Laptop Upgrade: The Best Apple MacBook Black Friday Deals

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Apple doesn’t typically offer direct Black Friday discounts on its product lineup; instead, it offers gift cards when you buy select devices. But that doesn’t mean you can’t save on Apple laptops for Black Friday. With M2 MacBooks on the market, we’re seeing good pricing on the still-excellent line of PCs powered by Apple’s previous-gen M1 chips, though a few M2s are on sale, too.

We’re keeping an eye on all the best Black Friday deals currently available for Apple products (among others) but here are the details on the best MacBooks we’re seeing on sale right now:

13-Inch M1 Apple MacBook Air

Apple MacBook Air (M1, Late 2020)


(Credit: PCMag)

This M1-based MacBook Air may have come out in late 2020, but it’s still a really good laptop. It’s light, fast, powerful, and did we mention it’s light? This Air clocks in at less than 3 pounds, Apple’s thinnest and lightest device at the time. And while the 8GB of RAM and 256GB SSD aren’t massive compared to other machines (and the screen size is a bit tight), the 18-hour battery life makes up for it. It’s also as accessible as an M1 machine gets in terms of price point, especially during sale periods like this.

13.6-Inch M2 Apple MacBook Air 256GB

Apple MacBook Air M2


(Credit: Molly Flores)

If you’re looking for a MacBook Air with the latest and greatest chip, the M2 version upgrades the webcam to 1080p for looking sharp on Zoom calls. It sports a Liquid Retina display and the port situation is vastly improved, with a MagSafe charger now on board in addition to the Thunderbolt USB-C ports. The RAM and SSD is still at the baseline 8GB and 256GB, and the battery life has stayed the same, but for a performance boost of 1.5x over the M1 plus the option to get your machine in the much-discussed Midnight finish, you might find it’s worth the upcharge of a few hundred bucks for this bleeding-edge laptop.

13-Inch M2 MacBook Pro 256GB ​​​​​​​SSD

Apple MacBook Pro M2


(Credit: Brian Westover)

When Apple introduced its new M2 Air and Pro models, the 13-inch Pro version had plenty of people scratching their heads. This is the only model still on the market that retains the company’s divisive Touch Bar, so if you’re a fan, you should grab this machine while it’s still available. The battery life is a bit better on this laptop compared to the Air, and the active cooling means your performance won’t be throttled when doing more intense operations like video editing and coding. It’s an in-between kind of CPU for an in-between user: Someone who wants a bit more power than the Air currently offers, but doesn’t need to spend the extra few hundred bucks to step up to the more intense Pro models. 

14-Inch M1 Pro MacBook Pro 512GB SSD

Apple MacBook Pro 14-Inch


(Credit: Molly Flores)

The M1-based 14-inch Pro and its slightly bigger 16-inch sibling are still processing powerhouses that offer a ton of bang for the buck. This 14-inch version has the M1 Pro chip on board, which is a step up from the base M1 and also clocks in as more powerful than the brand-new M2 chip. Combine that with a Liquid Retina screen, a higher baseline for RAM and storage (16GB and 512GB, respectively), active cooling and tons of ports including HDMI and an SD card, and it immediately justifies the higher price point, especially when it’s on sale for hundreds off the regular retail price.

13-Inch M1 MacBook Pro 256GB SSD

MacBook Pro 13.3-Inch (2020 Model)

This 13-inch MacBook Pro is a workhorse for those who want a compact macOS laptop that’s still powerful enough to perform processor-intensive workflows. Expect nearly a full day of battery life, 8GB of RAM and the company’s Touch Bar technology. It’s also still quite light, just a few ounces heavier than the Air.