The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for general use.
PerfectRec’s General Use Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for general productivity, web browsing, streaming, video calls, and running a wide variety of apps and programs.
Gaming and AI
6.3/10
6.4/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.1/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
10.0/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
10.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both only fair for gaming and AI.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
7.4/10
7.5/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
3.9/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
4.1/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for engineering and design.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Content Creation
7.8/10
7.9/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Apple MacBook Air (2022) and Apple MacBook Air (2020) are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
7.8/10
8.0/10
6.0/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
6.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
2560 x 1600
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1664
9.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
10.0/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to be very good for software development, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) is good.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Battery
15.0 Hours
15.0 Hours
The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life. The Apple MacBook Air has 15 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Very Good
Excellent
13.3in
SIZE
13.6in
2.8 lbs
WEIGHT
2.7 lbs
0.6in
THICKNESS
0.4in
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Apple MacBook Air (2022) to have excellent portability, while the Apple MacBook Air (2020) has very good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
10.0/10
10.0/10
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) and Apple MacBook Air (2022) both have best in class build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$829
$839
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
The Apple MacBook Air (2020) has a price of $829 and the Apple MacBook Air (2022) costs $839.
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How the Apple MacBook Air (2020) and the Apple MacBook Air (2022) compare to other laptops
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
"The Apple MacBook Air M2 Entry is a very good, but too expensive daily MacBook. The new MacBook Air M2 is undoubtedly once again a very good mobile companion, but we are still a little bit disappointed on a very high level, which is definitely connected with the increased price point. The new chassis is extremely slim and the front edge is no problem during typing, but the bezels are pretty wide for a modern device and in addition with the vertical space required for the notch, the new Air has larger footprint than some Windows rivals."
Get a great deal on the Apple MacBook Air (2020) or the Apple MacBook Air (2022)
About Apple
Apple, an American technology company, is one of the world’s largest company in terms of market capitalization. Their MacBook laptops feature a slim, minimalistic design, class-leading battery life, and premium display and speaker quality. In 2020 Apple switched from using Intel processors to their own silicon chips which have excellent performance and efficiency. The macOS operating system is the second most widely used OS, after Windows.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
By the numbers
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Laptops evaluated
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13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
125,295
Recommendations made
27,148
Consumer hours saved
About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.