Notice: Your browser is not supported or outdated so some features of the site might not be available.
- Table of Contents
- Top
- Main Differences
- Design
- Display
- Interface
- Connectivity
- Configuration
- Performance
- Additional Features And Software
- Comments
Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022) vs Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022)
Side-by-Side Comparison
Products
Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022)
Tested using Methodology v0.8.2
Updated Jul 23, 2024 05:56 PM
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comTested using Methodology v0.8.2
Updated Aug 28, 2024 01:35 PM
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Size13.6"
Operating SystemmacOS
Size15"
Operating SystemWindows 11
Variants
- MacBook Air 13 (MLY43LL/A) (Midnight - M2/8-core CPU/10-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MC7X4LL/A) (Midnight - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/16GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLY33LL/A) (Midnight - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLY03LL/A) (Silver - M2/8-core CPU/10-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MC7V4LL/A) (Silver - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/16GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLXY3LL/A) (Silver - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLXX3LL/A) (Space Gray - M2/8-core CPU/10-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MC7U4LL/A) (Space Gray - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/16GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLXW3LL/A) (Space Gray - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLY23LL/A) (Starlight - M2/8-core CPU/10-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MC7W4LL/A) (Starlight - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/16GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MLY13LL/A) (Starlight - M2/8-core CPU/8-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00062) (Sandstone - 13"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00026) (Matte Black - 13"/i5/8GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00051) (Matte Black - 13"/i5/8GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00026) (Matte Black - 13"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00027) (Matte Black - 13"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RIP-00026) (Matte Black - 15"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RKL-00001) (Matte Black - 15"/i7/32GB/1TB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RFB-00026) (Matte Black - 15"/i7/8GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (QZI-00001) (Platinum (Alcantara) - 13"/i5/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (QZI-00002) (Platinum (Alcantara) - 13"/i5/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00001) (Platinum (Alcantara) - 13"/i5/8GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00001) (Platinum (Alcantara) - 13"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00002) (Platinum (Alcantara) - 13"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00001) (Platinum (Metal) - 13"/i5/8GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RIP-00001) (Platinum (Metal) - 15"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RIP-00002) (Platinum (Metal) - 15"/i7/16GB/512GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBY-00001) (Platinum (Metal) - 15"/i7/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBY-00002) (Platinum (Metal) - 15"/i7/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00051) (Sage - 13"/i5/8GB/256GB)
- Surface Laptop 5 (RBG-00051) (Sage - 13"/i7/16GB/512)
- Surface Laptop 5 (R1S-00062) (Sandstone - 13"/i5/8GB/512GB)
Our Verdict
Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022)
The Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022) is better than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022) for most uses. The MacBook Air has a brighter display with better reflection handling, making it more suitable for use in well-lit settings or outdoors in broad daylight. While both laptops have an outstanding touchpad, the MacBook Air's is larger, and because it uses haptics to simulate mouse clicks instead of physical buttons, it makes actions like dragging and dropping much easier. If you need to connect more than one external display, the Surface Laptop would be better because the MacBook Air can only output to a single external display.
Main Differences forSchool
School
Threshold
School
8.5
7.7
Battery
8.4
6.5
Reflections
8.9
5.8
Portability
9.1
8.4
Full Comparison
Design
Style
Style Photo
Form Factor
Traditional (Clamshell)
Traditional (Clamshell)
Build Quality
9.5
9.5
Build Quality Photo
Hinge
9.1
9.1
Hinge Photo
Range
135°
135°
Stability
Good
Good
One Finger Lift
Yes
Yes
Portability
9.1
8.4
Dimensions Photo
Size
13.6"
15"
Thickness
0.5" (1.3 cm)
0.6" (1.5 cm)
Width
12.2" (31.0 cm)
13.4" (34.0 cm)
Depth
8.5" (21.5 cm)
9.6" (24.5 cm)
Volume
52.9 in³ (866.5 cm³)
76.2 in³ (1,249.5 cm³)
Weight
2.7 lbs (1.2 kg)
3.5 lbs (1.6 kg)
Charger Size
5.0 in³ (81.7 cm³)
6.9 in³ (112.5 cm³)
Charger Weight
0.3 lbs (0.2 kg)
0.6 lbs (0.3 kg)
Serviceability
3.5
4.3
Internals Photo
Ease Of Access
6.0
4.5
RAM Slots
0
0
Storage Slots
0
1
Replaceable Battery
Yes
Yes
Replaceable Wireless Adapter
No
No
In The Box
In The Box Photo
Display
Screen Specs
Display Photo
Resolution
2560 x 1664
2496 x 1664
Aspect Ratio
16:10
3:2
Pixel Density
225 PPI
199 PPI
Panel Type
IPS
IPS
Touch Screen
No
Yes
Screen-To-Body Ratio
84%
84%
Refresh Rate
5.9
5.9
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate
60 Hz
60 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
No
No
Contrast
7.6
7.4
Contrast Photo
Native Contrast
1,490 : 1
1,376 : 1
Brightness
8.5
7.7
Maximum Brightness
468 cd/m²
364 cd/m²
Minimum Brightness
2 cd/m²
5 cd/m²
Reflections
8.9
5.8
Reflections Photo Off
Reflections Photo Max
Screen Finish
Glossy
Glossy
Total Reflections
1.73%
6.43%
Indirect Reflections
0.39%
0.71%
Calculated Direct Reflections
1.34%
5.72%
Black Uniformity
8.2
7.4
Black Uniformity Photo
Uniformity (Std. Dev.)
