With the launch of the new iPhone 17 Pro (256 GB) priced at around 860,000 tenge, buying an iPhone has once again become a kind of symbol of social status and personal wealth in Kazakhstan.
As the country’s economy continues shifting toward digitalization and certain sectors see rising incomes, the gap in access to premium gadgets across regions and industries remains wide.
According to the National Bank of Kazakhstan, ordinary citizens actively use credit to purchase goods and services — including expensive gadgets. As of August 2025, the total volume of bank lending reached over 38 trillion tenge, with 62% of loans taken by individuals for non-business purposes. This trend puts both banks and the broader economy in a vulnerable position.
The Bureau of National Statistics reports that the average monthly salary in 2024 was 384,266 tenge. This means that an average Kazakhstani would need to save 2.24 months of salary — without any other spending — to afford a new iPhone 17 Pro.
iPhone Affordability by Industry
Only employees working in IT, finance, and the extractive industries can afford to buy an iPhone 17 Pro without taking out a loan. For most other workers, it represents two to three months’ worth of income.
iPhone Affordability by Region
The highest salaries are found in Atyrau, Mangystau, and Ulytau, where the economy is driven by the oil and mining industries — in these regions, an iPhone equals roughly 1.5 monthly salaries.
Residents of Almaty and Astana are approaching affordability levels similar to developed countries, with the device costing around 1.8 months of income.
Meanwhile, in southern and northern regions like Zhetysu, Turkestan, and North Kazakhstan, the average person would need to save more than three monthly salaries to buy the same phone.
The affordability of the iPhone 17 Pro in Kazakhstan reflects the country’s growing economic divide:
- IT, finance, oil and gas sectors, as well as residents of Astana and Almaty, can afford the phone within one to two months of work;
- Rural and low-income regions can only afford it through installment payments or credit;
- On average, a Kazakh citizen must work 2 to 2.5 months to purchase the new smartphone.
Yerlan Karimov, independent expert, specifically for www.economyKZ.org
