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CHART 1 • Number of days’ work to buy an iPhone
I really love this chart, partly because I own this phone, but it also is a really interesting way to put things into context when it comes to the cost of living. For instance, where I live in Switzerland, the iPhone 17 Pro in local prices is equivalent to three average-wage workdays. By comparison, in India, this equates to 160 days.
Of course, there are a lot of factors at play here. For instance, exchange rates and tariffs placed on handsets can make them significantly more expensive. There is also the wide disparity in wages within countries.
Source: Visual Capitalisst
But I picked India because nowadays India produces iPhones. So it’s interesting that manufacturing the iPhone in India hasn’t really had a dramatic impact on the cost of the handset within the country.
Another country I would mention here is Brazil, which is known for its expensive imported goods. In fact, there was a well-known incident where a reporter flew from Sao Paulo to Miami, purchased the latest iPhone, and flew back to Brazil because it was cheaper than buying an iPhone in Brazil. So it’s not just about the disparity in wealth, but can also be due to the cost to do business in some countries.
Paid subscribers get access to the other four charts: the world’s most competitive economies, tightly packed airport traffic, bestselling mobile phones and the steepest car depreciation. Together, they show how systems and purchasing power shape apparently simple rankings.
