The MacBook Air M3 offers excellent performance for general computing at a lower price, while the MacBook Pro M3 delivers superior thermal management, additional GPU cores, and a higher refresh rate display for demanding professional workflows.
MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3 — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Apple's mid-range MacBook with 8-core CPU and up to 10-core GPU for everyday computing.
Apple's professional laptop with 8-core M3 chip, up to 24GB unified memory, released late 2023
GPU Cores. Base Price. Display Refresh Rate. Thermal Design. Maximum RAM. Weight. ProMotion Display. Active Cooling. Battery Life. Starting Price. Ports (HDMI / SD Card)
Choose the MacBook Air M3 if you prioritize portability, value, and sufficient performance for everyday tasks like content creation, coding, and office work. Choose the MacBook Pro M3 if you need sustained performance under heavy GPU workloads, prefer a smoother 120Hz display, require more RAM expandability, or work with professional video editing and 3D rendering applications.
MacBook Air M3: $1,199 | MacBook Pro M3: $1,999
MacBook Air M3: 2.7 | MacBook Pro M3: 3.5
MacBook Air M3: Up to 18 | MacBook Pro M3: Up to 15 hours
MacBook Air M3: 2,524 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: $1,199 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: Apple M3 (8-core CPU) | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 2,550 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 10,200 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 8GB | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 13.6-inch | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 2.7 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 52.6Wh (13.6-inch) | MacBook Pro M3: 72 Wh (14-inch)
MacBook Air M3: 15-18 | MacBook Pro M3: 16-17 hours
MacBook Air M3: 1 external display | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 15W | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 8.5 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 12 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 8 cores | MacBook Pro M3: 8 cores
MacBook Air M3: 8GB unified memory | MacBook Pro M3: 8GB unified memory
MacBook Air M3: 24GB | MacBook Pro M3: 36GB
MacBook Air M3: 13.6 inches | MacBook Pro M3: 14 inches
MacBook Air M3: 60Hz | MacBook Pro M3: 120Hz ProMotion
CPU Performance (Geekbench 6 Multi-Core)
MacBook Air M3: 12,100 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 21,500 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 30W | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 15-17 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: $1,099 | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 45% faster (with hardware encoder) | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 24GB | MacBook Pro M3: 96GB
MacBook Air M3: 8 cores | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 120 GB/s | MacBook Pro M3: 100 GB/s
MacBook Air M3: 2.8 lbs | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 0 (USB-C adapters required) | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 10-15 min (throttling) | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: Up to 8 cores | MacBook Pro M3: 8 cores
MacBook Air M3: 2,400 points | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 9,800 points | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 15-18 hours | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
Video Export Time (4K 30fps, 5-min clip)
MacBook Air M3: 165 seconds | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 85°C | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 10-core | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 10,180 | MacBook Pro M3: 10,215
MacBook Air M3: 16 hours | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 25W | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 13-inch, 15-inch, 17-inch | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 8-core | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 2,445 | MacBook Pro M3: 2,452
MacBook Air M3: 60 Hz | MacBook Pro M3: 120 Hz (ProMotion)
MacBook Air M3: 2,988 | MacBook Pro M3: 2,450
MacBook Air M3: 7,245 points | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 256 GB | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 24 GB | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 18 hours | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 10-core GPU | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: 16 TOPS | MacBook Pro M3: N/A
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 4.05 GHz
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 600 nits
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 16-core
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 10-core CPU
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: Not available
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: March 2023
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: Baseline
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 2,900
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 11,200
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 19,000
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: $1,499
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 3nm (1st gen)
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 8 cores
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 10 cores
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 8 cores (no AI features)
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: Up to 17 hours
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: $1,199 (used market avg)
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: Baseline (0%)
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 8 GB
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 24 GB
MacBook Air M3: N/A | MacBook Pro M3: 500 nits
How to choose between MacBook Air M3 and MacBook Pro M3
Compare MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3
MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3 — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3. Contains 87 attribute comparisons, 10 FAQ pairs.
MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3 — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for MacBook Air M3 vs MacBook Pro M3.
What is the main difference between MacBook Air M3 and MacBook Pro M3?
The MacBook Air M3 is fanless (passive cooling) and lighter/quieter; the MacBook Pro M3 has an active fan system that maintains peak performance longer under sustained workloads. The MacBook Pro also has a brighter ProMotion 120Hz display, more ports (HDMI, SD card), and supports the higher-end M3 Pro and M3 Max chips.
Is MacBook Air M3 fast enough for video editing?
