Apple MacBook Air M5

Despite the compelling options presented by both the MacBook Neo and an assortment of different Windows laptops, the M5 MacBook Air is still the laptop most people should buy. It's well rounded, surprisingly powerful, high-end, and will last you many, many years to come.

Apple's 2026 MacBook Air is largely unchanged on the outside, but its exceptional build pairs up with an even faster M5 chip and a major storage upgrade to secure its spot as a top-value ultraportable.

The new MacBook Air takes everything good about the MacBook Air and adds the faster M5 chip. Yet by boosting its performance even further, and adjusting its price accordingly, the Air is now too powerful for its own good.

The 2026 MacBook Air with M5 processor is the best MacBook Air yet. But it’s also a small annual upgrade, and now the much cheaper MacBook Neo exists.

This year’s MacBook Air is faster but otherwise unchanged, but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the best laptops you can buy.

Apple's 13-inch MacBook Air (M5) is the best mix of winning design, near-pro-level performance, and battery life you can find in an ultraportable. It's an exquisite, lightweight yet durable laptop that fits perfectly into your work, play, home life, and the Apple ecosystem.

The new Apple M5 SoC is very powerful and also very efficient - a perfect match for the passive cooling system of the MacBook Air 15. There is just nothing comparable in the Windows world, neither with x86 chips, nor with ARM CPUs from Qualcomm. The performance is nothing short of spectacular and the M5 is also very efficient while gaming, where we did not experience any throttling.

The MacBook Air M5 delivers the goods thanks to its strong M5-driven performance, better connectivity options, all while retaining the same slim design, bright and colorful display, and long-lasting battery life. While it isn’t a revolutionary update and costs $100 more, it’s a stellar notebook for most people.