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MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) vs Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)

MacBook Air (15-inch, M5)1Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)2

Quick look

Quick look: MacBook Air M5 against Mac Studio M4 Max
FigureMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Price£1,4993Apple UK store£2,0994launch price
ChipM5chipM4 Maxchip
CPU10-coreCPU14-coreCPU
GPU10-coreGPU32-coreGPU
Memory16GBunified memory, base36GBunified memory, base
Storage512GBstorage, base512GBstorage, base
Battery lifeUp to18 hrsvideo playback, claimed Not available5No battery
Released11 March 20266ReleasedIn Apple Stores; pre-order from 4 March 2026.12 March 20254ReleasedIn Apple Stores; pre-order from 5 March 2025.
Security updatesNot available7Security updatesNot available7Security updates
Price
The MacBook Air M5 is £1,499 on Apple’s UK store; the Mac Studio M4 Max is £2,099 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
Kind of Mac
The MacBook Air M5 is a laptop; the Mac Studio M4 Max is a desktop. The MacBook Air M5 has a built-in 15.3-inch display, a camera and a battery, whereas the Mac Studio M4 Max has none of them.

True to scale

MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) · 340.4 × 237.6 mm footprintMac Studio (M4 Max, 2025) · 197 × 95 mm front

A laptop and a desktop are different shapes, so they stand side by side rather than superposed: the footprint of one and the front face of the other, from Apple’s published dimensions, at one scale. 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 (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Dimensions11.5 x 340.4 x 237.6 mm95 x 197 x 197 mm
Weight1.51 kg2.74 kg
ColoursSky Blue, Silver, Starlight, MidnightSilver
PortsTwo Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C) ports, MagSafe 3 charging port, 3.5mm headphone jackFour Thunderbolt 5 (USB-C) ports, two USB 3 (USB-A) ports (up to 5Gb/s), HDMI 2.1 port, 10Gb Ethernet, 3.5mm headphone jack; on front (M4 Max): two USB-C ports (up to 10Gb/s), SDXC card slot (UHS-II)
Thunderbolt ports824
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 4Thunderbolt 5
USB-A portsNo USB-A ports.92
HDMINo HDMI port.10HDMI 2.1 port
SD card slotNo SD card slot.10Yes
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeYesNot available11
KeyboardBacklit Magic Keyboard with Touch IDNot available12
Touch IDYesNot available13

Display

Display: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Display size15.3 inNot available14
Resolution2880 x 1864Not available14
Pixel density224 ppiNot available14
Display typeLiquid Retina displayNot available14
Brightness500 nitsNot available14
Wide colour (P3)YesNot available14
Nano-texture optionNo nano-texture display option.10Not available14

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
ChipApple M5 chipApple M4 Max chip
Apple siliconYesYes
CPU cores1014
Super cores415Not available16
Performance coresNot available1710
Efficiency cores6154
GPU cores1032
Neural Engine cores1616
Chip optionsM5 with 10-core CPU and 10-core GPUM4 Max with 14-core CPU and 32-core GPU, or M4 Max with 16-core CPU and 40-core GPU18
Memory (base)16GB36GB
Memory (maximum)32GB128GB18
Memory options16GB, 24GB or 32GB36GB; 48GB, 64GB or 128GB (16-core CPU and 40-core GPU)18
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents19Not available20
Memory bandwidth153 GB/s410 GB/s
Storage (base)512GB512GB
Storage (maximum)4TB8TB18
Storage options512GB, 1TB, 2TB or 4TB512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB18
Media engineHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginevideo encode engineProRes encode and decode engineAV1 decodeHardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAWvideo decode enginetwo video encode enginestwo ProRes encode and decode enginesAV1 decode

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Battery capacity66.5 WhNot available5
Rated charge cycles1,000 cycles21Not available5
Video playback (claimed)18 hNot available5
Wireless web (claimed)15 hNot available5
Included power adapterNo power adapter in the box.10Not available22
Fast chargingYesNot available5
Maximum continuous powerNot available23480 W

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Wi-FiWi‑Fi 7 (802.11be)Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax)
Bluetooth65.3
EthernetNo Ethernet port.1010Gb Ethernet (Nbase-T Ethernet with support for 1Gb, 2.5Gb, 5Gb and 10Gb Ethernet using RJ-45 connector)
External displays (base)25

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Camera12MP Center Stage camera with support for Desk ViewNot available24
Camera resolution12 MPNot available24
SpeakersSix-speaker sound system with force-cancelling woofersBuilt-in speaker25
MicrophonesThree-mic array with directional beamformingNot available20

Platform

Platform: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Newest macOSmacOS 27 Golden Gate26macOS 27 Golden Gate26
Model identifierMac17,427Mac16,928
Model year20262025

Benchmarks

Benchmarks: Apple MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) against Apple Mac Studio (M4 Max, 2025)
SpecificationMacBook Air M51Mac Studio M4 Max2
Geekbench 7 (CPU, single-core)3,585293,50029
Geekbench 7 (CPU, multi-core)17,1692925,90929
Geekbench 7 (Metal)71,20729169,42429

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) - Tech Specs · Default for MacBook Air M5 · Apple’s figure · read 14 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2025) - Tech Specs · Default for Mac Studio M4 Max · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple UK store — 15-inch MacBook Air M5, 10-core CPU, 10-core GPU — From £1,499 · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio, the most powerful Mac ever · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Doesn’t apply: no battery

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  6. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with M5 · Apple’s figure · read 14 Sep 2026

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

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  8. Different Thunderbolt generations. MacBook Air M5: Thunderbolt 4. Mac Studio M4 Max: Thunderbolt 5.

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  9. MacBook Air (15-inch, M5): No USB-A ports. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) - Tech Specs. Read 14 Sep 2026

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  10. MacBook Air (15-inch, M5): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No nano-texture display option. No power adapter in the box. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) - Tech Specs. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  11. Doesn’t apply: MagSafe is a notebook charging port

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  12. Doesn’t apply: no built-in keyboard

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  13. Doesn’t apply: no built-in keyboard, and Touch ID is a keyboard feature

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  14. Doesn’t apply: no built-in display

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  15. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (15-inch, M5) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  16. Doesn’t apply: this chip has no super cores

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  17. Apple names this chip’s cores differently: 4 super cores, 6 efficiency cores

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  18. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2025) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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

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  20. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2025) - Tech Specs; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio, the most powerful Mac ever; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model. Read 9 Oct 2026

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

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  22. Doesn’t apply: internal power supply, no power adapter in the box

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  23. Doesn’t apply: a notebook lists its power adapter, not a maximum continuous power

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  24. Doesn’t apply: no built-in camera

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  25. Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2025) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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

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

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  28. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  29. Geekbench Browser (Primate Labs) · third-party figure · read 11 Oct 2026

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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 (15-inch, M5) - 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) — Apple introduces the new MacBook Air with M5, read 9 Oct 2026.

Mac Studio M4 Max. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: storage upgradeable by user, the macOS it shipped with. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — Mac Studio (2025) - Tech Specs; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple unveils new Mac Studio, the most powerful Mac ever; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your Mac Studio model, 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 (15-inch)? · Should I upgrade my Mac Studio M4 Max (2025)?

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