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- Table of Contents
- Top
- Main Differences
- Design
- Display
- Interface
- Connectivity
- Configuration
- Performance
- Additional Features And Software
- Comments
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) vs Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023)
Side-by-Side Comparison
Products
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023)
Tested using Methodology v0.8.2
Updated Apr 04, 2025 07:55 PM
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Amazon.comTested using Methodology v0.8.3
Updated May 02, 2025 03:07 PM
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Amazon.com
Size15.3"
Operating SystemmacOS
Size14"
Operating SystemmacOS
Variants
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKW3LL/A) (Midnight - M2/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKX3LL/A) (Midnight - M2/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKR3LL/A) (Silver - M2/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKT3LL/A) (Silver - M2/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKP3LL/A) (Space Gray - M2/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKQ3LL/A) (Space Gray - M2/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKU3LL/A) (Starlight - M2/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MQKV3LL/A) (Starlight - M2/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX83LL/A) (Silver - M3 Max/14‑core CPU/30‑core GPU/36GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX63LL/A) (Silver - M3 Pro/11‑core CPU/14‑core GPU/18GB/512GB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX73LL/A) (Silver - M3 Pro/12‑core CPU/18‑core GPU/18GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MR7K3LL/A) (Silver - M3/8‑core CPU/10‑core GPU/8GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MR7J3LL/A) (Silver - M3/8‑core CPU/10‑core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX53LL/A) (Space Black - M3 Max/14‑core CPU/30‑core GPU/36GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX33LL/A) (Space Black - M3 Pro/11‑core CPU/14‑core GPU/18GB/512GB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MRX43LL/A) (Space Black - M3 Pro/12‑core CPU/18‑core GPU/18GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MTL83LL/A) (Space Gray - M3/8‑core CPU/10‑core GPU/8GB/1TB)
- MacBook Pro 14 (MTL73LL/A) (Space Gray - M3/8‑core CPU/10‑core GPU/8GB/512GB)
Our Verdict
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023)
The Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023) is better than the Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) for most uses. The MacBook Pro 14 is a higher-end device with better features, like a 120Hz Pro Motion display, better-sounding speakers, a wider port selection, and multi-display support. It's configurable with significantly faster M3 Pro and M3 Max chips to handle more demanding workloads, and its battery lasts much longer.
Main Differences forSchool
School
Threshold
School
8.2
9.0
Battery
7.2
9.6
Ports
5.0
8.5
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
8.7
8.5
Dimensions Photo
Size
15.3"
14"
Thickness
0.6" (1.4 cm)
0.6" (1.6 cm)
Width
13.4" (34.0 cm)
12.3" (31.3 cm)
Depth
9.3" (23.7 cm)
8.7" (22.1 cm)
Volume
68.8 in³ (1,128.0 cm³)
67.5 in³ (1,106.8 cm³)
Weight
3.3 lbs (1.5 kg)
3.5 lbs (1.6 kg)
Charger Size
4.6 in³ (75.0 cm³)
9.0 in³ (148.3 cm³)
Charger Weight
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
Serviceability
3.5
3.5
Internals Photo
Ease Of Access
6.0
6.0
RAM Slots
0
0
Storage Slots
0
0
Replaceable Battery
Yes
Yes
Replaceable Wireless Adapter
No
No
In The Box
In The Box Photo
Display
Screen Specs
Display Photo
Resolution
2880 x 1864
3024 x 1964
Aspect Ratio
16:10
16:10
Pixel Density
226 PPI
254 PPI
Panel Type
IPS
IPS
Touch Screen
No
No
Screen-To-Body Ratio
86%
89%
Refresh Rate
5.9
8.7
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate
60 Hz
120 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
No
Apple ProMotion
Contrast
7.4
10
Contrast Photo
Native Contrast
1,371 : 1
33,667 : 1
Brightness
8.4
8.8
Maximum Brightness
450 cd/m²
548 cd/m²
Minimum Brightness
2 cd/m²
2 cd/m²
Reflections
9.0
8.8
Reflections Photo Off
Reflections Photo Max
Screen Finish
Glossy
Glossy
Total Reflections
1.63%
1.82%
Indirect Reflections
0.49%
0.18%
Calculated Direct Reflections
1.14%
1.64%
Black Uniformity
8.5
10
Black Uniformity Photo
Uniformity (Std. Dev.)
