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How to Erase your MacBook for Trade In

To receive the full trade-in value and protect your personal information, you must properly erase your Mac before sending it to us. This process ensures your data is removed and Find My Mac is disabled, which is required for us to process your device.

Before You Begin

  1. Back Up Your Data: Use Time Machine or an external drive. Erasing your Mac is permanent.

  2. Check for MDM Management: If your Mac was issued by a business or school, it may have Mobile Device Management (MDM) software. This must be removed by your administrator before you can trade it in.

    • See our guide: [How to Remove MDM Management from Your Apple Device].

Step 1: Sign Out of Your Apple Account (Required)

You must sign out to disable Find My Mac. If Find My is active, the device is "Activation Locked" and cannot be processed for trade-in.

  1. Click the Apple Menu () > System Settings (or System Preferences).

  2. Click your Name at the top of the sidebar.

  3. Select iCloud > Find My Mac and turn it Off. (You may need to click the See All button to uncover Find My Mac) You will need to enter your Apple Account password to confirm turning off Find My Mac.

  4. Go back one screen and click Sign Out at the bottom of the page.

Step 2: Disable FileVault

If you have disk encryption enabled, turning it off ensures there are no hurdles during the erasure process.

  1. Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security.

  2. Scroll down to FileVault.

  3. If FileVault is On, click Turn Off.

    • Note: This process may take a few minutes as the drive decrypts.

Step 3: Erase Your Mac

The steps to erase your Mac depend on which model and software version you are using.

For Newer Macs (macOS Monterey or Later)

Includes Macs with Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, M4) or the Apple T2 Security Chip.

  1. Click the Apple Menu () > System Settings.

  2. Select General in the sidebar, then click Transfer or Reset.

  3. Click Erase All Content and Settings.

  4. The Erase Assistant will guide you through the process. Follow the prompts to permanently erase your data and settings.

For Older Macs (Intel-based or Earlier macOS)

  1. Shut down your Mac.

  2. Turn it back on and immediately press and hold Command (⌘) + R until the Apple logo appears to enter macOS Recovery.

  3. Select Disk Utility from the Utilities window and click Continue.

  4. Select Macintosh HD in the sidebar and click the Erase button in the toolbar.

    • Format: Choose APFS (or Mac OS Extended Journaled for very old models).

  5. After the erase is complete, quit Disk Utility.

  6. (Optional) Select Reinstall macOS to return the Mac to its original factory state.

Already Mailed Your Device?

If you have already mailed your device, you should go to https://icloud.com/#find and remove the device from your Apple Account. When we receive your device, we will erase the device as part of our checkin process. If the device has not been removed from your Apple Account, you will receive an email requesting that your remove the device from your Apple Account.

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