The MacBook Neo is the cheapest way to buy a Mac laptop in 2026. Now starting at $699 (which is unfortunately $100 more than when Apple launched it in March), it’s aimed at students, first-time Mac buyers, and casual users who primarily browse the web, stream videos, join video calls, and work on basic apps.
Despite its lower price, it still looks and feels like a MacBook, with an all-aluminum design and lightweight chassis.
Who is the MacBook Neo for?
The MacBook Neo is best for people whose computing needs are simple: web browsing, email, documents, streaming, and schoolwork.
Why we recommend MacBook Neo
- Lowest price on the line.
- Lightweight and portable
- Silent fanless design
- Good battery life
- Fast enough for basic daily use
Sizes
The MacBook Neo comes in only one size:
- 13-inch MacBook Neo13 inch screen
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Like the MacBook Air, the MacBook Neo offers a Liquid Retina display with a maximum brightness of 500 nits, but that’s where the similarities end. The screen is slightly smaller than the 13-inch MacBook Air, offering 2,408 by 1,506 pixels compared to 2,560 by 1,664 pixels. It also lacks the P3 wide color and True Tone technology of the other MacBooks, offering only sRGB color.
Performance
The MacBook Neo is powered by the A18 Pro chip, the same processor that was first introduced with the iPhone 16 Pro. While it is a mobile-class chip, its performance is optimized for a laptop environment, offering a highly responsive experience for everyday productivity. In our tests it was faster than the M3 on a single core, while equal to the M1 in terms of multi-core performance and graphics.
Battery life
The MacBook Neo should comfortably last a workday of general productivity. In our video loop battery test, with the screen brightness set to 150 nits, it lasted 13 hours and 15 minutes. Apple advertises up to 16 hours of video streaming or 11 hours of wireless web browsing. More demanding tasks will drain the battery more quickly.
Other specifications
You get two USB-C ports, but they’re not identical in capacity, one is USB 3 and the other USB 2. See the MacBook Neo ports explanation. The MacBook Neo only supports an external display with a resolution of up to 4K at 60Hz.
- 8GB RAM
- 256GB or 512GB SSD
Price
- From $699/£699
- Educational price is now $649/£649
What to know before buying
The Neo makes several compromises to achieve its low price, including the lack of a backlit keyboard, a limited selection of ports, and the absence of Touch ID on the base model. It also features a lower quality display compared to the Air and Pro, offers less memory with a maximum of 8GB of RAM, and offers lower sustained performance than the M-series MacBooks. For many buyers, the 512GB, $799 model represents a better value, as it includes Touch ID and additional storage.
Alternatives
The MacBook Neo is the best budget MacBook, but it’s better suited to light workloads. If you can spend more, the MacBook Air is still the best long-term buy for most people.
Another option, if a low price is your top priority, is a refurbished MacBook. Keep an eye out for clearance deals on older Apple silicon MacBooks, but avoid the older Intel-based models. See: MacBook Pro deals and MacBook Air deals.
