The US has the lowest price, and a model with no SIM tray.

Apple sells the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max under one name, but the price and the phone you get both depend on where you buy it. Each version has its own model numbers and its own list of mobile frequency bands, which decides whether it takes a physical SIM card and whether it works fully with your carrier at home.

It matters most if you buy abroad, import a phone, or buy one second-hand. The name on the box is the same everywhere; the hardware inside may not be.

Why these markets? They are the 8 we read for every product: the United States, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany, each from Apple's own pages on the same day. Between them they turn up 4 versions of the iPhone 18 Pro.

Converted to US dollars at rates from 12 September 2026, the 256GB iPhone 18 Pro costs the least in the United States, at USD 1,199, and the most in Germany, at EUR 1,449 or about USD 1,681. Treat that gap with care. Tax is excluded from the price in the United States, included in China, Taiwan and Germany, and not stated in Hong Kong, Japan, Australia and the United Kingdom. Each card below lists every storage size in local currency with its tax label, and the currency menu at the top of the page can convert them.

The US and Japanese versions are eSIM only, with no SIM tray; the versions sold in the other 6 markets still take a nano-SIM. One phone covers 5 markets: Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany. China's version is that phone without band 53. Japan's version has every 5G band the US one has apart from mmWave, including three low-frequency bands most markets lack (n14, n29 and n71), plus two LTE bands the US one lacks (11 and 21). mmWave 5G itself is on the US version only.

Pick the market you live in as A and the one you might buy in as B. The comparison lists only what differs between the two: SIM, mmWave 5G, model numbers, part-number suffix, price, and every 5G and LTE band gained or lost. If B's version lacks a band, ask your carrier at home whether it uses that band.

The US price looks lowest, but it excludes sales tax while several other markets include it, so the gap to those markets is smaller than it looks.

If you rely on physical SIM cards, at home or when you travel, avoid the US and Japanese versions: neither has a SIM tray. The versions sold in the other 6 markets all do.

If you are choosing between Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia, the United Kingdom and Germany, the cellular hardware is identical, so decide on price and where you want after-sales service. China's version is the same phone without band 53; if you plan to use one outside China, check that your carrier does not rely on band 53.

If you live in the United States and want mmWave 5G, buy the US version: no other has it. mmWave only helps where your carrier offers it.