Yes for most video editing. MacBook Air M3 handles 4K editing in Final Cut Pro and Premiere Pro very well for projects up to about 30-45 minutes. For 8K editing, long exports (1+ hour timelines), or color grading workflows, the MacBook Pro M3 Pro or M3 Max with higher memory bandwidth is recommended.
Does the MacBook Air M3 throttle performance?
Yes, under sustained heavy workloads (10+ minutes of continuous CPU/GPU saturation), the MacBook Air M3 will reduce clock speeds to manage heat without a fan. For brief tasks, this is imperceptible. For extended renders or ML training, the MacBook Pro M3 maintains higher performance longer.
Which has better battery life — MacBook Air or MacBook Pro?
Both are excellent. The 13-inch MacBook Air M3 is rated for 18 hours; the 15-inch for 18 hours. The MacBook Pro 14-inch M3 is rated for 22 hours (longer due to a larger 72.4Wh battery, though the brighter display and fan can offset this in real use). Both deliver 10-15 hours in typical mixed use.
Should I buy MacBook Air M3 or MacBook Pro M3?
For most users (students, writers, programmers, photographers), MacBook Air M3 is the better value — it costs $300-500 less, is lighter, completely silent, and delivers performance that's indistinguishable in everyday tasks. Buy MacBook Pro M3 if you do sustained professional video editing, audio production, ML work, or need HDMI/SD card ports built-in.
MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro 2026: what are the biggest differences?
In 2026, the MacBook Air uses the M4 chip in a fanless 13" or 15" chassis (up to 18h battery, starts at $1,099), while the MacBook Pro features M4 Pro/Max chips with a cooling fan for sustained peak performance. The Pro supports Liquid Retina XDR display with ProMotion 120Hz, while the Air has a Liquid Retina (60Hz). For most users—students, writers, light creative work—the Air is the better value. Power users doing sustained video rendering, large ML training, or 3D should choose the Pro.
Is the MacBook Pro M4 worth the extra money over MacBook Air M4?
The MacBook Pro M4 costs $600–$1,000 more than the comparable MacBook Air M4. It's worth it if you: (1) regularly do sustained CPU/GPU-intensive work that causes thermal throttling on the fanless Air, (2) need the Liquid Retina XDR display with ProMotion 120Hz, or (3) need more than 24GB RAM. For most buyers, the Air M4 delivers identical single-core performance and only throttles under multi-hour 4K encoding sessions.
Does MacBook Air 2026 throttle during video editing?
The MacBook Air (M4, 2026) can throttle under sustained heavy workloads because it lacks a fan. For typical video editing—cutting 1080p or 4K timelines, color grading, light effects—the Air handles it well. For sustained 4K60 or 8K rendering sessions lasting 30+ minutes, the Pro's active cooling maintains higher clock speeds without throttling, making it 15–25% faster on those specific tasks.
Which MacBook has a better display — Air or Pro 2026?
The MacBook Pro 2026 has the better display: 14" or 16" Liquid Retina XDR with ProMotion 120Hz adaptive refresh, up to 1,000 nits sustained brightness and 1,600 nits peak HDR. The MacBook Air uses a Liquid Retina display at 60Hz with 500 nits. If display quality is critical—photo editing, video grading, or content consumption—the Pro is noticeably better. For everyday use, the Air's display is still excellent.
MacBook Air vs MacBook Pro: which is better for programming in 2026?
For programming and software development, the MacBook Air M4 is excellent for most developers: compiling typical codebases, running Docker containers, and Xcode projects are fast and responsive. Only if you compile very large C++/Swift projects, run multiple heavy VMs simultaneously, or train ML models locally would you benefit from the Pro's sustained performance and extra RAM (up to 96GB). The Air's portability and battery life make it the developer's choice at a better price.
How to Choose Between MacBook Air M3 and MacBook Pro M3
GPU Cores: MacBook Air M3 has 8 cores, while MacBook Pro M3 has 10 cores.
Base Price: MacBook Air M3 has $1,499, while MacBook Pro M3 has $1,999.
Display Refresh Rate: MacBook Air M3 has 60Hz, while MacBook Pro M3 has 120Hz.
Thermal Design: MacBook Air M3 has Passive cooling (fanless), while MacBook Pro M3 has Active cooling with fan.
Maximum RAM: MacBook Air M3 has 24GB, while MacBook Pro M3 has 36GB.
Weight: MacBook Air M3 has 2.7 lbs, while MacBook Pro M3 has 3.5 lbs.
ProMotion Display: MacBook Air M3 has No, while MacBook Pro M3 has Yes.
MacBook Air M3 is better than MacBook Pro M3