Investing in one of the best MacBooks for photo editing could be a great way to upgrade your workflow – especially if you're a photographer that needs a slim, yet powerful laptop. MacBooks are well-known for their photo editing capabilities, featuring powerful components that make image post-production a breeze.
The latest M3 MacBooks are a real force to be reckoned with: they can be specced with a whopping 128GB RAM, up to eight terabytes of storage space, and their ultra-bright Liquid Retina XDR displays are truly stunning.
MacBooks tend to be fairly lightweight and slim, which makes them a great option for photographers who need to edit their images on the go. Plus, the macOS operating system is perfect for running both the best photo editing software and the best video editing software.
We've also found that the best MacBooks for photo editing tend to offer great battery life, which means that you can spend an entire day editing images without having to stop to find a power supply. One of a MacBook's best features is how supremely portable it is, but if you're more interested in raw power, then why not take a look at our guide to the best iMacs for photo and video editing?
In the meantime, we've broken down exactly what you should be looking for in your brand-new laptop at the bottom of this article. But first, take a look at our picks for the best MacBooks for photo editing below. We should add that every MacBook here will be able to run macOS Sequoia and its Apple Intelligence technology, which boosts image editing, photo search and more.
Ben Andrews
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. But he is also our in-house computing guru – and is the person who has used and benchmarked hundreds of different laptops over the years we have featured on the website..
This might be the most affordable Apple Silicon MacBook you’ll find, but neither its design nor its performance will disappoint. Read more below…
Best MacBooks for photo editing in 2024
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Best MacBook overall
(Image credit: Apple)
1. MacBook Pro 14 (M3 Pro, 2023)
Simply the best MacBook for photo and video editing
Specifications
CPU: 11-core M3 Pro, up to 12-core
Graphics: 14-core M3 Pro, up to 18-core
RAM: 18GB, up to 36GB
Screen: 14-inch Liquid Retina XDR
Storage: 512GB SSD, up to 4TB
Reasons to buy
+
M3 Pro is unbelievably fast
+
Speakers are excellent
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One of the best laptop screens around for color work
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SD card slot!
Reasons to avoid
-
Notch feels unnecessary
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Boxy shape feels big
As Apple’s in-house processor manufacturing continues to evolve, its laptops exhibit ever-better performance. The base MacBook Pro 14-inch with M3 processor delivers satisfying speed, no question – but for our money, the sweet spot of price and performance for busy photographers and videographers is this edition. with the faster M3 Pro chip.
It isn’t just a question of improved raw performance: the M3 Pro enables the MacBook Pro to support two external 4K monitors, compared with the base model’s single external monitor. Apple recommends the M3 Pro for tasks such as working with gigapixel panoramas or video editing with multiple 8K streams, just to give you a sense of its potential.
You get a reasonable but not overwhelming selection of connections, including a single HDMI port (you’d need an adaptor for that second monitor) and an SD Card slot, plus a respectable 18GB of memory and a built-in display of exceptional quality, with a high dynamic range to really show off photography. Wireless specs are exemplary, with support for the latest Wi-Fi and Bluetooth standards.
Screen: 15.3-inch Liquid Retina display with True Tone
Storage: 256GB SSD, up to 2TB
Reasons to buy
+
Base M3 chip is all most people will need
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Light stylish design
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Gorgeous screen
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Fanless design
Reasons to avoid
-
All that extra space and still only two ports
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No SD card slot
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Midnight color is fingerprint magnet
The MacBook Air 15 is probably the best laptop Apple makes to suit everyday tasks. It’s a safe bet for any photographer, videographer or creative who wants a larger screen and a processor capable of running the latest editing software with ease – all in a laptop so light you can add it to your backpack and credibly not notice much difference.
The MacBook Air features quality components, with a standout display that provides dazzling color. If you expect to mostly do light editing, the 8GB of RAM in the base model is probably sufficient, but more active photographers will appreciate the turn of speed upgrading to 16GB provides. You’ll certainly want to upgrade the miserly 256GB storage, or live with relying on external storage. The other main limitation is the lack of connection ports, with only two USB-C ports provided. You’ll need adaptors for SC Cards or connecting to most external monitors.
Screen: 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display with True Tone
Storage: 256GB SSD, up to 2TB
Reasons to buy
+
Stylish and sturdy design
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Fast processing speeds for photographers
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Utterly silent and cool
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MagSafe & 3.5mm headphone jack standard
Reasons to avoid
-
Midnight black color loves fingerprints
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No SD card slot
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Costly to spec up
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Not user-upgradable in the future
This laptop is compact, light and very thin, making it supremely portable. Apple’s most popular MacBook is updated regularly with new processors, so there are a lot of broadly similar options out there. Apple itself continues to offer the M2 MacBook Air alongside this M3 iteration – but, apart from the processor, there isn’t a great deal of difference between the two.
The base M3 chip packs an 8‑core CPU and 8‑core GPU, which can be upgraded to a 10-core GPU for an additional cost. The performance is surprisingly potent for such a lightweight machine, and it’s particularly impressive that this fanless design manages to stay fairly cool while you edit.
The 8GB RAM and 256GB of solid-state storage offered as standard is fine for anyone using a laptop mainly for writing, browsing and YouTube, but busy photographers will benefit from upgrading to 16GB of RAM and at least 512GB of storage. You only get two USB-C ports – no SD Card, no HDMI – but wireless connectivity is first-rate.
The base MacBook Pro M3 model loses out to the MacBook Air for sheer featherweight portability, but it’s still a highly convenient design. Where it scores over the Air is in sought-after features like the SD Card slot and HDMI port, meaning you don’t have to carry adaptors with you all the time.
