 Pro Max screen increases to 6.9 inches, that could be relevant for this year's release, though we haven't heard anything about supply chain issues possibly staggering the release of the four phones in the iPhone 16 lineup. For now, we're going to assume the September 20 time frame remains in play for all four new models.
iOS 18 release date
One other upcoming release date impacts all iPhone owners, not just those planning an iPhone 16 upgrade. The iOS 18 software update is set to arrive this month, and since it's the software that's included with Apple's new phones, you'd imagine that the full version will be ready to download before the iPhone 16 models arrive in stores.
Traditionally, Apple likes to leave a fair amount of space between its iOS and iPhone releases, so that its servers aren't flooded with people downloading software and registering new devices. To that end, you'd imagine the Monday before the iPhone arrives in stores would be the ideal time for an iOS release. In the case of the iPhone 16, that would mean an iOS 18 download would be available around Monday, September 16.
iOS 18 introduces new customization tools like the ability to alter the look of your home screen and personalize the Control Center. Photos gets a redesign in iOS 18, and there are new Messages tools as well. iOS 18 introduces a new Password app among the many features to try first when you download the update.
Some of the biggest changes won't be available when iOS 18 ships, though. Those are the Apple Intelligence features that bring more AI capabilities to Apple's phones. Expect those as part of the iOS 18.1 update later this year, with only the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max among current phones able to run Apple Intelligence. The iPhone 16 models are all expected to support Apple Intelligence features, though.
iPhone 16 release date: Outlook
Back when we started speculating about iPhone 16 launch dates, we guessed that Apple would settle on a September 10 date for its event. It turns out we were wrong by a day. Things could certainly change with the iPhone 16 release date, but we're fairly confident that the September 20 date will remain in place.
You can gear up for Apple's event by brushing up on all the iPhone 16 rumors, including rumors specifically about the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max. We also look at what might happen to iPhone 15 prices once the new phones arrive.