0.814%
1.029%
Horizontal Viewing Angle
6.5
7.1
Horizontal Viewing Angle Video
Horizontal Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Left
27°
27°
Color Washout From Right
27°
30°
Horizontal Hue Picture
Color Shift From Left
31°
44°
Color Shift From Right
34°
60°
Horizontal Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Left
30°
28°
Brightness Loss From Right
30°
31°
Black Level Raise From Left
60°
60°
Black Level Raise From Right
60°
60°
Gamma Shift From Left
27°
29°
Gamma Shift From Right
27°
35°
Vertical Viewing Angle
6.6
6.7
Vertical Viewing Angle Video
Vertical Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Below
25°
22°
Color Washout From Above
27°
24°
Vertical Hue Picture
Color Shift From Below
28°
41°
Color Shift From Above
36°
45°
Vertical Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Below
27°
25°
Brightness Loss From Above
30°
29°
Black Level Raise From Below
45°
45°
Black Level Raise From Above
45°
45°
Gamma Shift From Below
29°
22°
Gamma Shift From Above
31°
27°
Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy
9.3
9.6
White Balance Screencap
Gamma Curve Screencap
Color Screencap
Avg. White Balance dE
2.02
1.89
Avg. Gamma
2.31
2.2
Avg. Color dE
1.66
1.09
Avg. Color Temperature
6,695.9 K
6,464.9 K
Color Gamut
9.4
8.3
Gamut SDR
sRGB xy
99.95%
98.92%
sRGB uv
99.81%
98.46%
Adobe RGB xy
88.14%
73.34%
Adobe RGB uv
92.92%
84.4%
Gamut HDR
DCI P3 xy
99.68%
73.43%
DCI P3 uv
99.15%
79.25%
Rec. 2020 xy
72.43%
52.7%
Rec. 2020 uv
73.13%
57.76%
Flicker
10
10
Flicker Graph
Flicker-Free
Yes
Yes
Flicker Frequency
No Flicker
No Flicker
Flicker Active Below
0%
0%
Interface
Keyboard
8.0
8.1
Keyboard Photo
Typing Quality
8.0
8.0
Numpad
No
No
Backlighting
Adjustable
Adjustable
Key Switch Actuation Graph
Operating Force
63 gf
67 gf
Actuation Force
39 gf
40 gf
Pre-Travel
0.78 mm
0.93 mm
Total Travel
0.92 mm
1.34 mm
Touchpad
9.2
8.7
Touchpad Photo
Tracking Quality
9.5
9.0
Size
16.0 in² (103.2 cm²)
13.7 in² (88.6 cm²)
Material
Glass
Glass
Dedicated Buttons
No
No
Speakers
8.1
7.4
Frequency Response Plot
Max Volume
76 dB SPL
76 dB SPL
Standard Error @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
5.5 dB
5.5 dB
Slope @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
2.5
0.3
Bass Extension (Low-Frequency Ext.)
145 Hz
214 Hz
Treble Extension (High-Frequency Ext.)
17 kHz
16 kHz
Dynamic Range Compression @ Max Vol.