Speed-wise, the entry-level MacBook Pro is a beast, and while I've noticed that the M3 chip boasts gradual improvements over the M2, it isn't substantial enough to upgrade. However, Intel MacBook users should get excited – the M3 MacBook Pro presents a huge leap from older Intel-based MacBook Pro models.
My only major concern about this revamped MacBook Pro's position within the lineup. With 8GB of RAM, it might fall short for power users, nudging them toward the MacBook Pro with the M3 Pro chip for only slightly more money (Apple's plan all along?). Meanwhile, the MacBook Air could be a more attractive and budget-friendly option for users with lighter processing demands. This positioning dilemma leaves me wondering if this iteration adequately serves anyone perfectly.
But if you are after the cheapest way to get into the MacBook Pro family, or you are just excited by the M3 chip then don't get me wrong, despite my moaning – you won't be disappointed.
Chunkier shape feels bigger than previous Intel 16-inch design
This isn’t just Apple’s fastest laptop, but a serious contender for the fastest laptop, period. It contains the M3 Max, the pinnacle of Apple’s in-house processor series for personal computing. Apple’s suggestions for the type of work you’d do on this laptop include post-production on 8K video or rendering complex 3D; it’s basically a workstation in a laptop. It’s also capable of running up to four external 4K monitors.
Choosing the M3 Max also unlocks the most expansive memory and storage configurations Apple offers (at its notoriously high upgrade prices). You can pack in up to 128GB of memory and 8TB of solid-state storage, enabling you to work in multiple apps at once without slowdown while processing huge amounts of raw content.
Processor aside, the MacBook Pro 16 is a fantastic laptop with a lot going for it, from the beautiful color-accurate screen, booming speakers, sharp webcams, and excellent keyboard and trackpad. But you need to be very sure your creative work needs the pro-grade performance on offer here before you make the investment.
The MacBook Air M1 isn’t part of the official Apple range any longer, but it’s still available at retailers, and is well worth considering if you're on a tighter budget. The MacBook Air range is ideal for lighter use, which means owning the latest processor isn”t critical, and the M1 in this machine is more than up to the job for everyday tasks, including image-editing. That’s makes this option terrific value for money.
In other respects, this laptop echoes the pros and cons that the MacBook Air continues to offer today, a sign that Apple has given much thought to who is likely to buy this type of laptop and what they most value. The display is superb, even by today’s standards, with strong contrast and a wide color range. Photos look great. The keyboard is a pleasure to use, and the trackpad is generously sized.
Connectivity is weighted towards wireless networking, with only two USB-C ports and a headphone socket to handle physical connections – and the power charger uses one of those USB-C ports. 8GB of RAM is tolerable for the sort of lighter work you’ll complete on the MacBook Air, but do upgrade from 256GB of storage if you’re offered the option.
When you're looking for the best MacBook for photo editing, there isn't necessarily a one-size-fits-all solution. Aspects such as power, portability, affordability and more can all weigh on a user's decision. However, these are the key things you should be considering in your search.
What processor should I choose?
Older MacBooks used to use Intel processors, but these days Apple's own M-series system-on-chip processors rule the roost. The latest M3, M3 Pro and M3 Max offerings are incredibly fast while also being incredibly power-efficient. The preceding M2 and M1 chips were also highly regarded when released though, so don't rule out an M1- or M2-based MacBook if the price is right.
How much RAM (memory) do I need?
The amount of RAM you decide to invest in is hugely important. We would recommend a minimum of 16GB, as this will help your MacBook load applications more quickly (and keep more open at the same time). You might initially think that 16GB of RAM is overkill for your needs, but it's important to remember that you can't upgrade a MacBook's RAM further down the line – so plan ahead for the future!
How much storage should I spec?
Storage space is definitely something important to consider. Unfortunately, while you can replace the hard drive of most Windows laptops, it's impossible to do this with a MacBook. While you can certainly add the best portable hard drive or best portable SSD to the mix, we'd recommend starting off with a minimum of 500GB of internal storage to give you plenty of space to play with.
What screen size is best?
Don't forget to consider the screen that you want. The larger screen you have, the easier it will be to see and inspect the photo you're working on (although, keep in mind that the larger a laptop is, the harder it will be to lug around). For the last few years MacBooks have featured high resolution 'Retina' displays, which are fantastic for seeing your images in all of their stunning detail.
When reviewing a laptop, we assess its internal hardware features, build quality, ergonomics, performance in a variety of usage scenarios, value for money, and its overall suitability for its target buyer. Although we'll evaluate a laptop with a typical user in mind, we will also pay particular attention to the perspective of photo and video enthusiasts, with special focus given to screen quality and color space coverage. Where possible, a monitor calibrator will be used to measure a laptop's display performance to assess whether it matches a manufacturer's claims, and software benchmarks like GeekBench are used to measure a laptop's processor and graphics card capabilities.
Ben is the Imaging Labs manager, responsible for all the testing on Digital Camera World and across the entire photography portfolio at Future. Whether he's in the lab testing the sharpness of new lenses, the resolution of the latest image sensors, the zoom range of monster bridge cameras or even the latest camera phones, Ben is our go-to guy for technical insight. He's also the team's man-at-arms when it comes to camera bags, filters, memory cards, and all manner of camera accessories – his lab is a bit like the Batcave of photography! With years of experience trialling and testing kit, he's a human encyclopedia of benchmarks when it comes to recommending the best buys.
