MacBook Air vs 13-inch MacBook Pro: So much in common, but so very different

Apple currently sells two laptop lines: the MacBook Pro (which comes in 13-inch M2, 14-inch M2 Pro/Max and 16-inch M2 Pro/Max models) and the MacBook Air (which is available in 13.3-inch M1 or 13.6-inch M2 and a, new for 2023, 15-inch M2 MacBook Air). That is a lot of Mac laptops with very different specs.

In this article, we are concerned with the Mac laptops that are best suited to average use: home, student and office work. The 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with M2 Pro or M2 Mac chips are better suited to pro users and have much higher prices, so we won’t be including them here. But if you are wondering whether your needs might extend a little further on the pro side, you may also be interested to read: Which MacBook Pro: 13, 14, 16-inch compared.

We’ll be considering the following similarly speced Mac laptops:

• 13.3-inch MacBook Air, M1, 2020.
• 13.6-inch MacBook Air, M2, July 2022.
• 13.3-inch MacBook Pro, M2, June 2022.
• 15-inch MacBook Air, M2, June 2023.

We’ve included the M1 MacBook Air, but only really in passing: it will be three years old in November, and, while it’s price is still $999/$999 the price of the much better M2 MacBook Air is only $100/$100 more, so our advice is simple: pay a little extra for a much better machine.

Elsewhere we look at the MacBook Air M1 vs M2 and the 15-inch MacBook Air vs the 14-inch MacBook Pro. We also compare the 8-core MacBook Air with the 10-core MacBook Air. For advice about the best MacBook we also have a buying guide, see: Best MacBook 2023: Which Mac laptop is best?

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: 13-inch and 15-inch options compared

Here are the three Mac laptops that have our attention. We will be comparing design, specs, displays, price and other features below.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Design

When Apple revealed its new design for the MacBook Air in June 2022 you could have been forgiven for thinking you were looking at a MacBook Pro. The tapered edge for which the Air was famous had gone, replaced with a more uniform design. But placed beside the 13-inch MacBook Pro the differences are evident: The MacBook Air is still thinner, albeit fractionally, but it is also very slightly larger thanks to the bigger screen.

Looking at the screen you will notice the other glaring difference: the MacBook Air has a notch (also seen on the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro and iPhones) and the 13-inch MacBook Pro doesn’t. This enables the bigger screen and conceals a much better FaceTime camera, so it’s not a bad thing, although some people don’t like notches.

If you miss that tapered design that made the MacBook Air instantly identifiable it is still available if you buy the M1 version of the MacBook Air.

Another notable difference is that the 13-inch MacBook Pro is the only Mac laptop that still features Apple’s Touch Bar strip. Apple removed the Touch Bar from the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with the 2021 models, so if you want the Touch Bar the 13-inch MacBook Pro is the only Mac laptop to offer it. All three MacBooks have the same Magic Keyboard with scissor-switch keys. All of the models also have a Touch ID sensor and Force Touch trackpad.

Thanks to the extensive redesign in 2022, the MacBook Air gained many features that the 13-inch MacBook Pro lacks. Most significant is the fact that the 2022 MacBook Air has a larger 13.6-inch screen with slimmer bezels, while the 13-inch MacBook Pro has an older 13.3-inch display (the same as the M1 MacBook Air).

If a 13.6-inch screen isn’t big enough for you, Apple added a 15.3-inch MacBook Air to the lineup in June 2023. This model looks identical to the 13.6-inch MacBook Air, and shares (mostly) the same specs, it’s just bigger.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Dimensions

When it launched in 2008, the MacBook Air was the lightest laptop available, but over the years the weight of the MacBook Pro has also declined, so the difference is a lot less now:

The 13-inch MacBook Air is lighter than the 13-inch MacBook Pro, but only slightly. The 15-inch MacBook Air is, of course, heavier than the other Mac laptops, but it’s still lighter than the 14-inch MacBook Pro.

