Home > Laptop comparison > MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026) or MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026) – what's better?

Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026) vs Air 13 M5 (2026)

74 out of 100
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026)
VS
65 out of 100
Apple MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026)
Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026)
Apple MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026)
Please select specific configurations for the laptops to get a more accurate comparative review
CPU
RAM
Storage

Review

Evaluation of Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026) and Air 13 M5 (2026) important characteristics
Performance
System and application performance
Gaming
Performance in popular 3D games
Display
Viewing angle, color accuracy, brightness
Battery Life
Potential battery life in light and average use
Connectivity
Ports, webcam and other interfaces
Portability
Design, materials, durability and usability
NanoReview Score
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Primary usage:

Value for money (Beta)

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Currency
VS
70.1
(Good)
Value Index
90.8
(Very good)

Key Differences

What are the key differences between the notebooks
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026)
  • Higher screen refresh rate: 120 versus 60 Hz
  • Higher number of cutting-edge USB Type-C ports: 3 versus 2
  • Features a much bigger (~35%) battery – 72.4 against 53.8 watt-hours
  • Thinner bezels and 3% higher screen-to-body ratio
  • Can run popular games at about 13-18% higher FPS
  • Provides 100% higher max. screen brightness: 1000 vs 500 nits
Advantages of the Apple MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026)
  • Easier to carry: weighs 370 grams less (around 0.82 lbs)

Tests and Specifications

Comparison table of test results and technical specs
Laptop:
MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026)
vs
MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026)

Case

Weight 1.6 kg (3.53 lbs) 1.23 kg (2.71 lbs)
Dimensions 312.6 x 221.2 x 15.5 mm
12.31 x 8.71 x 0.61 inches		 304.1 x 215 x 11.3 mm
11.97 x 8.46 x 0.44 inches
Area 691 cm2 (107.2 inches2) 654 cm2 (101.3 inches2)
Screen-to-body ratio ~84.6% ~82%
Side bezels 3.4 mm 5.6 mm
Colors Black, Silver Black, Silver, Gold, Blue
Material Aluminum Aluminum
Transformer No No
Opening angle 135° 130°
Size comparison
Cooling solution
Cooling system Active Passive
Vapor chamber No No
Liquid metal No No
Number of fans 2 -
Noise level (max. load) 53.2 dB -

Display

Size 14.2 inches 13.6 inches
Type Mini LED IPS LCD
Refresh rate 120 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate Yes (24-120 Hz) No
PPI 254 ppi 225 ppi
Aspect ratio 16:10 16:10
Resolution 3024 x 1964 pixels 2560 x 1664 pixels
HDR support Yes, Dolby Vision Yes, Dolby Vision
Sync technology No No
Touchscreen No No
Coating Glossy (Antireflective) Glossy (Antireflective)
Ambient light sensor Yes Yes
Screen space comparison
MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026)
14.2″ (16:10 ratio) = 90.6 in2
MacBook Air 13 M5 (2026)
13.6″ (16:10 ratio) = 83.1 in2
~9% more screen space
Display tests
Contrast 1000000:1 1437:1
sRGB color space 100% 100%
Adobe RGB profile - 86.8%
DCI-P3 color gamut 100% 98.1%
Response time - 20 ms
Max. brightness

Battery

Capacity
Full charging time 1:30 hr -
Battery type Li-Po Li-Po
Replaceable No No
Fast charging Yes Yes
Charging via USB (Power Delivery) Yes, 100 W Yes
Charging port position Left, Right Left
Charge power 70 / 96 W 35 / 40 / 70 W
Cable length 2 meters 2 meters
Weight of AC adapter 165 / 375 grams 116 / 80 / 167 grams

CPU

CPU name
Base frequency 4.61 GHz 4.61 GHz
Cores 10 (4P + 6E) 10 (4P + 6E)
Threads 10 10
Integrated GPU Apple M5 GPU (10-core) Apple M5 GPU (8-core)
Fabrication process 3 nm 3 nm

