The best MacBooks - and their desktop Mac counterparts - remain some of the top laptops and PCs money can buy. Since Apple dumped Intel in 2020 to make its own M-series chips to power its computers, there has been a renaissance for MacBooks and Macs.
Over the course of the M1, M2 and M3 generations, it feels like Apple has fallen back in love with Macs and MacBooks - and consumers seem to have as well. These past four years have brought us not just the best MacBooks and Macs that Apple has ever made - but they are also some of the best laptops and best PCs as well. And with M4 in the mix now, the Macs you know and love are only getting better.
The best MacBooks are so good that they've even won over hardcore Windows fans thanks to their sleek and modern designs, excellent performance, and battery lives that most Windows 11 laptops can only dream of.
At TechRadar, we've tested and reviewed every single Mac and MacBook from Apple, and many of them have been tested by myself. I've personally used M1, M2, M3, and M4 Macs and MacBooks, and I've also reviewed the new M4-powered iPad Pro, and I'll be using my extensive experience to help advise you on the best Macs for your needs, no matter what your budget is. Speaking of budgets, make sure you check out our collection of the best MacBook deals, which can help save you some serious cash.
Matt has been reviewing Macs and MacBooks for the best part of 15 years, and personally uses a 13-inch MacBook Pro with M2 chip and 16-inch MacBook Pro with M2 Pro on a daily basis. Since joining TechRadar in 2014, he's reviewed over 250 laptops and computing accessories, many of which are Macs and MacBooks, as well as competitor devices from the likes of Microsoft, HP and Lenovo.
The best MacBook and Macs 2024
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We've tested every MacBook, iMac, and Mac mini under the sun to bring you the best of the best. Whether you're after a budget-buy entry to the world of Apple computing or you're upgrading to the latest hardware and want to know where the best bang for your buck is, you've landed on the right list. These are our picks for the best Macs you can buy.
The best MacBook overall
Apple’s latest MacBook Air for 2024 has been upgraded with the addition of the M3 chip, bringing this nicely portable 13-inch laptop even closer to the level of performance you might expect from the MacBook Pro range. While the latter remains the choice for power users and content creators, the MacBook Air (M3, 2024) closes the gap more than ever.
Okay, so this laptop didn’t do much in terms of design, essentially being much the same as its predecessor, the MacBook Air (M2, 2022). But that was already a great notebook, and there was no real need to change the formula in this respect – what Apple did instead was give us better performance, at a better price.
The MacBook Air (M3, 2024) is a top-notch performer for everyday computing, and impressive for more demanding tasks like content creation – or even dabbling in playing some games. It provides a great multi-tasking experience, running multiple apps comfortably, and outperforms the already strong MacBook Air M2 as noted, and still benefits from that fan-less design (so it’s practically silent).
Boasting plenty of battery life – 14 hours on a single charge in our tests – and a new lower price point, the M3-toting version of the MacBook Air pushes this device to fresh heights, and is an excellent buy overall. There’s just one sticking point here, namely that Apple’s baseline spec feels weak by contemporary laptop standards, sticking with the same 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage the M2 version had – which now looks rather shaky at this price point.
Read our in-depth MacBook Air (M3, 2024) review
The best budget MacBook
For those seeking a powerful performer in a highly portable form-factor, but not wanting to fork out for the new M3 version of the MacBook Air, its predecessor with the M2 chip remains an excellent laptop – and considerably more keenly priced since the M3 version hit the shelves.
If you recall, when the MacBook Air M2 first emerged in 2022, Apple bumped up its entry-level price to $1,199 / £1,249 / AU$1,899, a good deal more than the M1-toting Air which was released at $999 / £999 / AU$1,599. Well, the good news on the pricing front is that the MacBook Air M2 now costs exactly the same as the M1 at launch, so you can pick it up for $999 / £999 / AU$1,599 – with sales events making that recommended price even more attractive at times.
You’re still getting sterling performance levels from the M2 – and the power to take on, say, 4K video editing, and other relatively intense workloads – a ton of battery life (16 hours on a charge), and the same top-notch design and chassis as seen with the newer MacBook Air M3. If you want the best value proposition in the MacBook world, well, this is it.
Read our in-depth MacBook Air (M2, 2022) review
The best Mac mini
If you're on the hunt for a powerful Apple computer that will get the job done with that Mac flair without breaking the bank, then you're after the Mac mini. And as easy as it was to recommend Apple's tiny PC in 2023, it's even easier this year thanks to the new and improved M4 hardware inside.
Apple also finally put the lowest RAM config at 16GB, which is more necessary than ever with memory-hungry apps like Chrome happily gobbling up resources. And did we mention the 2024 Mac mini is even smaller than last year's despite the performance upgrades?
In the downside department, you may not love the fact that there's no USB-A port on this year's Mac mini - but you can always supplement with one of our picks for the best USB-C hubs.
It's smaller, it's faster, it's better. For an affordable foot in the Apple-ecosystem door, choose the 2024 Mac mini.
Read the in-depth Apple Mac mini (M4, 2024) review
The Best MacBook for Content Creators
The MacBook Pro line has earned a reputation as excellent laptops for creative work over the years, and there are very good reasons why. They always offer a sleek, well-built machine with capable hardware and the Apple touch that just can't be replicated.
So when Apple unveiled the latest MacBook Pro, you already know we had to put it through its paces and see if the lineup is still worthy of its presumed prowess.
It is.
