We recommend these products based on an intensive research process that's designed to cut through the noise and find the top products in this space. Guided by experts, we spend hours looking into the factors that matter, to bring you these selections.
Apple’s MacBooks are widely acknowledged to be among the best laptops anyone can buy. Which Macbook to buy, however, can be less than obvious. Figuring out the best MacBook for you means finding out what they can do, knowing what you need them to do and how much you’re willing to spend.
With slim, solid aluminum bodies, sharp, bright screens and Apple’s vaunted integration of hardware and software, MacBooks are some of the best-performing and most enviable laptops available. BestReviews has tracked MacBooks from the beginning, digging into the pros, cons and innovations of each model over the years and testing them in our Testing Lab.
If you’re looking for a new Apple computer right now, we believe the Apple 2025 MacBook Air with M4 Chip is the best MacBook for most people, while the popular Apple 2024 MacBook Air 13-Inch with M3 Chip packs the most value for the price. But if you’re a creative professional, or on a budget, there are other MacBooks that might better fit your needs.
Faster than Ever
Display Size and Resolution: 13”, 15” | Processor: M4 | RAM: 16GB, 32GB unified | Storage: 256GB, 1TB, 2TB | Battery Life: Up to 18 hr
The new Apple MacBook Air M4 is a near-perfect small laptop. We recently tested the 13-inch model in our Testing Lab and were almost uniformly impressed with its features and capabilities.
The MacBook Air M4 runs about 15 to 20 percent faster than 2024's M3 model across the board, even at the same 16 GB of RAM. We noticed its increased speed not just under intense loads, such as using Photoshop's AI to generate a new background in a large photo, but also in tasks as common as opening a new browser tab. The 10-core M4 edged the 8-core M3 of the 2024 Air in other tasks as well, including mixing audio in GarageBand and trimming 7-gigabyte videos in QuickTime Player.
Externally, the only difference between the 2025 Air and previous models is the new Sky Blue colorway, which looked outstanding in our test model. The Air still only has two Thunderbolt/USB ports and still lacks a fan, so it's not as heat-efficient as a MacBook Pro. The 13-inch model's display remains as sharp and vivid as ever, but might be too small for some.
Great Value
Display Size and Resolution: 13.6” LCD, 2560 x 1664 resolution (224 ppi) | Processor: Apple M3 (4.05 Ghz, 8-core CPU, 8-core GPU) | RAM: 24GB unified | Storage: 512GB SSD | Battery Life: Up to 18 hr
The best MacBook overall and the best MacBook for most people is the new MacBook Air 13-inch with the M3 chip. It stays at the sweet spot of screen size, portability and performance established by its lauded predecessor, the M2 Air, and should be more than enough for all but the most demanding users.
The MacBook Air 13-inch with M3 has a contemporary silhouette that manages to be even thinner than the thickest part of older wedge-shaped Airs.
Its M3 processor improves on the performance of the previous generations of Apple’s M-series processors while being even more energy-efficient, allowing the 13-inch M3 Air to work without needing a loud and intrusive cooling fan.
Its 13.3-inch LCD screen gets as bright as 500 nits, plenty for work in all but the most brightly lit environments. It comes with 24 gigabytes of memory and 512GB SSD for storage.
Apple says its battery can last at least 15 hours while wirelessly surfing the web, or up to 18 hours while watching video. While it has only two ports, they’re both USB-C and support ThunderBolt 3 and DisplayPort for up to two external displays with the lid closed. The 13-inch Air also has a power port featuring Apple’s easy-release MagSafe 2 charging cable, plus a headphone jack.
Best Large-Screen Air
Display Size and Resolution: 15” 2880 × 1864 | Processor: M4 | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 256GB | Battery Life: Up to 18 hr
Those seeking a high-powered laptop with a sleek design and large screen should look no further than the Apple 2025 MacBook Air 15-Inch Laptop with M4 chip. It features a sophisticated M4 chip for ultra-fast performance and a crisp 15-inch liquid retina display. It also features a Touch ID sensor for added biometric security, ensuring your data remains safe.
With 16GB of memory, you can multitask without worrying about affecting the computer’s performance. It has 256GB of internal storage space and offers a battery life of up to 18 hours with regular usage. It features a 12-megapixel camera, three microphones and six speakers with Spatial Audio for crystal-clear audio and smooth picture quality during conference video calls.
Its ultra-lightweight design and large screen mean this laptop offers the best of both worlds. You’ll get a high-powered laptop with a compact build that’s excellent for travel. Plus, it’s optimized for Apple Intelligence, which can help you with research, writing and other office tasks.
