🌐
MacRumors
forums.macrumors.com › macs › notebooks › macbook pro
Perspective on Charging | MacRumors Forums
November 29, 2024 - I am using a 35 watt dual USB-C charger from Apple to charge my 14" M4 Pro. I like the size, the folding plugs, the ability to charge two items if necessary. I do have the 96 watt charger from Apple that came with the machine but is bulky compared ...
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/macbookpro › which charger should i use if my macbook pro is plugged in 24/7?
r/macbookpro on Reddit: Which charger should I use if my MacBook Pro is plugged in 24/7?
3 weeks ago -

Hey everyone,

I just picked up a 14-inch MacBook Pro (M4 Pro, 48GB RAM) running macOS Sequoia, and I have a question about charging best practices.

I’m using this MacBook almost entirely as a desktop replacement:

  • Always plugged in

  • External monitor

  • External audio interface

  • External speakers, keyboard, etc.

The laptop itself mostly just sits closed on my desk. I do occasionally take it with me when traveling, but that’s pretty rare.

My question is about which charger I should be using long-term:

  • Should I keep using the 96W USB-C power adapter that came in the box?

  • Or is it better to use a lower-wattage charger, like the one that came with my iPhone 16 Pro, since it’s plugged in all the time?

I’m mainly concerned about battery health and longevity.

Does using a lower-watt charger reduce battery wear, or does macOS handle this automatically regardless of charger wattage?

Would appreciate insight from anyone who’s run a MacBook in a desktop setup long-term. Thanks!

PS: Should I update to Tahoe?

🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/macbookpro › got the m4 max 16 inch . came with the 140 watt charger
r/macbookpro on Reddit: Got the m4 max 16 inch . Came with the 140 watt charger
May 16, 2025 -

I used to charge my iPhone with the 20 watt fast charger and killed my battery health in a year reached low 80. Used 15 watt and my new phones battery has been good for two years

Basically applying this logic can I use the 96 watt for the MacBook ? I only plan on charging it when I’m not using it and never while I’m using it . Scared it’ll destroy my battery health and don’t want to deal with that later

Top answer
1 of 5
9
This is not how it works. The device tells the charger how much voltage and current it wants, not the other way around.
2 of 5
5
If you use a battery info utility like AlDente or CoconutBattery, you will find that a charging MacBook Pro almost never uses the full wattage of the charger anyway! The Mac is constantly balancing the power draw needs of laptop operation vs charging, so it is always adjusting the ratio of where the charger watts go. All quality chargers today negotiate with the device to not over-draw or under-draw power, and also to not supply any power if they can’t supply the minimum level that device needs (so a phone charger won't try to charge a MacBook Pro). The reason the power adapter is rated for 140 watts is not for normal usage or normal charging. The 140 watts includes a lot of headroom so that it can successfully charge the MBP at its full rate when it is also operating at its worst case power draw: Having to fully power all maxed CPU/GPU cores, while the SSD is also under heavy I/O, while also fully powering USB/Thunderbolt peripherals on all ports, and while the display is set to maximum brightness, etc. For most people, that combination is a very rare occurrence. The MacBook Pro will work fine with somewhat lower wattage adapters but this will not change how charging works and you will notice no difference, especially if the Mac is idle. The only difference with a lower wattage adapter like 96 or 75 watts is if you give it a maxed-out load and the battery is not full, it will have to cut back on the charging rate. So if you use the MBP in a more typical way, which is a certain percentage of CPU/GPU usage with most ports empty or with a low power draw peripheral, with the screen at a medium brightness, then no way is that power adapter drawing 140 watts. Basically applying this logic can I use the 96 watt for the MacBook ? So you can see from the replies that the logic you are using is based on flawed assumptions. It not the year 1975 where an analog battery charger is physically wired to deliver one wattage, and if you plug something in that expects a different wattage, it blows up or something. No, it is half a century later and both the digital devices and chargers are far smarter than that. If you do the research (for example see batteryuniversity.com) you will find that the things that kill li-ion battery life are high heat especially at full charge, and deep charge cycling. Fast charging is not a problem in and of itself, only fast charging all the way to 100% which almost no chargers do because it’s such a bad idea.
🌐
Apple Community
discussions.apple.com › thread › 255855149
Charging a MacBook Pro M4 Max (140w) with… - Apple Community
M4 Max TDP is 50W - 80W. Most of the time it will be way less. As far as I can tell the 140W is mostly for fast-charging. If you have very intense workflows, raytracing, rendering movies for hours, or training AI models, then ... maybe. I checked my statistics, My M1 Pro never used more than ...
Find elsewhere
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/mac › is it safe to use my 61w macbook pro charger with a new macbook air m4?
r/mac on Reddit: Is it safe to use my 61W MacBook Pro charger with a new MacBook Air M4?
May 27, 2025 -

