As of 25 September 2026
Same Apple.
Different offer in the EU and the US.
Apple sells the same iPhone on both sides of the Atlantic, but not the same experience. Some features never cross the ocean, some arrive late, some depend on which EU country you live in, and a few exist only in Europe. Pick your country to see what applies to you.
The big picture
It is not one-directional.
The US gets the newest AI, the richest subscription bundle and every satellite service. The EU gets app-store freedom, stronger consumer rights, a SIM tray, and blood-oxygen readings on the wrist. And a surprising amount depends on which member state, and which language, you use.
Feature by feature
The scorecard.
Every difference we could document, side by side. Filter by who comes out ahead, search, and expand a row for the details and Apple's own source.
Inside the EU
Which EU? It depends on the country.
There is no single "European version" of Apple. Fitness+ is sold in 12 member states, satellite SOS works in 10, the top Apple One tier exists in 7, Vision Pro in 2. Pick a feature to light up the map, or click a country to make it yours.
Apple Intelligence & Siri
Late, then partial, then late again.
Apple Intelligence reached EU iPhones five months after the US. The new Siri AI, rolling out in the US since 14 September 2026, is explicitly withheld from EU iPhones, iPads and Watches. And whether any of it works in your language is a separate question.
What EU iPhones have
Writing Tools, Genmoji, Image Playground, Clean Up, notification and mail summaries, Visual Intelligence, ChatGPT integration, Live Translation in Messages, calls and AirPods. All since iOS 18.4 (31 March 2025) or later.
What EU iPhones lack
Siri AI (personal context, onscreen awareness, app actions, Write with Siri, Siri mode in Camera), iPhone Mirroring on Mac, and built-in call recording. For Siri AI and Mirroring, Apple cites the Digital Markets Act and the Commission says the law does not prohibit launching them; for call recording Apple gives no reason.
The language rule
Device language and Siri language must be the same supported language. Apple Intelligence supports 9 of the EU's 24 official languages. Speakers of the others must run their iPhone in another language to use any of it.
How the gap evolved
Does it work in your language?
Apple gates many features by language rather than by country. Choose a language to see which features support it. Countries pre-select their official languages.
Apple Intelligence support across the 24 official EU languages
Subscriptions & media
The bundle is bigger in America.
Apple One Individual and Family are the same four services everywhere. The difference is at the top: the US Premier tier adds Fitness+, News+ and 2 TB. Seven EU countries get a five-service Premium without News+. The rest get no top tier at all, or publish no plan page.
Which Apple One tiers you can buy, country by country
The tiers advertised on each country's Apple One page and what the top one adds. Eleven member states have no Apple One page on apple.com at all, although Apple's services register lists Apple One as available in all but Croatia and Romania.
Three things Europeans cannot buy at all
Apple News+
Sold only in the US, UK, Canada and Australia. No EU member state is on the list, and using English does not change that. In the US it is $12.99 a month for 500+ publications, narrated articles and puzzles.
Formula 1 on Apple TV
Every 2026 race, practice, qualifying and Sprint session is included for US Apple TV subscribers, together with F1 TV Premium. Those are US rights only. MLS, by contrast, is included with Apple TV in supported markets since 2026, EU countries among them.
No Fitness+ in 15 member states
Fitness+ is sold in 12 EU countries and absent from 15, including Denmark, Czechia, Greece and Hungary. Workouts are in English with subtitles in seven languages, English included, and selected sessions dubbed in German, Spanish and Japanese.
Apps & platform freedoms
The DMA dividend.
Starting with iOS 17.4 in March 2024, the Digital Markets Act has given EU iPhones what US iPhones do not have: apps from outside the App Store, browsers that are not WebKit underneath, and the option to delete Safari. Japan and Brazil have since gained some of the same. The DMA is also the reason Apple gives for withholding some features.
Hardware, buying & support
Same iPhone, different radios, different price tag.
The EU iPhone 18 Pro keeps a physical SIM tray. The US model is eSIM-only, carries a larger battery (4,288 mAh against 4,056 mAh on the Pro, two more hours of rated video playback) and adds mmWave 5G. Apple's EU prices include VAT, the US price does not include sales tax, and the exchange rate decides who really pays more.
Satellite: four services, four lists
Emergency SOS via satellite covers 10 EU countries and follows where you physically are, and Find My via satellite on iPhone follows the same list. Messages via satellite and Roadside Assistance via satellite have no EU country on their lists.
Wallet is where the US pulls ahead
Apple Pay and Tap to Pay are available across all 27 member states through participating banks and payment providers. Apple Cash, Apple Card and the Savings account require US residency; driver's licences in Wallet and the passport-based Digital ID need a US-issued ID and a US device region.
Vision Pro, AppleCare One, Apple Upgrade
Vision Pro is sold in France and Germany only. AppleCare One's multi-device plan exists in France and Germany; the Family plan and the Klarna-backed Apple Upgrade lease are US-only.
Consumer rights
Where the EU customer is better protected.
Two years, by law
EU purchases from professional sellers carry a minimum two-year legal guarantee against faulty goods; some countries go further. Apple's own limited warranty is one year in both regions. The legal guarantee is a claim against the seller, separate from AppleCare.
A SIM tray and a choice of engine
EU iPhone 18 Pro models keep a nano-SIM slot alongside eSIM, at the cost of the extra battery the eSIM-only US model gets (232 mAh on the Pro, 176 mAh on the Pro Max). EU browsers may use engines other than WebKit. EU users can delete Safari, Messages, Camera and the App Store, and pick more default apps.
Blood Oxygen on the wrist
A rare hardware feature that is better in Europe: Apple Watches bought in the US since 18 January 2024 (part numbers ending LW/A or LS/A) route blood-oxygen analysis through the iPhone. EU-bought Watches measure and show it on the Watch itself. Apple Watch SE has no blood-oxygen sensor anywhere.
Method & sources
How to read this.
Everything here is taken from Apple's own published pages, accessed on 25 September 2026, plus the European Commission for the legal position, the European Central Bank for exchange rates and the Tax Foundation for US sales tax. It records what Apple publishes, not device tests.
"Unavailable" versus "not listed"
"Explicitly unavailable" means Apple states a restriction. "Not listed" means a country or language is missing from Apple's availability page. A localised marketing page alone does not establish eligibility, and a capability existing for developers does not mean every bank, browser or accessory has implemented it.
Eight variables that change the answer
Device language, Siri language, device region, Apple Account country, physical location, content language, hardware and OS version, and the provider (bank, carrier, transit operator). Two people in the same city can get different results.
Prices
Advertised standard prices in local currency. EU prices include VAT. US prices exclude sales tax, which depends on the delivery address; the iPhone chart adds the combined state and average local rate for a state you choose (Tax Foundation, July 2026), defaulting to the population-weighted US average of 7.53%. US subscription prices use the same state selector, with the caveat that whether digital subscriptions are taxed at all varies by state. A further switch removes VAT and sales tax on both sides. Prices are shown in local currency by default; a "Show prices in €" switch adds approximate euro figures converted at the European Central Bank's average daily reference rates over the twelve months to 24 September 2026. The iPhone chart's bars always use that conversion so every country fits one axis, and the US dollar rate can be adjusted there.
Known uncertainties
Apple's media register lists the Apple TV subscription in Croatia and Romania while its iOS feature table omits them; the site follows the register. Vision Pro's country list comes from a 2025 newsroom footnote. Nine EU countries list Apple One but publish no plan page, so their tiers are unverified, and two do not list it. The eSIM-only battery capacities come from a teardown, not from Apple. Apple's October 2026 EU app terms and extra Siri AI languages should be rechecked once in force.