AppleCare+ Just Got More Expensive
Jesse Hollington
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Not only will you now pay substantially more for a Mac or iPad up front, but it will also cost you if you want to add some protection to your pricier purchase.
Following substantial price hikes last month, Apple is now edging up the costs of individual AppleCare+ packages. While the monthly increases are relatively minor at around $0.50 a month, they could also be harbingers of coming increases to repair costs.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported on the price increases earlier today, noting that — so far at least — they only affect AppleCare+ for Macs and iPads. Those will go up $0.50 per month or $5 for the annual plans, pushing a new 13-inch MacBook Air from $7.49 to $7.99 per month, or from $74.99 to $79.99 annually. However, there are a couple of silver linings.
For one, Gurman notes that increases are “exclusively for new sign-ups.” That means if you’re already paying for AppleCare+ — even if you’re on a monthly plan — you’ll keep paying the current prices.
Apple also isn’t hiking the price for AppleCare One, which it introduced nearly a year ago to offer bundled protection for up to three devices for a flat $19.99 per month. While that’s not necessarily the cheapest way to go in every case, the increased AppleCare+ costs for iPad and Mac definitely sweeten the value of the bundle.
Apple also hasn’t adjusted the prices for AppleCare+ for iPhone, but we wouldn’t be surprised if that’s still waiting in the wings. Last month’s price hikes ran almost the entire gamut of Apple products, from the Apple TV to the Vision Pro, but notably excluded the iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods.
Apple’s headphones may be exempt simply because they don’t use the pricey memory and storage chips that are driving these increases, but the iPhone and Apple Watch are likely only seeing a temporary reprieve. Since new models are coming in September, that’s the most logical time for Apple to raise prices, and there’s a good chance the iPhone 17 and iPhone 17e — which will remain current until early 2027 — will also rise with the same tide that drives up the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
At this point, it will be a pleasant surprise if iPhone price increases don’t happen. The AI hyperscalers that are gobbling up all the memory supplies to build massive data centers have shown no signs of slowing down, and many are dropping billions to lock in multi-year exclusive supply deals, forcing Apple to pay more to retain the same access to components that it was once able to take for granted.
While actual repair costs have yet to increase, the whole point of most AppleCare+ plans is helping users avoid paying these costs for accidental damage. There’s also theft and loss protection, but that comes with a heftier deductible, and the Mac isn’t eligible. So, if AppleCare+ costs are rising — even if it’s only by $0.50 a month — the cost of Mac and iPad repairs could soon follow.
