Apple Watch 9 Pre-Order Date & Time: What You Need to Know

Apple hasn’t announced the new Apple Watch 9 yet, but that will change in the near future. As we approach the month of September, we’ve been getting questions about the Apple Watch 9 pre-order date and time and we’ll answer as many as we can in this guide.

If you’ve been through an Apple Watch launch before you probably have some idea about how Apple’s ordering process works. If you haven’t, or if simply need a refresher course, you’re in the right place.

Here’s what you need to know about the Apple Watch 9 pre-order date and pre-order time based on what we already know and how we expect everything to play out.

Apple Watch 9 Pre-Order Date

Apple’s confirmed its fall event and it will take place on Tuesday, September 12th. The show starts at 10AM Pacific, 1PM Eastern.

This means Apple Watch 9 pre-orders for all models should begin on September 12th. Unlike the iPhone, which goes on sale a few days after the event, Apple Watch pre-orders typically begin on the same day as the announcement.

Apple’s expected to announce two new Apple Watch models, Apple Watch 9 and Apple Watch Ultra, and you can expect them both to go on sale shortly after the event.

We may see shipping delays impact both models so if you want a specific variant, you might want to put in a pre-order as soon as they go live.

Apple Watch 9 Pre-Order Time

As for the Apple Watch 9 pre-order time, if Apple follows standard protocol, you can, again, expect the devices to go on sale shortly after the conclusion of the show.

We can’t give you an exact time, but the show starts at 10AM Pacific and will last for at least an hour. So don’t be surprised if the Apple Watch 9 models go on sale around 11:30AM or Noon Pacific.

That will be in the middle of the day for a lot of you, but people outside of time zones in the United States will need to stay up late or wake up early in order to pre-order.

Like the Apple Watch 9’s pre-order date, look for Apple to confirm the pre-order time in the U.S., and other regions, in a press release during the showcase.

Where to Buy the Apple Watch 9

Once Apple Watch 9 pre-orders start, you’ll be able to buy the device at Apple, retailers, and even your favorite carrier.

As we’ve noted in many of our past guides, the Apple Store app is often the quickest, and easiest, way to pre-order a new Apple Watch. The app is free to download and it lets you buy a watch the same way you would through Apple’s website.

The Apple Watch 9 will be compatible with a wide range of carriers, so if you aren’t stuck on one, make sure you shop around before pre-orders begin.

Apple Watch 9 Price & Trade-Ins

Unlike the iPhone, we haven’t heard about any major price increases for Apple’s smartwatch. If we don’t see a price jump, the Apple Watch 9 will start at $399 in the United States.

If that’s outside of your budget, note that we’ll see Apple and other companies provide trade-in offers to help offset the cost of a new Apple Watch 9.

We don’t know how much they plan to offer for older watch models, but if you own a newer device and plan to trade it in, make sure you keep it in good condition as we approach the Apple Watch 9 pre-order date. This is how you’ll get the most money back.

Wait for Better Performance

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Apple generally makes yearly improvements to the Apple Watch's performance and we should see the company make some improvements this year. The current flagship Apple Watch models deliver solid battery life, but we could see Apple take things even further with new chips in 2023.  According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, while the 2023 Apple Watch models will likely be modest updates, they will have a faster chip on board. As he notes, Apple hasn't upgraded the main processor inside the Apple Watch for three years running so this would certainly be a welcomed change.  In his new Power On Discord channel, Gurman says the new processor will likely be based on the A15 chip that Apple first used in the iPhone 13.  If you aren't thrilled with the Apple Watch's current horsepower (battery life, speed, load times), you might want to hang back and wait for the new models.

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