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MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) vs MacBook Air (M1, 2020)

MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024)1MacBook Air (M1, 2020)2

Quick look

Quick look: MacBook Air M3 against MacBook Air M1
FigureMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Price£1,0993launch price£9994launch price
ChipM3chipM1chip
CPU8-coreCPU8-coreCPU
GPU8-coreGPU7-coreGPU
Memory8GB5unified memory, base8GBunified memory, base
Storage256GBstorage, base256GB6storage, base
Battery lifeUp to18 hrsvideo playback, claimedUp to18 hrsvideo playback, claimed
Released8 March 20243ReleasedIn Apple Stores; orderable online from 4 March 2024.10 November 20207Available online; Apple gave no in-store day
Security updatesNot available8Security updatesNot available8Security updates
Price
The MacBook Air M3 is £1,099 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the MacBook Air M1 is £999 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).

True to scale

MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) · 304.1 × 215 mm footprintMacBook Air (M1, 2020) · 304.1 × 212.4 mm footprint

Footprints from above, from Apple’s published dimensions, drawn to one scale and superposed. Corner rounding is our drawing convention, not a measurement.

Specifications

Each figure is from the source marked by its Mac’s name unless it carries its own small number, which links to where that figure was read.

Body

Body: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Dimensions11.3 x 304.1 x 215 mm4.1–16.1 x 304.1 x 212.4 mm
Weight1.24 kg1.29 kg
ColoursSilver, Starlight, Space Grey, MidnightGold, Silver, Space Grey
PortsTwo Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, MagSafe 3 charging port, 3.5mm headphone jackTwo Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, 3.5mm headphone jack
Thunderbolt ports22
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 3Thunderbolt 3
USB-A portsNo USB-A ports.9No USB-A ports.10
HDMINo HDMI port.11No HDMI port.12
SD card slotNo SD card slot.11No SD card slot.12
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeYesNo MagSafe port.12
KeyboardBacklit Magic Keyboard with Touch IDBacklit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID
Touch IDYesYes

Display

Display: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Display size13.6 in13.3 in
Resolution2560 x 16642560 x 1600
Pixel density224 ppi227 ppi
Display typeLiquid Retina displayRetina display
Brightness500 nits400 nits
Wide colour (P3)YesYes
Nano-texture optionNo nano-texture display option.11No nano-texture display option.12

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
ChipApple M3 chipApple M1 chip
Apple siliconYesYes
CPU cores88
Performance cores44
Efficiency cores44
GPU cores87
Neural Engine cores1616
Chip optionsM3 with 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU or 10-core GPUM1 with 8-core CPU and 7-core GPU or 8-core GPU
Memory (base)8GB58GB
Memory (maximum)24GB516GB
Memory options8GB, 16GB or 24GB58GB or 16GB
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents13No, as Apple documents13
Memory bandwidth100 GB/sNot available14
Storage (base)256GB256GB6
Storage (maximum)2TB2TB
Storage options256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB
Media engineHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decode engineNot available14

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Battery capacity52.6 Wh49.9 Wh
Rated charge cycles1,000 cycles151,000 cycles15
Video playback (claimed)18 h18 h
Wireless web (claimed)15 h15 h
Included power adapter30 W30 W
Fast chargingYesNo fast charging.12

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Wi-FiWi‑Fi 6E (802.11ax)Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Bluetooth5.35.0
EthernetNo Ethernet port.11No Ethernet port.12
External displays (base)1161

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Camera1080p FaceTime HD camera720p FaceTime HD camera
SpeakersFour-speaker sound systemStereo speakers
MicrophonesThree-mic array with directional beamformingThree-mic array with directional beamforming

Platform

Platform: Apple MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) against Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M31MacBook Air M12
Shipped withNot available17macOS Big Sur18
Newest macOSmacOS 27 Golden Gate19macOS 27 Golden Gate19
Model identifierMac15,1220MacBookAir10,121
Model year20242020

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs · Default for MacBook Air M3 · Apple’s figure · read 14 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs · Default for MacBook Air M1 · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air with the powerful M3 chip · Apple’s figure · read 14 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  6. Apple UK Store (archived 16 December 2020) — MacBook Air, M1 with 8-core CPU and 7-core GPU, 256GB, £999.00 · Apple’s figure · read 3 Oct 2026

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  7. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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  8. Security updates: no end date published. Checked: endoflife.date. Read 22 Sep 2026

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  9. MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024): No USB-A ports. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs. Read 14 Sep 2026

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  10. MacBook Air (M1, 2020): No USB-A ports. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  11. MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  12. MacBook Air (M1, 2020): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No MagSafe port. No nano-texture display option. No fast charging. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  13. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory · Apple’s figure · read 18 Oct 2026

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  14. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  15. Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops · Apple’s figure · read 15 Oct 2026

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  16. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 11 Oct 2026

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  17. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air with the powerful M3 chip; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  18. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  19. Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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  20. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model · Apple’s figure · read 14 Sep 2026

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  21. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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Not published by Apple

MacBook Air M3. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user. Geekbench 7: the Mac chart has no entry for this Mac, so no figures are shown (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M3, 2024) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Air with the powerful M3 chip; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers, read 9 Oct 2026.

MacBook Air M1. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac, read 9 Oct 2026.

If you own one of them

Whether to move is a different question from which is better. Each Mac has a page on it: what its successor changes (the newest Mac in its line where Apple sells one, otherwise the Mac this site treats as its replacement, which can be in another line), what it fetches and whether it still gets updates. Should I upgrade my MacBook Air M3 (13-inch, 2024)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Air M1 (2020)?

The pairs a buyer of either Mac would also weigh. Any two Macs in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.