When Is The Best Time To Buy A New iPhone? (And The Worst!)

Here’s what you need to know about the best time to buy an iPhone.

If your phone could do with an upgrade, buying a new iPhone can be a bit overwhelming nowadays as there are so many different models out there. You’re probably wondering if now is the best time to buy an iPhone.

iPhones aren’t cheap, but there are certain times of the year when buying a new iPhone will be significantly cheaper, helping you to save some serious cash on your new phone. So we’ll answer all your questions on getting the best deal and price on a new phone. 

But if you want to step away from the iPhone race and pick up a different pace, we’ve also got some of the best dumb phones you can get.

Last updated: 12th December 2024

In this article:

• When is the best time to buy an iPhone?
• Should I buy a refurbished iPhone?
• When is the worst time to buy an iPhone?
• When do iPhone prices drop?

When is the best time to buy an iPhone?

Let’s make no mistake, iPhones don’t come cheap. With the latest iPhone 16 Plus available from £899 (with the iPhone Pro Max starting at a whopping £1199!) it’s no wonder people are always trying to find the best deals and cheapest times to buy.  

There are lots of ways you can get a good deal, but generally speaking the best time to get a discounted model is after September. This is when they release the latest model, so you’ll often find prices drop on older models. Not to mention, Black Friday, Christmas and January sales all mean that you can find discounted iPhones. Amazon Prime Day sales are also a fantastic opportunity to score a bargain.

Some deals we’ve found on older models both upfront and contract costs include:

• Currys – iPhone 14 128GB model – was £599, now £549
• Argos – iPhone 15 128GB model – £679
• EE – iPhone 14 128GB model – from £40 a month
• Tesco – iPhone 15 128GB model – from £33.49 a month

If you’re someone that HAS to have the latest model, then September until early summer will be your best bet. Not to mention that with Christmas and other winter sales, there will be lots of opportunities to get an iPhone for much cheaper. You probably won’t be able to find the latest models discounted so soon after their launch, but you’ll be able to catch discounts on older generations. 

If you do want to purchase a new iPhone at any other time of the year, it’s best to check out what deals and discounts you can get from retailers such as EE, Apple and Amazon to help you save on both your phone plan and your new phone.

Should I buy a refurbished iPhone?

Places like Back Market are becoming more popular, with options of buying professionally refurbished phones at a much lower price. This is a great option if you want a newer handset but can’t afford the high upfront cost. Not to mention a brilliant student discount at Back Market too. Apple do their own certified refurbished products too, so if you prefer to buy direct from them, then it’s an option. As a student, you’ll be able to get up to 15% off refurbished Apple products too.

Some of the best refurbished prices we’ve found, at time of writing, are:

• Back Market – iPhone 15 128GB – was £699 now £551
• Back Market – iPhone 16 128GB – was £799 now £747
• Apple – iPhone 14 128GB – was £599 now £509

When is the worst time to buy an iPhone?

Apple releases their new iPhone models for the year every September. So you can expect all the new phones in stores by October.

So naturally, this makes July, August and early September the worst months to buy a new iPhone. Once the new models have been announced and released, the price of previous-generation iPhones will drop. So if you buy one in August you’ll most likely be paying its original retail price. But if you waited until October you could see a big reduction in price.

Apple has been known to drop the price of older models by up to £100 in the months after a new launch is released. So if you can hold on until the latest model is launched, then you could find yourself £100 richer than if you buy an iPhone in August. 

For the last few years, there haven’t been huge differences between different iPhone generations. As all recent iPhones can run the latest OS and benefit from the same system updates, many people have opted to buy older generation iPhones such as the 13 or 14 range, rather than diving straight into the latest 15 and 16 lineup.

So, if you are considering buying a new iPhone and you’re not too fussed about getting the newest model, then you’ll probably want to wait until the end of the year.You can get an iPhone 14 with 128GB for £549 at Currys or even an iPhone 13 for £449. Just make sure you use our Currys student discounts for extra deals and money off! Download the Student Beans app for all the latest discounts on your favourite brands.

When do iPhone prices drop?

You can expect to find iPhones drop in price all around Black Friday and January sales. Plus many shops will already have discounts on some of the older models. So make sure you shop around for the best deal. It can definitely be worth your while going for a slightly older model to score a cheaper price.

January sales are a great time to get a good deal on iPhones. Plus it means you’ll be able to download all the best study apps in time for your January exams.

Luckily, here at Student Beans, we have plenty of great phone and tech deals to help you save some cash. If you download the app, you’ll be able to save your favourite brands like Apple and Back Market, so you’ll always be notified when they drop a new deal.