Stolen MacBook Pro - Locating via Serial Number

Someone has broken into my apartment and stolen my MacBook Pro and my roommate's Mac. Neither of the two devices was logged in to iCloud. Is there a way to track my device through its serial number?

Solution 1:

In short: No, you can't

Why?
Well, according to Apple, Find My Mac is the only Apple service that can help track or locate a lost Mac. If you didn’t set up Find My Mac before your Mac was lost, you can’t locate it, this includes the serial number.

What Can You Try?

• Your best bet would be to "report your lost or stolen Mac to local law enforcement. They might request the serial number of your computer." - Apple.

• There are databases for submitting lost device's serial numbers, these alert buyers for example when a device is marked stolen. I'd recommend getting onto this as soon as possible.

At set up and with macOS upgrades, Apple almost forces all this additional security because it works. By default, services like the Find My Mac are checked, you would have had to make the conscious decision not to enable the service. Naturally, what isn't enabled can't be called upon.