Best MacBook Air deals: top offers January 2021

If you’re looking for a discount on the MacBook Air, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll walk you though some of the best deals around, and explain whether they are fantastic deals, or just OK deals. We know exactly what the MacBook Air costs at Apple right now, so we know just how much of a discount you’re getting.

Before we begin you need to know that Apple updated the MacBook Air twice in 2020! In March it added new processors and changed the keyboard, and then in November 2020 Apple update the MacBook Air with its own Apple Silicon M1 processors. For more information about how the two compare read: MacBook Air (Silicon) vs MacBook Air (Intel). We also have a full review of the M1 MacBook Air.

In fact you may be considering an older MacBook Air because you aren’t sure you want to jump straight into Apple Silicon, in that case these articles might help: Should I buy an Intel Mac and Should I buy an M1 Mac? We also have more advice about Which MacBook to buy in our separate guide. Plus here’s more information on the differences between the MacBook Air and Pro.

Before we fill you in on what you need to know before you buy a new MacBook Air, no doubt you are wondering what the best deals are right now, read on to find out more…

Best Apple MacBook Air deals right now

When we see great deals on the MacBook Air we list them here. We have deals for the new M1 MacBook that launched in November 2020 as well as some for the model that arrived in March 2020.

The new M1 MacBook has only just launched, so you might not be expecting to see any deals just yet… But KRCS and AO.com already have discounts on the new models:

• The new M1 MacBook Air costs £999 from Apple but KRCS is selling it for £949.06. That’s almost £50 off! Get the deal here. It’s currently out of stock, but KRCS says they will get more.
• KRCS also has money off the new £1,249 model. You can get that MacBook Air for just £1,186.55. Given that the equivalent MacBook Air model cost £1,299 until Apple updated it this is an excellent saving! Get the deal here. As above, it’s currently out of stock, but KRCS says they will get more. 

If you are happy to get one of the older models (or you’d prefer to stick to Intel processors) you can save even more money:

• 1.1GHz dual-core MacBook Air (2020), 256GB model, normally £999: £919 at Currys/PC World.
• 1.1GHz quad-core MacBook Air (2020), 512GB model, normally £1,299: £1,099 at Currys/PCWorld.

How to get the best MacBook Air deal

There are a few things you need to know before you can be sure whether you have found a good deal:

1. How much did it cost at launch?
2. What does Apple sell the equivalent model for now (and how much better is it)?
3. Where is a good place to buy a discounted MacBook Air?

We’ll address each of those questions below.

How much did it cost?

Our first tip is to make sure you know what the MacBook Air you are considering costs now (or cost when it was sold by Apple). You need to watch for companies claiming a discount based on the price the Mac was originally sold for, rather than what it would now cost you to buy that Mac from Apple. This is particularly pertinent since Apple has reduced the price of the entry-level MacBook Air twice in the past two years. 

As of November 2020 the price of the more expensive MacBook Air has also been reduced.

This is the pricing for the line-up from November 2020:

M1 Chip, 8-core CPU, 7-Core GPU, 256GB	£999/$999
M1 Chip, 8-core CPU, 8-Core GPU, 512GB	£1,249/$1,249

This is the pricing for the line-up earlier in 2020:

1.1GHz, Dual-Core i3, 10th-gen (3.2GHz Turbo Boost), 2565GB	£999/$999
1.1GHz, Quad-Core i5, 10th-gen (3.5GHz Turbo Boost), 512GB	£1,299/$1,299

The 2019 models were:

1.6GHz, Dual-Core i5, 8th- gen (3.6GHz Turbo Boost), 128GB	£1,099/$1,099
1.6GHz, Dual-Core i5, 8th-gen (3.6GHz Turbo Boost), 256GB	£1,299/$1,299

When the 2018 MacBook Air launched the price started at £1,199/$1,199 for the 128GB version. Then in 2019 Apple reduced the price of the identically speced entry-level model to £1,099/$1,099. Now for 2020 Apple has reduced the price of the entry-level model again to £999/$999 as well as improved the specs.

