I am writing to report a poor service experience at the Apple Hillsdale San Mateo store.
I waited approximately 30 minutes after being told an appointment was being arranged, but no one came to assist me and no service was provided. In the end, I had to resolve the issue with my AirPods on my own.
This was a frustrating waste of time and did not meet Apple’s customer service standards.
If you lie about the wait time, what else are you lying about?
Bad form!! If you tell people they have to wait 10 minutes, then be precise. We were in the store 28 minutes! We’re coming in as customers, willing to throw $1000 at you, but you lie about timing and **unapologetically**make people stand around. If you create a waitlist, do it fairly. Either be transparent with words like, “there are 5 customers in front of you.” Or, create a number system…DMV style. You’re a tech company! Page people when it’s their turn. Create a virtual cue.
Xfinity provides a comfortable place for customers to wait. You guys provide wooden benches and a person blathering on about class material that no one signed up to listen to.
I brought my daughter's Mac Book Air into Apple Store Hillsdale for repairs on December 29, 2025. The Mac Book was only a few months old but the display suddenly developed flickering lines across it and only a partial image. The technician hooked the laptop to an external monitor and we could see that the data/apps were ok and working. We asked whether we should back-up the files but he said it was unnecessary since only the monitor would be replaced/fixed. We stupidly believed him and left the laptop at the Apple Store. Pick up would be Friday, January 2, 2026. The first red flag was when my daughter came to pick up her laptop on that Friday and they didn't ask for ID. They took her name, went to the back and grabbed the unit, then handed her the laptop. Second red flag, she asked if she should check the laptop, but they seemed to insinuate that it wasn't necessary to check. She did anyway. It was then that she realized that her entire laptop was wiped. None of her data was preserved. Anything saved on the hard drive was gone which included over 4 months of game coding that was completely lost. We were furious that this happened. We felt completely duped by the technician we spoke to on Monday. And, it felt that they knew they had messed up and tried to rush us out the door without checking the laptop for the quality of their work. This is the first time we have had an experience like this. We are loyal Apple device users and this has been extremely disappointing and costly. We will never go back to the Apple Store at Hillsdale Mall. Save yourself some angst and avoid.
The experience is good. The technician took my concern seriously and handled everything in a very professional and patient manner regarding my volume button concern. I really appreciated the willingness to troubleshoot thoroughly.
Came here 2 days after my visit to the Palo alto apple store where I purchased a new iPhone 16e which arrived with a broken front facing camera. I came to replace the broken iPhone with a wokring on, but since purchased the iPhone with an employee discount, they couldn't refund me the full amount of the phone, so I had to pay an additional 100$. I was essentially fined for receiving a broken iPhone.
They also made me wait for my "scheduled appointment" when there's at least 5 idling employees at any given time at the store.
I had a frustrating experience at this store trying to get my iPhone fixed when the screen cracked and was not able to use my phone. When scheduling by phone, I let them know my screen was cracked and answered several questions about the extent of the damage and they scheduled me for a 7pm appointment. When I show up for the appointment, I had to wait a bit but that was fine. Then, though, the person who came out to help someone else said they would be helping me too. It was super awkward having this person between to customers and us taking turns as they tried to troubleshoot both of our very different situations. The other customer was also looking at me like “what is this?” Then, the apple genius, after running diagnostics, told me my phone would need to have the screen replaced, which … was obvious from just looking at it. They said I would need to come back the next day to drop it off since they had no tech’s working that late to fix it. “What?” I thought. Why even schedule this appointment if I’m only going to have to schedule a new appointment the next day to basically start over so I could start the repair. Only after me asking and pointing out how inconvenient that would be did they offer me the option to leave my phone and just pick it up repaired the next day. It was so weird. In any event, picked up my phone, paid $415 to get the screen replaced and … you guessed it, it’s not fully working. After speaking with Apple Care by phone, I get to go back to a store to get them to re-repair it. Of course, I’m sure as heck not going back to the Hillsdale location.
Update: my phone screen continued to have issues after they repaired it. They called me from the store because of my review and they told me that they had correctly fixed it so the only thing left to do would be to reformat my phone. I did that on my own and it did not fix the issue. I took my phone to another store with higher reviews and they changed the screen again and it repaired the issue. So, in the end it was the store that was the issue… they can be upset with me about it but that was my experience.
just bought an iPhone 17 at the Apple store in Hillsdale, and I have to say, I was really impressed by the customer service I received from Benny. In general, customer service in the U.S. can be pretty mediocre, but today Benny really stood out. He was proactive, super attentive, and took the time to explain everything and show me all the details. I just had to take a moment to write this review and say: Benny did an amazing job. Thanks a lot!
