You'll probably want to avoid Intel-powered Mac Books, but Apple Silicon models are solid. An older Mac Book is a solid way to save money in 2026, especially given the price explosion for anything with RAM and storage. A Mac Book with an M-series chip will more than cover basic computing needs and, more importantly, continue to receive mac OS releases. Apple's mac OS 27 compatibility list includes Mac Book Air and Mac Book Pro models with Apple silicon dating back to 2020.

Intel-based Mac Books are a different story. Apple started transitioning to its own silicon in 2020 and hasn't sold Intel-based Mac Books since 2021. The upcoming mac OS 27 Golden Gate won't work on Intel Macs at all. For those still rocking Mac Books released prior to M-Series, you can expect additional security patches for the final supported version of mac OS and little more. A barebones M1 Mac Book Air is still a solid option for browsing, streaming and most basic things you can do on a laptop. You can still find them at a reasonable price, especially renewed or refurbished models from a trustworthy retailer.

Software support should be the biggest determining factor in your choice of an older computer. Apple is still releasing security updates for several versions of mac OS. As of August 26, Apple's recent updates include mac OS Tahoe 26, Sequoia 15 and Sonoma 14, but the mac OS 27 Golden Gate release will be the first update restricted to Apple silicon. With that being said, purchasing a Mac Book that's already excluded from the newest version of mac OS is risky, unless you plan on keeping things very simple. If you're savvy with Linux and can get around the T2 security chip in 2018 to 2020 Intel-based Mac Books, you can get more life out of a pre-M-Series Mac Book. For most buyers, the safest option is an Apple Silicon Mac Book, so you essentially have a 6-year window of options that include the Mac Book Air and Mac Book Pro models all the way back to 2020.