---
title: "Apple R&D spending climbs 32 per cent to record $45.77 billion"
description: "Apple spent a record $45.77 billion on research and development in fiscal 2026, 32 per cent more than a year earlier, according to its own financial statements."
url: https://mactoreality.com/apple-rd-spending-climbs-32-per-cent-to-record-45-77-billion
published: 2026-11-03T19:42:17Z
updated: 2026-11-03T19:42:17Z
author: "Mac to Reality Newsdesk"
category: Rumours
tags: ["Apple Intelligence & Siri","Business & leadership"]
publisher: Mac to Reality
ai_assisted: true
apple_heat_impact: 0
---

# Apple R&D spending climbs 32 per cent to record $45.77 billion

*Apple spent a record $45.77 billion on research and development in fiscal 2026, 32 per cent more than a year earlier, according to its own financial statements.*

**Key points**

- Apple's fiscal 2026 R&D spending was a record $45.77 billion, up 32 per cent from $34.55 billion in fiscal 2025.
- September-quarter R&D was $11.73 billion, up 32 per cent from $8.87 billion a year earlier.
- R&D was about 9.6 per cent of annual net sales of $478.83 billion, against about 8.3 per cent in fiscal 2025.

Apple spent a record $45.77 billion on research and development in its 2026 fiscal year, according to the financial statements published alongside its fourth-quarter results on 2 November. That is 32 per cent more than the $34.55 billion it spent in fiscal 2025.

In the September quarter alone, R&D spending was $11.73 billion, up from $8.87 billion a year earlier, also an increase of 32 per cent.

Over the full year, R&D was about 9.6 per cent of Apple’s $478.83 billion in net sales, compared with about 8.3 per cent the year before. Apple’s statements do not say how much of the increase relates to AI work, and the company has not given a forecast for R&D spending in fiscal 2027.

For the wider picture, see our report on Apple’s record $114.5 billion September quarter.

## Sources

- [Apple: Condensed consolidated financial statements, fiscal 2026 Q4](https://www.apple.com/newsroom/pdfs/fy2026q4/FY26_Q4_Consolidated_Financial_Statements.pdf)

*This report was written by the Mac to Reality newsdesk with AI assistance from the sources listed above, under the editorial policy at https://mactoreality.com/editorial-policy.*