0.754%
0.209%
Horizontal Viewing Angle
6.5
Horizontal Viewing Angle Video
Horizontal Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Left
26°
Color Washout From Right
27°
Horizontal Hue Picture
Color Shift From Left
30°
Color Shift From Right
34°
Horizontal Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Left
28°
Brightness Loss From Right
30°
Black Level Raise From Left
60°
Black Level Raise From Right
60°
Gamma Shift From Left
27°
Gamma Shift From Right
27°
Vertical Viewing Angle
6.6
Vertical Viewing Angle Video
Vertical Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Below
27°
Color Washout From Above
25°
Vertical Hue Picture
Color Shift From Below
30°
Color Shift From Above
33°
Vertical Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Below
29°
Brightness Loss From Above
28°
Black Level Raise From Below
45°
Black Level Raise From Above
45°
Gamma Shift From Below
31°
Gamma Shift From Above
30°
Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy
9.8
9.7
White Balance Screencap
Gamma Curve Screencap
Color Screencap
Avg. White Balance dE
1.55
1.86
Avg. Gamma
2.23
2.22
Avg. Color dE
1.41
1.11
Avg. Color Temperature
6,309 K
6,817 K
Color Gamut
9.2
9.5
Gamut SDR
sRGB xy
99.72%
99.99%
sRGB uv
99%
99.95%
Adobe RGB xy
84.48%
89.61%
Adobe RGB uv
89.73%
94.62%
Gamut HDR
DCI P3 xy
96.02%
99.82%
DCI P3 uv
96.3%
99.68%
Rec. 2020 xy
70.93%
73.19%
Rec. 2020 uv
71.98%
74.21%
Flicker
10
9.0
Flicker Graph
Flicker-Free
No
No
Flicker Frequency
> 1000Hz
> 1000Hz
Flicker Active Below
0%
100%
Interface
Keyboard
8.0
8.0
Keyboard Photo
Typing Quality
8.0
8.0
Numpad
No
No
Backlighting
Adjustable
Adjustable
Key Switch Actuation Graph
Operating Force
64 gf
62 gf
Actuation Force
38 gf
38 gf
Pre-Travel
0.76 mm
0.75 mm
Total Travel
0.84 mm
0.84 mm
Touchpad
9.6
9.2
Touchpad Photo
Tracking Quality
9.5
9.5
Size
21.4 in² (138.0 cm²)
16.1 in² (104.0 cm²)
Material
Glass
Glass
Dedicated Buttons
No
No
Speakers
9.3
8.9
Frequency Response Plot
Max Volume
81 dB SPL
85 dB SPL
Standard Error @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
4.2 dB
5.4 dB
Slope @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
1.5
-2.0
Bass Extension (Low-Frequency Ext.)
135 Hz
220 Hz
Treble Extension (High-Frequency Ext.)
20 kHz
13 kHz
Dynamic Range Compression @ Max Vol.
2.7 dB
1.9 dB
Webcam & Microphone
8.7
9.1
Webcam Video Sample
Video Quality
9.0
9.5
Resolution
1080p
1080p
Position
Top Center
Top Center
Privacy Cover
No
No
Face Unlock
No
No
Connectivity
Ports
5.0
8.5
Ports Photo
USB-A Ports
0
0
USB-C Ports
2
3
Thunderbolt
Thunderbolt 3
Thunderbolt 4
USB-C Charging
Yes
Yes
USB-C Display Out
Yes
Yes
HDMI
No
2.1
DisplayPort
No
No
3.5mm Jack
Combo mic/headphone
Combo mic/headphone
Card Reader
No
SD UHS 2
Ethernet
No
No
Proprietary Port
Apple MagSafe 3
Apple MagSafe 3
Security Lock
No
No
Wireless Communication
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)
Bluetooth
5.3
5.3
Configuration
CPU
Brand
Apple
Apple
Model
M2
M3 Pro
Core Count
8
11
Thread Count
8
11
GPU
Brand
Apple
Apple
Model
M2
M3 Pro
Dedicated/Integrated
Integrated
Integrated
VRAM Size
N/A
N/A
GPU Total Graphics Power (TGP)
N/A
RAM
Capacity
8 GB
18 GB
Modules
Unknown