Powerful and Versatile
Display Size and Resolution: 16.2” LCD, 3456 x 2234 resolution (254 ppi) | Processor: Apple M4 Max (4.5 GHz, 14-core CPU, 32-core GPU) | RAM: 36GB unified | Storage: 1TB SSD | Battery Life: 14 to 21 hr
For a top-of-the-line model that can keep up with a demanding pace, consider the 16-inch MacBook Pro with the M4 Max processor. This is a widescreen workhorse for mastering a feature film while still on location — and is priced accordingly.
The current king of Apple’s M-series chips, the M4 Max is almost twice as fast as 2021’s M1 Max, with up to 40 graphics cores, 546 GBps memory bandwidth and double the video encode engines. The 16-inch display boasts ProRes refresh and sharp 254 ppi pixel density for exacting images, and it comes with Apple’s nanotexture glass option for reducing glare.
The 16-inch MacBook Pro with M4 Max is powered by a 100-watt battery that provides it 14 to 21 hours of battery life. It comes with a powerful 140-watt adapter for fast charging.
Simultaneous with its own screen, it can drive up to four external displays from 4K to 8K. It has three Thunderbolt/USB-C ports that support Thunderbolt 4 and 5 as well as USB 4, plus an HDMI port, SDXC card slot and headphone jack.
Feature-Packed
Display Size and Resolution: 14.2” LCD, 3024 x 1964 resolution (254 ppi) | Processor: Apple M4 Pro (4.5 GHz, 14-core CPU, 20-core GPU) | RAM: 24GB unified | Storage: 512 GB SSD | Battery Life: 14 to 22 hr
For increased performance in on-the-go video editing, music production or graphics rendering, the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M4 Pro delivers graphics processing up to twice as fast as the plain M4. It has up to 20 graphics cores and 14 CPU cores, plus 273GB memory bandwidth more than twice that of the M4.
The 14-inch M4 Pro starts with 24GB of unified memory and can be configured for up to 48GB. Its maximum storage can also be configured for up to 4TB. It has three Thunderbolt/USB-C ports, two on the left and one on the right, which support Thunderbolt 5 as well as Thunderbolt 4 and USB 4, plus charging and DisplayPort. It also offers an SDXC slot, HDMI port and headphone jack.
Like the base 14-inch model, the 14-inch with M4 Pro supports two 6K displays, one 6K and one 4K high-refresh over Thunderbolt and HDMI, or one 8K display. It comes with a more powerful 96-watt charger, although its battery life is slightly shorter.
Best for Students
Display Size and Resolution: 15” (2880 by 1864 pixels)| Processor: Apple M3 | RAM: 24GB unified | Storage: 512GB SSD | Battery Life: 15 to 18 hr
With a wide, bright 15-inch screen and plenty of memory and storage, the MacBook Air 15-inch with the M3 processor from 2024 is a terrific widescreen laptop for high school and college students or for anyone who values power and display size at a great price.
The 2024 MacBook Air’s M3 processor remains a superbly capable chip, with an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU with hardware-accelerated ray tracing and a 16-core Neural Engine for on-device smarts and Apple Intelligence. Chrome tabs, Office apps, Canva projects, even Photoshop and basic video editing works smoothly, and with 24GB of unified memory, this model has enough oomph for coding and app development courses, too.
The 15-inch Retina LCD screen gets as bright as 500 nits and provides enough real estate to run two Word windows or multiple browser tabs at the same time. Six force-canceling speakers make music and video sound surprisingly powerful for such a slim machine, and half a terabyte of storage lets you keep music and video files locally if you need to. All-day battery life and a thickness of less than half an inch make this easy to take with you and use every day.
Best for Creatives
Display Size and Resolution: 14.2” (3024 by 1964 px), 16.2” (3456 by 2234 px) | Processor: Apple M4 Max | RAM: 36GB unified | Storage: 1TB SSD | Battery Life: 14 to 21 hr
Creative professionals are the classic power users for Apple MacBooks. To push through their demanding workflows in graphics, video, music and photography, they need the power of the Apple M4 Max processor found in 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro models.
The M4 Max in these Macbooks is Apple’s top processor, even over the base-level M5. It boasts up to 16 cores in its CPU, including up to 12 performance cores, and up to 40 cores in its GPU, plus a 16-core Neural Engine for machine learning and AI. Unified memory up to 128GB with 546/gbps memory bandwidth lets you edit and maintain massive prospects with ease. A 100-watt/hour battery keeps everything crunching for up to 21 hours.