• 15-inch MacBook Air, M2: 3.3 pounds (1.51kg)
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M2: 2.7 pounds (1.24kg)
• 13-inch MacBook Pro, M2: 3 pounds (1.4kg)
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M1: 2.8 pounds (1.29kg)

Following its redesign the 2022 MacBook Air is actually very slightly larger than the 13-inch MacBook Pro. That change is what allows Apple to accommodate a larger display. The measurements of the M1 MacBook Air are the same as the 13in MacBook Pro.

• 15-inch MacBook Air, M2: 13.40 x 9.35 x 0.45 inches (34.04 x 23.76 x 1.15cm)
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M2: 11.97 x 8.46 x 0.44 inches (30.41 x 21.5 x 1.13cm)
• 13-inch MacBook Pro, M2: 11.97 x 8.36 x 0.61 inches (30.41 x 21.24 x 1.56cm)
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M1: 11.97 x 8.36 x 0.16-0.63 inches(30.41 x 21.24 x 1.61-0.41cm)

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Colors

Another difference between these MacBooks is the color choices. There are four colour choices for the 2022 13-inch MacBook Air and the 2023 15-inch MacBook Air: Midnight (dark blue), Starlight (gold), Space Gray and Silver. The Starlight shade is paler gold, while Midnight is close to black with a dark blue hue.

The MacBook Pro offers only silver and space grey options. The M1 MacBook Air comes in silver, space gray and gold.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Display

Due in part to the fact that the 2022 MacBook Air screen is slightly taller, with a diagonal measurement of 13.6 inches rather than 13.3 inches, the 13.6-inch MacBook Air display offers slightly more pixels than its predecessor:

• 15-inch MacBook Air, M2: 15.3inch diagonal, 2880 x 1864 pixels
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M2: 13.6inch diagonal, 2,560 x 1,664 pixels
• 13-inch MacBook Pro, M2: 13.3inch diagonal, 2,560 x 1,600 pixels
• 13-inch MacBook Air, M1: 13.3inch diagonal, 2,560 x 1,600 pixels

When Apple upgraded the 13-inch MacBook Air in the summer of 2022 it made changes to the quality of the screen. As a result, the newer 13-inch MacBook Air can achieve 500 nits brightness compared to 400 on the older model. The 13-inch MacBook Pro also offers 500 nits as does the 15-inch MacBook Air.

Apple uses the marketing term Liquid Retina for the newer MacBook Air models, but that seems to only refer to the rounded corners. These screens aren’t on par with the Liquid Retina XDR display screens of the larger 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro, which offer Pro Motion screen technology that can achieve a 120Hz refresh rate for a smoother viewing experience.

Those more expensive MacBook Pro options also offer up to 1,000 nits of brightness, deeper blacks and more vivid colors.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Specs

All Apple’s laptops run on Apple silicon. The older MacBook Air runs on M1, which was Apple’s first system-on-chip for Macs that arrived back in November 2020. The three other Mac laptops we are discussing here feature the M2 chip, which arrived in June 2022.

The 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models feature faster M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, which arrived in January 2023. To learn more about all the Mac processors read our Mac processor comparison.

This is how the specs in the various MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro compare:

13.3-inch MacBook Air, M1 (2020, $999/£999)

8-core CPU with 4 perform­ance cores and 4 efficiency cores
7-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 16GB)
256GB SSD

13.6-inch MacBook Air, M2 (2022, $1,099/£1,149)

8-core CPU with 4 perform­ance cores and 4 efficiency cores
8-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
256GB SSD

13.6-inch MacBook Air, M2 (2022, $1,399/£1,449) *

8-core CPU with 4 perform­ance cores and 4 efficiency cores
10-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
512GB SSD

15-inch MacBook Air, M2 (2023, $1,299/£1,399)

8-core CPU with 4 perform­ance cores and 4 efficiency cores
10-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
256GB SSD

15-inch MacBook Air, M2 (2023, $1,499/£1,599)

8-core CPU with 4 perform­ance cores and 4 efficiency cores
10-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
512GB SSD

13-inch MacBook Pro, M2 (2022, $1,299/£1,349)

8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
10-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
256GB SSD

13-inch MacBook Pro, M2 (2022, $1,499/£1,549 **

8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores
10-core GPU
16-core Neural Engine
8GB Unified Memory (up to 24GB)
512GB SSD

The more expensive 13-inch MacBook Air option* used to have the same price as an identically specced MacBook Pro** ($1,499/£1,549), however, Apple has reduced the price of that 13-inch MacBook Air so you can now get the same spec for $1,399/£1,449.

