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Black Friday 7 min skim

Apple Black Friday 2026: No Shopping Event Announced Yet, Last Year's Gift Cards and the Best Apple Deals Now

Apple hasn't announced its 2026 Black Friday event. What happened last year, Apple's holiday return window and Apple deals we checked today.

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AI-generated editorial illustration. Midnight-blue and silver wrapped gifts with a blank gift card and a plain white shopping bag by a window at dusk.
Original AI-generated editorial illustration: Skimwire. Not a photo of Apple, an Apple Store or any product covered.

Apple hasn't announced a 2026 Black Friday shopping event yet. As of Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 11:16 a.m. MT, Apple Newsroom and the U.S. Apple Store had no Black Friday or gift card promotion posted. If Apple follows last year's pattern, it will offer Apple Gift Cards with eligible purchases over the Black Friday weekend instead of cutting prices. Right now, though, the actual price drops on AirPods, AirTag, Apple Watch and Apple Pencil are at other retailers. Below: what Apple has and hasn't said, how last year's event worked, Apple's holiday return window, and the Apple deals we checked today.

This is No. 8 in our daily Black Friday series, with a different retailer each day through Cyber Monday. So far: Walmart, Amazon, Best Buy, Target, Home Depot, Lowe's and Costco. For every retailer's dates in one place, see our Black Friday 2026 overview or Black Friday Central.

The skim

  • Apple's 2026 event: not announced as of Nov. 10. We'll update this post when Apple posts dates and gift card amounts.
  • Last year (history, not a promise): Apple's 2025 Black Friday Shopping Event ran four days, Nov. 28–Dec. 1, with Apple Gift Cards from $25 to $250 on eligible products. The newest models were excluded.
  • Returns: Apple's holiday policy is already live. Eligible Apple Store Online orders received Nov. 6–Dec. 25, 2026, can be returned through Jan. 8, 2027.
  • Best verified deals today: AirPods Pro 3 for $199, AirPods 4 for $89, an AirTag (2nd generation) four-pack for $79.99 and Apple Pencil Pro for $99, all sold and shipped by Walmart.com when we checked at 11:17–11:19 a.m. MT.
  • Mac deals: 9to5Toys reported Nov. 10 that Amazon has M5 MacBook Air 16GB/1TB models at $250 off. We couldn't check Amazon's prices ourselves.

Has Apple announced Black Friday 2026?

No. We checked Apple Newsroom (including its RSS feed) and the U.S. Apple Store at 11:16 a.m. MT on Nov. 10. Apple's most recent Newsroom posts cover the Apple TV sign language feature, the Apple Arcade holiday lineup and Apple Music's Artist of the Year. None mention a shopping event, and the Apple Store's gifts page showed no gift-card-with-purchase offer.

Apple usually announces late. In 2025, it revealed its event on Nov. 20, eight days before it started, according to 9to5Mac. Black Friday 2026 is Friday, Nov. 27, and Cyber Monday is Nov. 30. Apple hasn't confirmed whether it will run an event on those dates, so treat any "Apple Black Friday 2026 dates" you see elsewhere as a prediction.

How Apple's Black Friday worked last year (2025)

This section is history, so you know what to expect. Apple's 2026 terms may differ.

  • Dates: four days, Friday, Nov. 28, through Monday, Dec. 1, 2025, at Apple Stores, in the Apple Store app and on Apple.com (MacRumors).
  • The offer: an Apple Gift Card with an eligible purchase, not a lower price. You paid full price, and the card could only be spent on a later Apple purchase, like hardware, apps, iCloud+ or Apple Music.
  • U.S. amounts: $25 (AirPods 4, Apple TV 4K, Apple Pencil Pro, some Magic Keyboards and the Beats Pill), $50 (iPhone 16e, iPad (A16), iPad mini, Apple Watch SE 3 and Series 11, AirPods Pro 3 and HomePod), $75 (iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Plus and AirPods Max), $100 (Mac mini and iPad Air), $150 (iMac), $175 and $200 (13- and 15-inch M4 MacBook Air) and $250 (M4 Pro and M4 Max MacBook Pro).
  • Excluded: the newest products, including the iPhone 17 lineup, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Ultra 3, M5 iPad Pro and M5 MacBook Pro. Refurbished products and education pricing didn't qualify either.

Our take: last year, the retailer discounts were often bigger than Apple's gift card. 9to5Mac pointed out at the time that Amazon's discount on the 15-inch MacBook Air was larger than Apple's $200 card. Apple's event makes sense if you want a custom configuration or Apple's in-store setup help, or if you'd spend the gift card anyway.

Apple holiday return policy 2026

Apple's U.S. returns page says eligible products from the Apple Store Online that you receive between Nov. 6 and Dec. 25, 2026, can be returned through Jan. 8, 2027. Outside that window, the standard rule is 14 calendar days from delivery. iPhones financed through T-Mobile or Verizon carrier plans don't get the holiday window. Apple only takes returns on products bought directly from Apple. If you buy from Walmart, Amazon or Best Buy, that retailer's return policy applies.

The best Apple deals we checked today

All of these were sold and shipped by Walmart.com and in stock when we checked on Nov. 10, between 11:17 and 11:19 a.m. MT. The "was" price is the comparison price Walmart showed. Prices can change at any time.

