Grabbing a near-mint M1 MacBook Air for $399.99 is one of the best laptop buys you can make this year. These machines are fast, lightweight and powerful — and that mmakes them perfect for work, travel or home.
Refurbished M1 MacBook Air deal
The MacBook Air has been a perennial crowd-pleaser ever since Apple CEO Steve Jobs pulled one out of a manila envelope in one of the most memorable product unveilings of all time. The laptop proves powerful enough to run most apps, but remains super-lightweight and not too expensive.
Apple’s M1 chip, introduced in 2020, powers the refurbished MacBook Air in this sale. With its 8-core CPU (up to 3.5x faster than Intel-based models) and 8-core GPU (up to 5x better graphics), the M1 chip handles everything from basic tasks to more demanding applications with impressive speed and efficiency. Its 16-core Neural Engine means it can handle Apple Intelligence, the AI-powered suite of features like Genmoji and Writing Tools.
Paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage, it can achieve all-day battery life (up to 18 hours). This MacBook Air keeps pace whether you’re on a flight, in a meeting or just working from the couch.
Everything from photo editing to multitasking feels smooth and snappy.
(If you want more RAM or a bigger hard drive, check out the other buying options for upgrades.)
The features you need at a price you can afford
The 13.3-inch Retina display in this refurbished M1 MacBook Air delivers crisp visuals. Dolby Atmos-certified speakers give you immersive audio. And the classic, fanless design means it runs silently, no matter how hard you push it.
Connectivity is also a breeze, thanks to the two Thunderbolt/USB 4 ports. They let you easily hook up your external drives, monitors or any other peripherals you might need.
Since this is a grade-A refurb, you’re getting near-mint-condition hardware. That means minimal scuffs, if any, and all the performance of a machine right from the Apple Store.
For less than $400, you get a solid machine that can handle most tasks. If you already own a powerhouse Mac Studio, you could even use this refurbished M1 MacBook Air as a second machine. It could work as a travel buddy, a backup for the office or even your dedicated streaming and browsing machine at home.
Save on a refurbished M1 MacBook Air
The perfect cheap Apple laptop does exist — and it’s the 2020 MacBook Air M1 at $399.99. Light, powerful and affordable, this is the kind of deal you don’t want to miss.
Buy from: Cult of Mac Deals
Prices subject to change. All sales handled by StackSocial, our partner who runs Cult of Mac Deals. For customer support, please email StackSocial directly. We originally published this post on a refurbished M1 MacBook Air on September 24, 2025. We updated the pricing.