Here's When Apple's Student Offer With Free Gift Cards Begins This Year - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Here's When Apple's Student Offer With Free Gift Cards Begins This Year

The start date for Apple's annual Back to School promotion has been leaked.

Apple 2024 Back to School Offer
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that Apple is planning to launch the promotion in the U.S. on Tuesday, June 17 this year. He has accurately revealed the starting date of the promotion for the past three consecutive years.

The promotion will likely launch in the U.S. and Canada at first, followed by select countries in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia a few weeks later. The offer will likely be available until mid-September, with the exact end date varying by country.

Apple will once again be offering students and qualifying educational staff a complimentary gift card with the purchase of an eligible Mac or iPad, according to Gurman. Last year, the gift card values in the U.S. ranged between $100 and $150.

The free gift card is provided in addition to Apple's standard year-round educational discounts, with eligible students and educational staff already able to receive up to 10% off of a new Mac, iPad, Studio Display, Pro Display XDR, and AppleCare+ plans.

The gift card can be used towards purchases of Apple products and accessories, App Store apps, subscriptions to services like Apple Music, iCloud+ storage, and more.

The offer is typically available through Apple's online education store, and at Apple Store locations, for students attending or accepted to a higher-education institution, faculty and staff of higher-education institutions, parents purchasing on behalf of an eligible student, employees of a K-12 institution, and select other groups.

Popular Stories

apple back to school sans airpods 1

Hold Off on Purchases, Students: Apple's Back to School Sale Is Coming Soon

Thursday May 28, 2026 10:38 am PDT by
Apple has started preparing for its annual Back to School promotion in the U.S. and Canada, according to backend Apple code seen by MacRumors. Apple holds a Back to School sale each June, providing teachers and students with free accessories or gift cards when purchasing a Mac or an iPad. The added bonus is in addition to Apple's educational discount. Back to School sales typically start...
modular ultra training load

watchOS 27 to Offer New Watch Faces, Including 'Modular Ultra' Variant

Monday May 4, 2026 5:58 am PDT by
For watchOS 27, Apple is testing new Apple Watch faces, and one of them is a simpler version of an existing Apple Watch Ultra watch face that could be coming to standard Series models. Writing in his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that Apple is testing multiple new faces for watchOS 27, code-named "Orchid." One of them is said to be a "simplified take" on the...
iOS 26 Wallet Glass Feature

iOS 27 Will Let You Create Custom Wallet Passes

Monday May 4, 2026 11:01 am PDT by
Back in April, we highlighted a new add-your-own card Wallet app option coming in iOS 27, and now Bloomberg has shared additional information. At the time, we said Apple was working on a feature that would let users generate digital passes from scans of things like movie tickets, concert passes, and gym membership cards. The option will be called "Create a Pass," and it will bridge the gap...

Top Rated Comments

13 months ago
Mac mini m4 for essentially $399? Crazy.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Royksöpp Avatar
13 months ago
I got one last year when I got my iPad Pro. I used it towards my 16 Pro.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EugW Avatar
13 months ago

Whoops I’m going to college next year and already bought an M4 MacBook Air 😅

But I got it March 12
I'm waiting for the promotion to start to get the MacBook Air. However, I had the luxury of being able to wait.

I actually picked up a Best Buy Geek Squad Certified Open Box 24/512 GB M3 MBA last month, but ended up returning it because I couldn't get a full warranty on it from Apple. It was priced similarly to a 16/512 GB M4 MBA with Apple edu + promotion pricing but I didn't need the 24 GB anyway so no big loss.


I wouldn't be surprised if the gift card is on the low side with the Tarriffs.

Still not as good a deal as it used to be. In 2019 I got a free pair of Beats Studio 3 headphones for my wife when I bought My Macbook Air. Like $300 value.
Years earlier I got the Beats Solo 3 (not the Studio 3), but I would have rather gotten the gift card. I found them kinda uncomfortable, and the sound quality is just so-so. The best deal IMO was the free iPod mini.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cameront9 Avatar
13 months ago
I wouldn't be surprised if the gift card is on the low side with the Tarriffs.

Still not as good a deal as it used to be. In 2019 I got a free pair of Beats Studio 3 headphones for my wife when I bought My Macbook Air. Like $300 value.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WilliApple Avatar
13 months ago
Whoops I’m going to college next year and already bought an M4 MacBook Air 😅

But I got it March 12
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
13 months ago
Good to know about this. Expecting to see gift card just like the last year and also the offer to open simultaneously in other countries too.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

🔗 Related Apple News & Rumors

Stay updated with the latest Apple ecosystem news and verified rumors