3 Best MacBooks for Graphic Design in 2024
From this article, you will know what are the best MacBooks for graphic design activities you can buy and use in 2024 according to us.
MacBook is an excellent laptop choice if we want to do graphic design. Its high-quality work performance, display, and user-friendliness make it a preferred choice for many graphic designers. As such, when we want to buy a laptop for graphic design, we might choose to buy a MacBook over a Windows laptop.
However, there are some MacBook models out there and you might be confused about which model is the best one to buy for your graphic design purposes. This is why Compute Expert has come up with its short list of the best MacBook models for graphic design that you can use as your buying reference.
Want to know what MacBook models we recommend for graphic design activities? Let’s take a look at the list right away.
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| Image | View on Amazon | Product |
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MacBook Pro M2 16 | |
 
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MacBook Pro M1 16 | |
 
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MacBook Pro M2 14 |
Table of Contents:
What are the Best MacBooks for Graphic Design?
Now, let us see what MacBook models that should be the best ones to do graphic design activities on currently. Using one of these MacBooks should give you the performance level you need to get the best results from your graphic design work.1. MacBook Pro M2 16
MacBook Pro M2 16 is the first MacBook model we recommend if you want to do graphic design. It is a nice MacBook that has a large screen to optimize your viewport.
The 16.2-inch screen should enable you to see and control more of your designs when you work on them. It also has high resolution with Liquid Retina XDR display technologies to help you see more details of your work.
Performance-wise, this MacBook model should be able to make you work smoothly. The Apple M2 Pro chip in it is fast and can get the jobs done for you in the graphic design applications that you use. The 16GB RAM in this MacBook model should also help you multitask well when you work.
The battery life of this MacBook is excellent with up to 22 hours of usage capacity. It should enable you to work for 1-2 days without having to charge it. All in all, this MacBook Pro M2 16 laptop looks great and can be the ideal choice for you if you want to buy a MacBook for graphic design activities.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 16.2 inches, 3456 x 2234 pixels
- Processor: Apple M2 Pro with speed up to 3.5 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 16GB
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 22 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Excellent performance in graphic design activities
- High-quality display
- Large viewport
- Long-lasting battery
- Sleek design
- Three Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI ports
Cons
- A bit heavy
2. MacBook Pro M1 16
MacBook Pro M1 16 is the next MacBook model which we think should be great for graphic design. As with the previous MacBook model we recommend, this one has a large screen for more room to display your design work.
The M1 processor might not be as advanced as the Apple M2 processor. However, M1 is still a high-quality processor and should be able to handle graphic design tasks well. The 16GB RAM should also help when it comes to processing the applications and files needed for your work.
The battery life of this MacBook Pro is long-lasting with up to 21 hours of usage capacity. When you need to connect to external devices, there are three Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI ports ready for you to use. The data transfer you do in this MacBook should be fast because of those Thunderbolt 4 ports availability.
Its display uses Liquid Retina XDR technology too so you can expect high-quality visuals from this MacBook. Overall, this MacBook Pro M1 16 model is something you should consider for your MacBook purchase as well.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 16.2 inches, 3456 x 2234 pixels
- Processor: Apple M1 Pro with speed up to 3.2 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 16GB
- Storage: 512GB
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 21 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Great performance in graphic design activities
- High-quality display
- Large viewport
- Long-lasting battery
- Sleek design
- Three Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI ports
Cons
- M1 performance is not as great as M2
- A bit heavy
3. MacBook Pro M2 14
MacBook Pro M2 14 is the last MacBook model we recommend on this list. It is an excellent M2 MacBook that packs a punch in terms of performance and is easier to carry around than the previous two MacBooks.
The M2 Pro processor in this MacBook is fast and should be able to run your graphic design applications and files well. The RAM capacity here is 16GB so you can do your multitasking activities without much problem.
This MacBook Pro also has three Thunderbolt 4 ports to help you transfer data quickly. When you need to input something into your work, the Magic Keyboard should give you a comfortable typing experience.
Looking for a MacBook to support your graphic design activities but you want a smaller model? You might want to consider buying this MacBook Pro M2 14 model.
Key Features
- Screen Size, Resolution: 14.2 inches, 3024 x 1964 pixels
- Processor: Apple M2 Pro with speed up to 3.5 GHz
- RAM Capacity: 16GB
- Storage: 512GB SSD
- Battery Life (Estimation): up to 18 hours of usage capacity
Pros
- Excellent performance in graphic design activities
- High-quality display
- Long-lasting battery
- Sleek and light design
- Three Thunderbolt 4 and HDMI ports
Cons
- Smaller viewport and less resolution than the 16-inch MacBook models
What are the Things We Should Consider When We Want to Buy a MacBook to Do Graphic Design?
Here are the things we think you should consider when you want to buy a MacBook for graphic design activities.- Processor. As graphic design activities often give quite an intense workload for a laptop, the MacBook you buy should have a high-quality processor to handle them smoothly. We recommend the M processor series from Apple for the MacBook model you buy as they are the fastest ones currently that a MacBook has to offer
- RAM capacity. Graphic design also often takes up a lot of memory space in a laptop when you do it, especially if you open many applications and files simultaneously as well. As such, the MacBook you buy should have a large RAM capacity too. We recommend a MacBook model with 16GB RAM for this matter
- SSD storage. Graphic design applications and files can take up a lot of storage space in your MacBook. Thus, the MacBook you buy should have enough amount of SSD storage space to anticipate that. We recommend a MacBook with at least 512GB SSD storage space to buy as you cannot upgrade the storage space in a MacBook later on
Wrap Up
When we want to buy a MacBook, we may want the model that has the best specifications to do graphic design activities. However, there are some MacBook models you can choose and it can be difficult to decide which one you should buy to do graphic design optimally. This is why Compute Expert has come up with its list of the best MacBooks for graphic design to help you.To summarize, here are three MacBook models we think should be excellent for graphic design.
We hope our list can help you buy the best MacBook model to support your graphic design activities!
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