Unknown
Type
LP-DDR5
LP-DDR5
Speed
6,400 MHz
6,400 MHz
Storage
Advertised Capacity
256 GB
512 GB
Usable Capacity
206 GB
457 GB
Drive 1
Apple SSD AP0256Z
Apple SSD AP0512Z
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)
9.2
9.6
Geekbench Image
CPU Single-Thread
1,948 points
2,237 points
CPU Multi-Thread
9,020 points
13,230 points
GPU Compute
30,082 points
48,048 points
Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering)
9.4
9.9
Cinebench R23 Photo
Single-Thread
1,591 points
1,916 points
Multi-Thread
8,242 points
13,072 points
Blender (3D Rendering)
8.5
9.3
Blender Image
CPU Render Time
4.5 min
2.7 min
GPU Render Time
1.8 min
0.3 min
GPU Render Time (Optix)
N/A
N/A
Basemark GPU (Game Scene)
7.3
8.6
Basemark Image
Overall Score
43,752
69,112
Storage Drive Performance
8.9
9.5
Storage Performance Image
Sequential Write Speed
2,301.4 MB/s
5,042.9 MB/s
Sequential Read Speed
1,345.8 MB/s
4,609.9 MB/s
Random Write Speed
42.3 MB/s
56.6 MB/s
Random Read Speed
59.3 MB/s
59.9 MB/s
Battery
7.2
9.6
Capacity
67 Wh
72 Wh
Battery Life (Web Browsing)
8.6 hrs
15.5 hrs
Battery Life (Video Playback)
8.1 hrs
12.6 hrs
Battery Life (Gaming)
2.9 hrs
2.1 hrs
Charge Time
2.7 hrs
2.0 hrs
Borderlands 3
3.2
5.1
Borderlands 3 Graph
Avg. FPS
20 fps
39 fps
1% Low
8 fps
23 fps
0.1% Low
3 fps
13 fps
1% Low Delta
79 ms
18 ms
0.1% Low Delta
241 ms
50 ms
Avg. FPS On Very Low
40 fps
78 fps
Civilization VI
5.8
7.2
Civilization VI Graph
Avg. FPS
42 fps
59 fps
1% Low
28 fps
44 fps
0.1% Low
19 fps
40 fps
1% Low Delta
12 ms
6 ms
0.1% Low Delta
28 ms
8 ms
Avg. FPS On Minimum
93 fps
117 fps
Avg. Turn Time
10.31 s
8.93 s
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
8.8
CS:GO graph
Avg. FPS
108 fps
1% Low
N/A
0.1% Low
N/A
1% Low Delta
N/A
0.1% Low Delta
N/A
Avg. FPS On Low
180 fps
Counter-Strike 2
0.0
CS2 Graph
Avg. FPS
N/A
1% Low
N/A
0.1% Low
N/A
1% Low Delta
N/A
0.1% Low Delta
N/A
Avg. FPS On Low
N/A
Shadow Of The Tomb Raider
4.5
7.1
Avg. FPS
29 fps
55 fps
1% Low
18 fps
40 fps
0.1% Low
12 fps
35 fps
1% Low Delta
20 ms
7 ms
0.1% Low Delta
51 ms
10 ms
Avg. FPS On Lowest
58 fps
97 fps
Thermals And Noise
9.4
8.2
Keyboard Temps Picture
Keyboard Temp While Idle
27 °C (80 °F)
27 °C (81 °F)
Keyboard Temp Under Load
36 °C (96 °F)
42 °C (108 °F)
Fan Noise While Idle
N/A
25.0 dBA
Fan Noise Under Load
N/A
40.0 dBA
Power & Fan Control App
No
No
Performance Over Time
8.4
10
Performance Over Time Graph
CPU Temp (Cinebench)
80 °C
96 °C
CPU Perf. Loss (Cinebench)
1% loss
0% loss
GPU Temp (Heaven)
78 °C
74 °C
GPU Perf. Loss (Heaven)
8% loss
0% loss
Additional Features And Software
Software
Operating System
macOS
macOS
Additional Software
None
None
Extra Features
Biometrics
Fingerprint Sensor
Fingerprint Sensor
RGB Illumination
No
No
Touch Pen Support
No Stylus Support
Secondary Display
No
No
Touch Pen
No
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Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023)
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023)
Comments
Apple MacBook Air 15 (2023) vs Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M3, 2023): Main Discussion
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