iPhone Manufacturing in India: Which States Have Apple Manufacturing Plants?

India has emerged as an important component of the global supply chain network for manufacturing of iPhones by Apple. The states which manufacture the iPhones include Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. However, the manufacturing and assembling suppliers of iPhones are spread throughout India and cover other states like Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh. The growth of manufacturing is associated with the incentives offered by the Indian government under Production Linked Incentive scheme and exports of electronics from India.

Which Indian States Manufacture iPhones?

Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have the major facilities for manufacturing and assembling of iPhones.

iPhone Manufacturing Center: Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu is a significant center for iPhone manufacturing in India. There is a Foxconn’s main iPhone manufacturing plant situated in the region of Sriperumbudur around Chennai.

Also, the region attracted some other suppliers of Apple, such as Tata Electronics and Flex. It happened due to the developed industrial facilities of Tamil Nadu, its well-trained labor force, the presence of its ports and electronics industry.

The company Foxconn has increased production capacity of iPhones in Tamil Nadu to produce some new models. It started manufacturing the iPhone 15 in India for availability from launch stage and later expanded production to the iPhone 16 family.

Tamil Nadu is also becoming a place where manufacturing components for the iPhones takes place. For example, Corning was linked to plans for construction of its manufacturing plant in Pillaipakkam near Sriperumbudur.

Karnataka: The Growing Involvement of Tata Electronics

Karnataka is yet another significant hub of manufacturing for Apple products. Tata Electronics purchased Wistron’s Indian operations, which includes the plant for making iPhones in Narsapura.

This made Tata Electronics well positioned in Apple’s value chain and was a milestone in the creation of an indigenous electronics manufacturing base in India.

Tata has since increased its participation in the manufacturing of iPhones as well as other Apple-related business dealings. There is also Aequs in Karnataka, which has grown to become one of Apple’s suppliers.

Apart from that, there are other strengths of the state in terms of electronics manufacturing and research work.

Why is Apple Increasing iPhone Production in India?

The increase in Apple’s manufacturing capacity can be seen as part of a supply chain diversification strategy on Apple’s part.

While China continues to be a major manufacturing hub for Apple, geopolitical issues and supply chain concerns have pushed Apple and its partners to create alternate manufacturing centers.

Some of the advantages of India are,

• Large domestic consumer base
• Growing electronics manufacturing coverage
• Large and skilled labor force
• Government support for the domestic production
• Export opportunities
• Strategic positioning for the global supply chain diversification

India has shifted from assembling mostly older versions of iPhones to manufacturing newer and more premium versions of the phone.

Usefulness of the Production Linked Incentives Scheme

The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, for the large-scale manufacturing of electronics has been significant in the growth of mobile phone manufacturing in India.

This is because the incentives are performance based through increased production, investments and exports. The large-scale electronics manufacturing strategy has helped Apple contract manufacturers like Foxconn, Pegatron and Tata Electronics.

There has also been growth in local production, which has resulted in huge growth in India’s exports of iPhones. According to the sources of information, Apple exported iPhones worth US$12.8 billion from India in 2024, while the local production was about US$17.5 billion.