Apple Struggles to Keep M5 MacBook Air in Stock After Price Hikes

Apple is struggling to keep the M5 MacBook Air in stock as rising memory and storage costs continue to disrupt the consumer electronics market. Buyers ordering directly from Apple now face delivery estimates stretching to the end of August, even after the company raised MacBook Air prices twice this year. Apple increased the starting price from $999 to $1,099 when it introduced the M5 model in March, then raised it again to $1,299 in June. The latest model includes 512GB of storage instead of 256GB, although the higher price still reflects growing pressure from expensive memory and SSD components. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that retail sources describe the MacBook Air as “more constrained than they can ever recall.” Apple also added a subject-to-availability warning to its recent back-to-school promotion, which stands out because the company rarely highlights supply limits for products released several months earlier. Memory shortages are limiting MacBook Air supply The AI datacenter expansion across the United States has increased demand for high-end memory, forcing suppliers to shift production away from consumer-grade components. As a result, DDR5 RAM and SSD prices have climbed sharply, leaving companies such as Apple with fewer parts and higher manufacturing costs. Gurman said Apple is exploring Chinese memory suppliers for devices sold in China while giving production priority to the entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro. “From what I’ve heard, the MacBook Air shortage is indeed tied to the ongoing memory crunch. Apple has been working to alleviate the issue by preparing to source memory from Chinese suppliers, at least for devices sold in that country.” Apple is also prioritising the base M5 MacBook Pro as it prepares for an M6 refresh later this year, while the next MacBook Air update will reportedly arrive later. The company has already warned that supply problems will affect sales during the coming quarter, and further component cost increases could lead to more Mac price changes. Amazon still lists some M5 MacBook Air models with next-day delivery and a $100 discount, although third-party availability may tighten as Apple’s direct stock remains limited.