MacBook Air (13-inch, M5) vs MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025)
Quick look
| Figure | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £1,2993Apple UK store | £9994launch price |
| Chip | M5chip | M4chip |
| CPU | 10-coreCPU | 10-coreCPU |
| GPU | 8-coreGPU | 8-coreGPU |
| Memory | 16GBunified memory, base | 16GBunified memory, base |
| Storage | 512GBstorage, base | 256GBstorage, base |
| Battery life | Up to18 hrsvideo playback, claimed | Up to18 hrsvideo playback, claimed |
| Released | 11 March 20265ReleasedIn Apple Stores; pre-order from 4 March 2026. | 12 March 20254ReleasedIn Apple Stores; pre-order from 5 March 2025. |
| Security updates | Not available6Security updates | Not available6Security updates |
- Price
- The MacBook Air M5 is £1,299 on Apple’s UK store; the MacBook Air M4 is £999 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
True to scale
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
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Dimensions | 11.3 x 304.1 x 215 mm | 11.3 x 304.1 x 215 mm |
| Weight | 1.23 kg | 1.24 kg |
| Colours | Sky Blue, Silver, Starlight, Midnight | Sky Blue, Silver, Starlight, Midnight |
| Ports | Two Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, MagSafe 3 charging port, 3.5mm headphone jack | Two Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, MagSafe 3 charging port, 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Thunderbolt ports | 2 | 2 |
| Thunderbolt version | Thunderbolt 4 | Thunderbolt 4 |
| USB-A ports | No USB-A ports.7 | No USB-A ports.8 |
| HDMI | No HDMI port.9 | No HDMI port.10 |
| SD card slot | No SD card slot.9 | No SD card slot.10 |
| Headphone jack | Yes | Yes |
| MagSafe | Yes | Yes |
| Keyboard | Backlit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID | Backlit Magic Keyboard with Touch ID |
| Touch ID | Yes | Yes |
Display
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Display size | 13.6 in | 13.6 in |
| Resolution | 2560 x 1664 | 2560 x 1664 |
| Pixel density | 224 ppi | 224 ppi |
| Display type | Liquid Retina display | Liquid Retina display |
| Brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits |
| Wide colour (P3) | Yes | Yes |
| Nano-texture option | No nano-texture display option.9 | No nano-texture display option.10 |
Chip and memory
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Chip | Apple M5 chip | Apple M4 chip |
| Apple silicon | Yes | Yes |
| CPU cores | 10 | 10 |
| Super cores | 411 | Not available12 |
| Performance cores | Not available13 | 4 |
| Efficiency cores | 611 | 6 |
| GPU cores | 8 | 8 |
| Neural Engine cores | 16 | 16 |
| Chip options | M5 with 10-core CPU and 8-core GPU or 10-core GPU | M4 with 10-core CPU and 8-core GPU or 10-core GPU |
| Memory (base) | 16GB | 16GB |
| Memory (maximum) | 32GB | 32GB |
| Memory options | 16GB, 24GB or 32GB | 16GB, 24GB or 32GB |
| Memory upgradeable by user | No, as Apple documents14 | No, as Apple documents14 |
| Memory bandwidth | 153 GB/s | 120 GB/s |
| Storage (base) | 512GB | 256GB |
| Storage (maximum) | 4TB | 2TB |
| Storage options | 512GB, 1TB, 2TB or 4TB | 256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB |
| Media engine | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decode | Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decode |
Battery and power
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Battery capacity | 53.8 Wh | 53.8 Wh |
| Rated charge cycles | 1,000 cycles15 | 1,000 cycles15 |
| Video playback (claimed) | 18 h | 18 h |
| Wireless web (claimed) | 15 h | 15 h |
| Included power adapter | No power adapter in the box.9 | 30 W |
| Fast charging | Yes | Yes |
Connectivity
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi | Wi‑Fi 7 (802.11be) | Wi‑Fi 6E (802.11ax) |
| Bluetooth | 6 | 5.3 |
| Ethernet | No Ethernet port.9 | No Ethernet port.10 |
| External displays (base) | 2 | 2 |
Camera and audio
| Specification | MacBook Air M51 | MacBook Air M42 |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | 12MP Center Stage camera with support for Desk View | 12MP Center Stage camera with support for Desk View |
| Camera resolution | 12 MP | 12 MP |
| Speakers | Four-speaker sound system | Four-speaker sound system |
| Microphones | Three-mic array with directional beamforming | Three-mic array with directional beamforming |
Sources
Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025) - Tech Specs ·
↩Apple UK store — 13-inch MacBook Air M5, 10-core CPU, 8-core GPU — From £1,299 ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with the M4 chip and a sky blue colour ·
↩Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with M5 ·
↩Security updates: no end date published.
↩MacBook Air (13-inch, M5): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025): No USB-A ports.
↩MacBook Air (13-inch, M5): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. No power adapter in the box. No Ethernet port.
↩MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. No Ethernet port.
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M5) - Tech Specs ·
↩Doesn’t apply: this chip has no super cores
↩Apple names this chip’s cores differently: 4 super cores, 6 efficiency cores
↩Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro: how to remove or install memory ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers ·
↩Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model ·
↩Geekbench Browser (Primate Labs) ·
↩
Not published by Apple
MacBook Air M5. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user, the macOS it shipped with. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M5) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with M5; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers, read 9 Oct 2026.
MacBook Air M4. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user, the macOS it shipped with. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (13-inch, M4, 2025) - Tech Specs; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with the M4 chip and a sky blue colour; Apple Support (UK) — macOS 27 Golden Gate is compatible with these computers, 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 M5 (13-inch)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Air M4 (13-inch, 2025)?
Other comparisons
The pairs a buyer of either Mac would also weigh. Any two Macs in the catalogue can be compared from the chooser.