Bad news: Apple's low-cost MacBook may not be so cheap after all

With Apple's March event fast approaching, one of the biggest questions on people's minds is a simple one: "How much will the cheap MacBook cost?" Now, we may have an idea, but it's bad news.

The hugely anticipated low-cost MacBook with an A18 Pro chip is now expected to be priced between $699 and $749, according to media outlet DigiTimes. Unfortunately, the ongoing RAM crisis appears to be the cause, inflating the costs of memory and other components.

Considering prices for the 12.9-inch MacBook have been expected to start at $599 or $699, with 8GB RAM and 256GB of storage, it would be a significant blow to Apple if its new entry-level laptop were to sell for as much as $749. But this may not be the case, and it comes down to the price of its other popular MacBooks.

All about the cost

There's been a lot of speculation about the price of the low-cost MacBook, with many believing it would hit the middle ground between the $999 MacBook Air M4 and the older MacBook Air M1, often found between $499 to $599 at retailers (currently down to $449 at Walmart).

Considering it's likely to arrive with an A18 Pro chip, the same one found in the iPhone 16 Pro, along with as little as 8GB for memory, 256GB for storage and other cutbacks, this new MacBook is expected to be making trade-offs in order to fit into the budget bracket of laptops — competing with low-cost Chromebooks and Windows laptops.

With a price going as high as $749, Apple's "low-cost" MacBook would miss the mark, considering the best Chromebooks can be found for $500 or less, along with the best Windows laptops. Moreover, the Cupertino tech giant's own MacBook Air option would offer far better value.

For example, while the MacBook Air M4 is priced at $999, you can often find it for far less, especially during big sales events like Black Friday. In fact, we've seen it drop to as low as $749, and frequently see it up to $100 to $200 off its usual retail price. With this in mind, I can imagine many would likely opt for a more advanced, higher-specced MacBook Air, rather than a new low-cost MacBook for around the same price.

We've heard the anticipated entry-level MacBook would be "well under $1,000," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, and as of early 2026, the M1 MacBook Air is still a popular purchase. So, it only makes sense for Apple's next cheap laptop to be as low as possible — hopefully hitting $599 to $699, at the very least.

Another RAMageddon victim?

During Apple's latest earnings call, the company confirmed a successful year-on-year growth, with CEO Tim Cook stating that skyrocketing memory prices had a "minimal impact" on Apple during the fourth quarter of 2025.

However, Cook expects "a bit more of an impact" this year, and it's due to the price of RAM and SSDs continuing to rise. We've heard MacBook and iPhone prices could rise in 2026, and now, one of the first products that could be affected is, ironically, Apple's low-cost MacBook.

Of course, only time will tell how much the new entry-level MacBook will officially cost, but it won't be long until we find out. Stay tuned for three days of Apple announcements kicking off on March 2, and I'll have my fingers crossed for a low price in the meantime.

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