Nobody likes to do anything last-minute, but sometimes, you just can’t help it. If you were looking to get a Mac before Christmas or before the year runs out, you should have done it during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales.
This would have given you sale prices and ample time to prepare that gift for a loved one or tick the item off your yearly to-buy list. Now that it’s over, the prices of Macs have mostly stabilized back to the standard MSRP – however, you might still be able to get a good deal on a Mac that fits your needs.
Where can I find a good deal? How do I know if a Mac is good for me? Can I actually get a Mac before Christmas? Don’t you worry; we’ll answer all the hard questions so you know what exactly you’re doing.
What type of Mac should you buy?
In this scenario, you would be getting a Mac for primarily two reasons: gifting or work. With Christmas looming and the urgency of this kind of purchase, most of those reading this are likely in the former category.
Gifts should ideally be thoughtful decisions based on your special understanding of the giftee’s needs. In Mac terms, that means you should buy a Mac based on what the person does for work or hobby. Someone who does a lot of video editing, for example, would need a Mac with a good processor and large storage, so an Apple silicon MacBook Pro with a minimum of 512GB of SSD storage would likely be a good gift.
However, if you’re buying a Mac and you’re looking for something cost-effective with a broad appeal, you should get a MacBook Air or an iMac. They can be relatively cheap (sub $1,000 brand new) and are almost always in stock at most retailers. We strongly recommend the MacBook Air (M1, 2020) as a standard gift for someone who needs an entry-level Mac.
Note: While it might be temptingly cheap to buy an Intel Mac, we wouldn’t recommend it since Apple would likely stop supporting Intel products in the near future.
Where can you buy a Mac quickly?
Almost all the retailers and online stores selling Macs can get a Mac to you in less than 48 hours. Of course, your results will vary depending on your location, logistical variables, access to stores, and what time of the day you make your order. After a quick search, we found the delivery times for some popular retailers:
Apple Store: You can get a brand new Mac from here in less than 24 hours.
Apple Refurbished Store: A refurbished Mac from Apple will typically take up to 48 hours to arrive.
Amazon: Delivery times vary on Amazon, but most are under 48 hours.
Walmart: Many options here will take 72+ hours with free delivery. You shouldn’t resort to Walmart if your Mac purchase is urgent.
Best Buy: You can get a Mac from here within 48 hours – with some offers, like the 13-inch M2 Air, arriving in around 24 hours.
That said, the quickest way to get a Mac is by picking it up yourself from a store. If you live close to any authorized Apple retailers or a brick-and-mortar Apple Store, you might as well take the drive and go get the item to avoid any delays. Though it is worth pointing out that the new M4-powered Macs have considerably long delivery windows. If you need any M4 products, you should definitely get them from a physical store yourself.
How do you find the best last-minute Mac deals?
You’ll find deals on Macs pretty much everywhere except the Apple Store. Of course, some places offer better deals than others, but it largely depends on what you’re looking for. The best thing to do is enter the Mac you want into your preferred retailer and see what deals they have to offer. But we have found some interesting last-minute deals still going on at some retailers:
B&H Photo Video is running last-minute sales on Mac minis and MacBook Pros.
Walmart has its aforementioned 13-inch M1 MacBook Air deal and deals on some restored MacBooks.
Amazon currently has multiple Mac deals, including the 13.6-inch M2 MacBook Air and M2 Mac mini.
Best Buy has a plethora of MacBook and iMac deals that can help you undercut the Apple MSRP and still get the products in time.
Yes, we know if you’re reading this, you’re already in a hurry, but we added this line to tell you to double your urgency. These deals will not last.
Some things you should know before rushing to buy a Mac
Scams. They are everywhere. Try to stick to tried and tested retailers, and don’t fall for otherwise obvious traps in your rush. In the same vein, try to avoid restored or refurbished items unless they come from reputable sources. Note that other sellers apart from Apple could sell refurbished Macs on Amazon – always check to confirm who the seller is before you take out that credit/debit card.
Of course, time is of the essence. Triple-check the delivery dates before placing your order, and if you don’t have a membership (like Amazon Prime, for example), you should get it to speed up your delivery.