Apple Macbook Air M2 vs M3: How much better is the new laptop?
Products are chosen independently by our editors. Purchases made through our links may earn us a commission.
The humble MacBook Air has come a long way since Steve Jobs pulled the first model out of a yellow envelope. The most recent model features Apple's highly efficient M3 chip, which gives it a stunningly long battery life, while still offering excellent performance—and many consider it to be the best laptop for most users. (To be fully transparent, we name the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 as the top pick in our best laptop guide, but the MacBook Air M3 is our best overall MacBook pick.)
At first glance, the MacBook Air M3 appears identical to the M2 model, but in reality, the two laptops are similar. They offer similar features, battery life, display quality, and more. But with an improved chip under the hood, the M3 is a better laptop, and we experienced this in our M3 model review. However, despite the M3 being better, for some it may still be worth saving the cash for a refurbished or used M2 model—and if you have a MacBook Air M2 already, it's probably not worth upgrading.
Here's a deeper look at the two laptops and what the major differences are.
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
MacBook Air M2
Almost as good as the newer model, but at a lower price. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Design
Credit: Reviewed / Timothy Renzi
On the left side of all M2 and M3 MacBook Air models, you'll find a MagSafe connector along with two USB-C 4 ports.
When considering Apple's Macbook Air M1 vs M2, Apple redesigned the MacBook Air for the M2 generation, giving it a more modern profile with flat edges that syncs with other current Apple products. That new design has stuck around; ultimately, the design is more or less the same between the M2 and the M3 MacBook Air.
The MacBook Air M2 not only represented a design refresh, it was also the introduction, or reintroduction, of a new display size. For the M2 series, Apple added a 15-inch MacBook Air model, and since then, you've been able to get a MacBook Air in either 13-inch or 15-inch sizes. That's good news for those who want a thin build and additional screen real estate.
The M2 and the M3 MacBook Air measure 0.44 inches, which is extremely thin. The 15-inch MacBook Air isn't much thicker, measuring 0.45 inches thick.
On the left side of all M2 and M3 MacBook Air models, you'll find a MagSafe connector along with two USB-C 4 ports. On the right side, the headphone jack can be found. That's it for ports though, and if you want more, you'll have to consider using a hub or buying a MacBook Pro instead.
Given that the design is identical between these two laptops, there's no winner in the design category.
Our pick: Tie
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
MacBook Air M2
Almost as good as the newer model, but at a lower price. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Display
The design of these laptops is the same, as is the display tech. Both 13-inch MacBook Air models feature a 13.6-inch display with a 2560 x 1664 resolution, while the 15-inch models have a 15.3-inch screen with a 2880 x 1864 resolution. All models have a 500-nit brightness and a pixel density of 224 pixels per inch.
There's no big difference between the built-in displays on the M2 and M3 MacBook Air models. When it comes to display, it's more important to think about whether you want a 13-inch model vs a 15-inch model than whether you want an M2 or an M3.
Our pick Tie
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
MacBook Air M2
Almost as good as the newer model, but at a lower price. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Configurations and price
The M2 and M3 models have slightly different configuration options. The base M2 MacBook Air comes with an M2 chip and 8GB of RAM, which can be upgraded to 16GB or 24 GB. It also has 256GB of storage, which can be upgraded to up to 2TB.
The M3 model offers more than just a faster chip. The base M3 MacBook Air configuration has 16GB of RAM instead of 8 GB. The storage options are the same, starting at 256GB and ranging up to 2TB.
Both 13-inch models come with an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, and they can both be upgraded to a 10-core GPU. The 15-inch M3 model has a 10-core GPU in its base configuration. Keep in mind that performance is much more than just the number of cores, and don't expect the 8-core CPU on the M2 to be as fast as the 8-core CPU on the M3.
At the time of this writing, Apple was still selling the 13-inch version of the M2 MacBook Air for $999—however, you can no longer buy [the 15-inch M2 model new. The M3 MacBook Air starts at $1,099 for the 13-inch model and $1,299 for the 15-inch model.
The M3 MacBook Air may be more expensive than the M2 model still available, but it has more configurations and you can still buy a new 15-inch M3 model.
Our pick: M3 MacBook Air
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Performance
The M2 and M3 models may offer similar core counts, but there's a lot more to performance. During our testing, the M3 MacBook Air showed around a 20% performance boost in benchmark tests.
What does that mean? Well, it won't unlock all new worlds of possibilities, but it will give you more headroom if you need a laptop to perform more demanding tasks. Not only that, but that extra headroom could come in handy towards the end of the laptop's lifespan, though that remains to be seen.
Unfortunately, Apple has yet to bring the Apple M4 chip to the MacBook Air—and it's entirely possible that it could skip the M4 and go straight to the M5.
There are some ways in which better performance makes for real-world improvements right off the bat. For example, the M3 MacBook Air can drive two external monitors, compared to only one for the M2 MacBook Air. Perhaps it's a niche use case, but if you do want to use multiple external monitors, it's something to keep in mind.