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Single-Core)
Cinebench 2024 (Multi-Core)
Submit your benchmark results

Graphics Card

GPU name
Type Integrated Integrated
Fabrication process 3 nm 3 nm
GPU boost clock 1620 MHz 1620 MHz
FLOPS 4.1 TFLOPS 3.3 TFLOPS
Memory size System Shared System Shared
Memory type LPDDR5X LPDDR5X
Memory bus 128 bit 128 bit
Memory speed 9.6 Gbps 9.6 Gbps
Shading units (cores) 1280 1024
Texture mapping units (TMUs) 80 64
Raster operations pipelines (ROPs) 40 32
GPU performance 4.1 TFLOPS 3.3 TFLOPS
Blender GPU 2007 1744
Solar Bay 22280 17484
Add your GPU benchmark result

RAM

RAM size
Channels 2x8 GB 2x8 GB
Clock 9600 MHz 9600 MHz
Type LPDDR5X LPDDR5X
Upgradable No No

Storage

Storage size
Bus Custom Custom
Storage type SSD (M2) SSD (M2)
Channels 2x512 GB 2x256 GB
Upgradable No No
NVMe Yes Yes

Sound

Speakers 4.2 (4 tweeters and 2 woofers) 2.2 (2 tweeters and 2 woofers)
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Loudness ~83.1 dB ~82.1 dB
Microphones 3 3

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard v7 v7
Bluetooth v6.0 v6.0
Fingerprint Yes Yes
Infrared sensor No No
Optical drive No No
Webcam Above the display Above the display
Webcam resolution 1920 x 1080 1920 x 1080
Ports
USB-A No No
USB Type-C 3x USB 4.0 2x USB 4.0
Thunderbolt Thunderbolt 5 Thunderbolt 4
HDMI 1x HDMI 2.1 No
DisplayPort No No
VGA No No
Audio jack (3.5 mm) Yes Yes
Ethernet (RJ45) No No
SD card reader Yes No
Proprietary charging port Yes Yes

Input

Keyboard
Keyboard type Island Island
Numpad No No
Backlight Yes Yes
Key travel 1 mm 1 mm
Touchpad
Size 13.2 x 8.1 cm -
Surface Glass Glass
Windows Precision No No
Further details
Notes on MacBook Pro 14 (M5, 2026):
    - The standard M5 model has Thunderbolt 4, while the M4 Pro and Max feature Thunderbolt 5.
*Disclaimer! Ports, speakers, display, and other specifications can vary depending on the laptop's specific configuration or region.

Cast your vote

So, which laptop would you choose?
29 (54.7%)
24 (45.3%)
Total votes: 53

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Comments

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Darkstar March 28, 2026 at 12:06 AM
An interesting fact to note. While they both share the same 28W TDP for the chip. The Macbook Pro actually lets the M5 run at 60W continuouslly under load (unless it throttles), whereas the air has a short burst o 60W before the sensor deems it too hot and immediately drops it back to 45W to let it run cooler. This is why there is generally a 20-30% performance gap between the air and pro in multi-threaded and gaming.
0 Reply
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ComputerNerd March 16, 2026 at 04:32 PM
If a person plans to hold for 5 + years and doesn't mind a slightly heavier laptop, the base M5 MBP wins easily. It is slightly more expensive, but you get so much more in return. Better speakers, screen resolution, screen refresh rate, more ports, and 2 fans for heavy workloads. For those with a light workload or only using it for freelance photography with a dongle, the M5 Air is the better choice. Especially if you need a lighter laptop due to back and/or wrist issues.
+1 Reply
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Darkstar March 28, 2026 at 12:08 AM
I agree. Another thing i'd like to add is because there is no fan on the Air, it makes it great for people who work in quite spaces or do not like the fan getting loud.
0 Reply
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