Does 24/7 charging affect MacBook Air M1 battery life?

Goku3508_iOS wrote:

If I keep my Macbook air M1, 2020 plugged in 24/7, will it affect its battery? If so, quicker than usual, or slower than usual?

If you use the battery less, it will last longer. If you never use the battery, it will last a very long time (though not forever as there are other chemical processes at work).

Like all Apple (and most) rechargeable devices, your MBA will stop charging when it reaches 100%. It will let the battery rest and cool down for a while and then top it up again.

Goku3508_iOS wrote:

so the battery does not degrade if I keep it plugged 24/7? just clarifying

Yes, the battery will degrade. Rechargeable batteries start degrading the moment they come off the assembly line. There is nothing you can do to prevent that short of changing the laws of physics.

However, if you use fewer charging cycles, you'll use up the battery capacity more slowly.

I have tended to keep my MBAs or MBPs for close to ten years. Battery problems have never been the reason I replaced them. I've replaced them when they no longer support the software I need to use.

This is what I presumed as well. However, my experience has been very different and alarming. Despite following all Apple instructions on battery health. MacBook Air M2 - used intermittently on battery (129 charge cycles in around 800 days dropped to 83%. Despite working in an AC room all the time. MacBook M3 is 38 cycles and already at 93%.

So you have people saying batteries will degrade less but also saying this is normal … to me a battery capacity close to 80% is awful after 2 years of use with relatively low use on battery (maybe a few hours every other day).