6 Apple Products the Middle Class Can’t Afford

Using the Pew Research Center’s definition of “middle class,” you’d need to earn anywhere from two-thirds to double your area’s median household income. In Alabama, that’d be between $39,739 and $119,218 a year . In Maryland, it’d be $65,640 to $196,922 a year.

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Although there’s quite a range, one thing’s for sure: Some things — including many Apple products — are just unaffordable, even for middle-class households.

It’s fun to have the latest tech, but if you’re in the middle class, you might not be able to afford these Apple products (even if you get their baseline prices without the upgrades or add-ons).

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iPhone 15 Pro Max

Price: $1,199 (base price)

There are two main versions of the iPhone 15 Pro :

• Base model with its 6.1-inch display
• iPhone 15 Pro Max with its 6.7-inch display

You can get the Max version on Apple’s website. You can also customize the color and storage, as well as decide which carrier you want to use. Plus, you can add AppleCare+ coverage to your device.

If you go with the Max model and upgrade to 1TB of storage and two years of coverage with AppleCare+ (with theft and loss protection), the total cost would be about $1,868.

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iPad Pro (13-inch)

Price: $1,299 (base price)

This device ‘s base price might not seem too bad, but it can get pretty expensive when upgraded.

It comes with a powerful ultra-retina XDR display and is available in either 11 or 13 inches. With both of these, you can choose your preferred color finish (silver or black) and select your desired storage ranging from 256GB to 2TB.

If you choose the larger product with extra storage and other upgrades like nano-texture glass, a magic keyboard for iPad Pro, and AppleCare+, it will cost $3,246.

Apple Watch Series 9 Stainless Steel Version

Price: $699 (base price)

Two versions of the Apple Watch Series 9 exist: aluminum and stainless steel. The latter is more expensive and comes with built-in GPS. If you choose to customize it, you could end up spending closer to $1,228.

15-Inch MacBook Air (M3 Chip)

Price: $1,299 (base price)

At its base price, the MacBook Air isn’t super expensive. The 13-inch version, which comes with an M2 chip, is just under $1,000. The newer model is a few hundred dollars more. But when you upgrade it, you could be looking at spending nearly $3,000 — that’s enough to get you a decent desktop computer.

Here’s what you’d get for the more expensive price: 2TB SSD storage, Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, and 24GB unified memory. If you don’t need these upgrades, you might want to stick with the original model, which features an 8-Core CPU, 10-Core GPU, 16GB unified memory, and 512GB SSD for storage. It also has other nice features like a 1080p FaceTime HD camera and Magic Keyboard with Touch ID.

AirPods Max

Price: $549 (base price)

AirPods Max come in five colors, including gray, silver, green, pink, and sky blue. They also feature active noise cancelation, transparency mode, and have up to 20 hours of playtime before needing a recharge. You can even get a free engraving on them, which makes them a great personalized gift.

The reason they make this list is simply because they’re so expensive. If you need a decent pair of headphones, you could shave off a couple of hundred dollars by going with a non-Apple product.

Apple Vision Pro

Price: $3,499 (base price)

The Apple Vision Pro is a virtual reality headset that lets you do everything from watching movies and listening to music to playing games and using different apps. It’s on the more expensive side, however.

Upgrading it puts it at an even higher price point. For example, if you add on the ZEISS Optical Inserts (a prescription option), 1TB of storage, and AppleCare+, the total cost would be over $4,500.

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com : 6 Apple Products the Middle Class Can’t Afford