Apple’s Device-Leasing Plan Skips Canada—for Now
Matthew Leo · Published July 29, 2026 · Gadgets
Apple has begun treating its hardware more like a leased car—but Canadians are currently watching from the other side of the border.
On July 28, Apple launched Apple Upgrade, a Klarna-powered leasing programme covering eligible iPhones, Apple Watches, Macs and iPads. It is available through Apple’s website, application and retail stores in the United States.
Apple has not announced Canadian availability.
What Apple Upgrade offers
American customers can select 12- or 24-month leases for eligible iPhones and Apple Watches. Macs and iPads come with 24- or 36-month options.
Advertised monthly prices begin at:
- $17.99 for an iPhone
- $11.99 for an Apple Watch
- $24.99 for a Mac
- $11.99 for an iPad
These are starting prices in U.S. dollars, not the cost of every model.
Klarna performs a soft credit inquiry during the application. At the end of the lease, customers can return the device, upgrade to another one or make a one-time payment to buy the device.
Reuters confirmed the programme’s launch and terms. Apple is also replacing its previous U.S. iPhone Upgrade Program and iPhone Payments offering with the new system.
A smaller payment does not mean a cheaper device
The headline monthly amounts are effective marketing because they remove the most painful number: the full price.
A lease payment covers the right to use a device during the agreement. Ownership requires an additional payment at the end. The real comparison therefore needs four numbers:
- Total lease payments
- Any trade-in value surrendered at the beginning
- The end-of-term purchase amount
- Protection, damage or return costs
Apple’s announcement does not provide one universal final cost because pricing varies by device, lease length, trade-in and the decision made at the end.
Someone who upgrades frequently may value a predictable exit. Someone who normally keeps a phone for four or five years may spend less by buying it and using it long after the payments stop.
What Canadians currently receive
Apple Canada currently advertises monthly financing through Affirm, not Apple Upgrade.
Its published example shows a C$1,099 purchase financed over 24 months at a 7.99% credit rate:
- Monthly payment: C$49.70
- Interest charges: C$93.79
- Total repayment: C$1,192.79
That example is not a quote for every Canadian customer or device. It does demonstrate something Apple’s U.S. leasing advertisements can hide: the difference between the monthly payment and the complete financial obligation.
Mapletechie previously examined how monthly financing makes expensive phones appear more affordable. Leasing pushes that logic further by lowering the payment while separating it from automatic ownership.
Canada may be attractive—but nothing is confirmed
Canadian carriers already use device-return programmes extensively. Customers make reduced monthly payments and either return the phone or pay a deferred amount to keep it.
That makes Canada a plausible market for Apple Upgrade. Plausible is not confirmed.
Until Apple announces Canadian terms, prices or a launch date, nobody should convert the American starting prices into Canadian dollars and treat the result as a coming offer.
Read the end of the agreement first
If Apple Upgrade reaches Canada, the most important number will not be printed in the largest type.
Before signing, buyers should check:
- What they will pay across the entire lease
- How much it costs to keep the device
- What condition the returned hardware must be in
- Who pays after loss, theft or serious damage
- Whether early upgrades carry additional costs
- Whether AppleCare is included or separate
Apple Upgrade may give customers useful flexibility. It may also normalize paying perpetually for devices that are never fully owned.
Low monthly payments are not automatically bad. They are simply very good at making the total price whisper.