What does Apple have planned for the Mac in 2025? For the last couple of years, Apple’s been killing it with its desktop and laptop computers. The chips scream, the industrial design has never been better, and the Mac lineup is undoubtedly the best in Apple’s history. Just look at the amazing new Mac mini.
But can Apple keep up the pace next year?
What to expect from the Mac in 2025
When the first Mac arrived in 1984, Apple set the standard for consumer-friendly computers. Four decades of Mac innovation brought us to the current state of affairs, where computers powered by Apple’s M-series chips provide a potent mix of power, efficiency and ease of use.
However, if you’re hoping for a groundbreaking year for the Mac in 2025, you might want to curb your enthusiasm. 2025 is looking to be a year of slow and steady improvements rather than radical change. It looks like the truly exciting Mac upgrades will arrive in 2026. But you never know — surprises can happen.
Table of contents: What to expect from the Mac in 2025
2025 MacBook Air M4: This beautiful laptop gets even better
Photo: Apple
The next MacBook Air looks like it’s going to be a great machine. The industrial design is already superb, and the addition of the M4 chip (released earlier this year) should bring a giant leap in performance and efficiency to the MacBook Air in 2025. The M4 chip is the biggest leap since the original switch from Intel processors to Apple’s M1. The M4 MacBook Air, which probably will deliver performance similar to the entry-level M4 MacBook Pro, should be noticeably faster, with mind-blowing battery life.
The new MacBook Air is likely going to be the first Mac announced next year. Apple usually releases a small batch of new products in the spring. Last year, the MacBook Air debuted in March — another March release seems likely. Its arrival probably will coincide with the launch of the iPhone SE 4 and new iPads and iPad Airs.
Apple likely will update the 13-inch and 15-inch models of the 2025 MacBook Air at the same time, with the same starting price and same specs as this year’s model. That would mean $1,099 would get you a 13-inch model with an M4, 256GB of storage and 16GB of unified memory. Upgrading to a 15-inch model would still cost an extra $200; upgrading to a higher-end chip, 512GB of storage and 24GB of memory would add $400.
2025 Mac Studio and Mac Pro M4: A pair of screamers
Photo: Apple
Apple already updated a lot of the Mac lineup to the latest Apple silicon M4 chips. The last computers to be updated to M4 will be the Mac Studio and Mac Pro. Apple should update hese high-end professional machines, the cream of the Mac crop, to the M4 Max chip. And we should see the introduction of the M4 Ultra chip.
The M2 Ultra chip is made of two M2 Max chips fused together, and that formula’s not likely to change. That means we can expect the highest-end configurations of these M4 Ultra machines to come with a 32-core CPU, 80-core GPU and 32-core Neural Engine with 256GB of unified memory. They’re gonna scream!
We expect the M4 Mac Studio in the second quarter of the year, with a likely unveiling at WWDC25 in June. While Apple updated the current M2 Mac Pro simultaneously with the M2 Mac Studio, rumors suggest the 2025 Mac Pro update might arrive later in the year.
2025 MacBook Pro M5
Photo: Apple
Rumors suggest Apple will announce an M5 MacBook Pro toward the end of 2025, likely in November. Compared to the big leap that was M3 to M4, M4 to M5 is probably going to be a modest update. These new MacBook Pros should offer marginally better performance in the same package.
If you’re hoping for an OLED display or cellular connectivity, don’t hold your breath — that’s probably not coming until 2026.
2025 iMac and Mac mini M5
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
Currently, no rumors suggest the iMac and Mac mini will receive M5 updates next year. Apple recently updated both computers with M4 chips. Further upgrades likely won’t happen in 2025.
Apple’s desktop Macs occasionally skip a generational upgrade. I wouldn’t be surprised if these two models sit out the M5. After all, the M4 models are both really excellent.
Overall, it seems like 2025 will be a quiet year for the Mac. The next MacBook Air undoubtedly will stand out as a killer machine, but all the updates will be routine spec bumps. The really exciting Mac upgrades will arrive in 2026.