1.5 dB
4.0 dB
Webcam & Microphone
8.7
8.7
Webcam Video Sample
Video Quality
9.0
9.0
Resolution
1080p
720p
Position
Top Center
Top Center
Privacy Cover
No
No
Face Unlock
No
Yes
Connectivity
Ports
5.0
5.0
Ports Photo
USB-A Ports
0
1
USB-C Ports
2
1
Thunderbolt
Thunderbolt 3
Thunderbolt 4
USB-C Charging
Yes
Yes
USB-C Display Out
Yes
Yes
HDMI
No
No
DisplayPort
No
No
3.5mm Jack
Combo mic/headphone
Combo mic/headphone
Card Reader
No
No
Ethernet
No
No
Proprietary Port
Apple MagSafe 3
Surface Connect
Security Lock
No
No
Wireless Communication
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth
5.0
5.2
Configuration
CPU
Brand
Apple
Intel
Model
M2
Core i7-1255U
Core Count
8
10
Thread Count
8
12
GPU
Brand
Apple
Intel
Model
M2
Iris Xe Graphics G7
Dedicated/Integrated
Integrated
Integrated
VRAM Size
N/A
N/A
RAM
Capacity
8 GB
16 GB
Modules
Unknown
8 (Soldered)
Type
LP-DDR5
LP-DDR5x
Speed
6,400 MHz
5,200 MHz
Storage
Advertised Capacity
256 GB
512 GB
Usable Capacity
214 GB
463 GB
Drive 1
Apple SSD AP0256Z
KIOXIA KBG50ZNS512G
Drive 1 Type
SSD
SSD
Drive 2
No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive
Drive 2 Type
No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive
Performance
Geekbench 5 (Synthetics)
9.1
8.3
Geekbench Image
CPU Single-Thread
1,928 points
1,199 points
CPU Multi-Thread
8,954 points
6,533 points
GPU Compute
26,155 points
18,117 points
Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering)
9.4
8.6
Cinebench R23 Photo
Single-Thread
1,581 points
1,134 points
Multi-Thread
8,003 points
7,727 points
Blender (3D Rendering)
8.5
6.7
Blender Image
CPU Render Time
4.2 min
6.4 min
GPU Render Time
2.2 min
N/A
GPU Render Time (Optix)
N/A
N/A
Basemark GPU (Game Scene)
6.7
5.4
Basemark Image
Overall Score
34,329
19,052
Storage Drive Performance
8.9
9.0
Storage Performance Image
Sequential Write Speed
2,469.6 MB/s
980.6 MB/s
Sequential Read Speed
1,091.6 MB/s
2,695.1 MB/s
Random Write Speed
45.0 MB/s
74.3 MB/s
Random Read Speed
60.1 MB/s
41.8 MB/s
Battery
8.4
6.5
Capacity
53 Wh
46 Wh
Battery Life (Web Browsing)
10.9 hrs
8.0 hrs
Battery Life (Video Playback)
7.0 hrs
5.2 hrs
Battery Life (Gaming)
2.7 hrs
2.0 hrs
Charge Time
3.0 hrs
2.5 hrs
Borderlands 3
4.1
1.8
Borderlands 3 Graph
Avg. FPS
28 fps
11 fps
1% Low
11 fps
6 fps
0.1% Low
5 fps
3 fps
1% Low Delta
59 ms
77 ms
0.1% Low Delta
173 ms
276 ms
Avg. FPS On Very Low
36 fps
24 fps
Civilization VI
5.7
4.8
Civilization VI Graph
Avg. FPS
45 fps
22 fps
1% Low
27 fps
16 fps
0.1% Low
21 fps
16 fps
1% Low Delta
15 ms
17 ms
0.1% Low Delta
25 ms
19 ms
Avg. FPS On Minimum
76 fps
80 fps
Avg. Turn Time
10.11 s
8.19 s
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
8.9
6.3
CS:GO graph
Avg. FPS
114 fps
76 fps
1% Low
N/A
34 fps
0.1% Low
N/A
26 fps
1% Low Delta
N/A
17 ms
0.1% Low Delta
N/A
25 ms
Avg. FPS On Low
175 fps
113 fps
Counter-Strike 2
CS2 Graph
Avg. FPS
1% Low
0.1% Low
1% Low Delta
0.1% Low Delta
Avg. FPS On Low
Shadow Of The Tomb Raider
4.0
3.7
Avg. FPS
25 fps
21 fps
1% Low
16 fps
15 fps
0.1% Low
10 fps
10 fps
1% Low Delta
22 ms
21 ms
0.1% Low Delta
65 ms
54 ms
Avg. FPS On Lowest
42 fps
32 fps
Thermals And Noise
8.1
7.4
Keyboard Temps Picture
Keyboard Temp While Idle
30 °C (86 °F)
36 °C (96 °F)
Keyboard Temp Under Load
49 °C (120 °F)
44 °C (111 °F)
Fan Noise While Idle
N/A
25.0 dBA
Fan Noise Under Load
N/A
45.0 dBA
Power & Fan Control App
No
No
Performance Over Time
6.7
4.7
Performance Over Time Graph
CPU Temp (Cinebench)
N/A
61 °C
CPU Perf. Loss (Cinebench)
4% loss
25% loss
GPU Temp (Heaven)
N/A
57 °C
GPU Perf. Loss (Heaven)
18% loss
11% loss
Additional Features And Software
Software
Operating System
macOS
Windows 11
Additional Software
None
Yes
Extra Features
RGB Illumination
No
No
Touch Pen
No
No
Secondary Display
No
No
Biometrics
Fingerprint Sensor
Face Recognition
You have 10/10 free reviews left
To access
and
Become an Insider
unlimited full product reviews,
product prices
other exclusive site features
Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022)
Comments
Apple MacBook Air 13 (2022) vs Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022): Main Discussion
What do you think of these products? Let us know below.
Looking for a personalized buying advice from the RTINGS.com experts? Insiders have direct access to buying advice on our insider forum.