Market research firm TD Cowen has revealed the total manufacturing cost (bill of materials) of a 256GB iPhone 16 Pro Max, which includes components, product assembly, and packaging. According to their survey, the total cost to manufacture the 256GB version of the iPhone 16 Pro Max is only $485, nearly one-third of the price tag.
The display and rear cameras turns out to be the most expensive
For context, the iPhone 15 Pro Max costs $453 to make, $32 (or 7%) lower than the iPhone 16 Pro Max. As can be seen from the table, the cameras and the display are one of the most expensive components of the iPhone 16 Pro Max. The back camera setup alone accounts for 16% of the total manufacturing cost of the model. The display panel and touchscreen also cost the same as the rear camera system.
In comparison, the iPhone 15 Pro Max’s back camera setup costs $70, 15% of the total manufacturing cost. This could be due to the 12MP ultrawide having a lower price tag than the 48MP one on the latest Pro Max model.
Interestingly, the much more capable A18 Pro chip on the latest iPhone costs only $5 more than the A17 Pro that runs the predecessor. Memory and storage costs also increased by $5 each. The other improvements such as the larger battery reportedly cost the same – $15.
Notably, the bill of materials cost of the standard iPhone 16 has also increased to $416 from $395 of its predecessor. The company has also listed the iPhone 16 for a $100 higher price tag on its website in the US as compared to the iPhone 15.
Speaking of other aspects, all the iPhone 16 series models come with a new Capture button, which makes the camera more accessible. It is also interesting to see the BOM analysis doesn’t even mention the newly added button while a previous report notes that it may cost users as high as $750 to replace.
As of now, the key selling point of the new devices – Apple Intelligence – is currently only available in beta.
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