Hi everyone!
I recently bought a new 13" MacBook Air with the M4 chip. I also have a 2019 13" MacBook Pro, which came with a 61W charger. The new MacBook Air came with a charger that has a US plug, and I live outside the US

Since I already have the 61W charger from my old MacBook Pro, I’m thinking of using it as my primary charger for the new MacBook Air M4
Would that be safe? Can using a 61W charger long-term damage the battery or affect the laptop in any negative way?

Thanks in advance!

🌐
MacRumors
forums.macrumors.com › macs › notebooks › macbook air
Purchasing 13” M4 MacBook Air - 35W or 70W Charger? | MacRumors Forums
May 10, 2025 - Ron ... I use the standard 35W to charge my iPhone and MBA, but I only typically have to charge the MBA 1-2 times a week. ... My MacBook Pro is docked most of the time on a USB c lead attached to my screens.
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/macbookpro › mbp m4 pro charger
r/macbookpro on Reddit: MBP M4 Pro charger
November 28, 2024 -

Hey. I currently use the lowest end M1 MacBook Air to a 16 inch MacBook Pro with an M4 Pro chip. I see on the apple website these come with a 140 watt USB-c charger. For a while I've been using a 65W anker charger with two usb-c ports and a usb-a to charge both my macbook air, my phone and headphones. I carry it around a lot (to libraries, etc) and take it with me when I travel. I see 100 watt chargers with multiple USB-C ports on amazon that don't seem too much bigger than my current one, could I get away with using a 140w charger for an MBP with an M4 pro or does it have to be 140 watts?

🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/macos › macbook pro m4 pro 14-core wattage requirements
r/MacOS on Reddit: MacBook Pro M4 Pro 14-core wattage requirements
March 9, 2025 -

Just got a MacBook Pro M4 Pro 14-core which comes with a 96 watt AC adapter to replace my MacBook Pro M1. I used the M1 with a Thunderbolt hub, the CalDigit TS3+ which provides 86 watts of power, and I was hoping to be able to continue to use this hub with my new M4 Pro - will using these together cause issues since the TS3+ will not provide quite as much wattage as the Apple AC adapter? I assume so but want to confirm before I go out and need to spend a a couple hundred dollars on a Thunderbolt hub that provides at least 96 watts of power delivery. Help would be much appreciated!

🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/mac › how much wattage does macbook use?
r/mac on Reddit: How much wattage does MacBook use?
November 28, 2025 -

I currently have a MacBook Pro M1 2020 13”, which I’m looking to upgrade from soon, I’ve noticed it takes about 25 watts with spikes to 30 under heavy load, and only about 10 when watching something.

I’ve been looking on Apple’s website to see which power adapter they include but it doesn’t get me very far.

As I’ll beworking off grid mainly on solar, pretty much every few watts count.

If anyone has suggestions or more information about this, or about their own personal device, I’d be enlightened to know the power consumption.

🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/mac › charge macbook pro m4 with 100watt charger ruin the battery?
r/mac on Reddit: charge macbook pro m4 with 100watt charger ruin the battery?
June 23, 2024 - The stock 140 W charge block for MacBook Pros charges an iPhone or AirPods just fine. They only draw as much power as they need. ... The "charger" is a power supply. Any device connected with it negotiates a suitable voltage to run the machine, ...
🌐
Level1Techs
forum.level1techs.com › hardware hub
Minimum charging voltage for Macbook Pro? - Hardware Hub - Level1Techs Forums
November 15, 2024 - I’m curious if i t would be possible to use a small portable battery bank, like the ones that are typically designed for smartphones/tablets, to charge it in a pinch. My current laptop requires a 65W charger, which means I have to carry around ...
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/macbookpro › is there any disadvantages to using a 61w charger on my m4 pro?
r/macbookpro on Reddit: Is there any disadvantages to using a 61w charger on my M4 Pro?
August 30, 2025 -

Hi there,

Unforunately misplaced the original 70w charger while in the process of moving. I have my old 61w Macbook Pro charger that I've been using for the last couple months. Is there any hardware issues that could arise by this or am I completely fine?

Top answer
1 of 6
2
The only issue will be is if you can run the machine at high enough power where you’re actually needing 65 W, and in those moments it’ll need to go to the battery to steal that extra power (which in the long run will slightly reduce your battery life). It would be more of an issue if you were only using a 20 W power adapter and spent most of your time fluctuating between 15 W of usage and 25 W of usage, it would be constantly stealing battery power. My MacBook Pro Max came with 140 W charger, put in my laptop bag. I normally only carry a tiny 35 W charger with me as it’s rare when on the go that my usage exceeds that (I originally only had a 30 W charger, and I liked the one so much I had I bought a spare, but they replaced it with a 35 W charger). The only time I carry 140 W charger with me is when I’m traveling. I might be between flights and want today top my laptop up, or I’m camping and might not have power where I’m at; so if I have an opportunity to plug-in, I want to charge as fast as possible.
2 of 6
1
As far as I know: MacBook Air (2022 or later) On the MacBook Air, you can fast charge with the following combinations of power sources and cables: 140W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable 96W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable 70W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable 67W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable (13.6-inch models only) Apple Studio Display + Thunderbolt cable Apple Pro Display XDR + Thunderbolt 3 cable External third-party display capable of delivering 85W + Thunderbolt 3 cable or USB-C cable 14-inch MacBook Pro (2021 or later) On the 14-inch MacBook Pro, you can fast charge with the following combinations of power sources and cables: 140W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable 96W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable or USB-C charge cable Apple Studio Display + Thunderbolt cable Apple Pro Display XDR + Thunderbolt 3 cable External third-party display capable of delivering 94W + Thunderbolt 3 cable or USB-C cable 16-inch MacBook Pro (2021 or later) On the 16-inch MacBook Pro, you can fast charge with the following adapter and cable: 140W USB-C Power Adapter + USB-C to MagSafe 3 Cable 140W USB-C Power Adapter + 240W USB-C Charge Cable for MacBook Pro (16-inch, Nov 2023) or later
🌐
Reddit
reddit.com › r/mac › can apple 61w usb-c power brick charge a 15" m4 macbook air faster than its 35w power adapter? apple says "no", but...
r/mac on Reddit: Can Apple 61W USB-C power brick charge a 15" M4 MacBook Air faster than its 35W power adapter? Apple says "no", but...
July 24, 2025 -

Update: it charges up to 54 W, apparently.

My place used to be filled with USB-C adapters, but I sold a lot of devices lately and they had to go with em. So now I'm in need of another power adapter, because I only have the 35W Dual USB-C one which came with my 15" M4 MacBook Air.

I've found a dirty cheap (~20 $ w/ extension cable + USB-C to USB-C cable) 61W Apple brick on eBay. Apple states that "fast charging" is possibile on 15" MBA only with a 70W power adapter; so my question is: is it possible to charge faster a M4 Air with a 61W brick or is it capped at the same wattage (35) of the dual USB-C adapter? Also, does using a C-to-MagSafe 3 cable instead of a C-to-C make any difference in charging speed? Since, in principle, 61 is more than 35, and the system can draw max 70W, a 61W brick should fast charge the Mac (cause it's way higher than 35!) but Apple says it's not.

Can you help me understand? Also, if you have a 61W and '22 or later MBA it'd be cool to check the power draw with coconutBattery or similar.

Thanks!

Edit: I really don't know why I got downvoted. I thought it could be helpful to shed some light on the ambiguous "Fast charge your MacBook" Apple's support page. Anyway, when I'll have the 61W charger I'll udate you about the real power delivery.