Luke Larsen / Digital Trends
If you’re looking for the best MacBook deals, the Labor Day sales are the place to go. There are so many Apple deals happening right now that we’ve picked them all out and rounded up the best options below. If you’re not sure if now is the time to buy, we can also help on that front. Keep reading and we’ll explain it all so you’ll know exactly what to do.
Best Labor Day MacBook deals
Apple MacBook Air M2 — $799, was $999
Apple MacBook Air M2 Luke Larsen / Digital Trends
The Apple MacBook Air M2 is a great entry point for Apple users and it’s reached a record low at the moment. It’s incredibly thin and weighs just 2.7 pounds while packing in great hardware. There’s the M2 chip with 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU while there’s also 8GB of memory and 256GB of SSD storage. It also looks great thanks to its 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display, backlit keyboard, and its 1080p FaceTime HD webcam which means you’ll look similarly good and sharp on all your calls. For watching shows, there’s also a four-speaker sound system with Spatial Audio so it’s perfect for all your entertainment needs.
Apple MacBook Air M3 13.6-inch — $899, was $1,099
Luke Larsen / Digital Trends
We were big fans of the Apple MacBook Air M3 13.6-inch when we reviewed it earlier this year. It has the more powerful M3 chip which ensures plenty of power while Apple Intelligence is on its way and means you can be assisted by AI at every turn. It also has 18 hours of battery life while its 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display looks great and there’s the usual selection of four speakers, three mics, and Spatial Audio to ensure everything sounds great. It’s a great laptop for anyone who needs a little more power but plenty of portability.
Apple Macbook Pro 14.2-inch M3 — $1,299, was $1,599
Luke Larsen / Digital Trends
If you’d prefer the extra potential of the MacBook Pro, check out the Apple Macbook Pro M3. It has the same chip as the MacBook Air but it boasts a larger screen and up to 22 hours of battery life. The 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR screen looks fantastic with support for Extreme Dynamic Range, 1,000 nits of brightness in HDR, and 600 nits for SDR. There’s also 8GB of memory while there’s more storage with 512GB of SSD storage available here. Due to the screen, it’s a particularly good laptop for content creation and image editing.
Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 — $1,449, was $1,699
Luke Larsen / Digital Trends
The Apple MacBook Air 15-inch M3 has a great screen while still being very portable. Its 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display supports 1 billion colors, while the 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU ensures the laptop runs super smoothly. It also has up to 18 hours of battery life to keep you happy all day long while the system still manages to be only half an inch thin. There’s all the neat quality of life features here too like two Thunderbolt ports, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3, while sound is enhanced by Spatial Audio and six speakers.
Apple Macbook Pro 14.2-inch M3 Pro — $2,099, was $2,399
Mark Coppock / Digital Trends
We reviewed the MacBook Pro M3 Max rather than Pro but you get a similar experience here. The Apple Macbook Pro 14.2-inch M3 Pro is speedy to use even if not quite as impressive as the M3 Max, all while maintaining up to 22 hours of battery life. Its 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR display looks beautiful with Extreme Dynamic Range, 1,000 nits of sustained brightness for HDR content, and 600 nits with SDR content. There’s also a six-speaker sound system with Spatial Audio so it’s ideal for watching videos too. For a high-end content creation dream, look n further.
When do Labor Day MacBook deals start?
Labor Day is officially on September 2 but that hasn’t stopped many retailers from starting their Labor Day sales early. In the case of the Labor Day MacBook deals, these tend to have rolled together with the back to school sales which were previously happening. After all, it makes sense that many people would be buying a MacBook ahead of returning to class this semester. That means we’ve spotted some great early discounts but we’re expecting to see things peak around the weekend of Labor Day. Such deals could roll into a few days after Labor Day but there’s no guarantee here as retailers may wish to take a break from discount season after a busy summer.
That can change depending on stock levels and how popular a deal is. That means if you find the right MacBook for your needs and at a great price, we recommend you buy now in case you miss out on the sweet discount by holding out. There’s the advantage that you don’t have to stick around looking at deals on Labor Day either which can be useful if you have plans already lined up for the day. Be wiling to jump in on the deal that your gut is saying yes to.
Should you shop Labor Day MacBook deals or wait until Black Friday?
It can be hard to know when to buy one of the best MacBooks while still scoring a fantastic discount. Predictably, Black Friday is the best time of year for deals so you should wait till then, right? Kind of. It makes logical sense that you wait until Black Friday but that’s not how life works.
For instance, what do you do if your current laptop or MacBook has just died and you need a replacement? Or you need to buy a new MacBook for class this semester? In which case, waiting until Black Friday isn’t exactly practical. Instead, it makes sense to buy now during the Labor Day sales and suck up any price difference a few months later. In reality, many of those price changes are incremental so you’ll only be missing out on a small saving. By doing so, you get to enjoy a new MacBook sooner rather than later so you’ll still be happy.
Talking of timing, the holidays can be very expensive so it can be beneficial to spread the cost and buy your MacBook during Labor Day and save other purchases like gifts for Black Friday. Think about what works best for you rather than the optimal time for everyone. For many, it’ll make sense to stop stretching your finances so much by keeping everything for Black Friday.
