iMac 24inch M1 Screen Defect

You are probably experiencing what many, many M1 iMac owners are experiencing:

The following topics illustrate the Silicon M1 iMac Display problem:

Screen Failure on 24-inch-iMac, M1, 2021 - Apple Community

Persistent horizontal lines appear on iMac Screen - Apple Community

Horizontal Lines on Screen of iMac, 24", 2021

Horizontal black lines covering bottom 3rd of 2021 M1 iMac screen

Grey horizontal patches on my M1 iMac 2021 model

Horizontal lines at the bottom of iMac(M1,2021) screen

Horizontal Lines on 2001 M1 iMac Display

M1 iMac Display vertex heating to scorching 55°C  — Seeking Advice on Escalation

Horizontal Lines on iMAC with M1 chips

Others have reported that the repairs will cost about $600 US.  That's about ⅔'s of a new Mac Mini M4.  

You have maybe 3 options:

1 - pay the ~$600 US price for  Apple or an Apple Authorized Service Provider to repair the monitor (which is over ½ of a new M1 Mac Mini).

2 - get a monitor and use it with your M1 iMac.  You can get a 27" or 32" monitor from $140 US on up. 

3 - get a new Mac.  If considering this option consider the following: a 10 Core Mac Mini M4 with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB SSD ($1084 US) with a 32" LG 4k monitor ($331 US) from Amazon.com)  is $1415 which is $541 less than a similarly configured new 24" iMac ($1956 US)  re 07/2025. Keep your keyboard and mouse from your current Mac for use with the Mini. 

I got the above Mini with a 32" LG 4K monitor w/speakers for only $60 more than the 27" (didn't know the Mini had a speaker).  There are many monitors available in 27" size on up for $100 US to $500 US depending on what features you want.  The monitor prices are before tariffs.

Just some food for thought.

ADDENDUM: in addition to the 3 choices above keep tabs on the Apple Service (Recall) Programs - Apple Support

You try to get in touch with Apple support for this issue as a lot of people have been having the same problem and this is something that’s pretty common with the M1 iMac, normally Apple support should try to help you out with that, my brother got his iMac display replaced for free from Apple last month because its a common issue, it looks like its a one time replacement though. so you can try to talk to them and see if it’s possible with your case as well.

Take a screenshot and view the screenshot on a different device. If the screenshot does not show the issue, then most likely the iMac's Display Assembly or Display Cable is bad.

Otherwise, if you are running macOS 26.x Tahoe.....make sure to install the 26.3 update which was just released last week. I saw someone mention that some screen related issue may have been resolved by this update.

I have seen some other posts on this forum regarding some iMac M-series models having display related issues. Unfortunately it has not been clear on the source of the problem since many users don't provide reliable troubleshooting information & details and even fewer have an Apple Store or an Apple Authorized Service Provider examine their iMacs.

I had the same problem. I went to the technical service and they told me the solution was to replace the LCD for a little over €600.

I called Apple, mentioning this forum, where you can see that it's a problem with the device itself, nothing to do with user misuse. The technicians who answered were very kind and escalated my case. At one point, the established timeframe passed without them responding, and when I called again, they reopened it. This time, they told me they couldn't fulfill my request and that the device wasn't within the standard warranty period, so they wouldn't repair it. I didn't receive the empathy and attention that other customers in Spain did.

So, one of the features that made me choose Apple products was their long lifespan, but after this experience and their inability to take responsibility for their mistakes, I think that's a feature that should no longer be considered.

[Edited by Moderator]

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OrlandoDíaz wrote:

I had the same problem. I went to the technical service and they told me the solution was to replace the LCD for a little over €600.

I called Apple, mentioning this forum, where you can see that it's a problem with the device itself, nothing to do with user misuse. The technicians who answered were very kind and escalated my case. At one point, the established timeframe passed without them responding, and when I called again, they reopened it. This time, they told me they couldn't fulfill my request and that the device wasn't within the standard warranty period, so they wouldn't repair it. I didn't receive the empathy and attention that other customers in Spain did.

So, one of the features that made me choose Apple products was their long lifespan, but after this experience and their inability to take responsibility for their mistakes, I think that's a feature that should no longer be considered.

[Edited by Moderator]

FYI, Unless Apple has already provided a free repair program for an issue, it is unlikely Apple will repair anything for free outside of the warranty period.

I think it actually takes people paying to have these issues repaired before Apple is able to realize the significance & extent of any hardware issue. After all, until Apple sees an unusual number of repairs being performed for a specific hardware fault, they have nothing to analyze to determine if there is an underlying problem that should be addressed due to a design or manufacturing issue. Apple just cannot base them on unsubstantiated reports from the Internet.....Apple needs to see the hardware, examine the hardware & crash logs to confirm a problem that Apple needs to address themselves. And Apple needs to know exactly where & when the suspected bad component was made....information Apple will not have until people have their devices repaired or even possibly examined in detail (especially by having the Apple engineers examining crash logs). Yes it is a Catch-22.

I do understand everyone's frustration. I have seen a lot of hardware issues while supporting my organization's Macs where I thought Apple should have covered the repairs due to design & manufacturing defects.

You can provide Apple with product feedback here:

Product Feedback - Apple

You can also contact Apple corporate to let them know your displeasure:

Contact - How to Contact Us - Apple

OrlandoDíaz wrote:

Hello:

The first thing I did was take the device to an Apple service center, so they should already have the details of the problem. They charged me €35 for the diagnostic. Then I called Apple support and performed all the tasks they requested, and I gave them the information.

That isn't quite the same thing.

Also, you can see on the Apple forums that there are several threads (which have since expired) with the same problem.

Apple does not participate on these forums. Except for generalized symptoms, there is nothing here for Apple to figure out any hardware issues. Apple needs very specific details and some bad displays to examine to determine if there are any patterns to the failures. For Apple, everything on this forum is just hearsay. Nothing actionable for them here. Apple engineers need to examine the faulty hardware components themselves. The front line repair techs have no bearing on Apple creating a free repair program.

I have seen Apple say if they come out with a free repair program for a specific hardware issue, then they will reimburse people who paid for a repair prior to the free repair program being implemented.

You can also check out your local consumer protection laws to see if any of them apply for you to get some relief.

I do believe there may be an issue of some sort with that iMac model, but nothing Apple can act on from the information presented on the forum.

Hello:
The first thing I did was take the device to an Apple service center, so they should already have the details of the problem. They charged me €35 for the diagnostic. Then I called Apple support and performed all the tasks they requested, and I gave them the information.
Also, you can see on the Apple forums that there are several threads (which have since expired) with the same problem.