Apple’s most powerful iPad models are selling in very surprising ways

1 week ago 8

Apple launched big updates to the iPad Pro and iPad Air back in May, and a new CIRP report offers the first look at their first full quarter of sales. The results are very surprising.

Comparing the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air sales

The M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air launched back in May. There was a lot of pent-up demand for the devices—especially the Pro models.

Initial sales provided a glimpse into trends for the two models, but now CIRP’s latest report covers the quarter ending in September.

Through a full three months of sales, here’s the breakdown of iPad model sales by market share:

iPad Pro: 45%
iPad Air: 13%
iPad: 33%
iPad mini: 9%

Notably, the new iPad mini with A17 Pro had not yet launched during this quarter.

Takeaways from iPad model breakdown

I’m struck by two big takeaways from these numbers:

the iPad Pro is far and away Apple’s most popular model, despite being significantly more expensive than its siblings
the iPad Air doesn’t seem to have attracted as much attention as I expected, despite the addition of a 13-inch model and price increases to the Pro line

This contrast between the Pro and Air lines shows that customers are entirely willing to pay a high premium for the best possible product, even when an almost-as-good version is available at a discount.

I suppose that shouldn’t be entirely surprising, since the same dynamic plays out with iPhone sales every year. From all indications, the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max are selling way better than the standard iPhone 16—despite being closer than ever to feature parity.

Are you surprised by the breakdown of iPad model sales? Why or why not? Let us know in the comments.