We’ve all been there. You decide to pick up a shiny new device so you go to the stores and return home with your expensive purchase; Everything is going well with the world. Then a week later a newer, better version is released and you are back wondering if you have wasted your money.
In this article we show how to avoid this trauma by explaining when it is the best time to buy an iPad.
If you are struggling to decide which one is the right device for you, you should also look at our iPad purchasing guide.
When is the best time to buy an iPad?
It’s not that easy to say when the best time to buy an iPad is because there is no clear schedule for when Apple will update any of the iPad models. Since Apple does not tend to update iPads as regularly as it does iPhones and Apple Watch, you may be reasonable. I condition that iPad is less than a year and a half old, it’s probably not being updated.
Safe in knowledge that an update is not coming soon, you may wonder if the price can change. Instead of waiting for Apple to fall the price, which happens very rarely, our recommendation would be to look for offers from retailers. We see offers throughout the year, but the best tends to happen during Amazon Prime Day (July by October) or Black Friday (November).
The best time to buy an iPad is not necessarily when a new model is launched. If you wait a month or two, you may be able to take advantage of sales and price declines from dealers. During October and November, we see lots of sales events, such as Amazon Prime Day and Black Friday, and you can expect to get some money at these events. Apple discounts do not not have its products in its own stores, but it offers coupons with new purchases from time to time – and Black Friday is one of these times. For advice on where To buy, read our Roundup of the best iPad offers.
How often is iPad updated?
Life would be a little easier for the iPad fan base if you could always rely on the latest update to your favorite model that appears in September, as is the case with iPhone. Instead, Apple updates its iPads in a less predictable schedule where new models tend to appear around September/October or April, and often with a gap of two or more years between updates.
Here is a list of iPads for sale today and when they were last updated:
- iPad (A16): March 2025
- iPad Air (M3): March 2025
- iPad Mini (A17 Pro): October 2024
- iPad Pro (M4): March 2024
When is Apple launching new iPads?
The next update is probably iPad Pro later in 2025. It is expected that the iPad Pro will get an M5 chip in September or October 2025.
Is now a good time to buy an iPad?
Here is our collapse of the four types of iPad that Apple is currently selling, and in both cases whether you should buy now or wait.
iPad (A16, 2025): Buy now or wait?
Buy (but consider an alternative)
- Last Updated: March 2025
- Is now a good time to buy? Yes. But remember, there are Apple Intelligence features that you don’t get now or in the future, so another iPad can be a better choice.
The current 10-inch iPad arrived in March 2025.
This is the cheapest iPad with a starting price of $ 349/£ 329, and as such it is a easy model to recommend to those who are not interested in the latest flashy innovations and instead want a reliable, medium -sized tablet in fun colors for general use.
However, if size is not important, you may feel better with the smaller iPad Mini starting at $ 499/£ 499. Another reason for choosing the iPad Mini or iPad Air is that the standard iPad does not support Apple Intelligence, which may mean to miss features coming to iPad in the future.
iPad Mini (A17 Pro, 2024): Buy now or Wait?
BUY
- Last Updated: October 2024
- Is now a good time to buy? Yes. We do not expect an update before 2026 or later.
As we mentioned above, the 2024 iPad Mini now offers 128 GB of entry -level storage rather than a muggy 64 GB. This is a specific point in favor of its advantage. In addition, the 2024 model has a chip compatible with Apple Intelligence features, so it will be nicely future-proofed for a while (and it will probably be a few years until Apple updates it).
There is a choice of color settings that are on the iPad and iPad Air. The iPad Mini has light blue, purple and starlight as opposed to the bold color choices on the air and standard iPad.
Read our full Apple iPad Mini (A17 Pro) Review
iPad Air (M3, 2025): Buy now or wait?
BUY
- Last Updated: March 2025
- Is now a good time to buy? Yes. We do not expect an update before 2026 or later.
IPad Air with M3 chip is a great machine at a relatively affordable price. It has some competition from the iPad Pro (which has a more meatful M4 chip) and it is no longer the thin, easy deal it was now that the iPad Pro is just as slim.
Like the iPad Pro iPad Air now comes in two sizes, so you can choose either an 11-inch or 14-inch screen. However, it is iPad Air that has the fun color palette, available in blue, pink, yellow or silver, while Pro has a more professional color scheme.
iPad Pro (M4, 2024): Buy now or wait?
BUY
- Last Updated: March 2024
- Is now a good time to buy? Yes. The iPad Pro is likely to get an M5 chip later in 2025, but we don’t think it’s a reason to wait.
Like the flagships of Apple’s tablet series, the iPad Pro 11-inch and 14-inch are very desirable devices that boast incredible levels of performance. However, these features do not come cheap.
There is assumed to be a new iPad Pro that will come later in 2025, but this will only be a chip upgrade from M4 to M5 and the M4 is plenty of good enough.
Read our full Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (M4, 2024) Review