The IBM 1440 computer was announced by IBM October 11, 1962. This member of the IBM 1400 series was described many years later as "essentially a lower-cost version of the 1401", and programs for the 1440 could easily be adapted to run on the IBM 1401.

Despite what IBM described as "special features ... to meet immediate data processing requirements and ... to absorb increased demands," the 1440 did not quite attain the same commercial success as the 1401, and it was withdrawn on February 8, 1971.

Author Emerson Pugh wrote that the 1440 "did poorly in the marketplace because it was initially offered without the ability to attach magnetic tape units as well." (referring to offering both tape and disk).

The IBM 1441 processing unit (CPU) contained arithmetic and logic circuits and up to 16,000 alphanumeric storage positions.

The console was either a Model 1 or, when an electric typewriter was added, a Model 2, of the IBM 1447 operator's console.

The following peripherals were available:

An IBM 1440 could be configured with a choice of:

IBM 1440 Autocoder was the assembly language provided by IBM. An IOCS was also provided, as was a collection of "Disk File Organization Routines".