If you’ve just kitted yourself out with one of the best Macs, you might be looking to protect your purchase with some kind of insurance. If that’s the case, you’ve probably heard of AppleCare+. But what exactly is AppleCare+, and should you buy it for your MacBook?
Here, you’ll find everything you need to know about AppleCare+, including what it is, how much it costs, and whether it’s worth it. Read on and you’ll be able to make an informed decision for your Mac in just a few minutes.
What is AppleCare+?
Simply put, AppleCare+ is Apple’s device insurance plan. It’s essentially an extended warranty from the manufacturer itself, and it covers a wide range of products and damage types.
Confusingly, Apple offers both AppleCare (no plus sign) and AppleCare+ (with plus sign). The former is the basic warranty that’s included with your Mac for free, and it covers one year of hardware repairs and includes up to 90 days of free technical support from Apple’s experts. AppleCare+, meanwhile, extends the warranty to cover a lot more, but you have to pay for it.
Which one is best for you depends a lot on your circumstances. Below, we’ll go over what AppleCare+ will get you, both for your Mac and for any external Mac displays.
AppleCare+ for Mac and Mac displays
When you buy a new Mac or an Apple display that you’ll use with a Mac, you’ll get a year’s warranty and 90 days of technical support for free, as mentioned above. However, that can be extended if you buy AppleCare+ coverage, which must be done within 60 days of buying your new Mac.
AppleCare+ lets you claim for an unlimited number of accidental damage instances while it is active. You’ll need to pay a surcharge of $99 for repairs to the screen and external enclosure or $299 for all other damage, plus tax, but this can work out a lot cheaper than paying for out-of-warranty repairs. Those prices apply to both AppleCare+ for Mac and for an Apple display.
The extended warranty covers repairs to your Mac itself, its battery, accessories (such as the power adapter), Apple memory (RAM), and the Apple USB SuperDrive. As for Apple monitors, you are covered for the product itself, its power cord, and “one Apple-branded display stand and one Apple-branded mount purchased at the same time,” Apple says.
AppleCare+ also gives you access to Apple’s experts by phone or text chat. They can help you with your device’s software, such as how to use macOS, iCloud, and Apple’s apps; how to connect your display to your Mac; how to hook up peripheral devices (like printers and routers); and more.
If you need to talk to one of Apple’s experts, you’ll be able to do so for the entire period of your AppleCare+ service (not just the first 90 days after purchase). This can be done over the phone or using text chat, and they are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
AppleCare+ covers you anywhere in the world. If you have a desktop Mac or an Apple display, you can ask Apple to send a technician to your place of work to pick up the affected unit. For MacBooks, Apple will send you a prepaid box to ship the product in. Alternatively, you can bring any Mac or Apple display to an Apple Store or Apple Authorized Service Provider for repair.
How to pay for and renew AppleCare+
The price of AppleCare+ depends on a lot of things: whether you want to insure a Mac or an Apple display, which specific device you want covered, and whether you want to pay annually or for three years at a time.
Let’s start with Macs. Here, there’s a lot of variation in the price of AppleCare+. The cheapest Mac to cover is the Mac mini, which costs $34.99 annually or $3.49 a month. Conversely, the most expensive Mac is the Mac Pro. Here, AppleCare+ costs $179.99 annually or $17.99 a month. Apple has more information on pricing for Mac coverage on its website.
Note that Apple has removed the option to pay for three years of AppleCare+ coverage up front. For instance, previously three years of coverage for your Mac mini would cost you $99, while for the Mac Pro the price for three years was $499. That’s not a huge difference — roughly 6% and 8%, respectively — but it’s still money you could have saved by paying up front. Now, you only have recurring subscription options, with the best remaining deal being to pay annually. This situation doesn’t appear to be the case everywhere — UK users can still pay for three years in advance, for example.
As for Apple displays, things are a bit simpler, mainly because there are only two models to choose from. For the Studio Display, you’ll pay $49.99 annually or $149 for three years. For the Pro Display XDR, it’s $179.99 annually and $499 for three years. And as with Macs, you can no longer pay up front to cover your Apple display using AppleCare+, at least if you’re based in the US.
Regardless of which device you want to insure, you’ll need to buy AppleCare+ within 60 days of purchasing your Mac or Apple display.
If you want to renew expired AppleCare+ coverage, you must do so within 45 days of your old AppleCare+ plan ending. If you paid up front to cover your Mac, Apple says you might be able to buy a new plan that renews annually. For iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Vision Pro, you might be able to get new coverage that renews monthly or that bills monthly but is renewed annually (Macs don’t have this option).
Eligible countries for these renewal terms include the United States, plus Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
Is AppleCare+ worth adding to your MacBook?
Deciding whether to get AppleCare+ for your Mac or Apple display depends on a few different factors, and there are pros and cons to it that are worth considering.
There are certainly benefits to AppleCare+. You get support from Apple’s own experts — people who know the products inside out — while any repairs are done with genuine Apple parts and will be carried out to the company’s high standards. AppleCare+ provides peace of mind knowing that your device is covered (although standard third-party insurance should also give you this), and you can claim an unlimited number of times during your service’s duration. Apple used to limit the number of claims you could make, but now that it doesn’t, AppleCare+ is an even more attractive option.
But that doesn’t mean it’s a foolproof choice or is right for everyone. For one thing, it can be very expensive, especially for pricier Apple products, and you have to cover (and pay for) all of your devices separately. And while AppleCare+ for iPhone has an option for theft and loss compensation, Mac coverage does not.
If you only have a desktop Mac and you don’t take it with you when you travel, your need for AppleCare+ is probably lessened. That’s also likely to be true if you’re not a particularly clumsy person. In those cases, you might be able to do without AppleCare+ or could get satisfactory cover from a cheaper alternative.
You’ll need to think carefully about what your needs are and how likely you are to damage your Mac or Apple display. If it seems like a possibility, AppleCare+ is at least worth considering. Armed with the information in this guide, you should be better equipped to make that call.
