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Last month, in a move that reverberated through the tech industry, Apple raised prices across nearly all of its product lines in response to the surging costs of memory and storage, which are being gobbled up for AI infrastructure.
“We’re doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we’ve been trying to shield our customers from the increases,” outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal, “but the situation has become unsustainable."
The price of a base-model (256GB SSD) MacBook Neo, Apple's most affordable laptop, went up by $100, to $699. The 512GB model with Touch ID is now $799. Meanwhile, the high-end M3 Ultra Mac Studio workstation desktop now starts at $5,299, an eye-popping 32.5% price increase.
“When tech giants like HP and Samsung raise prices, it’s a trend,” PCMag hardware expert Brian Westover wrote shortly thereafter. “But when Apple bends the knee, you know the tech industry is in a full-blown crisis.”
Such price increases couldn’t come at a worse time for students on the hunt for back-to-school deals on laptops and other tech. And consumers as a whole, it seems, are still adapting to this stark new reality. A recent PCMag survey found that the median budget for US adults planning to buy a laptop within the next year is $800. Meanwhile, PCMag’s evaluation of over 70 laptop models over the past 12 months reveals a median price that is almost exactly double that: $1,599.99.
PCMag's 2026 Laptop Affordability and Buying Trends Key Findings
- US adults are willing to spend a median of $800 on a new laptop, which is 50% of the median retail price for such devices ($1,600), according to PCMag data from the past year.
- Millennials and Gen X are willing to spend the most (a median of $800), while Gen Z and Boomers are capping their budgets closer to $700.
- Among US adults who plan to purchase a new laptop or upgrade a current one in the next year, only 11% plan to pay full price
Over one-third of buyers (34%) plan to save money by waiting for major shopping events, including:
- Black Friday sales (17%)
- Back-to-school sales (7%)
- Summer Prime Day sales (7%)
- Sales tax holidays (4%)
- 41% of all US adults report keeping their existing devices much longer than they used to.
- 15% are actively shifting toward buying second-hand, used, or refurbished tech.
“For a long time, there was an $800 compromise—the acceptable middle ground between the $600 budget laptop you get because it’s all you could afford, and the $1,000 or $1,200 machine that you actually wanted,” Westover says. “Today, with memory prices spiking and processors shifting to accommodate local AI workloads, that midrange price tag just doesn't buy you as much.
“It's a really frustrating moment for laptop shoppers, because it simply costs more to get a machine that feels relevant and reliable,” he continues, “and the 'future-proofing' a new model used to guarantee is disappearing in the face of such rapid change.”
Very Few Are Willing to Pay Full Price for a Laptop
Among US adults who plan to purchase a new laptop or upgrade a current one in the next year, only 11% plan to pay full price. On the other end of the spectrum, 17% report needing a new or updated laptop but don’t know how they will swing it. Younger generations are the most affected: 27% of Gen Z and 22% of millennials reveal that, generally speaking, brand-new tech feels largely out of reach.
To save money, 34% of US adults who intend to purchase a new laptop or upgrade a current one in the next 12 months plan to wait for a sale or a tax holiday before buying. Meanwhile, 8% are looking to buy a budget laptop, such as a Chromebook or MacBook Neo; 8% intend to get a refurbished laptop; and 7% will repair or upgrade a laptop they already own.
Another 14% are opting to delay their laptop purchase until 2027. Our research shows many consumers are maximizing the tech they already own, which echoes the findings of the 2026 CNET Group TechPulse Research Study, conducted by PCMag parent company Ziff Davis. In our new survey, just over four in 10 (41%) US adults say they keep their existing devices much longer than they used to, while 15% are shifting toward buying second-hand.
“You can still save on a laptop in the current market,” Westover adds, “but you will need to adjust expectations first. You're going to pay a bit more than you would have even two years ago, even with a good deal, and that's really disorienting for some shoppers. But if you know what you're after and know the regular prices, you'll recognize a good deal when you find it, even if it's not as cheap as you hoped for.”
Westover says his best advice is to watch for certified refurbished models from the manufacturer and take advantage of student and alumni discounts. “But if you were hoping to buy a lower-spec system and upgrade it yourself, I'd reconsider,” he adds. “Memory and storage prices are climbing so quickly that it's just not the right move.”
Methodology
PCMag commissioned YouGov to conduct the survey. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov. The total sample size was 2,433 adults, 995 of whom have a plan to acquire a new laptop or upgrade a current one in the next 12 months. Fieldwork was undertaken June 3-5, 2026. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all US adults (aged 18+).
