At the risk of stating something painfully obvious, it is worth noting that your MacBook is, in fact, operated by a rechargeable battery. As invaluable as rechargeable batteries have become in the tech era, they understandably degrade over time. Apple’s engineering team has sought to fight battery degradation by building Battery Health Management functions like Optimized Battery Charging into many of its Macs, which is why some devices stop charging before they reach 100%.
Of course, if your MacBook isn’t charging when it’s plugged in, the health of your battery may already be compromised. This is particularly true if your MacBook sees heavy usage or it’s several years old. If you are worried about the condition of your Mac’s battery, you can check its Battery Health with just a few clicks.
To check your MacBook’s Battery Health, click on the Battery icon at the top right of the screen, and in the drop-down menu, select Battery Settings. Near the top of the Battery window, look for Battery Health, which will tell you if the battery is functioning within normal range. If you see “Service Recommended” instead of “Normal,” you may need to replace the battery. Click on the Information tab (the lowercase i with a circle around it) to the right of the Battery Health status. In the pop-up window, you can turn off Optimized Battery Charging, which should allow a healthy MacBook battery to charge up to 100% when plugged in.