Perhaps the most important aspect of the MacBook pro for creatives, the display, is an absolute homerun. Its 14-inch, 120Hz, mini-LED screen is the perfect canvas for graphic design and media enjoyment, and the Apple M4 silicone packed under the MacBook's hood is a match made in heaven.
And good news if you enjoy the pastime: the M4 MacBook Pro can even handle AAA games. I know - gaming on a Mac? The M4 chip says "yes." Our tests found an average of 42-62fps in Lies of P.
It's got the design, the display, and the performance - the only kicker here is the price (the other thing MacBooks are known for). It's expensive, but you definitely get what you pay for.
Read our in-depth Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch M4 (2024) review
The Best iMac
Apple's 2024 iMac brings a host of new color options, the updated M4 processor, double the base RAM configuration of the M3 iMac, and a lower price tag to boot. There's some serious value here, and we wouldn't blame you if you hadn't noticed it at first because the beautiful new colorways grabbed your eye first.
Our review unit came in purple and looked absolutely stunning, but you can also choose from blue, pink, yellow, orange, green, and the classic Apple silver.
It's not just a pretty face, though; it's got some serious computing power to show off. We scrutinized the M4 iMac's performance for any slow-downs or stutters throughout a range of tests including photo and video editing, gaming, and AI/ML tasks; we couldn't get the M4 chip to fold in everyday scenarios.
When you consider its design and performance, and with 16GB of RAM finally set as the entry-point, a set of new USB-C Apple Magic peripherals included, and a lower price tag on top of it all, the 2024 M4 iMac is easily the best all-in-one PC you can buy.
Read our in-depth Apple iMac 24-inch M4 (2024) review
The best 15-inch MacBook
Apple’s MacBook Air 15-inch which was refreshed with the M3 chip in 2024 remains much the same story as its predecessor, in the respect that it’s basically a bigger version of the MacBook Air 13-inch M3 that gives you two extra inches of display real-estate.
There are other nuances, mind, such as better speakers in the larger MacBook Air, and also that the 15-inch model boasts larger palm rests (all the better to type with). But mostly, you’re getting the same MacBook with a larger screen, and of course a heftier price tag.
The MacBook Air 15-inch M3 is an excellent performer, and benefits from all the strengths of its top-quality 13-inch sibling, including matching the latter’s excellent battery life (though we feel it should do slightly better than the smaller Air, really, considering the roomier chassis). If you want a great MacBook that’s still plenty portable and relatively light, but offers more screen space and a couple of other boons due to the larger form-factor, look no further than this MacBook Air 15-inch.
Read our full Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (M3) review
The Best M2 MacBook
It seems that Apple is making a habit of ensuring new models of the MacBook Pro 14-inch are a lot more powerful than expected. Its 2021 predecessor may have been an almost perfect laptop, but this early 2023 version of the MacBook Pro 14-inch blew it out of the water in terms of power, cementing the line's status as a mobile workstation that's reserved for users who can maximize its sheer performance.
However, the MacBook Pro 14-inch (M2 Pro/M2 Max) is no longer the latest model. It launched in January 2023, only to be swiftly superseded by the MacBook Pro 14-inch (M3/M3 Pro/M3 Max) later in the year, a laptop which can be found higher up on this list.
Even so, this last-gen incarnation is still a great laptop, and with the newer M3 models having been out for a while, you may be able to find these M2 models for cheaper - though not from Apple, which has now stopped selling these (slightly) older 14-inch MacBook Pros.
Read our full in-depth Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (2023) review
The Best Mac for Photo and Video Editing
The Mac Studio is like a supercharged Mac mini for creative professionals. It's an impressively compact computer that comes packing some serious power in its latest incarnation, thanks to a choice of the M2 Max or M2 Ultra chips (which have taken over from the original Mac Studio PCs with M1 silicon inside).
The Mac Studio is a formidable machine when it comes to video editing, coding and 3D modeling. The M1 version was already plenty powerful, and our testing underlined how the M2 chip has pushed things forward considerably. In our review, the Mac Studio with M2 Ultra proved to be 40% faster in synthetic benchmarks and up to 80% better in gaming performance than the M1 Ultra (admittedly with more GPU cores on offer: 76 versus 64 with the M1).
The level of performance available here will be overkill for many people, but if you're looking for a workstation PC for heavy creative workloads, such as editing 8K footage or rendering complex 3D scenes and animations, then the Mac Studio will be a great choice. It's expensive, but worth the investment.
Read our in-depth Mac Studio review
How to choose the best Mac and MacBooks for you
What to look for in the best Macs and MacBooks
Whether it’s the heavyweight 16-inch MacBook Pro or the dinky little Mac mini, it’s not hard to see why the best Macs and MacBooks are the weapons of choice of creative professionals.
These Apple machines come in different shapes, sizes and prices, so whether you want the cheapest MacBook you can find, a professional workhorse that breezes through all your demanding workloads like a pro, or an all-in-one PC that saves you space, there’s a Mac on the market for you. Often there are older models still on sale for more affordable prices, too, if your budget is a bit tighter.
How we test the best MacBooks
Testing the best MacBooks and Macs is more intensive than you might think, especially because most of these devices are meant to be used by creative professionals with more taxing workloads.
Aside from putting any given Mac’s build, display (if it has one), keyboard, trackpad, and webcam through their paces, we also perform creative benchmark tests like Handbrake, as well as run demanding workflows like editing an 8K video in Final Cut Pro and doing real-time 3D modeling and animation to see how every device fares in real-world situations. We also test battery life and take a look at heat management performance when running such intensive tasks.
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