Apple is all but certain to unveil its iPhone 15 line later this year, but the company is yet to reveal when, exactly, these phones will hit the shelves.
That said, we’re confident that Apple will be holding its annual product launch event sometime in September, where we expect to get our first official glimpse at the iPhone 15, iPhone 15 Plus, iPhone 15 Pro, and much-rumored iPhone 15 Ultra.
Below, we’ve made our best guess at the iPhone 15 release date, using both rumors and Apple’s existing track record of iPhone release strategies to inform our prediction.
When will the iPhone 15 be released?
Apple will announce the release date for the iPhone 15 at its annual launch event, which is typically held in September, but the company isn’t likely to share a save-the-date for that event until sometime in August 2023. However, we can use the dates of bygone Apple events to predict when this year’s Apple event might take place, and therefore when the iPhone 15 could hit shelves.
Apple generally picks the first or second week of September for its annual iPhone launches, and usually opts for a Tuesday, though occasionally the company goes for a Wednesday. The 2022 (read: iPhone 14) edition of Apple’s September event fell on September 7, with three of the four iPhone 14 models announced at the time going on sale just over a week later, on September 16 (the iPhone 14 Plus became available on October 7).
That means September 5 or 12 are quite likely launch days for the iPhone 15 in 2023 (both dates are Tuesdays), though September 6 and 13 are possibilities, too. As with the iPhone 14, the shipping dates for the iPhone 15 will probably be just over a week later.
More specifically, based on past form prior to the iPhone 14 launch, the iPhone 15 line will likely go on sale on the Friday of the following week. So, an announcement on September 5 or 6 would likely mean a release date of September 15, while an announcement on September 12 or 13 would probably mean a shipping date of September 22.
For context, these are the on-sale dates for Apple’s previous five iPhones:
- iPhone 14 – September 16, 2022
- iPhone 13 – September 24, 2021
- iPhone 12 – October 23, 2020
- iPhone 11 – September 20, 2019
- iPhone XS – September 21, 2018
It’s worth adding here that, although the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro are shoo-ins for this year’s event, the iPhone 15 Ultra may yet arrive as the iPhone 15 Pro Max, with Apple saving its first Ultra-level iPhone for 2024.
Some leakers purport that to be the case, but there remains a high chance that 2023 will play host to Apple’s first Ultra iPhone, given the amount of leaks we’ve come across regarding the iPhone 15 Ultra.
