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The first crossroads you’ll come to when shopping for a MacBook is whether to go the Air route or go the Pro route. For people looking for a home laptop for everyday use or a business laptop to run basic office applications, the MacBook Air will suffice. Air is also a better choice for students and people on tight budgets. For creative people who need the extra processing and graphics power of Apple’s new M4 Pro and Max chips, the MacBook Pro is worth the extra cost. To help you find the right MacBook for your needs and budget, here are the key considerations to keep in mind.
price
The entry price for a MacBook is $649. This gets you the M1 MacBook Air released in 2020, but this offer is exclusive to Walmart. If you’re shopping Apple, prices start at $999 for the 13-inch MacBook Air M4 and $1,199 for the 15-inch MacBook Air M4. MacBook Pro upgrade pricing starts at $1,599. Here are the starting prices for Apple’s current MacBook lineup:
- MacBook Air 13-inch M4: $999
- MacBook Air M4 15-inch: $1,199
- MacBook Pro M5 14-inch: $1,599
- MacBook Pro M4 Pro 16-inch: $2499
Size and width
If you’ll be taking your MacBook with you to class, work, or even to your local coffee shop most mornings, the Air is the better choice. The 13-inch MacBook Air models weigh less than 3 pounds, and the more spacious 15-inch Air model weighs just 3.3 pounds, which is still lighter than the 14-inch MacBook Pro.
The other aspect of portability is screen size. The 16-inch MacBook Pro gives you ample space to work and multitask, while the 14-inch MacBook Pro tries to hit the sweet spot between spacious display and travel ease. Unless you need professional performance, we feel the 15-inch Air does a better job of achieving that goal.
- MacBook Air 13.3 inch M1: 13.3-inch display (2560 x 1600 pixels), 2.8 lbs
- MacBook Air 13.6 inch M4: 13.6-inch display (2560 x 1664 pixels), 2.7 lbs
- MacBook Air 15.3 inch M4: 15.3-inch display (2880 x 1864 pixels), 3.3 lbs
- MacBook Pro M5 14.2-inch: 14.2-inch display (3024 x 1964 pixels), 3.4 lbs
- MacBook Pro M4 Pro 16.2 inch: 16.2-inch display (3456 x 2234 pixels), 4.7 lbs
Processor
The processor, also known as the central processing unit (CPU), is the brain of your laptop. MacBooks have used Apple’s own processors since the introduction of the M1 processor in 2020. The M1-based MacBooks were clear improvements over Apple’s previous Intel-based machines in terms of overall performance, efficiency, and battery life. The M1 MacBooks were more powerful, had longer boot times and ran cooler and quieter.
The latest lineup of MacBook Airs features Apple’s M4 chip, and the MacBook Pro line offers a selection of M5, M4 Pro, and M4 Max processors. The M4 MacBook Air models offer slightly better performance than the M3-based versions, but the jump in performance isn’t nearly the same as going from Intel CPUs to the M1.
Graphics
The graphics processor does all the work of driving the display and creating what’s displayed, as well as accelerating a lot of graphics-related (and increasingly AI-related) operations. Apple’s M series CPUs integrate a GPU. The more processing cores a GPU has, the better the graphics performance. Here’s the breakdown:
- M1: 7 or 8 core GPU
- M2: 8 or 10 core GPU
- M3: 8 or 10 core GPU
- M4: 8 or 10 core GPU
- M5: 10 core GPU
- M4 Pro: GPU 20 or 32 cores
- M4 Max: 32-core or 40-core graphics processor
memory
Memory (or RAM) is where the operating system stores all the data for currently running applications, and it can fill up quickly. After that, it starts switching between RAM and SSD, which is slower. With the exception of the older M1 Air sold at Walmart, MacBook Air models now start with 16GB of RAM as well as the 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro. The minimum for the M4 Pro MacBook Pro models is 24GB, while the M4 Max MacBook Pro offers up to 36GB or more.
You can’t upgrade memory on recent MacBooks after purchase, so you’ll need to get all the RAM you’ll need up front. MacBooks can run MacOS and pre-installed apps smoothly with minimal available RAM, but doubling the RAM will make your MacBook feel faster and will likely lead to a longer laptop lifespan.
storage
MacBooks feature solid-state drives or SSDs. MacBook Air models start with a 256GB SSD, and MacBook Pros offer a minimum of 512GB SSD. If you use cloud storage for your files, music collection, and photo library, you may be able to get by with a 256GB SSD without filling it up before long. We’re glad to see the 13-inch MacBook Pro with the 256GB SSD go away — Pro users need at least 512GB.