Hannah Hopkins 
Dec 11, 2023
Apple offers a range of laptops to suit different needs and budgets, but choosing between them can be tricky. In this article, Gadinsider will compare the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, two of the most popular models, and help you decide which one is best for you.
MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Design and portability
MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro have similar designs, with aluminium bodies, thin bezels, and backlit keyboards. However, the MacBook Air is lighter and thinner than the MacBook Pro, making it more portable and easier to carry around.
MacBook Air weighs between 2.7 and 2.8 pounds, depending on the screen size, while MacBook Pro weighs between 3.4 and 4.8 pounds. MacBook Air also has a wedge-shaped design, which makes it more comfortable to type on.
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MacBook Air has two Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, while MacBook Pro has either two or three Thunderbolt 4 ports, depending on the model, plus an HDMI 2.1 port and an SDXC card slot. MacBook Pro also has a Touch Bar, a touch-sensitive strip above the keyboard that adapts to different apps and tasks, while MacBook Air has a traditional row of function keys.
MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: Display and performance
MacBook Air and MacBook Pro have different display technologies and sizes. MacBook Air has a 13.6- or 15.3-inch LCD Liquid Retina display, while MacBook Pro has a 14.2- or 16.2-inch Mini-LED Liquid Retina XDR display.
MacBook Pro’s display has a higher brightness, contrast, and colour accuracy, as well as ProMotion, which adjusts the refresh rate up to 120Hz for smoother scrolling and animations.
MacBook Air and MacBook Pro also have different processors and memory options. The MacBook Air has the Apple M2 chip, which is based on the A15 Bionic chip from the iPhone 13, while MacBook Pro has the Apple M3, M3 Pro, or M3 Max chip, which are based on the A17 Pro chip from the iPhone 15 Pro.
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The MacBook Pro’s processors have more cores, higher clock speeds, and larger memory bandwidths, which make them more powerful and faster for demanding tasks such as video editing, gaming, and machine learning.
The MacBook Pro also has active cooling, which allows it to sustain high performance for longer periods, while the MacBook Air has passive cooling, which may cause it to throttle under heavy load.
Battery life and price
MacBook Air and MacBook Pro have similar battery life, with both claiming to last up to 18 hours of wireless web browsing or 20 hours of video playback. However, the actual battery life may vary depending on the usage, settings, and model.
MacBook Pro has a larger battery capacity, which may help it last longer under intensive workloads. MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro have different price points, with the MacBook Air being more affordable and the MacBook Pro being more expensive.
MacBook Air starts at $1,099 for the 13.6-inch model and $1,299 for the 15.3-inch model, while the MacBook Pro starts at $1,599 for the 14.2-inch model with the M3 chip and $2,899 for the 16.2-inch model with the M3 Pro chip. The price of the MacBook Pro can go up to $6,999 for the 16.2-inch model with the M3 Max chip and the maximum configuration of memory and storage.
