If you need a massive computer in a tiny package, then the Mac Studio is one of the best Macs you can get. That said, they’re still quite big, and if you need something even smaller, then you need to grab yourself the Mac Mini. The latest of the Minis come with Apple’s M2 Chips, which are, admittedly, a generation behind yet are still quite powerful in their own right. Not to mention that going with a last-gen chip means you can get some solid discounts.

The 256GB model starts at $599, while the more useful 512GB model starts at $799. Both are available at a solid discount right now — $70 off for the baseline model and $100 off for the 512GB model. The new upgraded model that features a Pro-level chip starts at $1,299. You can save $100 on the step-up M2 Pro Mac Mini that has a 1TB solid-state drive.

B&H is just about the only retailer offering discounts right now, but there are some benefits that come with paying full price at Apple. Shopping at Apple directly allows you to customize the machine and add more RAM or a higher-capacity SSD, while the models sold on Amazon and other retailers are fixed configurations. Unlike in most other desktops, the Mac Mini’s RAM is not user-upgradable. Apple’s M2 system-on-a-chip integrates the CPU, GPU, RAM and other components for greater power and efficiency, but the downside of this integration is the lack of DIMM slots, which would allow you to add additional RAM after purchase.

Apple’s student discounts and refurbs

It’s worth noting that the Apple Store offers students an educational discount, where you can save $100 on the price of a new Mac Mini. Some upgrades are discounted, too. For example, doubling the RAM to 16GB costs $180 with the student discount instead of the usual charge of $200. 

Also at Apple, you might find a refurbished Mac Mini on the Certified Refurbished Mac page, but it’s too early to find an M2 refurb, and we’d caution against buying an older Intel-based Mac Mini. And an M1 refurb would need to be priced substantially less than the new M2 models at their lower starting prices. Still, it’s worth keeping an eye out, because you can lock in substantial savings. Apple refurbs are a great way to save some cash and are often just as good as new.

Keep reading to see the best US prices currently available for Apple’s Mac Mini. We update this page regularly and give prices that are accurate at the time of publication, but note that they fluctuate.

Mac Mini discounts, compared

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Note that “all time” means the best price we’ve seen at an Apple-authorized retailer in the product’s lifetime.

Amazon

The baseline Mac Mini features Apple’s new M2 chip, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD. It supplies two Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, an HDMI port, a Gigabit Ethernet port and a headphone jack. It lists for $599 at Apple, which is already $100 less than the M1 version, and right now you can get it at a $100 discount at B&H where it’s only $499. We’ve not seen it for less. 

Dan Ackerman/CNET

The step-up Mac Mini bumps the storage up to 512GB, an increased capacity that most people will benefit from, as 512GB is about the smallest SSD we’d recommend for any desktop. It already lists for $100 less than the M1 version, and right now you can save $100 at B&H — although we have seen it up to $120 off in the past.

Apple

For the first time, the Mac Mini offers a Pro chip from Apple’s lineup. The baseline Mac Mini with the M2 Pro costs $1,299 and features 16GB of RAM — double that of the M2 models — and a 512GB SSD. The step-up model with a 1TB SSD costs $1,499 from Apple.

The M2 Pro chip has 10 CPU cores and 16 GPU cores compared with the eight-CPU core, 10-GPU core M2 chip. The M2 Pro model also doubles the number of Thunderbolt 4 ports to four. We don’t see any discounts for the baseline M2 Pro model, but you can save $150 on the 1TB model at B&H.