As a result, it might look like the choice is obvious: the 10-core GPU, 512GB MacBook Air is the better choice as it costs $100/£100 less than the same 10-core GPU, 512GB MacBook Pro. However, it’s not that straightforward. Other factors can slow down the MacBook Air, as played out in our benchmarks. The fact that the AIr is more compact and fanless means it is less able to manage heat, and therefore may run slower if you were to really push it. Take a look at our benchmarks below for more.

CPU

The 2022 MacBook Air and 13in MacBook Pro both run on Apple’s M2 chip, as does the 15-inch MacBook Air. Like the M1 chip, which you can still get in the entry-level MacBook Air, the M2 has eight CPU cores, four of which are high-performance cores and four are high-efficiency cores. This is an advantage of Apple’s chip design: when the high-efficiency processor cores are busy backing up to iCloud or syncing photos the high-performance cores will still be available for more intensive operations. The M2 is superior to the M1 because this time round the faster performance cores are paired with a larger cache, while the efficiency cores see even greater performance gains, according to Apple. So it might look like the CPU is the same, but it isn’t.

In our Geekbench 5 CPU benchmarks we saw that the M2 MacBook Air peak performance was in line with the M2 MacBook Pro, and a bit better than the M1. But it’s not on par with the higher-end M2 Pro and Max processors. Note Geekbench has recently been updated to 6.1 but we haven’t been able to retest everything yet. So until we can, take a look at the benchmarks for the 15-inch MacBook Pro in our 15-inch MacBook Pro review.

The Cinebench R23 tests show the differences between the M2 MacBook Pro and MacBook Air though - the new MacBook Air was 15 percent faster than the M1 model, but 10 percent slower than the M2 MacBook Pro.

GPU

As you will see from the specs above, another key difference between all the Mac laptops on offer here is the number of graphics cores.

The entry-level MacBook Air doesn’t only offer a less-powerful M1 chip, there are only seven graphics cores compared to the eight or ten graphics cores in the M2 MacBook Air models.

The number of GPU cores might be a key part of the decision about which model is best suited to your needs. If you think you are likely to need that extra GPU core you may think that the best option is to buy the more expensive Air. But the MacBook Pro, which offers a 10-core GPU option, might be a better option, as we will explain.

The reason why the MacBook Pro is a better option for graphic-intensive operations than the MacBook Air is that it also includes a fan for cooling - as a result, you will be able to push it a little further. The MacBook Air will be perfectly fine for normal operations, but because it lacks a fan you may find that things slow down in order for it not to overheat while you are pushing it.

The Geekbench 5 Compute benchmarks showed scores for the M2 MacBook Air with 10-core GPU were in line with the M2 MacBook Pro and almost 60 percent faster than the old M1 MacBook Air (with 7 GPU cores), and about 40 percent faster than the “full” M1 with 8 GPU cores in the M1 MacBook Pro.

A MacBook Air has never been a great gaming laptop, and even the improvements we find in the M2 don’t change that. But it’s interesting to see how much better it is at running premium games than the M1.

RAM

All the M1 MacBooks - both Pro and Air - come with 8GB of Unified Memory at their base configuration. The M2 chip brings an option to upgrade to 24GB RAM while the M1 is limited to 16GB RAM.

You may be thinking that 8GB RAM won’t be enough for your needs, but you should note that this RAM - which Apple calls Unified Memory - is part of the M2 (or M1) chip. As a result, it is accessible to both the CPU and the GPU, which brings performance benefits that means the 8GB RAM in these models isn’t really comparable to 8GB in an Intel-powered Mac.

If you are concerned though you can update your MacBook Air or 13in MacBook Pro to 16GB or 24GB RAM at the point of sale - and we do recommend that you get 16GB if you can afford to.

