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There are some major differences between the approach taken by Microsoft and Apple for their computer operating systems. Both brands also include just as many small OS-exclusive features that can be important for users. If you’re asking yourself if you should get a MacBook or if you’re an Apple enthusiast wondering if you should switch to Windows, it’s all about preference.
Generally, Windows is better if you play lots of games, want better prices, and prioritize a larger ecosystem of third-party programs. However, if you want an OS that gives better battery life on laptops and a smoother experience when doing daily home and office work, a Mac might be the better option. But it’s not that black and white while choosing between the two. Whether Windows 11 or macOS Tahoe is better for you depends on a number of major and minor factors — and if you’re thinking about switching, there are some things you should know.
For example, Windows laptops more aggressively push in-house services like Copilot than a MacBook. On the flipside, you can view storage info and have multiple tabs open in the Windows File Manager, but macOS’ Quick Look feature lets you preview and edit files without opening them. If you are confused about choosing between them, here is a detailed guide to find out what platform makes sense for your use case.
1. Gaming
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There’s a reason MacBooks are marketed as a productivity powerhouse and not gaming laptops, and it isn’t all about the hardware. Sure, a Windows laptop in a MacBook’s price range will generally come with better specs, a dedicated GPU, and significantly more storage. It might also perform better under sustained load due to bigger fans and not being bound to a certain weight. However, even if neither of those were true, Windows would still be the better choice for gaming purely due to the difference in operating systems.
Put simply, macOS just doesn’t have access to the same library of games as Windows does. Since there’s always been a significantly larger number of people playing games on Windows when compared to those using macOS, game developers prioritize Microsoft. Making a macOS port requires a lot of effort, and oftentimes it just isn’t worth it, especially for indie studios.
This doesn’t mean that gaming on a Mac is impossible, though. You can theoretically run pretty much any game on Apple’s M-series chips that support better graphics, which means the issue is just the availability. This can be solved with CrossOver, which translates Windows commands to macOS in real time. The software, however, isn’t free, and also doesn’t work on games with kernel-level anti-cheat, such as Valorant. Alternatively, you can use GeForce Now to borrow an external computer over the cloud and stream it to your Mac. This method too requires you to pay and also needs a fast internet connection.
2. Battery life, portability, and unplugged performance
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While Windows computers pose as versatile machines, Apple’s MacBooks are most people’s preferred choice when it comes to lightweight portable machines. There are many reasons for this that go beyond the physical hardware, and macOS plays a role in this.
Like the physical architecture that Apple uses in its M-chips, the OS is heavily optimized. This is because Apple only has to account for its home-grown devices and so has to account for fewer variables, compared to Windows which is the go-to OS for a large variety of laptops by different brands. This combination of an efficient processor with efficient software is how a MacBook Air can function without fans and why it’s not unusual for a MacBook Pro to be significantly quieter than a Windows laptop when exporting large, high-fidelity video files.
While there are certainly laptops with longer-lasting batteries than even a MacBook Pro, Apple’s computers generally offer a more well-balanced experience. Certain exceptions aside, most MacBooks will almost always outlast a Windows laptop with similar specs in terms of battery life. Additionally, while Windows laptops often throttle performance when low on battery or when not plugged into a charger, this isn’t the case for MacBooks. Whether your MacBook is plugged into a wall or is running on battery, there’s little to no difference in performance.
3. Windows File Manager vs. macOS’s Finder
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You need a way to sort your files regardless of whether you choose Windows or macOS. This includes images, videos, text documents, and even your programs. Fortunately, both platforms offer great ways for you to do this. Windows has its File Explorer, whereas macOS comes with the Finder app.
While both are amazing in their own right, there are certain things one does better than the other. The Windows File Explorer gives you more information right out of the box, such as how much storage is in a specific partition you have open. You can also see full file paths in Windows File Explorer, which makes it easy to figure out where any file is located. macOS also has these options, but you have to enable them in the settings, as they’re not turned on by default.
Apple’s Finder also has a number of other features that Windows users miss out on. For example, right-clicking a file inside your macOS Finder gives you the option to merge different files into a single PDF. Similarly, right-clicking an image lets you delete the background immediately — something that requires a dedicated app to do on Windows. Additionally, macOS’s Spotlight search feature is usually quicker and gives you more options, such as not having to search for direct file names. If you can’t remember the exact file name of an image, you can describe it and the system will attempt to find it for you. To sum it up, while Finder misses out on some geekier features from Windows Explorer, it offers more intuitive features that benefit the tech novice too.
4. Window management
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Multitasking has become a part of daily life. A single tab simply isn’t enough today, and unless you have a second monitor to make clever use of, you’ll have to manage a ton of different app windows simultaneously. With Windows being named the way it is, you’d expect it to have a clear advantage when it comes to managing different app windows. This was true for most of history, but Apple has continuously released new updates. The present-day macOS Tahoe is just as good at managing different tabs as Windows is, if not better in certain circumstances.
Whether you prefer the tab management on Windows or macOS is entirely subjective. Apple offers more ways and different modes to manipulate your open apps, whereas Windows gives you complete control over how to move and reshape each tab by default. Windows has an advantage in that you have your entire screen to work with, whereas an app can block the App Menu on Apple computers.
The Stage Manager mode on macOS lets you have a main app window open in the center of your screen and all other currently open apps showing previews on the side. From here, you can quickly switch to any other app by clicking on it. Windows too lets you do a similar thing with the Tab Snap feature, and it boils down to which one you like more.
5. Ease of use and quality of life features
While both MacOS and Windows are great platforms that more or less let you do anything you’d expect from a computer, there are a few subtle differences that might make you lean towards one. This refers to how smooth of a user experience it can give you, how easy it makes daily tasks, and what features it provides to make your life just a bit more convenient.
For Windows and macOS, this starts before you ever log into your computer. Both platforms offer ways to quickly start working through fingerprint unlock, but Windows has the advantage here by also featuring face unlock. On the other hand, macOS users don’t deal with the frustration of downloading drivers manually. In Windows, you might have to manually download and update the drivers that you need for certain tasks. While it may seem easy enough, it can be quite a chore, especially for those not used to managing drivers. macOS downloads and updates all your drivers automatically, completely getting rid of this common annoyance on Windows.
When it comes to installing third-party programs, Windows is a clear winner here. You just download a .exe file from your preferred browser and then go through installation. On a Mac, you have to download a disk image, drag it to copy the file onto your applications folder, and then delete the disk file by dragging it into the trash.
