Apple just completely changed how you buy a Mac
Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- Apple has revamped its online Mac shopping system, moving from preconfigured models to a customizable, build-it-yourself approach in which customers select display, chip, memory and storage components.
- Macworld reports that this move toward custom-to-order sales could pave the way for future advanced customization, such as the selection of CPU/GPU cores in the upcoming M5 MacBooks.
- The new system emphasizes budget-conscious construction while potentially adapting to component price increases and maintaining real-time delivery updates for an improved user experience.
For as long as Apple has sold Macs online, it has offered them in a very specific way. There’s the base model, then models with more RAM and storage, higher processor options, larger screens, etc. This requires a bit of study (some models have more storage but less RAM), but the price is very clear.
If you buy a new Mac from Apple.com today, you’ll notice things have changed. Instead of a variety of pre-configured options, you’ll see a single product page with “Customizable Specifications” that allow you to build your machine from scratch. For the MacBook Pro, for example, you will choose from the following options:
- Display size
- Color
- Screen type
- Chip
- Processing power
- Unified memory
- SSD storage
- AC adapter
- Keyboard
- Professional applications
- Payment options
- AppleCare coverage
The individual options haven’t changed (you still get 24GB of RAM standard with the M4 Pro and Max processors, for example), but the buying process places more emphasis on building a machine within your budget rather than choosing from a variety of preset configurations. Apple notes that the base model options for each machine have not changed and will still be available in stores, while the price and delivery time will be updated in real time as options are chosen.
It’s unclear how this will affect third-party sellers like Amazon and Best Buy, but it’s likely Apple will continue to offer common configurations.
Apple is rumored to offer the ability to customize CPU and GPU cores with the upcoming launch of the M5 Pro and M5 Max MacBook Pro models, so this new system could pave the way for more build-to-order options. This could also be a way to “hide” smaller price increases as the costs of memory and other components increase throughout 2026.
Updated February 1: Added additional details.