As with other MacBook Pros, the M4 Max models 1,000-nit high-resolution Retina LCD XDR displays with adaptive ProMotion refresh rates up to 120 hertz. A three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and beamforming lets users capture voice and audio, while a six-speaker array supports wide stereo sound. The headphone port supports high-impedance pro headphones for high-definition audio and mastering, while the HDMI port allows for multichannel audio output. Three Thunderbolt 5 ports support a variety of high-throughput docks and accessories, and a 12-megapixel camera allows for 1080p video recording.
A Reliable Everyday Laptop
Display Size and Resolution: 15.3” (2880 by 1864 px) | Processor: Apple M2 | RAM: 16GB unified | Storage: 256GB SSD | Battery Life: 15 to 18 hr
Apple MacBooks retain their value and performance for many years. The Apple MacBook Air 15-inch with the M2 processor may be from 2023, but it’s still more than good enough for everyday usage, especially with 16GB of memory to keep things moving.
The M2 processor in this MacBook Air still compares favorably to 12th- and even 13th-gen Intel processors, especially with regards to heat and battery life. The efficiency of the M-series processors is what gives MacBook Airs their slim profiles, fanless design and all-day battery life. The M2 processor lacks the hardware-accelerated ray tracing of subsequent generations, but unless you’re doing graphics editing or high-end gaming, you’re not likely to miss it. Its 16GB of unified memory is a solid amount for everyday use.
The wide 15-inch screen makes this MacBook Air highly desirable for people who want to get a lot done on multiple windows, or who want to enjoy immersive full-screen video. Six speakers support Dolby Atmos or Apple Spatial Audio, making audio sound surprisingly full on a device that’s less than half an inch thick. At 3.3 pounds, it’s also easy to carry around, although you need to look for bags that support its wide screen.
Lightweight Yet Powerful
Display Size and Resolution: 13.6” (2560 by 1664 px) | Processor: Apple M4 | RAM: 24GB unified | Storage: 512GB SSD | Battery Life: 15 to 18 hr
More RAM is always a good thing. For a bit more than our top editors’ choice, you can get the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch with the M4 processor in a model with 24GB of RAM, improving performance for more intensive usage in the same thin and light form factor.
This MacBook Air model has the same M4 processor as our editors’ choice pick, but with 24GB of unified memory. An extra 8GB of memory gives this model the ability to run even more apps at the same time, or multiple memory-hungry apps, without the M4 processor needing to swap some of that usage into SSD storage. This keeps everything moving just a bit faster and more efficiently, giving you leeway for more browser tabs, more open windows and more advanced media editing and playback.
We appreciated the 13-inch M4 MacBook Air in our testing, especially its beautiful sky-blue color option and its thin, 2.7-pound frame. The 13.6-inch screen could be limiting for some power users, but it’s bright and sharp, and keeps the 13-inch Air the most portable Apple laptop as of this writing.
Premium Pick
Display Size and Resolution: 14.2” LCD, 3024 x 1964 resolution (254 ppi) | Processor: Apple M4 (4.4 GHz, 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU) | RAM: 24GB unified | Storage: 1TB SSD | Battery Life: 16 to 24 hr
The new 2024 14-inch MacBook Pro now runs on the M4 processor, which has been estimated to offer about a 25% speed boost over the previous generation running the M3 processor.
Outwardly, the new 14-inch Pro is almost identical to its immediate predecessor. It has the same 14.2-inch Liquid Retina XDR LCD screen with ProRes variable refresh up to 120 Hz, the same array of high-fidelity speakers and mics, and the same keyboard and trackpad. The only exterior difference is a helpful one: a third Thunderbolt/USB-C port, where the baseline M3 MacBook Pro had only two.
Aside from the faster, more advanced chip, the 14-inch M4 Pro now comes with a minimum of 16GB of memory and a slightly bigger battery offering 16 to 24 hours of use. It also now comes in Apple’s ultra-sleek Space Black color, and with the option of a nano-textured glare-resistant display.
Most Powerful Smaller Laptop
Display Size and Resolution: 14.2” LCD, 3024 x 1964 resolution (254 ppi) | Processor: Apple M3 Max (4.05 GHz, 14-core CPU, 30-core GPU) | RAM: 36GB unified | Storage: 1TB SSD | Battery Life: 12 to 18 hr
For creatives on the go who need a truly powerful yet compact workstation, the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M3 Max chip is a top contender.