Our pick: M3 MacBook Air
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Battery life
Credit: Reviewed / Adrien Ramirez
The battery life of the M3 MacBook Air is likely to be more than enough for most, the M2 model still has a longer battery life.
Apple rates all M2 and M3 MacBook Air models as offering the same battery life—up to 18 hours of video playback. That's pretty stellar, and most users should easily get a full workday of usage. If you don't use your laptop for a full day, you'll have no problem getting at least a few days of moderate usage before needing to charge.
Despite Apple rating the battery life as the same on these laptops, our tests of the 13-inch models revealed some differences. The MacBook Air M3 reached 10 hours and 24 minutes in our battery test while the M2 model lasted 17 hours. We suspect the M2 model wouldn't perform as well if it were running the latest version of macOS, and its improved battery is likely at least partially due to a less powerful chip.
Regardless, while the battery life of the M3 MacBook Air is likely to be more than enough for most, the M2 model still has a longer battery life.
Our pick: MacBook Air M2
MacBook Air M2
Almost as good as the newer model, but at a lower price. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
And the winner is … M3 MacBook Air
No surprises here—Apple's newer laptop model is better. But only a bit better.
In other words, there's no reason to upgrade to the M3 model if you already have an M2 model. But, if you have an M2 model and you're reaching its performance limits regularly, consider upgrading to a MacBook Pro instead.
If you only use a laptop for basic tasks like web browsing, emails, and watching Netflix, save some cash by opting for an M2 model. A refurbished one will net you even greater savings. All said, if you prefer to buy the manufacturer's latest model, the M3 MacBook Air is an excellent machine.
MacBook Air M3
The latest and greatest MacBook Air, with better performance and a modern design. Read Our Review
BUY NOW
at Amazon
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
This AI ETF Could Turn $10,000 Into $40,000 by 2035
It's becoming clearer that artificial intelligence is going to have a meaningful impact on the economy over time. Investors that want diversified exposure to the AI trend should consider this top ETF that has produced a monster 414% total return in the past 10 years. While there continues to be a lot of excitement about AI in the near term, it's important that investors have the patience to focus on the next decade and beyond. 10 stocks we like better than Invesco QQQ Trust › There's no denying it -- artificial intelligence (AI) is likely going to have a profound impact on the world over the long term. Entire industries could be altered. It's no wonder management teams are increasingly focused on ways to better position themselves for long-term success. From an investment perspective, perhaps it's starting to make sense that your portfolio should have some exposure to AI. Luckily, investors don't necessarily need to pick individual stocks if they want to benefit from the trend. There's one top AI exchange-traded fund (ETF) that could turn $10,000 into $40,000 by 2035. Continue reading to learn more about how to supercharge your portfolio for future success. In the last 10 years, the Invesco QQQ Trust (NASDAQ: QQQ) has generated a total return of 414% (as of June 3). This means that a $10,000 investment made in June 2015 would be worth $51,400 today. I don't think anyone in their right mind would complain with that kind of fantastic result. Even better, the expense ratio of 0.20% is a minimal cost to bear for that type of gain. There's no guarantee that past returns will repeat themselves going forward. Let's assume that there is a slowdown. Even so, I wouldn't be surprised if investors who put the same $10,000 in this ETF today see a fourfold gain in the next decade, resulting in a 15% annualized return. There's a lot of talk about how the stock market's current valuation is expensive. But consider that this has been the general narrative for a very long time. Yet that hasn't prevented equity markets from marching higher. The rise of passive investing, ongoing economic expansion, and dominance of tech-driven enterprises have all played a part. I'm fairly confident these trends will continue. The Invesco QQQ Trust can be considered a top AI ETF, even though it contains 100 stocks in total. There is heavy concentration among the top positions, many of which have a meaningful AI focus. The so-called hyperscalers, most notably Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet, combined represent 18.9% of the Invesco QQQ Trust's asset base. These dominant companies have leading cloud computing platforms that offer a range of AI tools to their customers. They're collectively planning to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on capital expenditures in 2025 in an effort to bolster their technical infrastructure to better position themselves for an AI future. We can't forget about Nvidia, the biggest beneficiary thus far of the AI boom. It provides the graphics-processing units that power AI data centers, posting unbelievable revenue and profit growth. It's the second-largest holding in the Invesco QQQ Trust. Other top positions are Apple, Meta Platforms, Netflix, and Tesla. There's no doubt that AI has and will keep impacting these businesses in some way as well. Investing correctly means having patience. While the AI craze has definitely made some investors rich in a short period of time, that's the wrong mindset to have. When buying the Invesco QQQ Trust, it's critical to keep the attention on the next decade and beyond. AI has the ability to revolutionize many parts of our economy, and this will all take time to play out. As of this writing, the Invesco QQQ Trust trades 2% off its peak. It might be tempting to wait for a bigger pullback to put money to work. However, I believe this is a flawed approach. It's a smart idea to invest early and often, letting compounding work its magic. Investing in this top AI ETF could work wonders for your portfolio between now and 2035. Before you buy stock in Invesco QQQ Trust, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Invesco QQQ Trust wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $674,395!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $858,011!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 997% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025 Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Neil Patel has positions in Invesco QQQ Trust. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This AI ETF Could Turn $10,000 Into $40,000 by 2035 was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Tom's Guide
