If you're looking for the best Mac for students in 2025, you’re in the right place. In this blog, we’ll explore the top Apple devices to help you find the perfect fit for your academic needs in the upcoming school year.
Why choose A Mac?
When considering devices to support your educational needs, Apple offers a wide range of options tailored for different academic disciplines. Whether it’s an MacBook Pro for design or a Mac Studio for high-resolution video editing, Apple provides a user-friendly operating system and seamless connectivity across different devices. These features have made Apple a popular choice among students, educators, and professionals alike.
Best Mac for General Studying and Research
Whether you’re starting a new school year or transitioning to college or university, writing essays, revising, and studying are key components of your academic success. For general study, you’ll want a device that offers efficiency, good battery life and is portable enough to carry between classes.
Below is a list of budget-friendly devices that are capable of handling general tasks, as well as streaming movies on Netflix or scrolling through social media during your breaks.
MacBook Air for General Studying
When choosing a MacBook for writing documents and research, the MacBook Air 13-inch is an excellent option. It’s lightweight and portable, making it easy to carry in a bag or backpack, while still delivering strong performance and impressive battery life.
Ideal for taking notes, conducting research, and handling light creative tasks, the MacBook Air is perfect for students on the go. For the best experience and long-term usability, we recommend opting for a model with at least 16GB of memory.
MacBook Pro for General Studying
Like the MacBook Air, the 13-inch MacBook Pro is an ideal size for working on the go. Its key advantages are slightly better battery life and an internal fan, which helps keep the device cool during extended study sessions.
Best Mac for Graphic Design and Illustration
Visually creative work often demands a device with a powerful CPU (Central Processing Unit) to run programs like Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, and InDesign smoothly. To help you choose the right setup, we've put together a list of budget-friendly options that prioritise strong CPU performance.
Best MacBook Pro for Graphic Design and Illustration
The best portable option for creative professional work would be the MacBook Pro, as it provides the added power and battery life you will need to run demanding software. While it is possible to use a MacBook Air for light creative work, you might run into issues when your projects include multiple layers or animations.
All the MacBook Pro models in this list also have Liquid Retina XDR displays, that provide accurate and crisp visuals which are vital for creative workflows.
A MacBook Pro with at least 16GB of memory would be the minimum we would recommend, as you will struggle to perform certain tasks with only 8GB.
Best iMac for Graphic Design and Illustration
Like the MacBook Pro mentioned in this list, the 24-inch iMac is an excellent desktop choice for creative professionals. It offers the advantage of a larger display, which can enhance your workflow compared to the MacBook Pro smaller screen. While the iMac may not match the MacBook Pro in raw CPU performance, it’s more than capable for most basic design tasks, making it a solid option for everyday creative work.
As with the MacBook Pro, we recommend a minimum of 16GB of memory.
BEST MAC FOR VIDEO EDITING
Video editing demands a device with a powerful CPU, GPU, and plenty of memory (RAM) to ensure smooth performance and efficient handling of large video files on programs like Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro. For most professional applications, it’s advisable to start with at least 16GB of memory, with 32GB or more being the ideal choice for demanding projects.
Best MacBook Pro for video editing
The MacBook Pro offers the portability of a laptop combined with the power needed to run professional editing software from any location. If you're working with high-resolution video, you'll also benefit from the stunning Liquid Retina XDR display, featuring 1,000 nits of XDR brightness, support for 1 billion colours, and wide colour (P3) for highly accurate visuals.
If your budget allows, a MacBook Pro with a Max processor offers top-tier performance, especially for more demanding editing tasks.
Best iMac for video editing
Whether you choose the Intel-based 27-inch iMac or the Apple silicon 24-inch iMac, both are excellent options for video editors who prefer working from a dedicated desktop setup. The 27-inch iMac offers the flexibility of user-upgradable memory, allowing you to expand the memory (RAM) as your needs grow. In contrast, the 24-inch iMac does not support memory upgrades, but it benefits from Apple’s unified memory architecture, which enhances both speed and efficiency by allowing the CPU, GPU and memory (RAM) to share the same memory pool.
The 2020 27-inch iMac features a 5K Retina display, while the 24-inch M-series iMac offers a 4.5K Retina display. Both deliver stunning visuals with support for 1 billion colours and the P3 wide colour gamut, making them excellent choices for colour-accurate video editing work.
Best Mac Studio for video editing
If you're looking to maximise performance for intensive video editing, the Mac Studio with an M-series Max chip is a strong choice. While it's more expensive than the Mac mini, it offers higher memory and storage configurations, and it can still be more cost-effective than a MacBook with the same processor. Despite its power, the Mac Studio features a compact design that fits neatly on most desks.
Just be aware that, unlike the MacBook Pro and iMac on this list, the Mac Studio does not include a built-in display. However, it is compatible with external monitors that support HDMI or Thunderbolt connections.
BEST MAC FOR coding and programming
For students looking for a device for coding and programming, having the most powerful machine isn't necessary. It's more important to focus on a solid amount of memory, at least 16GB of RAM is recommended, as well as a good CPU.
Macs work well with popular tools like Xcode for building Apple apps, Visual Studio Code for general coding, and Terminal for running commands. You can also easily use programming languages like Python, Java, and JavaScript, and manage your projects with GitHub.
Best MacBook Air for coding and programming
To help keep costs down, a 15-inch MacBook Air is a great portable option. The larger display provides more screen space for viewing and editing your code, as well as for multitasking, both of which improve comfort and efficiency while working with your software.
Just keep in mind that the MacBook Air doesn’t have a fan, so if you plan to run sustained heavy workloads, like compiling large codebases, you might be better off choosing a MacBook Pro.
Best MacBook Pro for coding and programming
The 16-inch MacBook Pro offers a great balance of power and screen real estate. It features two fans to keep the system cool during heavy workloads. For coding and programming, it’s not always necessary to choose the Max processor; instead, focus on having sufficient storage and a good amount of memory.
Best iMac for coding and programming
For those long nights of coding and research, the 24-inch iMac is a great desktop option. It features a stunning 4.5K Retina display, providing ample screen space and exceptional clarity for viewing multiple windows, long pages of code, and detailed research material. Powered by Apple’s efficient M-series chips, the iMac delivers fast, smooth performance even when running multiple development tools, emulators, or browser tabs simultaneously. It runs quietly and stays cool, ideal for late-night sessions in shared spaces. Plus, it’s more energy efficient than many traditional PC desktops, helping students stay productive while keeping power consumption low.
Other factors to consider
As you tailor your Mac to suit your academic needs, it's also important to choose a device that supports your downtime and personal well-being. With the release of macOS Tahoe, expected later in 2025, Apple is placing greater emphasis on productivity, leisure, and wellness features. One highlight is the upcoming Game app, which aims to bring more major game titles to Mac, a significant step for students looking to unwind with quality games. Additionally, the new Journal app offers a secure and private space to record personal thoughts and daily reflections, with entries protected by password or Face ID for peace of mind.
The MacBook and iMac all feature built-in webcams and microphones, making them ideal for video calls with family and friends, an important feature for students living away from home during their studies.
If you have any questions about the devices mentioned in this blog, or if you'd like further advice on any of our refubished devices or the best MacBook deals for students, feel free to contact us at info@hoxtonmacs.co.uk. We would be more than happy to assist you.
