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These Surprising Facts About Apple Are Hard to Believe

If you think you know everything there is to know about Apple, think again.

lady with smile looks at documents
Updated May 28, 2024
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Apple has been one of the biggest global companies for years. In fact, there’s a good chance you’re reading this article on an iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or macOS laptop.

Since Apple products, Steve Jobs documentaries, and Apple ads are everywhere, you might think you know Apple inside and out, but you’re probably wrong. After all, a company as massive and famous as Apple has a storied history, one full of facts we’re guessing you’ve never heard. 

Let’s take a look at some of the most surprising and least-known facts about Apple.

Apple takes credit for over 2 million jobs in the U.S.

mangpor2004/Adobe asia mobile phone app developer team meeting

When you consider Apple’s immediate employees and third-party suppliers, manufacturers, and app developers, the company is responsible for directly creating or contributing to more than 2 million jobs.

Apple is worth more than nearly every economy in the world

gopixa/Adobe globe and stack with coins

With a current market cap of $2.48 trillion, Apple is more valuable than almost every economy in the world by GDP. In 2022, only four countries had economies bigger than Apple: the U.S., China, Germany, and Japan.

Apple makes nearly $2,000 every second

saiko3p/Adobe apple store

Every day, Apple rakes in around $151 billion in profit. That breaks down to $1,752 per second — a higher profit-per-second than any other global company, including Microsoft, Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Facebook, Bank of America, Amazon, and Walmart.

Apple was the first publicly traded company to cross the $1, $2, and $3 trillion market cap milestones

danielskyphoto/Adobe Apple logo is seen on an smartphone over stock chart

Apple’s total value in 2018 surpassed $1 trillion, making it the first publicly traded company in the U.S. to hit that milestone. In 2020, Apple broke another record by surpassing the $2 trillion market cap — again, the first publicly traded company to do so.

And at the very start of 2022, Apple set another record by hitting the $3 trillion valuation mark for a brief period.

Apple’s profits will likely continue to grow for the foreseeable future

Ascannio/Adobe Apple logo surrounded by US dollar banknotes

In spite of Apple’s already massive value, the company’s profits are only expected to grow. In January 2022, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted the company would grow faster than both the U.S. and global economies over the coming year. 

While the company hasn’t surpassed the $3 trillion market cap it hit in early January, it’s still valued much higher than Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet.

Most American households have more than one Apple product

Farknot Architect/Adobe woman holding and using Iphone 11 Pro Max smart phone and Apple New Ipad

Even if you prefer Android to iPhone or Windows to macOS, there’s a good chance you or someone else in your household owns at least one Apple product. 

A 2017 poll found that more than 65% of Americans own at least one Apple product and that, on average, each household has 2.6 Apple products at home. 

These stats are fascinating, especially given how high Apple’s prices are — high enough to merit a list of the best credit cards for Apple purchases.

The iPhone is responsible for over 50% of Apple’s revenue

Prostock-studio/Adobe man holding Apple iPhone 11 Pro Max

Apple launched the iPhone in 2007. While the company has diversified its products and services in the 15 years since then, iPhone sales still make up 52% of its revenue.

Apple has sold 2.2 billion iPhones since 2007

weyo/Adobe businessman in suit holding in hands and opening a box with iPhone

So far in its history, Apple has sold more than 2 billion iPhones worldwide. Apart from a slight dip during the COVID-19 crisis, sales show no signs of stopping.

Apart from the iPhone, Apple’s Services category brings in the most money

stnazkul/Adobe man using Iphone7 Plus

Apple’s App Store and Apple Music are the two main revenue drivers in Apple’s Services category, but the company also includes cloud storage, AppleCare, Apple TV subscriptions, and more under the Services banner.

Altogether, these sales brought in $68.4 billion in 2021 (compared to $192 billion in net iPhone sales for the same fiscal year).

Two other tech companies passed on the idea for the iPod before Apple bought it up

CesareFerrari/Adobe Apple iPod Shuffle and AirPods

When the iPod hit the market in 2001, it revolutionized the music industry and gave the then-struggling Apple a breath of new life. Creator Tony Fadell had already been turned down by Philips and RealNetworks when Apple bought into his idea of a better mp3 player.

Good thing they did: iPods laid the groundwork for the iPhone, which Steve Jobs introduced as “a wide-screen iPod with touch controls.”

Some vintage iPods are worth a bit of money

Alena/Adobe range of iPods inside Apple Museum in Prague

Apple officially discontinued its last remaining iPod model, the iPod Touch, in May 2022. Immediately afterward, there was a spike in iPod sales on eBay and other sites with some iPods selling for thousands of dollars depending on their condition, storage capacity, and version.

So, if you’ve been looking for ways to make extra money, it could be time to dust off your old iPod, see how well it still works, and head to eBay.

Apple’s logo wasn’t always an apple

hanohiki/Adobe Apple Logo on Apple Store facade in Hongkong

Apple’s original logo was much clunkier than its current streamlined, easy-to-identify apple. 

At first, the company’s planned logo was a picture of the scientist Isaac Newton under the proverbial apple tree that led to his discovery of gravity, complete with a quote about Newton from British poet William Wordsworth.

It’s fair to say that such an awkward logo wouldn’t have done as much for brand recognition as the logo the company (thankfully) went with instead.

The iPad continues to lead tablet sales worldwide

New Africa/Adobe woman choosing iPad in Apple store

While the iPad isn’t Apple’s most profitable product, it’s still the most popular tablet in the world. Apple owns more than 30% of the global tablet market. 

Its next closest competitor, Samsung, holds 18.1% of the market and shipped only 7.3 million tablets in 2021 compared to Apple’s 12.6 million.

Apple launched a short-lived clothing line in the 1980s

Nabokov Alex/Adobe  young man in a jacket in the style of the 90s

If you thought Apple was just a tech company, think again. A year after Steve Jobs left Apple (for the first time), the company created its own line of Apple-product-inspired clothes.

The multicolored apple was on oversized ’80s windbreakers, baseball caps, and puffy sweaters for kids. There were no black turtlenecks in that line.

Bottom line

Alena/Adobe Macintosh Apple I computer on display

If you’ve caught even a snippet of an Apple documentary or Steve Jobs film, you know Apple has a fascinating, complex history that extends far beyond the facts we listed here. 

And based on Apple’s exponential growth in the last five years alone, it seems safe to say Apple will be sticking around to add more intriguing facts to its unique story.

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Author Details

Michelle Smith

Michelle Smith has spent a decade writing for and about small businesses. She specializes in all things finance and has written for publications like G2 and SmallBizDaily. When she's not writing for work at her desk, you can usually find her writing for pleasure near large bodies of water.