How to pick the best Apple tablet for you

Screen size: 10.9 inches | Display resolution: 2360 x 1640 | Storage: Up to 256GB | RAM: 8GB | Weight: 1.02 pounds | Battery life: Up to 10 hours | Front camera: 12MP | Back camera: 12MP

Of the six iPad models currently on sale, the iPad Air is the closest to being universally appealing and the best iPad for most people. We gave the latest Air a review score of 90 in March 2022: It has the same elegant and comfortable design language as the iPad Pro at a lower price, with a bright, sharp and accurate 10.9-inch display surrounded by thin bezels and flat edges. It comes with a USB-C port, just like recent MacBooks and iPhones, and while it’s not a Thunderbolt connection as on the iPad Pro, simply being able to charge the Air with the same cable you use with your other gadgets is a plus.

Apple refreshed the Air in 2022 with its M1 system-on-a-chip, which is the same silicon found in the entry-level MacBook Air. This isn’t Apple’s newest SoC, but it’s still powerful enough for virtually any task you can throw at it, and an increasing number of iPadOS features are exclusive to M-series chips. The Stage Manager multitasking mode isn’t supported on lower-cost iPads, for instance, nor are the ports of demanding games like Death Stranding and Resident Evil Village.

The iPad Air is also compatible with Apple’s best accessories, including the second-generation Pencil stylus and the (excellent) Magic Keyboard, just like the 11-inch iPad Pro. These add a good bit of cost to the bottom line, but for digital artists or frequent typers, they’re there.

The middle of Apple’s iPad lineup is a bit congested. If you need more than the Air’s default 64GB of storage, you might as well step up to the 11-inch iPad Pro, which starts at 128GB and packs a better 120Hz display and faster M2 chip for not much more than a higher-capacity Air. (The display on the 2021 iPad Pro is better, too.) The newer 10.9-inch iPad isn’t bad, either, but with its non-laminated display and lacking accessory support, it’s a harder sell unless you see it on deep discount. Still, while the iPad Air isn’t cheap, it’s the best blend of price and performance for most people.

Screen size: 10.2 inches | Display resolution: 2160 x 1620 | Storage: Up to 256GB | RAM: 3GB | Weight: 1.07 pounds | Battery life: Up to 10 hours | Front camera: 12MP | Back camera: 8MP

If you can’t afford the Air, or if you just don’t want to spend that much on a new tablet, get the 9th-gen iPad instead. It’ll reportedly be phased out in the coming months, but at $329 for a 64GB model — and regularly available for less than $300 — it remains by far the most wallet-friendly way into iPadOS right now. And while its hardware is an obvious step down from the iPads mentioned above, it’s still capable for the essentials.

We gave the 9th-gen iPad model a review score of 86 in 2021. It’s the only “current” iPad to follow Apple’s older design language: It’s just a tiny bit thicker and heavier than the 10th-gen iPad and iPad Air, but its wider bezels mean there’s only enough room for a 10.2-inch display. Like the 10th-gen iPad, that screen is more susceptible to glare and not laminated, though it’s just as sharp. There’s a Home button on the bottom bezel with a Touch ID fingerprint scanner, and the device charges via Lightning port rather than USB-C. Its speakers don’t sound as nice, either, but it’s the only iPad to still have a headphone jack. Its 12MP front camera is also fine, though it’s not landscape-oriented as on the 10th-gen iPad.

The 9th-gen iPad runs on Apple’s A13 Bionic chip, which is the same SoC used in 2019’s iPhone 11 series. It’s not as fluid or futureproof as the M1, but it’s still quick enough for casual tasks. In terms of first-party accessories, the tablet supports Apple’s Smart Keyboard and first-gen Pencil stylus. Those aren’t as convenient than the company’s newer options, but they’re serviceable.

In the end, it’s all about the price. The 10th-gen iPad is better in a vacuum, but the 9th-gen model is much more affordable, and those savings go a long way toward papering over its issues.

