Apple Computer Check Signed by Steve Jobs Sells for $46,000

A check signed by former Apple CEO and co-founder Steve Jobs sold for $46,063 at auction this week. Issued by "Apple Computer Company" in 1976, the $4.01 check was made out to electronics retailer RadioShack.

steve jobs check
Jobs filled out the check on July 23, 1976, which was the time that he and Steve Wozniak were working on the Apple-1 computer. The two produced approximately 200 Apple-1 machines, 50 of which were sold to The Byte Shop in July 1976 and retailed for $666.66.

The RadioShack check lists a Palo Alto address for an answering service and mail drop off point that Jobs used while Apple was being run out of his parents' garage.

RR Auction expected the check to sell for at least $25,000, but it sold for more. Apple and Steve Jobs memorabilia has been fetching higher and higher prices in recent years.

Another check signed by Steve Jobs was put up for auction this week by Sothebys, and it too could sell for upwards of $40,000. The check predates Apple's April 1, 1976 founding date as it was written on March 28, 1976. It is one of a handful of checks issued to Jobs and Wozniak ahead of when they received their custom-printed Apple Computer Company checkbook.

Popular Stories

m5 macbook pro deal

Why You Shouldn't Buy the Next MacBook Pro

Tuesday February 10, 2026 4:27 pm PST by
Apple is planning to launch new MacBook Pro models as soon as early March, but if you can, this is one generation you should skip because there's something much better in the works. We're waiting on 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, with few changes other than the processor upgrade. There won't be any tweaks to the design or the display, but later this...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3

Wednesday February 11, 2026 10:07 am PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.3 and iPadOS 26.3, the latest updates to the iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 operating systems that came out in September. The new software comes almost two months after Apple released iOS 26.2 and iPadOS 26.2. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release notes, ...
Apple Logo Zoomed

Apple Expected to Launch These 10+ Products Over the Coming Months

Tuesday February 10, 2026 6:33 am PST by
It has been a slow start to 2026 for Apple product launches, with only a new AirTag and a special Apple Watch band released so far. We are still waiting for MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, the iPhone 17e, a lower-cost MacBook with an iPhone chip, long-rumored updates to the Apple TV and HomePod mini, and much more. Apple is expected to release/update the following products...
iPhone 16e Bottom Crop

Apple Reportedly Unveiling a New iPhone Next Week

Tuesday February 10, 2026 1:51 pm PST by
Apple plans to announce the iPhone 17e on Thursday, February 19, according to Macwelt, the German equivalent of Macworld. The report said the iPhone 17e will be announced in a press release on the Apple Newsroom website, so do not expect an event for this device specifically. The iPhone 17e will be a spec-bumped successor to the iPhone 16e. Rumors claim the device will have four key...
Apple Logo Black

Apple Acquires New Database App

Wednesday February 11, 2026 6:44 am PST by
Apple acquired Canadian graph database company Kuzu last year, it has emerged. The acquisition, spotted by AppleInsider, was completed in October 2025 for an undisclosed sum. The company's website was subsequently taken down and its Github repository was archived, as is commonplace for Apple acquisitions. Kuzu was "an embedded graph database built for query speed, scalability, and easy of ...

Top Rated Comments

spaxxedout Avatar
29 months ago
$4.01 in 1976 is equivalent to $193,921.82 in today’s money, so not a great deal.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
japanime Avatar
29 months ago

No. Back then, when the recipient of a check deposited it, the check went through the clearing process. The bank where it was deposited processed it, then it went to a clearinghouse, then to the bank the check was issued from. The funds were transferred through this process, then the original check was returned to the entity who wrote it, in this case it would be the accounting department at Apple.

So someone at Apple got a hold of it at some point, and eventually it made its way to auction.

These days it works differently, where checks are deposited via EFT and never have to leave the hands of whoever received the payment. But back then, every check you wrote would come back to you. (or your company)
And at the end of the month, spouses would sit at the kitchen table and go through them one by one to balance the checkbook and argue about who was spending too much money ?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KENESS Avatar
29 months ago

How do you get $193,921? Inflation calculator says about $22.
He was joking.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
29 months ago

I’m curious to know what the ownership history of this check is. Obviously, once written, it was the property of Radio Shack, but did they ever cash it? Did the store owner recognize its potential value and stash it away without cashing it? An employee wouldn’t have had any legal right to it. If cashed, did someone at the bank have a right to ownership?
No. Back then, when the recipient of a check deposited it, the check went through the clearing process. The bank where it was deposited processed it, then it went to a clearinghouse, then to the bank the check was issued from. The funds were transferred through this process, then the original check was returned to the entity who wrote it, in this case it would be the accounting department at Apple.

So someone at Apple got a hold of it at some point, and eventually it made its way to auction.

These days it works differently, where checks are deposited via EFT and never have to leave the hands of whoever received the payment. But back then, every check you wrote would come back to you. (or your company)
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
29 months ago

Circuits aren’t something you bought at Radio Shack
They had OP amps, lots of stuff. I'm not sure what you are saying. Though over the years less and less. LOL
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Lifeisabeach Avatar
29 months ago

Circuits aren’t something you bought at Radio Shack
Yeah. Seems there was a City you could get those at...
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)