Published: 21 October 2026
StartupFeed Quick Take
- Apple India profit up 66% to Rs 5,311 Cr in FY26; revenue up 31.4% to Rs 1,03,853 Cr
- Licence fees up 144% to Rs 10,373.7 Cr, nearly twice the year’s profit
- Samsung India’s profit lead shrank to Rs 1,917 Cr; chip and memory shortages are the next test
Apple India’s net profit rose 66% to Rs 5,311 Cr in FY26, as revenue from operations crossed Rs 1 lakh Cr for the first time.
The Registrar of Companies filing shows revenue reached Rs 1,03,853 Cr, up 31.4% from Rs 79,060 Cr in FY25. A year earlier, revenue had grown 18%.
Profit grew faster than sales. Apple India kept Rs 5.1 out of every Rs 100 it earned, against Rs 4 a year before.
Samsung India still earns more. Its FY26 profit was Rs 7,228.1 Cr, higher than Apple India’s, though it fell 36% from Rs 11,287.5 Cr.
Apple India’s year closed on March 31. Apple’s own June quarter numbers, reported on July 30, set records in every region, India included.
Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, put the quarter this way:
“Apple is proud to report our strongest June quarter ever”
Tim Cook, chief executive, Apple. From Apple’s third quarter results statement, July 30, 2026.
What Apple India Spent to Earn Rs 1 Lakh Cr
Apple India spent Rs 96,224 Cr to earn that revenue, 28% more than the Rs 75,190.7 Cr it spent in FY25.
Buying goods to sell was the biggest cost. That bill came to Rs 78,228.7 Cr, up 21.6% from Rs 64,335.8 Cr.
Sales of those goods brought in Rs 99,068 Cr, up 32.7% from Rs 74,680 Cr. Service work such as AppleCare added Rs 4,292.8 Cr, up 7.6%.
Staff costs rose 13% to Rs 3,531.3 Cr. Salaries and bonuses alone took Rs 1,780.4 Cr.
Marketing and advertising cost Rs 1,075.2 Cr, up 22.6% from Rs 877.1 Cr. We counted it ourselves: that is about 1 paisa of every rupee of revenue.
Finance income added Rs 463 Cr and other income Rs 291 Cr, lifting total income to about Rs 1.05 lakh Cr.
| Line item | FY26 | FY25 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue from operations | Rs 1,03,853 Cr | Rs 79,060 Cr | Up 31.4% |
| Net profit | Rs 5,311 Cr | Rs 3,196 Cr | Up 66% |
| Total expenses | Rs 96,224 Cr | Rs 75,190.7 Cr | Up 28% |
| Goods bought to sell | Rs 78,228.7 Cr | Rs 64,335.8 Cr | Up 21.6% |
| Licence fees | Rs 10,373.7 Cr | Rs 4,257.8 Cr | Up 144% |
| Staff costs | Rs 3,531.3 Cr | Rs 3,126.1 Cr | Up 13% |
| Marketing and advertising | Rs 1,075.2 Cr | Rs 877.1 Cr | Up 22.6% |
The Licence Fee Grew Four Times Faster Than Sales
Apple India paid Rs 10,373.7 Cr in licence fees in FY26, up 144% from Rs 4,257.8 Cr in FY25.
A licence fee is money paid for the right to use someone else’s brand, software or patents.
Sales grew 31.4%. The fee grew more than four times faster than that.
The share has moved too. Licence fees took about 10 paise of every rupee of revenue in FY26, against about 5 paise in FY25.
The fee is also bigger than the year’s earnings. Rs 10,373.7 Cr is nearly twice the Rs 5,311 Cr of profit Apple India reported.
No single other cost line moved that fast. Buying goods, the largest cost of all, rose 21.6%.
Total expenses rose 28%, slower than the 31.4% rise in sales. That gap is what lifted the profit.
Samsung Still Earns More, But the Gap Shrank 76%
Samsung India’s profit lead over Apple India fell to Rs 1,917 Cr in FY26 from Rs 8,092 Cr in FY25. We counted the two filings ourselves.
That is a 76% drop in one year.
Samsung India’s own FY26 filing shows phone and accessory revenue slipped 1.4% to Rs 81,472.2 Cr from Rs 82,595 Cr.
Its total revenue was about Rs 1.12 lakh Cr, still ahead of Apple India’s Rs 1,03,853 Cr. The two are now under Rs 9,000 Cr apart.
Samsung India’s domestic revenue grew 9.3% to Rs 65,873.3 Cr from Rs 60,243.5 Cr. Its export revenue fell.
Samsung India also sells televisions, fridges and washing machines. Apple India’s figure comes from a narrower set of products.
Chip and Memory Shortages Are the Next Test
Apple has warned that parts will be harder to get. Supply is tight for advanced chips, storage and memory.
Apple expects that squeeze to get worse. Fewer iPhones, Macs and iPads reaching shops would show up in the India numbers first as waiting time.
India now matters to Apple for more than sales. iPhone exports from the country touched Rs 2 lakh Cr in FY26, nearly twice what Apple India sold here.
Four years ago that export figure was Rs 9,351.6 Cr.
Apple switched on Apple Pay in India on September 30, with Axis Bank as its first card partner. Merchants signed up include Blinkit, Croma, Tata 1mg and Zomato.
Apple Pay does not work with UPI or RuPay cards at launch.
What this means for you: If you sell premium phones, laptops or accessories in India, Apple’s volume is now large enough to set the shelf space and the price. Lock your festive stock and your pricing before the chip and memory squeeze tightens in the December quarter.
StartupFeed Insight
The licence fee is the line to watch, not the profit. It rose 144% in a year while sales rose 31.4%, and at Rs 10,373.7 Cr it is now nearly twice what Apple India keeps. A cost line that moves four times faster than revenue decides the profit, and this one is still climbing. Indian distributors, retail chains and parts suppliers should read the expense side, not the headline. Expect Apple India’s FY27 filing, due around September 2027, to show licence fees above Rs 12,000 Cr even if revenue growth slows to the high teens.
By Avinash Mishra, Business Correspondent
Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not investment advice. StartupFeed and its authors are not SEBI-registered investment advisors. Please speak to a SEBI-registered advisor before investing.
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