If you feel that you need more than 24GB memory then you will need to turn to the M2 Pro (which ships with 16GB Unified Memory and is upgradable to 32GB), or the M2 Max (which ships also with 16GB Unified Memory, but is upgradable to 64GB or 96GB). It is even possible to get 128GB RAM, but for that you will need the M1 Ultra in the Mac Studio.

Storage

The Air and 13in Pro both come with 256GB of storage at the entry-level, with an additional model offering 512GB. You can also add a larger SSD at point of sale, but the M1 MacBook Air and Pro models are capped at 2TB.

There are some concerns about the 256GB SSD in the entry-level M2 MacBook Air with reports that its SSD is up to 50 percent slower on read speeds and 30 percent on write speeds. We found that these observations were indeed true when we ran our own set of tests using Blackmagic Disk Speed Test. This may matter if you are using apps that access the SSD often, but it may not make a difference in typical use.

The 256GB Air showed read speeds that were 47.9 percent slower than the 1TB MacBook Air we also tested. While write speeds were a staggering 50.2 percent slower, far worse than expected. Unfortunately, the entry-level Air was also considerably slower than the 2020 model.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Battery life and charging

When it comes to battery life nothing has changed since the M1 Macs, but these Macs are still miles ahead of the old Intel MacBook models. According to Apple, the M1 and both M2 MacBook Air models offer 18 hours, while the 13in MacBook Pro offers an amazing 20 hours. This makes the discontinued 2.0GHz 13in MacBook Pro’s 10 hours battery life look appalling.

In our own testing, the 13.6-inch MacBook Air battery lasted 17.5 hours, outstripping the M1 MacBook Air and M2 MacBook Pro by almost an hour and a half. The 15-inch MacBook Air battery lasted an even better 19 hours in our tests.

In regular daily use, battery life is just as great. It’s a weird feeling, opening up your laptop and doing work for 20 minutes and seeing that the battery percentage hasn’t changed even a single percent, but that’s how it is with Apple silicon. Obviously, battery life varies based on what you’re doing, but for this laptop’s target market-the everyday home and productivity user-it’s hard to think that you’ll ever have to charge up before the day is done.

These numbers are certainly impressive, although not the most hours of battery life on offer from an Apple MacBook, which is 22 hours for the 2021 16-inch MacBook Pro.

It’s not just battery life that is better on the newer MacBook Air though. Apple has improved charging speed if you use a good USB-C power adapter. A standard 35W dual-port adapter (which comes with all models of the Air aside from the entry-level model) can achieve a 10 percent charge in 10 minutes (30 percent in 30 minutes). Apple’s 61W USB-C Power Adapter increases this to 72 percent charge in 30 minutes. See our comparison test of Apple’s new M2 MacBook Air chargers as well as the best USB-C charger for your MacBook.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Ports and expansion

Over the years it’s felt like Apple has been on a mission to remove ports from Macs in order to make them slimmer and slimmer. This has been a disadvantage for many, although generally if you need more or different ports you can just plug in an adapter or a dock (read: Best USB-C hubs and adapters for Mac).

With the arrival of the 2022 MacBook Air Apple did add a MagSafe charging port, which means that those two USB ports are still free when you are charging (the same applies to the 15-inch model). This puts the 13-inch MacBook Pro and the older MacBook Air at a disadvantage since they both offer only two USB 4 ports two USB/Thunderbolt ports, so one of those will also be used for charging.

If you do feel that you need more ports the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro have a number of ports available including three Thunderbolt 4 (USB‑C) ports, an HDMI port, and a SDXC card slot. (If you are wondering what the difference between USB-C and USB 4 is, USB 4 should be able to offer 40Gb/s, which is what Thunderbolt 3 already offers. USB-C offers 10 to 20Gb/s.)

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Audio and camera

The 15-inch MacBook Air has one other benefit over the 13.6-inch model: if features a six-speaker sound system with force-canceling woofers, compared to a four-speaker sound system. The M2 MacBook Pro and M1 MacBook Air only offer stereo speakers. All Mac laptops offer a 3.5mm headphone jack.

