Products
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3, 2024)
Tested using Methodology v0.8.2
Updated Oct 29, 2025 03:00 PM
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Amazon.com
Tested using Methodology v0.8.3
Updated Oct 29, 2025 03:02 PM
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Amazon.com
Size
13.3"
Operating System
macOS
Size
15.3"
Operating System
macOS
Our Verdict
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020)
Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3, 2024)
The Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3, 2024) is a newer, larger sibling of the Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020). The MacBook Air 15 is better in almost every way; its M3 chip is noticeably faster than the MacBook Air 13's M1 and brings new features like hardware-accelerated ray tracing, Dynamic Caching, and AV1 decoding. Other improvements on the MacBook Air 15 include a better webcam, Wi-Fi 6E wireless connectivity, and support for two external displays (with the laptop closed). Also, there's a MagSafe port on the MacBook Air 15, so you don't have to use up one of the USB-C ports to charge the laptop.
Variants
- MacBook Air 13 (MGND3LL/A) (Gold - 7-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MGNE3LL/A) (Gold - 7-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MGN93LL/A) (Silver - 7-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MGNA3LL/A) (Silver - 7-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MGN63LL/A) (Space Gray - 7-core GPU/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 13 (MGN73LL/A) (Space Gray - 7-core GPU/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MXD43LL/A) (Midnight - M3/16GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYU3LL/A) (Midnight - M3/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYV3LL/A) (Midnight - M3/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MXD23LL/A) (Silver - M3/16GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYP3LL/A) (Silver - M3/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYQ3LL/A) (Silver - M3/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MXD13LL/A) (Space Gray - M3/16GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYM3LL/A) (Space Gray - M3/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYN3LL/A) (Space Gray - M3/8GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MXD33LL/A) (Starlight - M3/16GB/512GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYR3LL/A) (Starlight - M3/8GB/256GB)
- MacBook Air 15 (MRYT3LL/A) (Starlight - M3/8GB/512GB)
Main Differences for
School
School
Threshold
School
8.4
8.8
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
8.7
Dimensions Photo
Size
13.3"
15.3"
Thickness
0.5" (1.3 cm)
0.6" (1.4 cm)
Width
12.0" (30.5 cm)
13.4" (34.0 cm)
Depth
8.4" (21.2 cm)
9.3" (23.7 cm)
Volume
51.3 in³ (840.6 cm³)
68.8 in³ (1,128.1 cm³)
Weight
2.9 lbs (1.3 kg)
3.3 lbs (1.5 kg)
Charger Size
5.5 in³ (90.6 cm³)
4.2 in³ (68.6 cm³)
Charger Weight
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
Serviceability
3.3
3.5
Internals Photo
Ease Of Access
5.5
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
2560 x 1600
2880 x 1864
Aspect Ratio
16:10
16:10
Pixel Density
225 PPI
226 PPI
Panel Type
IPS
IPS
Touch Screen
No
No
Screen-To-Body Ratio
84%
87%
Refresh Rate
5.9
5.9
Motion Blur
Refresh Rate
60 Hz
60 Hz
Variable Refresh Rate
No
No
Contrast
6.8
7.5
Contrast Photo
Native Contrast
1,044 : 1
1,412 : 1
Brightness
7.8
8.7
Maximum Brightness
372 cd/m²
494 cd/m²
Minimum Brightness
4 cd/m²
2 cd/m²
Reflections
8.9
9.1
Reflections Photo Off
Reflections Photo Max
Screen Finish
Glossy
Glossy
Total Reflections
1.73%
1.47%
Indirect Reflections
0.16%
0.38%
Calculated Direct Reflections
1.57%
1.09%
Black Uniformity
7.4
7.3
Black Uniformity Photo
Uniformity (Std. Dev.)
1.071%
1.103%
Horizontal Viewing Angle
6.8
Horizontal Viewing Angle Video
Horizontal Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Left
25°
Color Washout From Right
28°
Horizontal Hue Picture
Color Shift From Left
40°
Color Shift From Right
46°
Horizontal Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Left
28°
Brightness Loss From Right
31°
Black Level Raise From Left
60°
Black Level Raise From Right
60°
Gamma Shift From Left
29°
Gamma Shift From Right
32°
Vertical Viewing Angle
6.8
Vertical Viewing Angle Video
Vertical Chroma Picture
Color Washout From Below
25°
Color Washout From Above
25°
Vertical Hue Picture
Color Shift From Below
37°
Color Shift From Above
41°
Vertical Lightness Picture
Brightness Loss From Below
27°
Brightness Loss From Above
28°
Black Level Raise From Below
45°
Black Level Raise From Above
45°
Gamma Shift From Below
37°
Gamma Shift From Above
35°
Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy
9.7
9.9
White Balance Screencap
Gamma Curve Screencap
Color Screencap
Avg. White Balance dE
1.75
1.47
Avg. Gamma
2.2
2.24
Avg. Color dE
1.21
0.98
Avg. Color Temperature
6,883.6 K
6,742.3 K
Color Gamut
9.4
9.4
Gamut SDR
sRGB xy
99.96%
99.93%
sRGB uv
99.84%
99.72%
Adobe RGB xy
88.07%
87.43%
Adobe RGB uv
92.88%
92.34%
Gamut HDR
DCI P3 xy
99.57%
99.05%
DCI P3 uv
99.15%
98.72%
Rec. 2020 xy
72.25%
71.83%
Rec. 2020 uv
73.92%
73.49%
Flicker
10
9.0
Flicker Graph
Flicker-Free
Yes
No
Flicker Frequency
No Flicker
> 1000Hz
Flicker Active Below
0%
100%
Interface
Keyboard
7.6
8.0
Keyboard Photo
Typing Quality
7.5
8.0
Numpad
No
No
Backlighting
Adjustable
Adjustable
Key Switch Actuation Graph
Operating Force
63 gf
62 gf
Actuation Force
37 gf
40 gf
Pre-Travel
0.76 mm
0.80 mm
Total Travel
0.85 mm
0.91 mm
Touchpad
8.8
9.6
Touchpad Photo
Tracking Quality
9.0
9.5
Size
14.9 in² (96.0 cm²)
21.4 in² (138.0 cm²)
Material
Glass
Glass
Dedicated Buttons
No
No
Speakers
8.9
8.9
Frequency Response Plot
Max Volume
79 dB SPL
81 dB SPL
Standard Error @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
4.5 dB
5.9 dB
Slope @ Normal Vol. (65 dB)
1.6
2.2
Bass Extension (Low-Frequency Ext.)