On that basis, until we start to see the 128GB version of the 2018 or 2019 MacBook Air on sale for less than £999/$999 we wouldn’t recommend buying them over either of the 2020 versions.

What is it worth?

Our next tip is to check the specs to find out what you will get for your money. You might spot a deal on the 256GB version of the 2018 or 2019 MacBook Air, which cost £1,299/$1,299 new. The equivalently priced 2020 MacBook Air has double the storage and quad-core processors making it a significantly better specced machine for the same price.

For example, we’ve seen the £1,299 2019 model sold for £999, which might sound like a good deal, but we are inclined to think that you’d be better off with the new entry-level model at the same price. Read our review of the 2020 MacBook Air here.

Also, do not assume that the specs given by the stockist are correct. We thought we’d spotted a great deal on Very for what was advertised as a 1.1GHz quad-core MacBook Air (2020) at £999 – except that it was actually the dual-core model with 256GB, rather than the 512GB quad-core model. Watch out for this!

Before you buy do your research: we have a review of the 2020 Intel MacBook Air, our MacBook Air 2019 review, and the 2018 MacBook Air.

We also have this comparison of the Intel MacBook Air vs M1 MacBook Air.

Where to buy?

Now you know what the Mac is worth, you need to know where to buy a discounted Mac from. You can buy a MacBook Air directly from Apple here, but there are plenty of stores and Apple Premium Resellers (such as KRCS, Currys/PC World, Argos and John Lewis) offering a discount on new and old Macs so it’s worth shopping around (read our Where to buy a Mac article).

Best MacBook Air Deals

You can browse through the best MacBook Air deals below. We also have deals for MacBook Air as well as some other MacBook models further down in this article (in case you’re not completely decided.)

Also check out our complete round up of the best Apple deals.

MacBook Air M1 2020

M1 MacBook Air, 8-core CPU/7-core GPU, £999/$999

M1 MacBook Air, 8-core CPU/8-core GPU, £1,249/$1,249

MacBook Air 2020 model, 1.1GHz

Earlier in 2020 Apple introduced a 1.1GHz Intel MacBook Air. It offered a newer processor, better RAM, improved graphics, twice as much storage, and it’s £100 less than it was, starting at £999/$999. Of course now there is a new M1 MacBook Air (above).

Resellers are discounting the early-2020 MacBook Air, you will see the best deals listed below.

1.1GHz Dual-Core Core i3 MacBook Air, £999/$999

1.1GHz Quad-Core Core i5 MacBook Air, £1,299/$1,299

MacBook Air 2019 model, 1.6GHz

The 2019 MacBook Air only introduced True Tone to the screen (which means the screen can adjust to different lighting conditions) other than that the specs are the same as the 2018 model When the 2019 MacBook Air was introduced the price dropped by £100/$100, starting at £1,099/$1,099.

We were seeing some decent price cuts for the 2019 and 2018 MacBook Air now that the 2020 models have arrived, but they have dried up now. Just remember that the 2020 model costs £999 – so don’t spend more than that!

Best MacBook deals

With the price of a MacBook Air as sold by Apple in mind, take a look at the deals below to see just how much you could save on the MacBook Air and other MacBook models.

We’d also recommend taking a look at Apple’s Refurbished Store for great MacBook Air deals. They’re forever changing, but you can get a huge discount on products that you’d never be able to tell are refurbished.

You can find out more about buying a refurbished Mac here.

Students should also check the Apple Education Store, which you can find out more about here.

We can help you decide which MacBook is best for you in our MacBook buying guide. Make sure you check out our complete round up of the best Apple deals.

Where to buy the new MacBook Air

You can, of course, buy the new MacBook Air from Apple itself on its website here. But that’s not the only place it’s available. You’ll also find the MacBook Air at these, and other, UK and US stores:

UK

US