Vision Pro cover glass repairs will set you back $799 without AppleCare Plus

The Apple Vision Pro headset’s sticker price of $3,499 is nothing to sneeze at. But if you choose not to pay the additional $24.99 per month or $499 for two years of AppleCare Plus coverage, be sure to handle your new headset with kid gloves. For users without a coverage plan, repairing a cracked cover glass will cost $799, according to Apple’s updated support page for the Vision Pro.

If you are covered under AppleCare Plus, repairing either a cracked cover glass or other accidental damage will cost $299. At these rates, paying for two years of AppleCare Plus and the reduced cover glass repair fee costs a combined $798 — an entire $1 less than the repair costs without the service plan.

The terms and conditions (pdf) explain the coverage includes any “unexpected and unintentional external event,” including spilling liquid or dropping the device. If you’re unusually clumsy, rest assured that an AppleCare Plus plan covers an “unlimited” number of events during its two-year duration, as long as you come up with the $299 each time.

More advanced repairs may be where Apple’s extended coverage is truly required for the Vision Pro. Repairing other damage could cost you up to $2,399 — more than two-thirds the cost of a brand-new Vision Pro, while the extended coverage is in place even if the damage requires replacing the device. Apple wasn’t specific about what level of harm could require a full replacement, but your local fix-it place probably doesn’t have a 23 million pixel Micro-OLED display lying around in the back.

The increased availability of DIY and third-party repair services have sometimes provided a cheaper alternative to Apple’s official avenues for repairs of other devices. Last year, as right-to-repair laws passed in states like a number of U.S. states like California, Minnesota, and New York, Apple committed to making parts, tools, and information available for DIY repairs of its devices.

After the iPhone 15 launched last fall, Apple expanded its self-service repair offerings to cover the new phones about a month later, and if it follows that for the Vision Pro, then DIY and third-party repairs may be another option to take care of anything that breaks. But for now, Vision Pro buyers can consider tacking the cost of AppleCare Plus onto an already high price — and be extra careful roaming around in their new eyewear.