You’ll also find a better 1080p FaceTime camera on the newer M2 MacBook Air models. The M1 MacBook Air and MacBook Pro have only 720p FaceTime cameras, which really aren’t good enough in this day and age.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Price

Regardless of the features, the decision of whether to buy the MacBook Air or MacBook Pro may just come down to price. You might be looking for the cheapest option - in which case the $999/£999 M1 MacBook Air would appear to be the clear winner. But in June 2023 Apple reduced the price of the M2 MacBook Air, meaning that it only costs $100/£100 more to buy that model. Our advice is to spend the extra money if you can afford to or look for a deal that reduces the M2 MacBook Air to a price you can afford.

We recommend getting the best machine you can afford at the time of purchase because you won’t be able to upgrade down the line. Normally we’d suggest that you upgrade the RAM before the storage, but given the issues with the storage in the entry-level M2 MacBook Air we’d suggest that you opt for more storage if you think you will benefit from it. An M2 MacBook Air with 8-core GPU and 512GB SSD costs $200/£200 more at $1,299/£1,349.

You’ll find the pricing for the different models below, including the best offers right now for new MacBooks (because you don’t have to pay Apple’s price). We also recommend checking the Apple Refurbished Store to see if you could pick up a discounted MacBook.

MacBook Air prices

The MacBook Air is available in two default configurations:

• 13.3-inch, M1 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 7‑Core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: $999/£999.
• 13.6-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 8‑Core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: $1,099/£1,149.
• 13.6-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 10‑Core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD: $1,399/£1,449.
• 15-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 10‑Core GPU, 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD: $1,299/£1,399.
• 15-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 10‑Core GPU, 8GB RAM, 512GB SSD: $1,499/£1,599.

Buy directly from Apple, or look below for the best prices right now:

15-inch MacBook Air, M2, 8-core GPU (MSRP: $1,299/£1,399)

15-inch MacBook Air, M2, 8-core GPU (MSRP: $1,499/£1,599)

13.6-inch MacBook Air, M2, 8-core GPU (MSRP: $1,099/£1,149)

13.6-inch, MacBook Air, M2, 10-core GPU (MSRP: $1,399/£1,449)

13.3-inch MacBook Air, M1, 7-core GPU (MSRP: $999/£999)

For even more MacBook Air deals check out our best MacBook Air deals article for discounts available elsewhere.

13-inch MacBook Pro prices

There are two 13-inch configurations of the MacBook Pro sold by Apple:

• 13.3-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 8‑Core GPU, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD: $1,299/£1,349
• 13.3-inch, M2 Chip with 8‑Core CPU and 10‑Core GPU, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD: $1,499/£1,549

Buy directly from Apple, or look below for the best prices right now:

M2 MacBook Pro, 10-core GPU, 256GB SSD (MSRP: $1,299/£1,349)

M2 MacBook Pro, 10-core GPU, 512GB SSD (MSRP: $1,499/£1,549):

We also recommend that you take a look at our round-up of the best MacBook Pro deals right now.

MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Buying advice

If a low price is the most important factor in your decision then the M1 MacBook Air might look like the best option, but the entry-level M2 model doesn’t cost much more and has a raft of new features including a bigger screen and better FaceTime camera.

The MacBook Pro does have better battery life and better cooling though. So if those things matter to you then the decision is clear, although, if you really need the ultimate in power then you really should be considering the 14-inch MacBook Pro or its larger sibling. Those Pros offer more graphics cores and support more RAM. They also offer a bunch of ports that will benefit many.

Aside from those benefits, the M2 MacBook Pro has little going for it, other than the Touch Bar, which isn’t really a benefit at all in our opinion.

If you want a bigger screen then the MacBook Air offers that in the form of a 13.6-inch or 15-inch display. The latter finally providing Mac users an option for a large screen that won’t cost around $2,000/£2,000.

On which basis, the M2 MacBook Air is our clear winner, your only decision being whether you need the big screen or the biggest screen.

Decided to get a MacBook, Pro or Air? Check out the best accessories for MacBooks.

Still not sure? We also look at how the MacBook Air compares to the iMac and how the MacBook Air and Mac mini compare separately. We also help you choose the Best Mac in our buying guide.

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