The 14-inch Pro packs neatly into a backpack or carry-on bag. Its bright, sharp Liquid Retina XDR screen reaches a typical maximum brightness of 1000 nits and a peak during HDR playback of 1600 nits, as well as offering the smooth fluidity of a variable ProMotion refresh rate up to 120 Hz. Six high-fidelity speakers and three beamforming mics enable on-the-go soundtrack editing and music creation, while an array of ports including Thunderbolt 3 and HDMI let you connect cameras, TVs, and media accessories without need for a dongle.
The M3 Max chip inside the 14-inch Pro offers 14 CPU cores and 30 GPU cores with a faster 150 Gbps memory bandwidth for high-demand applications. Plenty of memory, 36 GB of it, add to its overall efficiency and performance, as does its 1 TB solid-state drive.
The 14-inch MacBook Pro with M3 Max manages to get 12 to 18 hours of battery life despite its powerful processor. It’s slightly heavier than the base 14-inch Pro, but not by much.
Apple’s products are designed to work closely together. This means not only its hardware, like iPhones, iPads and Macs, but also its software, such as iOS or MacOS, its apps like the Safari browser and Apple Music player, and its services like iCloud, Find My and Apple Pay.
Buying an Apple product like a MacBook or iPhone doesn’t have to mean being locked into Apple’s ecosystem, however. While Apple products are designed to work best together, non-Apple services can be used on Apple products and vice versa. You can use Spotify and Google Chrome on your MacBook, if you prefer, or choose Microsoft’s or Google’s cloud services instead of iCloud.
Your Android phone should work fine with a MacBook, although you’ll miss out on some things like copy/paste between devices, easy content casting between devices and secure Apple Pay payments between devices.
There are two different product lines of MacBooks: the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro.
MacBook Air models are general-purpose computers made for everyday computing, which is why we think they’re the best MacBooks for most people. They’re competitively priced with top Windows laptops as well.
MacBook Air models lack a fan for cooling, making them less suited for Apple’s most powerful processors and intensive computing tasks. Nevertheless, they can handle light video editing and photo processing, music listening, movie watching and productivity with no problem, including multiple active browser tabs. MacBook Air models offer only two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4, without an SD card reader or HDMI output. MacBook Air models max out at 2TB of SSD storage and 36GB of memory.
The MacBook Pro line is designed for creative professionals and anyone who wants the most portable computing power available regardless of price. Pro models feature "Super Retina XDR" LCD screens an inch larger than corresponding Air models, with higher pixel density for sharper images, adaptive refresh rates for fast response and fluid motion, and peak brightness. You can even choose a matte-finish nanotexture glass option to eliminate all reflection and glare.
Pro models feature the higher-end Pro and Max versions of Apple’s M-series processors. Pro models start with 16GB of memory, going up to 48GB with the M4 Pro models and 128GB of memory on the top m4 Max configuration, and up to 8TB of built-in SSD storage. MacBook Pro models also feature a fan, allowing their processors to run as hard as they can without overheating. Pro models offer up to three USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 5 capability, plus a dedicated HDMI port and an SDXC card slot.
MacBook memory and storage isn’t upgradeable after purchase. Macs with M-series chips have integrated unified memory that’s built into their processor. MacBook solid-state storage is also integrated into the system. When buying a MacBook, get as much memory and storage as you can afford to last you the lifetime of the device, at least two to three years.
MacBook Air models come with a minimum of 16GB of RAM. This should be more than enough memory for everyday computing, such as browsing with multiple tabs, Microsoft Office, light photo and video editing with Apple’s Photos and iMovie apps, and even Adobe Photoshop. For pro applications, we recommend at least 24GB of memory. Note that the base-model MacBook Pro starts at 16GB, which is a little tight for pro usage. Apple charges $200 per 8GB of additional memory at purchase.
MacBooks offer a minimum of 256GB of storage in a built-in solid-state drive based on flash memory. This is enough for day-to-day computing, and if you rely on streaming music and video, you may not feel the need to go bigger. But the more movies and video you download, the more storage you’ll need. A two-hour 4K movie purchased from Apple’s TV store takes up at least 2GB, and raw 4K footage from an iPhone or digital camera is much bigger, around 24GB per hour. That’s why MacBook Pro models offer up to 8TB of solid-state storage. Apple charges $200 per 256GB of storage added.