247 Hz
155 Hz
Treble Extension (High-Frequency Ext.)
20 kHz
20 kHz
Dynamic Range Compression @ Max Vol.
1.9 dB
2.3 dB
Webcam & Microphone
8.2
8.7
Webcam Video Sample
Video Quality
8.5
9.0
Resolution
720p
1080p
Position
Top Center
Top Center
Privacy Cover
No
No
Face Unlock
No
No
Connectivity
Ports
4.0
5.0
Ports Photo
USB-A Ports
0
0
USB-C Ports
2
2
Thunderbolt
Thunderbolt 3
Thunderbolt 3
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
No
Apple MagSafe 3
Security Lock
No
No
Wireless Communication
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)
Bluetooth
5.0
5.3
Configuration
CPU
Brand
Apple
Apple
Model
M1
M3
Core Count
8
8
Thread Count
8
8
GPU
Brand
Apple
Apple
Model
M1
M3
Dedicated/Integrated
Integrated
Integrated
VRAM Size
N/A
N/A
GPU Total Graphics Power (TGP)
N/A
RAM
Capacity
8 GB
8 GB
Modules
2 (Soldered)
Unknown
Type
LP-DDR4X
LP-DDR5
Speed
4,266 MHz
6,400 MHz
Storage
Advertised Capacity
256 GB
256 GB
Usable Capacity
218 GB
214 GB
Drive 1
SDRGJHI4
Apple SSD AP0256Z
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)
8.8
9.4
Geekbench Image
CPU Single-Thread
1,721 points
2,322 points
CPU Multi-Thread
7,437 points
10,501 points
GPU Compute
19,359 points
33,403 points
Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering)
9.1
9.7
Cinebench R23 Photo
Single-Thread
1,497 points
1,892 points
Multi-Thread
6,855 points
9,179 points
Blender (3D Rendering)
6.2
8.7
Blender Image
CPU Render Time
7.3 min
4.0 min
GPU Render Time
N/A
1.6 min
GPU Render Time (Optix)
N/A
N/A
Basemark GPU (Game Scene)
6.1
7.4
Basemark Image
Overall Score
26,868
44,950
Storage Drive Performance
9.3
9.2
Storage Performance Image
Sequential Write Speed
2,580.5 MB/s
2,738.0 MB/s
Sequential Read Speed
2,487.4 MB/s
2,834.7 MB/s
Random Write Speed
51.5 MB/s
41.1 MB/s
Random Read Speed
60.5 MB/s
62.5 MB/s
Battery
8.8
9.1
Capacity
50 Wh
67 Wh
Battery Life (Web Browsing)
13.3 hrs
12.7 hrs
Battery Life (Video Playback)
6.6 hrs
12.0 hrs
Battery Life (Gaming)
2.6 hrs
3.5 hrs
Charge Time
3.1 hrs
2.8 hrs
Borderlands 3
2.4
3.1
Borderlands 3 Graph
Avg. FPS
15 fps
20 fps
1% Low
6 fps
7 fps
0.1% Low
3 fps
4 fps
1% Low Delta
86 ms
89 ms
0.1% Low Delta
302 ms
230 ms
Avg. FPS On Very Low
32 fps
37 fps
Civilization VI
5.6
5.6
Civilization VI Graph
Avg. FPS
32 fps
41 fps
1% Low
23 fps
26 fps
0.1% Low
21 fps
17 fps
1% Low Delta
12 ms
14 ms
0.1% Low Delta
17 ms
33 ms
Avg. FPS On Minimum
71 fps
93 fps
Avg. Turn Time
11.63 s
10.24 s
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
7.7
CS:GO graph
Avg. FPS
65 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
94 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
2.0
4.3
SOTTR Graph
Avg. FPS
13 fps
32 fps
1% Low
9 fps
15 fps
0.1% Low
5 fps
8 fps
1% Low Delta
31 ms
36 ms
0.1% Low Delta
135 ms
90 ms
Avg. FPS On Lowest
26 fps
44 fps
Thermals And Noise
8.3
8.1
Keyboard Temps Picture
Keyboard Temp While Idle
28 °C (82 °F)
27 °C (81 °F)
Keyboard Temp Under Load
47 °C (117 °F)
50 °C (121 °F)
Fan Noise While Idle
N/A
N/A
Fan Noise Under Load
N/A
N/A
Power & Fan Control App
No
No
Performance Over Time
7.5
7.1
Performance Over Time Graph
CPU Temp (Cinebench)
N/A
90 °C
CPU Perf. Loss (Cinebench)
13% loss
6% loss
GPU Temp (Heaven)
N/A
90 °C
GPU Perf. Loss (Heaven)
3% loss
12% 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 13 (M1, 2020)
Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3, 2024)
Comments
Apple MacBook Air 13 (M1, 2020) vs Apple MacBook Air 15 (M3, 2024): Main Discussion
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