The best iPhone Air plans in Australia (January 2026)

Among Apple's newest iPhones, the thin and light iPhone Air arguably took the spotlight away from the iPhone 17 and the 17 Pro and Pro Max, even after all three had their own notable upgrades and even design changes.

So much so that even us here at TechRadar named it the Phone of the Year in 2025, with our reviewer raving about its "impossibly" slim form factor, powerful processor and its ultra-durable build quality.

But while the iPhone Air was the most talked about new iPhone, it hasn’t quite sold as well as the other iPhones, given its comparatively high RRP of AU$1,799 for the 256GB model and the technical compromises made to achieve the slim form factor.

Thankfully for those who have held off on buying a new iPhone, the iPhone Air has seen the biggest discounts following the Boxing Day 2025 sales with retailers selling the handset from AU$1,497. Some are still selling it for that price, including Amazon and The Good Guys.

But the best price we’ve seen is from a telco, with Vodafone chopping off AU$600 of the RRP (or 33%) to AU$1,198.80 – a full AU$200 less than the base iPhone 17 (AU$1,398.96).

Even with the discount, we still believe the iPhone 17 is the best-value Apple handset and the best iPhone for most people, and the Pro models are for those who want the best cameras and battery. What the iPhone Air offers, however, is a slimmer design and portability.

Buying the iPhone Air outright from other retailers and paired with one of our best SIM-only plans can still provide some savings over the long term depending on the plan, but unless someone else matches the Vodafone offer, we’d still recommend that option.

In our iPhone Air review, we called it "the sexiest iPhone" – and it boasts the same processor as the 17 Pro. If you've fallen in love with its ultra-thin frame, we've found the two best iPhone Air plans for any kind of user.

• Best iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max plans
• Best iPhone 17 plans
• Best iPhone 16e plans
• Best iPhone 16 plans

Best iPhone Air plans: our picks

Best overall iPhone Air plan

iPhone Air (256GB) | Vodafone Small Plan | 60GB data | 24 months | AU$88.95

With this price, the iPhone Air is currently the cheapest iPhone model from the new lineup – from Vodafone or otherwise – and when paired with the Small phone plan, it’s AU$8.34 cheaper than the telco’s iPhone 17 plan (AU$97.29 for the 256GB model). The savings are even more obvious when compared to the launch price, when Vodafone was offering the Air for AU$119.95 p/m with the same plan. As for the plan itself, it works off the 5G Vodafone network and offers unlimited national calls and texts.

Minimum total cost: AU$1,837.80 | Cost over 24 months: AU$2,134.80

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Best premium iPhone Air plan

iPhone Air (256GB) | Vodafone Medium Plan | 200GB | 24 months | AU$98.95 p/m

Got a loved one living abroad that you'd love to call every day? Or, maybe you just need more data. Either way, Vodafone's Medium plan, now discounted by AU$14 p/m, is the deal for you. You get unlimited international calls and texts to select nations, plus a whopping 200GB of data for just AU$49 p/m. You'll also save more by trading in an old device.

Minimum total cost: AU$1,847.80 | Total cost over 24 months is: AU$2374.80

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Compare iPhone Air plans

Want to see how those plans stack up to what other telcos are offering? Here's a quick look at what you'll pay each month for the 256GB iPhone Air, spread over a 24-month contract.

Outright iPhone Air deals

Of all the newest iPhones, the iPhone Air saw the most discounts during the Boxing Day sales, and have even stayed on for some retailers like Amazon and The Good Guys.

Nevertheless, there's plenty of options to choose from and we’ve listed all the top options in the widget below:

iPhone Air Specs comparison

iPhone Air: Key Information

• 6.5 inch – just 5.6mm thick
• A19 Pro chipset and all-day battery
• Single rear 48MP Fusion camera
• 18MP selfie camera with center stage

Everything is new about the iPhone Air. It's the first brand-new flagship iPhone model in three years – replacing the iPhone 17 Plus as the fourth model in the iPhone 17 family at AU$1,799.

As the thinnest phone of all time – beating the rival Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge – the Air sports a new design with a slim, pill-shaped camera bump similar to that of the iPhone 16e. Design-wise, it's a mix between the iPhone 16 Plus and the new iPhone 17 Pro Max. It possesses the same volume rocker, power button, Action Button and Camera Control as the iPhone 17, along with a single USB-C port.

The iPhone Air also boasts what Apple says is its "most durable design yet" – with a titanium frame and Ceramic Shield 2 glass on both the front and back panels. We saw the terrifying way Apple tests the iPhone Air for ourselves, and we can confirm it's slight build doesn't equate to fragility.

It also doesn't make many concessions power-wise for its design. The iPhone Air comes with the new A19 Pro chipset that powers the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max. It's not exactly the same, as it is a 6-core CPU with two performance and four efficiency cores, and lacks the Pro's cooling system. However, we had no issue with its performance in our iPhone Air review – saying it "feels responsive and fast, even with more intense workflows".

It also has a 6.5-inch display that's superior to the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro. This screen features 3000 nits of brightness and ProMotion technology, which provides an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate that adjusts depending on what's on screen.

The big sticking point for the Air, much like Apple's affordable iPhone 16e, is that it only comes with a single 48MP rear camera with 2x 'optical quality' digital zoom.

However, it still offers impressive shots. And, the selfie camera has been upgraded to a new square 18MP sensor with Centre Stage, tracking the user within the frame whether the phone is held horizontally or vertically.

The other reason some will avoid this ultra-thin handset is that it's eSIM-only – meaning you cannot use a physical SIM card with this phone. Luckily, many of the best phone plans and SIM-only plans offer eSIM compatibility.

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