While Prime Day doesn’t officially start until June 21, we’re already seeing discounts on Apple’s AirPods line. Amazon and Walmart are still generally the best places to find discounts that are up to $50 off what you’d otherwise pay at the Apple Store. That includes the first big discounts we’ve seen on the AirPods Max.
Note that all of these headphones are compatible with Apple’s new spatial audio features, but none of them will deliver the maximum quality of Apple’s upcoming lossless audio format, which is too rich for the current Bluetooth wireless standard to handle.
AirPods pricing 2021
| Model | Apple Store price | Best price right now | Best all-time price |
|---|---|---|---|
| AirPods Pro | $249 | $197 | $169 |
| AirPods | $159 | $119 | $99 |
| AirPods with wireless charging case | $199 | $150 | $130 |
| AirPods Max | $549 | $499 | $499 |
Sarah Tew/CNET
The AirPods Pro were briefly as low as $169 at Walmart and $170 at Amazon for Black Friday. More recently, they’ve been ping-ponging between $190 and $200. That’s still $49 to $59 below the regular Apple Store price.
Walmart came in strong to the early Black Friday sale game by marking down the AirPods to $99 — the lowest price ever. That deal is long gone, but Walmart, Target and Amazon are now all offering them for between $120 and $130 on most days. That’s still about $30 to $40 cheaper than the price at the Apple Store.
Sarah Tew/CNET
The AirPods with the wireless charging case was briefly down to $130, which was very close to what you’d typically pay for the AirPods with a wired charging case. Now that their price is back up to $150, you’re looking at a $30 bump from the AirPods with the wired case. It’s debatable whether it’s worth spending the extra dough, but that price still represents a $49 discount from the Apple Store price.
David Carnoy/CNET
The latest and greatest Apple headphones were announced in December. These are full-size models, chock-full of high-end features like noise cancellation, spatial audio and easy integration with Apple devices. Yes, paying more for headphones than you would for a PS5 may sound crazy, but here’s the crazier thing: They’re actually kinda worth it, so long as you don’t feel burned by their lack of support for full lossless audio. After months of being backordered, these headphones have seen their first markdowns in recent days: They’re fully $50 off at Amazon and other vendors.
This article is updated frequently to reflect current pricing.