• Apple products are some of the hottest around during the back-to-school season, but they’ve always been set at luxury or premium prices.
  • Every year, Apple offers an education discount on some of its products most closely aligned with school work, namely MacBooks, Macs, and iPads.
  • This year, students and educators can also get a pair of Apple AirPods for free when they buy a Mac, MacBook, or iPad.
  • You can also save 20% on AppleCare+ device protection, and each purchase comes with one year of Apple TV+ as well as three months of Apple Music for free, with a discounted subscription cost ($4.99/month) for students after the Apple Music trial ends.

It’s already time to start thinking about the back-to-school season, regardless of whether you’ll be sitting in a physical classroom this year. Apple is once again running a series of deals on its products for students and educators, so they can get discounts on laptops, tablets, software, and accessories.

With the education discount, students, school staff, and students’ parents can save up to $300 on Mac desktops, $100 on MacBook laptops, $50 on select iPads, 5-10% on accessories, 50% on Apple Music, and 20% on AppleCare+ device protection. If you buy a Mac or iPad, you will also receive a pair of AirPods for free.

If you’re eligible for student pricing and don’t see the discounted prices, you’ll need head to Apple’s back-to-school site first.

Unfortunately, Apple doesn't have an end date for this promotion. The company only states that the free AirPods with a Mac or iPad purchase are only available while supplies last. So, it'd be smart to act quickly if you want to take advantage of this freebie.

Find the best Apple back-to-school deals of this year below, or shop all of Apple's education deals here.

Updated 7/6/20 by Joe Osborne: Added Apple's deals for 2020 and checked all links for accuracy. Also updated with details on Apple's free AirPods promotion for education customers.

Who is eligible for Apple education discounts?

Foto: Source: Apple

To take advantage of these Apple Education Discounts, you need to currently be a student, teacher, school board member, or parent of a student. You can read Apple's terms and conditions here.

Here's who is eligible for the Apple Education Discount:

  • K-12 staff: Anyone who currently works at a public or private K-12 school can get the discounts. Homeschool teachers are also eligible, as are currently serving school board members who have been elected or appointed to their posts. PTA or PTO executives who are currently serving and were elected or appointed can also get the deals.
  • Higher education staff and students: Anyone who works at an institution of Higher Education and any students who are attending or have been accepted into the Higher Education system can get the discounts.
  • Higher education Parents: Parents can get the discounts when they buy devices for their children if their children are currently attending or have been accepted into a public or private Higher Education institution.

Shop all Apple Education Discounts here.

Get a free pair of AirPods and 50% off Apple Music

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Looking to buy a Mac or iPad for school? You may as well get a free pair of AirPods when you make the purchase. If you buy any Mac or iPad Pro from Apple, you'll get a pair of AirPods wireless earbuds.

Apple is specifically including the original AirPods (no wireless charging case) for free with these purchases while supplies last, which is a $159.00 value. If you want to upgrade this promotion, you can score that same value toward the AirPods with Wireless Charging Case (for only $40 additional) or the AirPods Pro (for just $90 additional).

Students can also get a deal on an Apple Music subscription. For the first three months, Apple Music is free, and after that initial period, you'll pay a special student rate of $4.99 a month for a savings of $5 a month.

Here are the best AirPods and Apple Music back-to-school deals:

Save up to $400 on a Mac or MacBook

Foto: Source: Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

Apple has announced a number of great deals on Mac computers for students, too, so if you are buying a Mac, you could get a pretty great discount as well as a free pair of Beats Studio3 headphones.

All of Apple's current Mac computers are being discounted, so whether you want the affordable MacBook Air or the powerful iMac Pro, you should be able to find a pretty sweet discount.

Apple is offering 20% off AppleCare+ device protection, too. If you want to make sure your expensive new MacBook can be repaired for free (or at least for less), you should really take advantage of the deal.

You can also get a bundle of pro software for $199.99 that includes Final Cut Pro X, Logic Pro X, Motion 5, Compressor 4, and MainStage 3.

Here are the best Mac and MacBook back-to-school deals:

Save up to $50 on an iPad

Foto: Source: Apple

If you're in the market for an iPad, you could get a pretty sweet deal, too. Apple is offering up to $50 off some of its iPad models for students, so it's worth buying an iPad through Apple's education store. There are also some pretty great deals on accessories for the iPad.

When you buy one of these iPads, you can get a free pair of BeatsX or Beats Solo 3 Wireless headphones, too. If you want the Studio3 headphones, you'll get a $199 credit to buy a pair, but you'll pay the remaining $150 balance.

Apple is offering 20% off AppleCare+ device protection, too. If you want to make sure that expensive new iPad can be repaired for free (or at least for less), you should really take advantage of the deal.

Here are the best iPad back-to-school deals: