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MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) vs MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)

MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015)1MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)2

Quick look

Quick look: MacBook Pro against MacBook Air
FigureMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Price£9993launch price£7494launch price
ChipCore i52.7GHz dual-core IntelCore i51.4GHz dual-core Intel
CPU2-coreCPU2-coreCPU
Memory8GBmemory, base4GBmemory, base
Storage128GBstorage, base128GBstorage, base
Battery lifeUp to12 hrsvideo playback, claimedUp to9 hrsvideo playback, claimed
Released9 March 20155Released29 April 20144Released
Security updates16 September 20246Security updates ended2 February 20266Security updates ended
Price
The MacBook Pro is £999 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK); the MacBook Air is £749 at launch, per Apple Newsroom (UK).

True to scale

MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) · 314 × 219 mm footprintMacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014) · 300 × 192 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 Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Dimensions18 x 314 x 219 mm3–17 x 300 x 192 mm
Weight1.58 kg1.08 kg
PortsMagSafe 2 power port, two Thunderbolt 2 ports (up to 20 Gbps), two USB 3 ports (up to 5 Gbps), HDMI port, 3.5 mm headphone jack, SDXC card slotTwo USB 3 ports (up to 5 Gbps), Thunderbolt port (up to 10 Gbps), MagSafe 2 power port, headphone port
Thunderbolt ports721
Thunderbolt versionThunderbolt 2Thunderbolt
USB-A ports22
HDMIHDMI portNo HDMI port.8
SD card slotYesNo SD card slot.8
Headphone jackYesYes
MagSafeYesYes
KeyboardFull-size backlit keyboard with 78 (U.S.) or 79 (ISO) keys, including 12 function keys and 4 arrow keys (inverted T arrangement)Full-size backlit keyboard
Touch IDNo Touch ID.9No Touch ID.8

Display

Display: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Display size13.3 in11.6 in
Resolution2560 x 16001366 x 768
Pixel density227 ppiNot available10
Display typeRetina displayLED-backlit glossy widescreen display
Brightness300 nitsNot available10
Wide colour (P3)No wide colour (P3) display.11Not available10

Chip and memory

Chip and memory: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Chip2.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i51.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
Apple siliconIntel processor, not Apple silicon.11Intel processor, not Apple silicon.12
CPU cores22
GraphicsIntel Iris Graphics 6100Intel HD Graphics 5000
Chip options2.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz; 2.9GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz; configurable to 3.1GHz dual-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.4GHz1.4GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 or 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i7
Memory (base)8GB4GB
Memory (maximum)16GB8GB
Memory options8GB or 16GB4GB or 8GB
Memory upgradeable by userNo, as Apple documents13No, as Apple documents13
Storage (base)128GB128GB
Storage (maximum)1TB512GB
Storage options128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB128GB, 256GB or 512GB

Battery and power

Battery and power: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Battery capacity74.9 Wh38 Wh
Rated charge cycles1,000 cycles141,000 cycles14
Video playback (claimed)12 h9 h
Wireless web (claimed)10 h9 h
Included power adapter60 W45 W
Fast chargingNo fast charging.9No fast charging.8

Connectivity

Connectivity: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Wi-Fi802.11ac Wi-Fi wireless networking; IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n compatible802.11ac Wi-Fi
Bluetooth4.04.0
EthernetNo Ethernet port.9No Ethernet port.8
External displays (base)21

Camera and audio

Camera and audio: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Camera720p FaceTime HD camera720p FaceTime HD camera
SpeakersStereo speakersStereo speakers
MicrophonesDual microphonesDual microphones

Platform

Platform: Apple MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) against Apple MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)
SpecificationMacBook Pro1MacBook Air2
Shipped withOS X Yosemite15Not available10
Newest macOSmacOS Monterey16macOS Big Sur17
Model identifierMacBookPro12,116MacBookAir6,117
Model year20152014

Sources

  1. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) - Technical Specifications · Default for MacBook Pro · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  2. Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications · Default for MacBook Air · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  3. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display & MacBook Air · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  4. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates MacBook Air · Apple’s figure · read 15 Sep 2026

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  5. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display & MacBook Air · Apple’s figure · read 22 Sep 2026

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  6. endoflife.date — Apple macOS · third-party figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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  7. Different Thunderbolt generations. MacBook Pro: Thunderbolt 2. MacBook Air: Thunderbolt.

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  8. MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014): No HDMI port. No SD card slot. No Touch ID. No fast charging. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  9. MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015): No Touch ID. No fast charging. No Ethernet port. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) - Technical Specifications. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  10. Not published by Apple. Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates MacBook Air. Read 9 Oct 2026

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  11. MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015): No wide colour (P3) display. Intel processor, not Apple silicon. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) - Technical Specifications. Read 15 Sep 2026

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  12. MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014): Intel processor, not Apple silicon. Checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications. Read 15 Sep 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. Apple Support (UK) — Determine battery cycle count for Mac laptops · Apple’s figure · read 15 Oct 2026

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  15. Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display & MacBook Air · Apple’s figure · read 2 Oct 2026

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

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

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Not published by Apple

MacBook Pro. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: colours, refresh rate, nano-texture option, GPU cores, storage upgradeable by user. Geekbench 7 Metal: the Mac chart has no Metal score for this Mac (chart read 10 Oct 2026). Pages checked: Apple Support (UK) — MacBook Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015) - Technical Specifications; Identify your MacBook Pro model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display & MacBook Air, read 9 Oct 2026.

MacBook Air. Apple doesn’t publish for this Mac: colours, refresh rate, nano-texture option, GPU cores, 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 (11-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications; Apple Support (UK) — Identify your MacBook Air model; Apple Newsroom (UK) — Apple Updates MacBook Air, 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 Pro (Retina, 13-inch, Early 2015)? · Should I upgrade my MacBook Air (11-inch, Early 2014)?

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