Best Mac 2018: the best Macs to buy this year

Now that both macOS Mojave and the new MacBook Air are here, the best Macs are better than ever. And, if you’re thinking about going out and picking up one of the best Macs, keep in mind that specs, performance and design mean way more in how they interact with the OS itself than any of them separately. That’s why it isn’t really useful to pit the best Macs against Windows 10 PCs.

The best Macs are extremely diverse in 2018. We don’t know what Apple’s future looks like, but we’re sure that there’s plenty of life in the Macintosh. The best Macs cover everything from high-resolution workhorses like the MacBook Pro to stationary behemoths like the iMac Pro, even to thin-and-light notebooks like the 12-inch MacBook. But, which Mac is right for you?

Well, we decided to put together this list of the best Macs – iMacs, MacBooks and more – to help you answer that question. The only Macs that aren’t included here are the ones we’ve yet to review, or just didn’t make the cut. So, let’s dive into all the best Macs on the market in 2018.

If you’re looking for the most performance you can get in a MacBook, and you can afford it, you’ll want to look at the MacBook Pro 15-inch. With hexa-core 8th-generation processors and up to 32GB of RAM, you won’t be held back by anything you throw at this thing – especially now that you can get Radeon Pro Vega 20 graphics. With this kind of performance, it’s easy to see why this is one of the best Macs of all time. 

Read the full review: MacBook Pro (15-inch, Mid-2018) 

You know you’re getting an unusually good value from an Apple product when, even at the entry level, you can expect high performance, tons of storage and more ports than you know what to do with. The latest Apple iMac is a perfect example of this. There’s still no touchscreen, but when it costs so much less than Microsoft’s Surface Studio, it’s not that much of a loss. Instead, you’re getting a 7th-generation Intel desktop-class processor and your choice of an IPS display carefully wrapped in an all-metal chassis.

Read the full review: Apple iMac (2017) 

For much of the year, the biggest complaint with the MacBook Pro was that it was still using Kaby Lake processors, even though its competition had moved ahead. Luckily, the MacBook Pro 2018 changes everything, and is more powerful than ever before. It still has the controversial Butterfly keyboard, but it’s been improved – with less noise and more reliability. It’s easy to recommend the 13-inch MacBook Pro 2018 for anyone looking for the best Mac. 

Read the full review: MacBook Pro with Touch Bar (13-inch, mid-2018) 

If you’re a professional or a creative, and you need something that will be able to tackle any workload you could possibly throw at it, you’re going to love the iMac Pro. Not only does it have a vivid 27-inch 5K display with a P3 wide color gamut, but it’s also packed with the most powerful hardware Apple could get its hands on. It’s extremely expensive, but if you’re looking for unbridled power to get through professional workloads, the iMac Pro is the best Mac for you. 

Read the full review: iMac Pro 

When Apple refreshed the MacBook back in 2016, it didn’t please anyone, despite being more attractive than ever before. And, while the controversy hasn’t disappeared entirely, the 12-inch MacBook has found its niche as an ultraportable and lightweight laptop. It’s low on ports, but in a laptop this thin, that’s to be expected, and it can support basically everything under the sun with its Thunderbolt 3 port, anyway. It’s not as powerful as the MacBook Pro, but if you’re looking for a MacBook that’s easy to take with you wherever you go, look no further.

Read the full review: Apple MacBook (2017)

We’ve been waiting years for a new MacBook Air, and it’s finally here. Now thinner, lighter and with a Retina display for the first time, it’s easily the best MacBook Air we’ve ever used. With 8th-generation processors, more RAM and faster SSDs, the MacBook Air is also more powerful than ever. We just wish that these were full-fat U-series quad core chips, rather than the Y-series dual-core fanless processors. Still, this means that you’re going to easily get all-day battery out of this thing, which makes it one of the best Macs for travel.

Read the full review: MacBook Air 2018 

Mac Mini fans, rejoice! The Mac Mini has finally been refreshed with modern hardware, bring Apple’s tiniest Mac into the modern age. This thing is filled to the brim with 8th-generation desktop processors, a ton of RAM and some of the fastest SSDs we’ve seen – all while keeping the same beloved form factor. It’s a bit more expensive this time around, but with the raw speed on offer, we’d have to say it’s worth it.

Read the full review: Mac Mini 2018

Bill Thomas and Gabe Carey have also contributed to this article