3 hours ago
- Tom's Guide
iPhone users say Mail app is suddenly freezing with iOS 18.5 — here's a fix you can try
Since Apple rolled out iOS 18.5, a growing number of iPhone users have reported issues with accessing their inbox as the Mail app is getting stuck on a blank white screen. Several comments on Reddit and the Apple Support Community describe being unable to view emails in their inboxes as the app is either glitchy or unresponsive. The underlying cause remains unclear, but the issues don't appear to be tied to any specific iPhone model, suggesting it could be a software-related problem tied to iOS 18.5 or the Mail app itself. Interestingly, reports of this Mail app issue have only been cropping up in the past few days, while iOS 18.5 went live last month. iOS 18.5 added a few notable features like screen time notifications and a new Pride-themed wallpaper, but its updates for the Apple Mail app could be causing the issues. With iOS 18.5, Apple brought back the "All Mail" inbox view and added the option to hide contact photos from the Mail app to make your inbox less distracting. Apple has not officially acknowledged the issue, and the company's System Status page does not indicate any problems with the Mail app. But while there's no official fix yet, some users said restarting their iPhones solved the issue, but only temporarily. Others have had luck with force-closing the app or disabling the keyboard's auto-correction to get it working again. Another affected user with an iPhone XR running iOS 18.5 was told by Apple Support to try resetting the phone's network settings, which seemed to do the trick, PC Mag reports. To do this on your iPhone, head to Settings > General > Transfer or Reset [Device] > Reset > Reset Network Settings. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Until Apple acknowledges the issue and provides a fix, affected users should contact Apple support for assistance in the meantime.
Forbes
3 hours ago
- Forbes
Apple Prepares To Cancel The Classic MacBook Pro
New MacBook Pro laptops are displayed during Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference 2023. (Photo by ... More JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images) As Tim Cook prepares to open the Worldwide Developer Conference next week, countless Apple fans are getting ready for new life to be breathed into their hardware. There will be something for everybody, from iPhones and iPads to Apple Watches and MacBook Pro laptops. Yet there will be some let down by the next version of macOS. It's worth noting that Apple is refreshing the numbering system across all of its operating systems, so the next version of macOS will be macOS 26, and the moniker naming looks set to continue with macOS Tahoe. Apple continues to offer multi-year support across its hardware, including the Mac platform in general and the MacBook laptops in particular. And this is where things get awkward for the laptop owners. The support window for the MacBook Pro is expected to reach back as far as the 2019 MacBook Pro. That passes an important rubicon. At that point, the Mac family was still running on x86-based Intel hardware. The ARM-based Apple Silicon arrived at the end of 2020, with the M1 MacBook Pro, M1 MacBook Air, and M1 Mac Mini. Apple Silicon offered a significant leap in performance, power and efficiency. That Apple can support the M1 chipset some five years down the line and bring the full range of new tools, including the latest generative AI suite, should not come as a surprise. Yet Apple still plans to support the older, slower and inefficient Intel MacBook Pro models. How much can Apple offer the older laptops? It's clear for MacBook Air owners still running Intel-powered Airs. The MacBook Air from 2020, the last with the Intel Core chipset, will be dropped, leaving only Apple Silicon powered MacBook Air models supported by macOS Tahoe and the versions that follow. It's less clear for the MacBook Pro. At the very least, Apple should offer security updates to the laptops, but whether the latest apps and utilities are offered remains to be seen. Given the demands placed on the hardware, it's likely to be a limited subset of those available to Apple Silicon Macs. Consumers using third-party apps will already be familiar with the 'unsupported' error messages on apps that are exclusively for Apple Silicon Macs) a list that is growing longer by the day), and more demanding apps such as Photoshop are asking for so much that the Intel Mac are being left behind, no matter what Cupertino is offering. It's unfortunate that no laptop can last forever. While Apple's support window is rarely specified for Macs, six years of updates is welcome, yet feels short for an Apple product. This is the downside of the 2020 move from Intel to ARM; Apple gained a much more powerful platform, but was left having to support the older platform for a polite number of years. That support is coming to an end. The consumer-focused MacBook Air has a hard stop coming up. At the same time, the professionally focused MacBook Pro will squeeze out another year or two, which will be welcomed by those using the laptop in a production environment, but Tim Cook has put the platform on notice. The MacBook Pro that many knew and loved is coming to the end of its story. Now read the latest MacBook Pro, macOS and WWDC headlines in Forbes' weekly Apple news digest...