The store manager named Bash was very hostile and unhelpful when I tried to return my broken iPad under Applecare. It is unfortunate they treat people this way. Just because they are APPLE doesn't give them a right.
I arrived at 12:30 pm without an appointment. They told me to wait an hour, which I did. I ended up leaving at 2:30 pm because I got bored and no one came to help me. Or maybe it was because no one spoke Spanish and they didn't want to interact with me—I hope not. It's worth noting that there were about three people standing around not helping anyone, supposedly waiting for their appointments. I was in the store for an hour, and all they did was talk amongst themselves. Without a doubt, if you're looking for a job and don't want to do anything, I recommend applying to this location. Terrible service.
I don't know why this location did not get a better rating. I just bought my phone yesterday (not from this location) and had a very unusual problem where I could not activate it. Benny was not only super helpful but was very intrigued and eager to help me out to resolve my issue. He's also one hell of a multitasker too! Big thanks!!!
Had an amazing experience picking up my Apple Watches. The associate whose name is Beyond was very helpful, informative and kind. I left completely satisfied. Good job!
I opened my macbook pro one day to find the display had lines going across the bottom and side of the screen. I initially took it to Apple Burlingame where the guy quoted me $750
Months later when I saved up money, I went to Apple Hillsdale hoping they'd have the part in stock since it's a bigger store. To my surprise, the tech that helped me said that they could repair it for FREE since the damage is covered by the 1 year warranty! So I came back a couple days later when the part they ordered to repair my macbook came. Again, I was quickly greeted by a friendly staff member and soon after a tech came to take my macbook. He told me that they do their repairs in house and even work over the weekends to get them all done quickly! But that it could still take 3-5 days to repair. No joke, 24 hours later, I got a call saying my macbook is ready for pickup. I'm a programmer who works from home, so I was really excited and rushed to go get it! The pickup was just as fast and smooth as my other times in the store.
Each time I came here I was immediately greeted by a friendly staff member and asked what I needed help with. Then I was very quickly helped by an equally friendly tech who seemed to know their stuff
I cannot recommend this place enough compared to other apple stores in the bay. Especially if you need a repair, this place is well staffed with pros so they likely won't have to ship your device off and make you wait weeks :) thank you so much
Walked in at 4:00 pm just to have something checked on my watch. Was told “no available appointments,” though there were 6 employees standing around. He said yes had available appointments the next day. I said great. In the morning please. Nothing available until 1:30. Same with Friday. Walked out without the 3 minutes of assistance I needed. Here we are in the heart of Apple country, and there’s not enough qualified staff to help.
Started off slow, but once someone got to me, good service kicked in and i got my battery changed after preliminary system review.
Phone was ready in good time but in the mean time, i went to a wonderful apple class, at first to kill time. Amy led class and was such a clear, compassionate communicator. Learned a lot and liked how Amy communicated! Bravo, Amy!!
We brought a phone to the store that wouldn't boot up. The Apple representative rolled his, because it was a non-commission contact. He then said that it would be 4 hours before he could help us. I won't return to this store, and I will keep my allegiance to Samsung phones...even though I'm up for a new phone. My kids all like Apple, but we won't be going to this store for ANY Apple products. Rude and disrespectful service is unacceptable in my book!
I walked into the store and immediately noticed several employees standing around chatting with each other. They clearly saw me enter, yet not a single one acknowledged me or offered assistance. It felt like customers were an afterthought. I had to approach them myself and ask if they even worked there—just to break up their social hour. Even then, they looked at me like I was the one being rude for interrupting.
Probably one of my least favorite Apple Stores- customer service is ‘bad’ compared to other Apple Stores. This coming from a prolific Apple consumer. Poor service is not because they lack in merchandise, but because they are the least knowledgeable people and are not familiar with complicated scenarios during transactions. It did feel like they actually do not ‘care’ about resolving the issue (ironically what customer care is all about). And yes, this is not an isolated observation. Shifted to doing business at the Burlingame location. Fantastic customer care there. Avoiding going forward
I came in on May 8th with a 2017 MacBook Pro for a key replacement. The “T” key had officially gone the way of Crystal Pepsi. Kind of an important key, I’ve learned.
