Charge the MacBook Air battery

The battery in your MacBook Air recharges whenever the MacBook Air is connected to power.

A MacBook Air with the power adapter attached.

Charge the battery. Connect your MacBook Air to a power outlet using the included cable and power adapter. To learn more about the adapter and cable that came with your MacBook Air, see What’s included with your MacBook Air.

Show battery status in menu bar. Add a battery icon to your menu bar so you can quickly see information about your battery and open Battery settings. In System Settings, click Control Center, then go to Battery on the right and click Show in Menu Bar. You can also choose to show battery percentage in the menu bar.

Customize battery settings. You can set different options for your battery in System Settings.

Optimized Battery Charging: This feature helps to reduce the wear on your battery and improve its lifespan by learning your daily charging routine. It delays charging the battery past 80% when it predicts that you’ll be plugged in for an extended period of time, and aims to charge the battery before you unplug. In System Settings, click Battery in the sidebar, click by Battery Health, then turn on Optimized Battery Charging.
Low Power Mode: This option reduces energy usage. This is a good option for travel or when you’re away from a power source for an extended period of time. In System Settings, click Battery in the sidebar, then choose from the options in the Low Power Mode pop-up menu.

Note: To customize other advanced settings, like dimming the display on battery, preventing automatic sleeping, and when to wake for network access, click Options in Battery Settings.

Connect the power adapter. To charge the battery on MacBook Air, use the MagSafe 3 port with the USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable connected to the power adapter, or one of the Thunderbolt ports with a USB-C Charge Cable connected to the power adapter.

Note: With the USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable and the optional 70W USB-C Power Adapter, you can fast charge the MacBook Air up to 50 percent in around 30 minutes.

Check the battery’s charge. Look at the battery status icon at the right of the menu bar to see the battery level or charging status. Or go to System Settings and click Battery in the sidebar.

Charging and charged battery status icons.

Battery usage history. Go to System Settings and click Battery to see your battery’s usage over the past 24 hours or the last 10 days.

Battery Settings window showing the last ten days of Energy Usage. The window also that the Battery Health is normal, and there is an option to turn on Low Power Mode.

Conserve battery power. To extend battery life on a given charge, you can reduce the display brightness, close apps, and disconnect peripheral devices you’re not using. In System Settings, click Battery in the sidebar to change your power settings. If your MacBook Air is in sleep when a device is connected to it, the device’s battery may drain.

Learn more. For more information about:

How to monitor the battery in your Mac or check its condition, see Monitor your Mac laptop’s battery and Check the condition of your Mac laptop’s battery.
If your Battery Health says Service Recommended, see the Apple Support article If you see Service Recommended on your MacBook Air or MacBook Pro.
Charging issues with your power adapter, see the Apple Support articles If your USB-C power adapter isn’t charging your Mac laptop, If your MagSafe cable or power adapter isn’t working, and If your Mac battery status is “Not Charging”.
The internal, rechargeable battery in your MacBook Air, and for conservation and performance tips, see Apple Lithium-ion Batteries.

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