AirPods

  • AirPods Pro 3: $199 at Walmart (was $249). That's the same price 9to5Toys reported at Amazon on Nov. 10. In 2025, Apple's gift card on this model was $50, so a $50 price cut now beats waiting for Apple.
  • AirPods 4: $89 at Walmart (was $129.99).
  • AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation: $119.97 at Walmart (was $179).
  • AirPods Max 2 (Midnight): $479 at Walmart (was $549). 9to5Mac reported $449 at Amazon on Nov. 10, which we couldn't verify.

AirTag

Apple Watch

  • Apple Watch Series 11 (GPS, 46mm, Jet Black aluminum, M/L band): $379 at Walmart (was $429). It's last year's model, so check whether you want the newer Series 12.
  • Apple Watch Series 12 (GPS, 42mm, Dark Bronze aluminum, S/M band): $399 at Walmart. That isn't a discount; we list it so you can compare with the Series 11.
  • Apple Watch SE 3 (GPS, 40mm, Starlight): $249 at Walmart, also no discount today.
  • Apple Watch Ultra 4: 9to5Toys reported on Nov. 10 that Amazon has the lineup at "nearly $100 off." We didn't verify a specific configuration.

iPad accessories

  • Apple Pencil Pro: $99 at Walmart (was $129). Check that your iPad supports it before you buy.
  • Apple Pencil (USB-C): $69 at Walmart (was $79).

Home

Mac deals (reported, not verified by us)

Walmart didn't have M5 MacBook Air or M6 Mac mini listings sold by Walmart.com in our check, and we can't verify Amazon prices directly. On Nov. 10, 9to5Toys reported these Amazon prices:

  • 13-inch M5 MacBook Air 16GB/512GB: $1,099 (regularly $1,299)
  • 13-inch M5 MacBook Air 16GB/1TB: $1,349 (regularly $1,599)
  • 15-inch M5 MacBook Air 16GB/1TB: $1,549 (regularly $1,799)
  • M6 Mac mini 16GB/256GB: $780 (regularly $899), per 9to5Toys

9to5Toys also spotted a 15-inch M5 MacBook Air 24GB/1TB on Apple's own Certified Refurbished store for $1,699. 9to5Toys says it ships with a full Apple warranty. Refurbished products didn't qualify for Apple's gift cards last year.

Apple vs. retailers: where to buy

  • Buy from a retailer now if you want the lowest cash price on AirPods, AirTag, Apple Pencil or older Apple Watch models. For example, today's $199 AirPods Pro 3 price is lower than the $220 that 9to5Mac listed on Cyber Monday 2025.
  • Wait for Apple's event if you want a custom Mac configuration, Apple's in-store help, or you'll spend the gift card on something you'd buy anyway. Just remember the gift card is credit, not cash back.
  • Newest models (Apple Watch Series 12, HomeView) rarely get discounts. Apple left its latest products out of last year's event too.
  • Compare return windows. Apple's holiday window runs to Jan. 8, 2027. Other retailers set their own; see our Walmart, Best Buy and Costco guides.

Other dates for Apple shoppers

  • Amazon: Amazon now says its Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday events run Nov. 19–30, starting at 12:01 a.m. PT on Nov. 19 (Amazon press release).
  • Best Buy: its main 10-day Black Friday event runs Nov. 19–28 (see our Best Buy guide).
  • Walmart: Early Black Friday deals start Nov. 12 (see our Walmart guide).

Apple Black Friday FAQ

Does Apple have a Black Friday sale in 2026?

Apple hasn't said yet. As of Nov. 10, there's no announcement on Apple Newsroom or the Apple Store. Over the past few years, Apple has run a four-day gift card event over the Black Friday weekend.

Does Apple discount products on Black Friday?

Last year it didn't cut prices. Instead, it gave an Apple Gift Card with eligible purchases, worth $25 to $250 in the U.S.

Where are the best Apple Black Friday deals right now?

At retailers. Today's verified examples: AirPods Pro 3 for $199 and an AirTag four-pack for $79.99 at Walmart.

What is Apple's holiday return policy?

Eligible Apple Store Online orders received Nov. 6–Dec. 25, 2026, can be returned through Jan. 8, 2027.

Shopping for gifts?

Our Black Friday gift guides use prices we checked on the retailer's page the day we published. New today: smart home gifts by ecosystem, covering Alexa, Google Home, Apple Home and Matter. Also out: gifts for parents and grandparents, tech gifts under $50, gifts for teens, gifts for kids, gifts for her, gifts for him, tech gifts under $25 and gifts for gamers.

What's next

Tomorrow the series moves to Samsung. We'll update this post when Apple announces its event. Find every update on our Black Friday hub, subscribe free, or follow Skimwire on X, Threads, Instagram, Bluesky and LinkedIn.

Some links in our deals coverage are affiliate links. If you buy through one, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Affiliate relationships never decide what we cover or recommend. The Walmart, Apple, Amazon and news-site links in this story aren't affiliate links. Walmart prices come from Walmart.com product pages at the date and time shown. Amazon and Apple Watch Ultra 4 prices are reported by 9to5Toys and 9to5Mac, and we couldn't verify them. All prices can change or sell out. Apple's 2025 event details come from MacRumors and 9to5Mac coverage at the time. We haven't tested these products for this story. Our cover image is an AI-generated illustration, not a photo of Apple products or an Apple Store. Skimwire uses AI tools to help research and draft stories, and the dates, policies and prices were checked against the sources before publishing. See our disclosure page for details.

Sources

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