The employee who helped me was great. He listened, helped me out immensely, replaced the key on the spot, and explained that Apple admitted the keyboard design on my model was flawed. A full keyboard replacement would’ve cost me around 700 dollars. He saved me half a mortgage payment on a key popularized by Wheel of Fortune.
About two weeks earlier, I had a charging issue with my AirPods. One would charge, the other noped out like the Pope in 2013. Two employees went above and beyond to get them replaced. Music is very important to me, and my serotonin thanks you.
Shout out to the tall Genius Bar employee who told me I might be able to walk in and get the key replaced. That’s the only reason I came back, and he was right. Another helpful employee sold me a cord and offered extra advice. Great team.
Now for the honest part. Four out of five stars.
On March 28, 2025, I came in to look at computers. A newer employee, with a senior staff member nearby, was helping me. I made it clear I wouldn’t be buying that day. I always research big purchases first. Once I said that, her tone shifted. Smiles stopped, answers got clipped, and asking for a receipt became weirdly difficult. It was uncomfortable enough that I questioned if I did something wrong. But I chalk it up as a teachable moment, not a pattern.
Every other interaction I’ve had here has been positive. Back in November 2024, a female manager went above and beyond when I upgraded my phone. I even complimented her out at the end to compliment the store and her team at the time.
I’m also noting that a manager did call me about the March incident but never followed up. I understand life happens, but a callback would’ve gone a long way.
Overall, this store consistently exceeds my expectations. One cold interaction and a missed callback won’t stop me from recommending them to anyone looking for Apple help.
One small request. Please remind greeters to speak up during busy hours. Sometimes it’s hard to hear them over the noise.
Had an Apple Watch but forgot the passcode. Made an appointment and was dealt with in the most professional way. The store employee did not get her name, was very knowledgeable. Very quick service, I will visit again when back over in the States
October 12, Saturday, I came in to purchase a new phone. We waited for around 5-10 minimum because we didn’t have reservations. The store was quite crowded during the weekend.
After my sale associate found me (I think his name is Barry, I don’t remember his name), he walked me through every step I would have to do because my situation was a bit complicated. I bought a new iPhone 15 and wanted to trade in an iPhone X for some credits. The problem was that phone belonged to my little sister, and in order to take her phone, I passed my current iPhone 12 to her. And, we all wanted our data on the phone, so it was gonna be really time consuming for us to transfer data from one phone to another, and we had to do that step twice. But, Barry was really delightful and patient. He aided us and guided us in every step to make sure we didn’t accidentally delete any data during the process.
We spent 3 hours at the store, but he was really helpful the whole time. Thank you!
I scheduled a repair appointment for my iPhone and arrived on time, only to find out the necessary part was out of stock. Despite selecting a store online that I assumed had the part, I had to spend 30 minutes at the store, then travel to another location. This process wasted three hours total. It would be great if the appointment system could check part availability before allowing customers to book. Overall, the technology seems underutilized, leading to a frustrating experience.
I bought a MACBOOK PRO 13 INCH. The solder that was suppose to hold the WIFI wires in place disconnected. I spoke with a employee there and he said that they could not fix it and that I would have to buy a NEW Apple laptop to resolve my problem. I am homeless and I don't even have any money for food. Today is Sunday DECEMBER 17, 2023... SANTA... Please HELP ME.
My husband was having issues with his Iphone screen all day. We decided to go to the Hillsdale Mall Apple Store. We were greeted right away and offered help, but when the person assisting us looked at the iPhone the issue magically disappeared, which was awesome. Highly recommend coming here for great service and awesome store ambience.
Nice store. Workers are friendly. Love the decoration. Visit the store to get a replacement for iPod Pro earphone first generation , which sometimes has an issue. After they tested and confirmed the earphone has issue they gave a replacement.
Like most Apple Stores, this store was immaculately organized with friendly staff who are ready to help you. We had an appointment to pick up a new laptop and when we arrived, they were not only ready with our new item ready to go, but they were able to help us do a trade in with our old laptop. Although it was busy, we were in and out within 15 minutes, and most of that was just waiting for the old laptop to get wiped. Overall great service and products.
Belino took care of us in this store. Very helpful and knowledgeable about the product and offers. Very COVID-19 conscious in the store. Associates follow COVID protocols closely. That makes me feel safe. I recommend this place to get any apple product.
Super shop.. they had lots of options and the sales personnel was so helpful .. he helped change straps for the iwatch and was very patient in the overall process . He also explained some discount options and interest free emis. .. overall I loved the look and feel of the shop .. and it’s in mall .. so , lots of other things to shop .. welll done all employees
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