When it follow to picking thebest MacBookfor you , the eternal debate between the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro rages on . Both laptop are at the top of their game mightily now , and that can sometimes make the determination between the two even slick , especially when you consider the timing .

Choosing between option as utmost as the16 - inch MacBook M4 Proand an M1 MacBook Air is n’t where the problems dwell . It ’s probably obvious which of those is right for you base on the thou of dollars separating the two .

But Apple knows there ’s money to made in the messy center of the card — in that more and more thin air between these two laptop lines . Nowhere is that overlap more problematic than with the   15 - column inch MacBook Air and the 14 - inch MacBook Pro . But do n’t worry — there ’s an easy answer to which you should purchase right now .

The easy way to know which to buy

Here ’s the big picture : You belike don’tneeda MacBook Pro . And if you do , you credibly already know that you do . The advice is to leave behind the MacBook Pro to people who edit out video , render graphics , and train declamatory lyric model ( LLMs ) all sidereal day . If any of those project are more of a hobby for you — peradventure once or twice a week — you ’ll likely discover that the MacBook Air has plenty of power for you . It ’s surprisingly dependable at creative tasks on its own , particularly if you opt for the M3 model , which got a substantial GPU upgrade over the M2 .

That should reign out the Air or the Pro for the absolute majority of people . Unfortunately , however , it ’s not that simple . The existence of the14 - inch MacBook Pro M4and15 - inch MacBook Air M3make that decision substantially more hard , peculiarly if you ’re someone who like to have a agio laptop . When configured with the same RAM and storage , they ’re only $ 100 asunder in price .

For that supernumerary $ 100 , the MacBook Pro sacrifice you a considerably unspoilt screen , more port , bear for up to three external monitors , and , of course , the M4 chip . That ’s well worth the extra money in my record .

The only actual advantages the MacBook Air has over the Pro is that it ’s thinner and starts at a more low-priced 256 GB of storage . If those factor make you lean toward the Air , I ’d at least suggest waiting to buy until the M4 example launching , which could be in just a few months . That would give you nigh to performance space-reflection symmetry , or at the very least , reduce prices on the M3 MacBook Air .

If that does n’t empty the answer straightaway though , read on to get a dislocation of how each aspect of these two MacBooks differs .

Specs

Design

The MacBook Air 15 - inchuses the same design as the 13 - in MacBook Air . It ’s not all that dissimilar to the 14 - in MacBook Pro , but the design deviates in a few of import ways . The most crucial dispute is in size . An inch departure in screen door size of it does n’t sound like a lot , but the 15 - inch MacBook Air also has somewhat thicker bezel , add even more to the overall footmark of the machine . When you put these laptop side by side , the 15 - inch MacBook Air take up more space on the table . The breadth is the most striking dimension , giving you what feel like a good deal more screen real estate to work with . That really is the elementary selling breaker point of the 15 - inch MacBook Air and should be the principal grounds you ’re choosing it . Otherwise , you may as well get the more affordable 13 - inch role model .

Thickness and weight are the other main points of dispute in terms of size . The MacBook Air 15 - inch is just 0.45 inch compared to the 0.6 inches of the MacBook Pro 14 - inch . The MacBook Air really is the thinnest 15 - inch laptop computer you may grease one’s palms right now — and it really does look sleek next to the MacBook Pro . The two laptops are close in system of weights , though the MacBook Air is still lighter at 3.3 Pound compared to the 3.5 pounds of the MacBook Pro .

From a design perspective , the other departure include the keyboard , which does n’t have the sea wolf black background like the MacBook Pro . It also does n’t have the on - deck speaker system grille cutouts .

Aside from that , I ’d recommend make to an Apple Store to see the two machines side by side . The remainder in covert size of it and overall attribute might serve you get a good idea of which you ’d be more comfortable with .

last , you also get some more colour alternative with the MacBook Air , including Starlight , Midnight , Silver , and Space Gray . The MacBook Pro is limited to just Silver and Space Black .

Ports

The MacBook Air 15 has less connectivity than the MacBook Pro 14 , with just two Thunderbolt 4 port and an audio seafarer ( like the MacBook Air 13 - inch ) . The MacBook Pro 14 M4 comes with just two Thunderbolt 4 port as well , but it adds in an HDMI port and a full - sized SD card lecturer . The M4 Pro and Max models fare with three Thunderbolt 5 port .

That makes the MacBook Pro 14 a lot more expandable . Both use MagSafe 3 courser , though , saving a Thunderbolt 4 port for outside use . Both laptops now defend the former Wi - Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 for wireless bread and butter .

configure with the base M3 CPU , both laptops are limited to just one external display with up to 6 K resoluteness at 60Hz . It’stechnically possible to associate to more displays , but it require a dock and some extra software . As of recently , you may have two external monitors connected ( only on the M3 configurations ) , but it requires having the laptop lid closed .

The M4 MacBook Pro , on the other hand , have ’s you do three outside video display — two at 6 K resolution and one at 5K. necessitate this a step further , the MacBook Pro 14 with the M4 Pro and Max can handle three 6 kB external displays at 60Hz .

plainly put , the MacBook Pro is the laptop for you if you need more than just a single extraneous display .

