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Tech · Apple · 2022

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022)

The redesigned Air with MagSafe, a better camera, and a bigger screen. Check the base SSD speed.

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Overall

8.6

out of 10

Axis scores

Strongest on Design (9.0), weakest on Value (8.2), a 0.8-point spread. The 8.6 overall is the plain average of all 5 Tech axes, with no weighting.

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — axis scores out of 10Horizontal bar chart of editorial scores out of 10 across 5 axes. Bars run from a shared zero baseline; longer is better. Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022): Performance 8.4, Value 8.2, Durability 8.6, Ease of use 8.8, Design 9.0.PerformanceApple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — Performance 8.4 out of 108.4ValueApple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — Value 8.2 out of 108.2DurabilityApple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — Durability 8.6 out of 108.6Ease of useApple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — Ease of use 8.8 out of 108.8DesignApple MacBook Air 13-inch (M2, 2022) — Design 9.0 out of 109.0Editorial score out of 10 — higher is better
  • Performance — How well it does the core job
  • Value — What the same money buys elsewhere
  • Durability — Failure and fade reports past the one-year mark
  • Ease of use — Setup, daily operation, cleaning, maintenance
  • Design — Build quality and how it sits in a room

Specs

Display
13.6-inch Liquid Retina (LCD)
Chip
Apple M2 (8-core CPU)
Memory
8GB, 16GB, or 24GB
Ports
2x Thunderbolt / USB 4, MagSafe 3, headphone jack
Camera
1080p FaceTime HD
Battery
Up to 18 hrs movie playback
Weight
2.7 lb

As published by the manufacturer. We didn't measure these ourselves.

Is it for you

Buy it if

  • You want the current Air design without paying for the M3
  • Video calls are frequent; the 1080p camera is a visible step up from the M1's
  • A cord someone trips over pops off MagSafe instead of dragging the laptop down

Skip it if

  • The listing is the 256GB base model and you move large files; its SSD is slower
  • You need two external displays; this supports one

The M2 Air is the flat, wedge-free redesign that the M3 kept. It gave the line MagSafe, a 1080p camera, a headphone jack that supports high-impedance headphones, and a slightly bigger screen with a notch. For most people it’s the same experience as the M3 for less money.

The base 256GB model uses a single storage chip, where the M1 Air used two. Reviewers who ran disk benchmarks found reads and writes noticeably slower on the base M2 than on the 512GB version or the M1 Air. Day to day it rarely shows. It does when the 8GB model runs short of memory and leans on the SSD for swap, which is the combination to avoid.

Midnight is the color to inspect closely. Owners report it shows fingerprints and edge scuffs more than the silver or starlight finishes, so photos under good light matter on a Midnight listing.

Last updated . The scoring method is on how we rank.