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MacBook Air (M1, 2020) vs iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)

MacBook Air (M1, 2020)1iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)2

Quick look

Quick look: MacBook Air M1 against iMac
FigureMacBook Air M11iMac2
Price£9993launch price£1,7994launch price
ChipM1chipCore i53.1GHz 6-core 10th-generation Intel
CPU8-coreCPU6-coreCPU
GPU7-coreGPUNot available5GPU
Memory8GBunified memory, base8GBmemory, base
Storage256GB6storage, base256GBstorage, base
Battery lifeUp to18 hrsvideo playback, claimed Not available7No battery
Released10 November 20208Available online; Apple gave no in-store day4 August 20209Available online; Apple gave no in-store day
Security updatesNot available10Security updatesNot available10Security updates
Price
The MacBook Air M1 is £999 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the iMac is £1,799 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).
Kind of Mac
The MacBook Air M1 is a laptop; the iMac is an all-in-one. The MacBook Air M1 has a battery, whereas the iMac has none.

True to scale

MacBook Air (M1, 2020) · 304.1 × 212.4 mm footprintiMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) · 650 × 516 mm front

A laptop and an all-in-one 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 (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Dimensions4.1–16.1 x 304.1 x 212.4 mm516 x 650 x 203 mm
Weight1.29 kg8.92 kg
ColoursGold, Silver, Space GreyNot available5
PortsTwo Thunderbolt / USB 4 ports, 3.5mm headphone jackTwo Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports, four USB-A ports, SDXC card slot (UHS-II), Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45), 3.5 mm headphone jack
Thunderbolt ports22
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 3Thunderbolt 3
USB-A portsNo USB-A ports.114
HDMINo HDMI port.12No HDMI port.13
SD card slotNo SD card slot.12Yes
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeNo MagSafe port.12Not available14
KeyboardBacklit Magic Keyboard with Touch IDMagic Keyboard
Touch IDYesNo Touch ID.13

Display

Display: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Display size13.3 in27 in
Resolution2560 x 16005120 x 2880
Pixel density227 ppiNot available5
Display typeRetina display5K Retina display
Brightness400 nits500 nits
Wide colour (P3)YesYes
Nano-texture optionNo nano-texture display option.12Yes

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
ChipApple M1 chip3.1GHz 6-core 10th-generation Intel Core i5
Apple siliconYesIntel processor, not Apple silicon.15
CPU cores86
Performance cores4Not available16
Efficiency cores4Not available16
GPU cores7Not available5
Graphics7-core GPU, 8-core GPU17AMD Radeon Pro 5300 with 4GB of GDDR6 memory
Neural Engine cores16Not available18
Chip optionsM1 with 8-core CPU and 7-core GPU or 8-core GPU3.1GHz 6-core Intel Core i5, 3.3GHz 6-core Intel Core i5, 3.8GHz 8-core Intel Core i7, or 3.6GHz 10-core Intel Core i9
Memory (base)8GB8GB
Memory (maximum)16GB128GB
Memory options8GB or 16GB8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB or 128GB
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents19Yes, as Apple documents20
Storage (base)256GB6256GB
Storage (maximum)2TB8TB
Storage options128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB or 2TB256GB, 512GB, 1TB, 2TB, 4TB or 8TB SSD

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Battery capacity49.9 WhNot available7
Rated charge cycles1,000 cycles21Not available7
Video playback (claimed)18 hNot available7
Wireless web (claimed)15 hNot available7
Included power adapter30 WNot available22
Fast chargingNo fast charging.12Not available7

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Wi-FiWi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax)802.11ac Wi-Fi
Bluetooth5.05.0
EthernetNo Ethernet port.1210/100/1000BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45); configurable to 10Gb Ethernet
External displays (base)12

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Camera720p FaceTime HD camera1080p FaceTime HD camera
SpeakersStereo speakersStereo speakers
MicrophonesThree-mic array with directional beamformingStudio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming

Platform

Platform: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Shipped withmacOS Big Sur23Not available5
Newest macOSmacOS 27 Golden Gate24macOS Tahoe 2625
Model identifierMacBookAir10,126iMac20,1 or iMac20,227
Model year20202020

Benchmarks

Benchmarks: Apple MacBook Air (M1, 2020) against Apple iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)
SpecificationMacBook Air M11iMac2
Geekbench 7 (CPU, single-core)2,164281,45528
Geekbench 7 (CPU, multi-core)8,224286,31928

Sources

  1. 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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  2. Apple Support (UK) — iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - Technical Specifications · Default for iMac · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — 27-inch iMac gets a major update · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — 27-inch iMac gets a major update. Read 9 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. Doesn’t apply: no battery

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

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  9. Apple Newsroom (UK) — 27-inch iMac gets a major update · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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

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  11. 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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  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. iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020): No HDMI port. No Touch ID. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - Technical Specifications. Read 9 Oct 2026

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

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  15. iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020): Intel processor, not Apple silicon. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - Technical Specifications. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  16. Doesn’t apply: this is an Intel processor, and Apple lists a total core count only

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  17. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (M1, 2020) - Tech Specs · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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  18. Doesn’t apply: Apple silicon feature; this Mac has an Intel processor

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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. Apple Support (UK) — Install memory in an iMac · Apple’s figure · read 18 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. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Introducing the next generation of Mac · Apple’s figure · read 9 Oct 2026

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

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

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

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  27. Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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

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Not published by Apple

MacBook Air M1. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, memory bandwidth, storage upgradeable by user, media engine. 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.

iMac. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: refresh rate, storage upgradeable by user, maximum continuous power. Geekbench 7 Metal: the Mac chart has no Metal score for this Mac (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your iMac model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — 27-inch iMac gets a major update, 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 M1 (2020)? · Should I upgrade my iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2020)?

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