Apple has agreed to pay Samsung higher prices for RAM and NAND storage chips beginning in the first quarter of 2027, according to a report this week that cites an earlier Chinese publication. The deal reportedly sets DRAM at nearly $2 per GB and NAND at $0.33 per GB, representing a 30% to 40% increase versus the prices Apple was paying in the third quarter of 2026.
It is unclear whether the reported agreement will prompt Apple to raise prices on devices such as iPhones, iPads and Macs, or whether the company has already built the higher component costs for early 2027 into its 2026 pricing.
Apple’s chip costs and potential product-price impact
The report links rising memory prices to a shortage driven in part by AI companies building out large data centers, which has pushed up demand for RAM and NAND. Apple has already raised prices on a wide range of its products since June: the company increased prices on all Macs and iPads as well as the Apple TV, HomePod, HomePod mini and Vision Pro, with many of those hikes ranging from $100 to $300. iPhone 18 Pro starting prices in the U.S. are $100 higher than iPhone 17 Pro models, and older iPhone models have also seen price increases.
The report did not state whether Apple will formally pass the additional component costs on to consumers or absorb them in its margins.
