After Apple recently unveiled the iPhone 14 series, the brand’s fans in the Philippines sat up and took note of the new releases’ features — and their rather steep price tag. The base model of the iPhone 14 Pro costs an eye-watering PHP70,990 (US$1,249.85), which is even more expensive than the most premium model from Oppo (which has the largest share of the mobile market in the Philippines at 18.63 percent).
While that price may not be a problem for a few rich Pinoys, how long would it take an average Filipino to save up enough to afford one? According to a study by the analytics team at discount aggregator site Picodi, it would take exactly 90.9 days — or a little over 3 months.
The study examined nearly 50 countries across the world, comparing local iPhone prices with the average income of each nation. The index pegs the average salary in the Philippines at PHP16,401 (US$288.78) per month, which is based on data from statistics site Numbeo,
If the idea of working over 90 days just to afford a mobile phone is depressing (and that’s assuming you’re saving up 100 percent of your paycheck), perhaps you’ll find solace in the fact that we’re not alone. The Philippines actually came in second on the index to Turkey, where the average citizen would need to work 146.7 days to buy the latest iPhone. Who knew?
If the new iPhone’s price is too much for you to handle but you’re still desperate to show one off for the clout, you could always take a page from Indonesia and and rent one instead.