Performance

The M4 is the latest chip in the Apple Silicon series , and it provides a substantial uplift in performance over the M3 chips . But it has n’t come to the MacBook Air just yet . The single - core performance is the biggest acclivity , but there ’s also a modest growth to multi - core CPU operation and art .

Regarding the type of work you ’ll do on with a MacBook Air , though , you may not notice a Brobdingnagian difference . Do n’t vex — Google Chrome will melt down just as fast , peculiarly now that both framework start with 16 GB of RAM . But fasterisfaster , and it does give the M4 MacBook Pro a serious vantage over the MacBook Air mighty now in terms of video redaction , picture editing , and play .

It ’s also straight that the MacBook Air is fanless , while the MacBook Pro has an active cool system of rules . Neither equipment is overly loud , but the MacBook Pro sure provides less thermal throttling and better performance in sustained workload . So , for hobbyist music producers , video recording editors , and effortless gamers , the M4 MacBook Pro is the just option .

Regardless , both laptop computer provide fantabulous battery life-time , and while you ’re on battery , you wo n’t lose much performance . If you ’re new to Apple Silicon MacBooks , you ’ll be shocked by how long these laptops last — sometimes over 18 hours , reckon on the chore .

The one dispute between the two , of row , is form option . Unlike the MacBook Air , the 14 - in MacBook Pro can be configured up to the M4 Max with 16 central processing unit inwardness and 40 GPU cores . That give a vast encouragement to video encryption , rendering , play , and anything that can put more raw GPU performance to practice . You also have the option to bump RAM up to 32 GB on the MacBook Pro , whereas the MacBook Air maxes out at 24 GB . Importantly , neither storage or remembering is user upgradable — so what you configure it with is what you ’re stuck with .

Display and speakers

Another MacBook Pro 14 reward is its 14.2 - inch mini - lead Liquid Retina display run at 3024 x 1924 ( 254 pixels per inch , or ppi ) resolution , which provides superscript sharpness , brightness , colour , and contrast compared to the standard IPS Liquid Retina showing on the MacBook Air line . This includes the MacBook Air 15 , which has a 15.3 - inch IPS Liquid Retina video display at 2880 x 1864 ( 228 ppi ) .

Both displays should declare oneself standardized colors , in term of both gamut and accuracy . But the mini - extend panel on the MacBook Pro 14 will get much brighter , especially forhigh dynamic range(HDR ) mental object where it can approach 1,600 nits . motion-picture show and video in HDR look perfectly wonderful . It also has incredibly deep contrast , providing more inky blackness compared to the IPS concealment of the MacBook Air .

Do n’t get me awry — the MacBook Air 15 ’s display is also quite good , but the MacBook Pro 14 provides a sincerely premium experience , especially with the addition of the faster 120Hz dynamical refresh pace .

The M4 MacBook Pro also introduces two new display feature this time around . First off , it can now max out at 1,000 nits in SDR luminousness , but only when you have machinelike luminance control turn on . There ’s no agency of manually going up to 1,000 nits , but it ’s particularly useful when working outside .

Secondly , the M4 MacBook Pro also has the selection for a $ 150 upgrade to the nano - grain display , which helps deflect reflections in a subtle and effective direction . The engineering has been on previous high - end iMacs and monitors , but this is the first time it ’s come to a MacBook .

Both laptop computer have six - speaker sound systems with power - canceling woofers . They support the same technologies as well , mean that you ’re probable to get the same fantabulous auditory sensation from both that ’s among the undecomposed you’re able to get in a modern laptop computer .

While the 15 - inch MacBook Air is surprisingly competitive , the 14 - inch MacBook Pro does offer more bass , providing a more robust phone profile . But really , both fathom amazing . The 16 - in MacBook Pro remains the better - sounding laptop you’re able to grease one’s palms .

Leave the MacBook Pro for the pros

With these two laptop computer , you’re able to rely the branding distinction here . Leave the MacBook Pro for the creative professionals who depend on the surplus carrying into action to get their workplace done . Everyone else will be enjoy by the experience of the MacBook Air .

The one exception to the rule is for those who might want the premium experience of a MacBook Pro , but do n’t have a real use for the performance . For example , if your laptop is your main movie - watch gadget , that elevate in show quality is decidedly worth the excess $ 100 . Similarly , if you like the flexibility of having an Coyote State card slot or an HDMI port wine , the MacBook Air will only frustrate you .

last , if you ’re enticed about the extra performance of the 14 - inch MacBook Pro , but are loll around about the Mary Leontyne Price , I ’d recommend taking a look at prices for last - gen machines . There are refurbish versions be adrift around that are as affordable as the 15 - inch MacBook Air , but will supply better performance .

Either way , just verify you do n’t spring for an older modelling with only 8 GB of RAM . Not all third - company retail merchant have adjusted their pricing accordingly now that Apple has moved all models up to 16 GB of RAM .