When the Apple Store goes offline, it usually indicates that Apple is about to launch a new product. This is the case today: on March 10, 2023, Apple will launch pre-orders for the new yellow iPhone 14.
If you visit the storefront, you’ll see the message: We can’t wait either. Pre-order starts at 5:00 a.m. PST. See you later.
It’s a bit different from the usual message: We’ll be right back.
Foundry
Is the Apple Store down?
If you’re having trouble trying to browse the Apple Store online, it could be due to connectivity issues, but it’s also possible that the Apple Store is closed while Apple updates it with new ones. products that will be launched later.
Wondering if new products are expected? Take a look at our roundup of new Apple products.
The store always tends to disconnect just before an event, to find out if an event is scheduled today read: When is the next Apple event?
Or there may be changes applied on the Apple Store site.
There is also an Apple e-commerce store (bargain store) which sometimes breaks down.
Why is the Apple Store down?
There are several reasons why the Apple Store may be offline. It could be because Apple is preparing to launch new products at an event, or because Apple is about to start taking pre-orders for a new product.
If the site goes down on a day when Apple hasn’t scheduled an event, it may indicate that Apple is about to release new products or that pre-orders may begin for upcoming products.
The company may also be about to issue press releases about new products that they won’t be announcing at an event.
However, don’t jump to the conclusion that new Apple products are coming, that’s not always the case.
Sometimes the store may go down for scheduled maintenance, or it may be related to server issues.
In this article, we’ll explain how to tell the difference between scheduled maintenance and server issues, and how you can easily check the status of the Apple Store.
Why is the Apple Store down today?
Today (March 10, 2023), the Apple Store is offline as the company prepares to launch pre-orders for the iPhone 14 in yellow.
What time is the App Store usually closed?
Events typically begin at 10 a.m. at Apple’s California headquarters, which is 1 p.m. ET and 6 p.m. UK time.
If there is no event and the Apple Store is down, you might be wondering what time the Apple Store is down and when does Apple make the announcement?
In our experience, the Apple Store goes down around 8am ET, 5am PT, 1pm UK time.
The news then arrives around 11am ET, 8am PT and 4pm UK.
Other reasons the Apple Store might be down
However, there are other reasons why the Apple Store might be down, so if you are here on a day when no event or pre-order is scheduled, check other reasons why the Apple Store might be down below.
Apple could update the online store
Before explaining how to check the status of Apple’s online store, we must first explain the possible reasons why the store could be down.
The most exciting reason is that Apple might update the store with new products.
Apple tends to close the Apple Store while it updates the range of available products, whether it’s removing old products and adjusting prices or offering the latest iPhone or iPad. The telling difference between server issues and Apple’s Store update is the start page you land on.
If the Apple Store is down due to product changes, a message like “We’ll be back right away” (Previously said, “We’ll be back soon”) should appear. If so, you don’t have to do anything else: there’s no server problem, just sit back and wait for Apple to update the Store.
The Apple Store is down
However, if when you try to access the Apple Store you get a 404 error message (or the site isn’t working as expected), there may be a problem with Apple’s servers. To determine if this is the problem, you can skip the next section and read how to check system status below.
You are using an outdated version of Safari or macOS
If you’re having trouble accessing the Apple Store, while other people aren’t having any trouble, it could be due to your outdated software. If this is the case, the message “unsupported browser version” will be displayed when you try to visit the page on older versions.
The store also appears to be unavailable when any of the older versions of macOS, including macOS Yosemite or Sierra, are on other browsers. The likes of Chrome and Firefox will only work if you update to a recent version.
It is believed to be an attempt by Apple to protect its customers from any potential threats.
How to Check Apple’s System Status
The first step in determining if the Apple Store is down (apart from going to the site itself!) is to visit Apple’s System Status website. This site shows the current status of every Apple service, from iOS device activations to iCloud and, of course, the online Apple Store.
It not only notifies users of any potential issues with online services, but also gives users an overview of any scheduled maintenance that might cause problems. It also indicates if there have been any recent disruptions that have now been resolved.
If you see a message next to Apple Store Online Status, click it. This should provide more details about the issue, including how long the outage lasted and what issues users would have/experience.
Read next: How to get an education discount at Apple
Check Crowdsourcing Status Websites
Apple’s System Status site isn’t the only place to find up-to-date information on the status of the Apple Store. Down Detector is a hugely popular third-party status website that relies on user-collected information to provide up-to-date statuses on a range of online services, from PayPal to Steam and the Apple Store.
The site allows users to report issues and lets you see past issues that have affected the performance of the service. It also features a handy live outage heatmap, so you can see if the issue is local to your city/region/country.
Another good resource is the aptly named Is It Down Right Now?. The site offers data similar to Down Detector, but also offers a grid displaying access speeds over the past few days.
However, it works differently than Down Detector, as you have to search for the service via a URL and at the time of writing it checks the status of the entire Apple website, not the Apple Store specifically.
Read next: How to use the Apple Education Store
Table of Contents
