SERIAL-NUMBER-DECODER.CO.UK

The Apple serial number decoder

How the tool decodes the serial number and why

The Apple serial number decoder is a tool to both validate Apple serial numbers and to decode them. Decoding the serial number will provide the date and location of manufacture along with any available Apple device information. There have been three Apple serial number formats over the years so first the tool works out which of these formats the serial number is in, the classic Mac format, the 1990s/2000s format and the current format used from 2010 onwards. If it is not in one of these formats then most likely it is either not an Apple serial number (perhaps an Apple model number or order number), a character has been read (or typed) incorrectly or the device is not a genuine Apple product.

Although this tool obviously cannot guarantee an Apple's authenticity it goes significantly further than other tools by actively validating the format and characters.

Unlike some of the more simple Apple serial number decoders out there this one properly validates the format, attempts to decode the model part (if known) and also validates the date itself to ensure it is a valid date. You can then verify that it is within the years that the serial format was used and also not before the model was being made (if the information is known to me). The reason for doing it this way is that it helps in detecting invalid serial numbers from fake Apple products which may pass as valid on other sites.

This tool also attempts to correct common mistakes when reading an Apple serial number, after all these numbers tend to be printed very small and in annoyingly similar colours to the colour of the Apple device itself. It should be noted that there are no letter Os in a modern Apple serial number, they are all zeros. Also an 8 can often be misread as a letter B.

At the end of each day the Apple model ID part of any failed numbers is sent to me where I check and update my database manually. Checking by hand to ensure the ID is from a genuine Apple product. If no product information is returned but the code is shown to be valid (and a date shown) then come back in a few days it is very likely that I will have entered the information required into the database.

The tool should work on any Apple product, iPhones, iMac, classic Macs, iPods, AirPods (and chargers), HomePods, iPads, eMac and even cables and adapters (if they have a serial number).


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