Apple obviously knows, and perhaps some of its retail staff have at least a clue, but for the rest of us, here's the best estimate of when the iPhone 18 Pro will be announced. No question, it'll be in September. Apple has held its iPhone launches in October, but since 2011 the only time it has done that was during COVID.

The question is when in September we'll find out the all-important updates and, more than ever this time, the all-important prices. Not to drag this out, the smart money says Wednesday, September 9, 2026. That's the most probable date that has been recently rumored. It's in the first full week of September 2026, which is also when Labor Day is. Since 2011 when Apple moved its iPhone launches away from their original announcements in June, the unveiling has been close to Labor Day three times. In 2015, 2016, and 2022, and each time Apple has made its announcements on the following Wednesday.

Enough guessing. Despite occasional leaks, we obviously won't know for certain when the iPhone launch is until Apple announces the date. But the company has form on even those invitations, too. From the iPhone 14 onwards, Apple has consistently issued invitations two weeks to the day before the event. That means it is now always during the last week of August that it reveals the date. Expect the 2026 invitation and event date to be announced on Wednesday, August 26. Expect the event to be on Wednesday, September 9, 2026.

Which just leaves the question of when the new iPhones will be available to pre-order. Typically that happens on the Friday immediately following the event, and that won't be changed because of the unveiling being on a Wednesday instead of a Tuesday. It might be changed because the Friday is September 11. Apple has avoided doing anything on that date since the World Trade Centers were destroyed on September 11, 2001. For the first time since COVID, though, there are likely to be delays in production due to the global chip shortage. Apple is also strongly rumored to split its iPhone launch for the first time, with the regular iPhone 18 possibly launching in the Spring.