Mac mini starts at $899 and Mac Studio starts at $2,499, and both figures describe a computer with no screen attached, arriving alongside the same wave of hardware that brought iPhone 18 Pro to market. Apple sells its own displays separately, at $1,599 for Studio Display and $3,299 for Studio Display XDR, so the number on the box is never the number a desk actually costs. The following totals are our own arithmetic on Apple’s published prices, not a figure Apple states anywhere itself.
The timing matters because Mac mini and Mac Studio reach general sale Tuesday, September 22, ten days from today, September 12, a Saturday, the same week macOS 27 ships to every eligible Mac already in use. That is when the no-screen-included math starts applying to buyers rather than just to a spec sheet.
Key facts
| Item | Apple’s price |
|---|---|
| Mac mini with M6 | $899 ($799 education) |
| Mac mini with M5 Pro | $1,699 ($1,599 education) |
| Mac Studio with M5 Max | $2,499 ($2,299 education) |
| Mac Studio with M5 Ultra | $5,499 ($5,099 education) |
| Studio Display | $1,599 ($1,499 education) |
| Studio Display XDR | $3,299 ($3,199 education) |
Neither Mac mini nor Mac Studio includes a screen
Apple’s own pages for Mac mini and Mac Studio list a computer, its chip options, its memory and its ports. Neither product page lists a display, because neither product has one built in. That puts both machines in a different category from a MacBook, which Apple’s own laptop line ships with a screen already attached, or from an iPhone Duo whose folding display was central to Apple’s September event. A buyer coming from a MacBook, or from an iMac generation Apple no longer sells new, needs to budget for glass Apple does not throw in.
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Our own math: eight combinations, eight totals
These totals are simple addition of Apple’s own published US prices for one Mac and one display. They are not Apple’s figures and Apple does not bundle or discount any of these pairings on its store.
| Mac | Display | Our total |
|---|---|---|
| Mac mini M6 ($899) | Studio Display ($1,599) | $2,498 |
| Mac mini M6 ($899) | Studio Display XDR ($3,299) | $4,198 |
| Mac mini M5 Pro ($1,699) | Studio Display ($1,599) | $3,298 |
| Mac mini M5 Pro ($1,699) | Studio Display XDR ($3,299) | $4,998 |
| Mac Studio M5 Max ($2,499) | Studio Display ($1,599) | $4,098 |
| Mac Studio M5 Max ($2,499) | Studio Display XDR ($3,299) | $5,798 |
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra ($5,499) | Studio Display ($1,599) | $7,098 |
| Mac Studio M5 Ultra ($5,499) | Studio Display XDR ($3,299) | $8,798 |
The cheapest possible pairing, a base Mac mini with the standard Studio Display, comes to $2,498, nearly triple the Mac mini’s own listed price. The most expensive pairing gathered here, a maxed-tier Mac Studio with M5 Ultra alongside Studio Display XDR, comes to $8,798, and that is before the 512GB memory configuration, which Apple has said does not ship until late October and whose price Apple has not published as a separate figure from the $5,499 base.
What changes this on September 22, and what does not
General sale does not change any of the prices in the tables above. Pre-orders for both Macs opened August 25, and Apple has not published a launch promotion tied to September 22 in the material gathered here. What changes is simply availability: buyers who ordered in the pre-order window start receiving machines, and walk-in stock becomes possible at physical stores for the first time. Studio Display and Studio Display XDR are unaffected by that date, since both have been continuously available since March 11.
What Apple has not said
Apple has not published a bundle price for any Mac and display pairing, has not said whether a keyboard, mouse or trackpad is included with either Mac mini or Mac Studio at these prices, and has not published international pricing for Studio Display or Studio Display XDR beyond a small number of examples such as Canadian and Singapore dollars for the XDR model. Every total above is addition performed on Apple’s own US figures, not a number Apple itself has printed, in the same spirit as reading Apple’s chip claims as marketing figures rather than independent measurements.
As of September 12, ten days remain before Mac mini and Mac Studio reach general sale on Tuesday, September 22, which is the date to watch rather than any change to display pricing.
