New Apple Card Holders Can Get Free AirPods Pro 3, But There's a Catch

[MacRumors]

Apple today launched a new promotion offering new Apple Card holders the chance to earn back the cost of AirPods Pro 3 through monthly cash rebates, but there is a recurring spend requirement attached.

Customers who open a new Apple Card account and purchase AirPods Pro 3 directly from Apple by June 15 will qualify. Starting July 1 and running through April 30, 2027, cardholders can earn $25 in Bonus Daily Cash each month, up to $250 total, but only in months where they make at least ten purchases on the card. Each qualifying purchase must be at least $0.01, and the AirPods Pro 3 purchase itself does not count toward the monthly ten-purchase threshold.

The offer is open to new Apple Card applicants only, and is not available to existing cardholders or anyone with a pending application. The AirPods Pro 3 purchase must be made directly from Apple, either online or in an Apple Store. Refurbished products, purchases through third-party retailers, international transactions, and business bulk orders are all excluded. The AirPods Pro 3 purchase cannot be made entirely with an Apple Gift Card or Apple Account balance.

All Apple Card payment options are eligible, including paying in full or financing via Apple Card Monthly Installments, and any trade-in applied to the purchase does not affect eligibility. Returning the AirPods Pro 3 purchase may result in forfeiture of the offer.

The AirPods Pro 3 are priced at $249 and were introduced alongside the iPhone 17 lineup in September 2025.

Article Link: New Apple Card Holders Can Get Free AirPods Pro 3, But There's a Catch

 

[turbineseaplane]

Ahh ... So not really a great deal after all.

 

[jarman92]

Would be nice for Apple to give literally anything to people who’ve been cardholders for years already 🙄

 

[icwhatudidthere]

Headline reads like it’s for existing customers but it’s not.

 

[Anonymous123]

Way too complicated of an offer. Apple is acting like a cell phone carrier now with this bill credit deal. Yuck.

 

[QuantumPulse]

Not as much friction as I thought it might have.

 

[Tim Jobs the 2nd]

Ahh ... So not really a great deal after all.

Explain how. Prior to this promotion, if you bought the AirPods Pro 3 and spent that money monthly, you'd get no credit back. Now new cold holders do get a credit back. This is only a net positive for new cardholders.

 

[RedTheReader]

Not for old card holders, of course.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

“But there’s a catch.”

With Apple, there usually is.

 

[DamnDJ]

Terrible headline.

“But there’s a catch.”

With Apple, there usually is.

That's on MacRumors, not Apple.

 

[sw1tcher]

Explain how. Prior to this promotion, if you bought the AirPods Pro 3 and spent that money monthly, you'd get no credit back. Now new cold holders do get a credit back. This is only a net positive for new cardholders.

Yeah, free AirPods Pro 3 after monthly bill credits is a pretty sick deal 😂

 

[Tim Jobs the 2nd]

Not for old card holders, of course.

Standard practice with businesses.

 

[gummybear2026]

I was about to apply for an Apple Card but this worthless rebate program changed my mind.

 

[CharlesShaw]

I rarely make ten or more monthly cc purchases--for groceries using my 3% back Savor card--so I'd be losing about $75 in rewards points annually using 2% Apple Pay for groceries instead, so it's definitely not worth the effort, especially since I'd have to make more trips to the grocery store to net the $175 extra cash back, haha.

 

[sw1tcher]

Way too complicated of an offer.

Not complicated at all.

1) Buy AirPods Pro 3 from Apple. The full purchase price must be charged to the Apple Card
2) For each and every month starting in July 2026, make at least 10 purchases of at least $0.01 using the Apple Card

In the month where you make 10 Apple Card purchases, you will get a $25 bill credit.

If there's a month where you do not make 10 purchases, you do not get $25 bill credit for that month.

 

[sw1tcher]

I rarely make ten or more monthly cc purchases--for groceries using my 3% back Savor card--so I'd be losing about $75 in rewards points annually using 2% Apple Pay for groceries instead, so it's definitely not worth the effort, especially since I'd have to make more trips to the grocery store to net the $175 extra cash back, haha.

This can techincally be done in 1 grocery store trip. Just charge the 10 least expensive items to the Apple Card, spread out over 10 separate transactions. Then charge the rest to your Savor card.

Probably best to do this in a self-check out lane. And yeah, you take the risk of pissing off customers waiting in line behind you. 😂

 

[Tim Jobs the 2nd]

Signup offers from cards typically are something like $200 back if you spend $1000 in the first 6 months. This is better than that and people still find a way to spin it as a negative.

 

[HappyDude20]

Not complicated at all.

1) Buy AirPods Pro 3 from Apple. The full purchase price must be charged to the Apple Card
2) For each and every month starting in July 2026, make at least 10 purchases of at least $0.01 using the Apple Card

In the month where you make 10 Apple Card purchases, you will get a $25 bill credit.

If there's a month where you do not make 10 purchases, you do not get $25 bill credit for that month.

And this is done for ten months?
And had to be done every month or you lose the $25 bill credit for that month?

 

[CharlesShaw]

This can techincally be done in 1 grocery store trip. Just charge the 10 least expensive items to the Apple Card, spread out over 10 separate transactions. Then charge the rest to your Savor card.

Probably best to do this in a self-check out lane. And yeah, you take the risk of pissing off customers waiting in line behind you. 😂

Hmmm, if you put it that way, I'd pay extra to NOT have to spend any more time checking out, LOL.

I often see Instacart (or whatever service) shoppers in the self-checkout area with multiple separate orders to process, and wonder if their considerable effort selecting and taking screenshots, driving, etc is worth what they earn.

 

[no_idea]

Oh, you mean there’s no such thing as a free lunch? Learned that in econ 101 back in high school

 

[mannyvel]

Oh, you mean there’s no such thing as a free lunch? Learned that in econ 101 back in high school

There are plenty of free lunches if you have enough money.

 

[CEmajr]

Looks like a deal that’s only worthwhile if you plan on using the Apple Card as your only credit card, which it’s not worth doing.

 

[Tim Jobs the 2nd]

Looks like a deal that’s only worthwhile if you plan on using the Apple Card as your only credit card, which it’s not worth doing.

Not a high spend amount, it doesn't need to be your only card.

 

[Corefile]

Oh, you mean there’s no such thing as a free lunch? Learned that in econ 101 back in high school

I got a free lunch when I started my last job and a free lunch when I left as a going away get together.

 

[mk313]

Man, people on MacRumors love to complain about Apple. They offer something for FREE that is optional, and hasn't been offered before, and people complain about it. Reminds me of when Apple used to do that 10 days of Christmas that gave away free iTunes movies, games, tv shows & music, and people were complaining on here because they didn't like the specific items that were offered for free.