The best MacBook for students: portable power at tempting prices

2 MacBooks on a blue background
(Image credit: Apple/Future)

Looking for the best MacBook for students? Our team tests every MacBook that's released, standing us in good stead to make some recommendations. For students, we reckon you want a machine with at least 16GB of RAM (8GB will do, but isn't ideal for creative work), running macOS Ventura. As such, all our picks are from later than 2017.

Why you can trust Creative Bloq

✅ Expert focus on tools for creative pros and students
✅ Hands-on reviews using real workflows as well as benchmark tests
✅ Input from working designers and student users
✅ We tested 100 laptops over 10,000 hours in the last two years

Beren Neale headshot
Beren Neale

Beren has well over a decade of experience writing about creative tech, having previously worked for the digital art magazine ImagineFX, the fine art magazine Paint & Draw and Canon Pro Europe. As Creative Bloq's Ecom Editor, he's racked up hours testing and reviewing everything from laptops and monitors to office chairs. He also oversees the curation of our buying guides, taking feedback on the products we've tested from contributing creatives.

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Test results

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

Excellent value.

★★★★★

Design

Feather-light and razor-thin.

★★★★★

Performance

Almost at Pro-level.

★★★★½

Battery life

No complaints.

★★★★★

Our expert says...
Ian Evenden profile shot
Our expert says...
Ian Evenden

"Of course it’s great. The combination of Apple’s thin and light laptop and the M4 processor leads to a machine that’s only just behind the low-end MacBook Pro, and which has had a price-drop too."

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Test results

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

New, so still fairly pricey, though offers a lot for it.

★★★★½

Design

Slim and sleek, with plenty of ports.

★★★★★

Performance

Did brilliantly in our tests, but throttles if too hot.

★★★★½

Battery life

Exceptional. It just goes and goes.

★★★★★

Our expert says...
Ian Evenden profile shot
Our expert says...
Ian Evenden

With prices having dropped following the release of the M4, the M3 Air is an extremely good way to get excellent portability, battery life, and processing capabilities all in one good-value package.

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Test results

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

It's not cheap, but it justifies its cost.

★★★★½

Design

A brilliant display and a sleek design.

★★★★★

Performance

Can handle most creative workflows.

★★★★½

Battery life

Goes all day and then some.

★★★★★

Our expert says
Rob Redman author bio
Our expert says
Rob Redman

The Macbook Pro M4 is powerful, fitting the bill for a wide range of creative needsfrom modelling to animating and rendering, as well as daily computing tasks. It's portable, offering excellent battery life, and could stand to replace your desktop.

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Test results

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

You pay for what you get, and you get a lot.

★★★★½

Design

A gorgeous display and lots of ports.

★★★★★

Performance

Brilliant benchmark and real-world results.

★★★★★

Battery life

It'll do a heavy working day.

★★★★½

Our expert says...
Ian Evenden profile shot
Our expert says...
Ian Evenden

The 2024 MacBook Pro M4 Pro is a powerful laptop for any use case, from modelling to animating and rendering, as well as daily computing tasks. The portability and excellent battery life make it suitable for 3D art students.

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Test results

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Price

Impressively cheap, considering what you get.

★★★★½

Performance

Handled all the tasks we threw at it with aplomb.

★★★★★

Design

Small and tidy, with plenty of ports too.

★★★★½

Row 3 - Cell 0 Row 3 - Cell 1 Row 3 - Cell 2
Our expert says...
Erlingur Einarsson headshot
Our expert says...
Erlingur Einarsson

It's tiny, but packs enough power for any creative task outside 3D processing or heavy video renders, and unlike many Apple products, it offers great value for your money.

Beren Neale
Ecom Editor

Beren has worked on creative titles at Future Publishing for over 13 years. Cutting his teeth as Staff Writer on the digital art magazine ImagineFX, he moved on to edit several creative titles, and is currently the Ecommerce Editor on the most effective creative website in the world. When he's not testing and reviewing the best ergonomic office chairs, phones, laptops, TVs, monitors and various types of storage, he can be found finding and comparing the best deals on the tech that creatives value the most.