Screen size: 8.3 inches | Display resolution: 2266 x 1488 | Storage: Up to 256GB | RAM: 4GB | Weight: 0.65 pounds | Battery life: Up to 10 hours | Front camera: 12MP | Back camera: 12MP

The iPad mini is exactly what it sounds like: the small iPad. It’s easily the shortest (7.69 x 5.3 x 0.25 inches) and lightest (0.65 pounds for the WiFi model) of every current iPad, with an 8.3-inch display that’s more comfortable to operate with one hand.

We gave the iPad mini a review score of 89 in 2021. Its design follows closely after that of the iPad Air: squared-off edges, thin bezels, no Home button, a Touch ID sensor in the power button, stereo speakers, solid cameras and a USB-C port. Its display is technically sharper, but otherwise gives you the same max brightness, lamination, anti-reflective coating and wide color gamut. It doesn’t have a “Smart Connector” to hook up Apple-made keyboards, but it does support the second-generation Apple Pencil.

The mini runs on Apple’s A15 Bionic SoC, the same as the one in 2021’s iPhone 13 phones. This is technically faster than the chip inside the 10th-gen iPad model and, again, more than powerful enough for most tasks, though it’s a step behind the laptop-grade M1 or M2 chip.

The mini has an MSRP of $499 for the 64GB model and $649 for the 256GB model. That’s a lot, though in recent months we’ve seen both SKUs available online for up to $100 less. If you specifically want a smaller tablet — whether it’s to easily stuff in a bag, use with one hand or treat like a high-end e-reader — this is the only one Apple sells, and the best option in its size range altogether.

Screen size: 11 inches or 12.9-inches | Display resolution: 11-inch: 2388 x 1668 / 12.9-inch: 2732 x 2048 | Storage: Up to 2TB | RAM: Up to 16GB | Weight: Starts at 1.03 pounds | Battery life: Up to 10 hours | Front camera: 12MP | Back camera: 12MP + 10MP

The 12.9-inch iPad Pro exists in something of its own realm within the iPad lineup. It starts at $1,099 for 128GB of storage, which is $100 more than the entry-level MacBook Air. That’s well beyond what anyone needs to pay to do the vast majority of iPad things and a huge chunk of change for a platform that still has issues with laptop-style productivity. That said, this is the best tablet Apple makes, period.

We gave the latest iPad Pro a review score of 87 in November 2022. The displays on both the 11- and 12.9-inch Pros can get brighter than the one on the Air, and both feature a 120Hz refresh rate that makes scrolling look more fluid than the Air’s 60Hz panel. The 12.9-inch Pro’s Liquid Retina display is more of an upgrade than the 11-inch model, however, as it’s the only iPad to use mini-LED backlighting, which can deliver higher peak brightness, improved contrast and a generally more realistic image.

The Pro also runs on Apple’s M2 SoC, which isn’t a huge upgrade over the M1 in real-world use but offers more performance overhead going forward. It has the same 12MP rear camera as the Air, but adds a 10MP ultrawide lens and an LED flash (plus a LIDAR scanner for AR apps). The 12MP front cameras, meanwhile, can take shots in portrait mode.

Beyond that, the Pro has a faster Thunderbolt USB-C port, more robust speakers and Face ID support. There are more storage options, going all the way up to 2TB, and the 1TB and 2TB models double the RAM from 8GB to 16GB (albeit at a super high cost). The device still works with all of Apple’s best accessories, and it can recognize when an Apple Pencil is hovering above the display and preview would-be inputs.

It’s a powerhouse of a tablet, and if you do want to use an iPad more heavily for work, the roomier display on the 12.9-inch Pro should make it the most amenable option for all-day, laptop-style use. You’ll want to add a keyboard to get the most out of that, but if you’re spending this much on an iPad to begin with, that may not be as big of a deal.

Like the iPad mini, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is very much a niche device. It’s prohibitively expensive, and its hulking size makes it less portable than other iPads. Certain creative types have made it work as a Mac laptop replacement, but for most, iPadOS still makes multitasking and other computer-y tasks more convoluted than they’d be on a MacBook. This latest iteration is only a minor upgrade over the last-gen model too. Nevertheless, as a tablet, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is deeply powerful.