MacBook prices start at $999 for the MacBook Air 13-Inch with the M4 chip and rise to $1,199 for the base-model M4 MacBook Air 15-Inch with 16GB of memory and 256GB of storage. These are some of the most popular MacBook models and the best for most people. Older Air models with the M3 and M2 processor are also available, but are sometimes as expensive as the latest M4 models due to scarcity and discounts.
The mid-range of MacBooks start at around $1,399 for the M4 MacBook Air 15-Inch with 512GB of storage and go up to $1,599 for the MacBook Pro 14-Inch with the M5 chip, 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage.
The MacBook Pro 16-Inch defines the high-end of MacBooks, starting at $2,499 for the base model with the M4 Pro processor, 24GB of memory and 512GB of storage. It goes up to $3,499 with the MacBook Pro 16-Inch with M4 Max chip, 36GB of memory and 1TB of storage. A maxed-out MacBook Pro 16-inch with the top 16-core M4 Max processor, 128 GB of RAM and 8TB of storage would cost $7,349.
MacBooks can be expanded via their USB-C/Thunderbolt ports to connect to a variety of accessories. They can also connect wirelessly to Bluetooth speakers, headphones, keyboards, mice and more.You can also output your MacBook to an external display if you’re at your desk.
USB-C docks are key accessories for your MacBook. They add multiple USB-C and USB-A/3.0 ports, an HDMI port, an SD card reader or even an Ethernet port to your MacBook Air or Pro. A good USB-C to USB-A/3.0 adapter is one of the most useful adapters you can get for your MacBook.
Faster Thunderbolt hubs extend your MacBook Pro into a complete workstation, providing power, data, expansion and video output in a single unit.
If you use your MacBook at your desk for considerable amounts of time, you may benefit from using a separate keyboard and mouse. Raising up your MacBook with a laptop stand and using a wired or wireless keyboard and mouse helps prevent physical strain and poor ergonomics. Choosing an external keyboard or mouse also lets you explore options like mechanical keys or multiple programmable mouse buttons.
MacBooks come with impressive built-in speakers for laptops, but external speakers, headphones and earbuds add depth and punch. MacBooks support Bluetooth 5.0 and higher for connecting to wireless speakers, headphones and earbuds like Apple’s own AirPods and AirPods Pro. They also have audio jacks that support high-impedance headphones and other audio gear.
As premium laptops, MacBooks will benefit from the protection of a case or laptop bag. Look for cases designed specifically for the dimensions of the MacBook model you own rather than generic sizes. Ballistic nylon with foam padding is a good choice for cases, or you may opt for something more luxurious like a leather sleeve. Be careful adding any skins or stickers to the keyboard or palm wrist of a MacBook, as they may leave marks or damage on the display.
Before purchasing a new Apple computer, consider these tips.
For this buying guide, we examined 12 different MacBook models from the past several years, including testing several models in the BestReviews Testing Lab. In our tests, we looked at design, build quality, processing power, display quality and battery life, measuring things like app launch speed, multiple open apps, movie import and export and even gaming. We also compared them to older MacBook models and to Windows/Intel laptops with similar prices or target audiences. We conducted research on Apple technologies like the M-series processors and Liquid Retina displays, compared buying guides from other outlets and checked customer reviews.
A. Many applications have separate versions for both Windows and Mac, but to run Windows-only applications, you’ll need to download or purchase a virtual machine application for macOS, such as VirtualBox or Parallels. Note that in order to run a virtual Windows machine using a third-party application, you’ll still need a valid Windows license key, which can be purchased from many online retailers.
A. Yes, all MacBook Air and Pro models as of publish date come with headphone jacks. Although Apple phased out headphone jacks in their iPhones and iPads, the headphone jacks in MacBooks allow them to connect to high-impedance headphones and output high-res lossless 48 KHz audio.
A. MacBooks have an effective product life of around seven to 10 years. This is based not on whether its parts wear out, but on how long Apple will support it with hardware and system software updates. Apple designates outdated models as vintage or obsolete and won’t support them in new macOS releases or accept them for repair. MacBooks are well-built computers, but as laptops, they can be damaged during transport or travel. When Apple no longer supports repairs, it’s probably time to get a new MacBook.
Jmar Gambol has been using Macs all his life. He began working with Apple laptops back when they were called PowerBooks and was trained as a Macintosh technician prior to becoming a consumer products writer. He regularly keeps up to date with new models and features and was particularly wowed by the performance jump brought by the M-series processors. His current daily driver is a 15-inch MacBook Air M2 in Midnight, which he has to polish at least twice a day.
