dealsInformation technology

Best Mac Mini Deals: Get Money Off Apple’s Tiniest Computer [CNET]

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Buying a new Mac can be tough because there are so many options. You’ve got the portable MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, and the Mac Studio or Mac Pro for use in the home or office. If your main concern is getting that all-in-one feel in a small package, though, then you’ll want to go for the Mac Mini. The Mac Mini is an excellent little device, and it comes at a good price, too. However, you can grab it for even less with these deals. 

The 256GB model starts at $599, while the roomier 512GB model starts at $799. Both are available at a modest $50 discount right now. The new upgraded model with a Pro-level chip starts at $1,299. You can also save $50 on the step-up M2 Pro Mac Mini, which has a 1TB solid-state drive.

B&H is just about the only retailer offering discounts right now, but buying from Apple is still a viable option. Shopping at Apple directly allows you to customize the machine and add more RAM or a higher-capacity SSD, while the models sold on Amazon and other retailers are fixed configurations. Unlike in most other desktops, the Mac Mini’s RAM isn’t upgradable. Apple’s M2 system on a chip integrates the CPU, GPU, RAM and other components for greater power and efficiency, but the downside of this integration is the lack of DIMM slots, which would allow you to add additional RAM after purchase.

Apple’s student discounts and refurbs

It’s worth noting that the Apple Store offers students an educational discount, where you can save $100 on the price of a new Mac Mini. Some upgrades are discounted, too. For example, doubling the RAM to 16GB costs $180 with the student discount instead of the usual $200 charge. 

Also at Apple, you might find a refurbished Mac Mini on the Certified Refurbished Mac page, but it’s too early to find an M2 refurb, and we’d caution against buying an older Intel-based Mac Mini. And an M1 refurb would need to be priced substantially less than the new M2 models at their lower starting prices. Still, it’s worth keeping an eye out, because you can lock in substantial savings. Apple refurbs are a great way to save some cash and are often just as good as new.

Keep reading to see the best US prices currently available for Apple’s Mac Mini. We update this page regularly and give prices that are accurate at the time of publication, but note that they fluctuate.

Mac Mini discounts, compared

Model w/ CPU, RAM and storage capacity List price Best price (current) Best price (all time)
Mac Mini w/ M2, 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD $599 $499 $499
Mac Mini w/ M2, 8GB RAM and 512GB SSD $799 $690 $679
Mac Mini w/ M2 Pro, 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD $1,499 $1,349 $1,149

Note that “all time” means the best price we’ve seen at an Apple-authorized retailer in the product’s lifetime.

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Amazon

The baseline Mac Mini uses Apple’s new M2 chip, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. It supplies two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, an HDMI port, a Gigabit Ethernet port and a headphone jack. It lists for $599 at Apple, and right now you can get it at a $100 discount at Amazon where it’s only $499. 

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Dan Ackerman/CNET

The step-up Mac Mini bumps the storage up to 512GB. That’s an increased capacity that most people will benefit from, and 512GB is about the smallest SSD we’d recommend for any desktop. Right now you can save $109 at Amazon if you clip the on-page coupon.

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Dan Ackerman/CNET

The Mac Mini also offers a Pro chip option from Apple’s lineup. The baseline Mac Mini with the M2 Pro costs $1,299 and features 16GB of RAM — double that of the M2 models — and a 512GB SSD. The step-up model with a 1TB SSD costs $1,499 from Apple, and right now, you can save $150 on it at B&H. 

The M2 Pro chip has 10 CPU cores and 16 GPU cores compared with the eight-CPU core, 10-GPU core M2 chip. The M2 Pro model also doubles the number of Thunderbolt 4 ports to four.