Surface Laptop 3 15” vs. Surface Laptop 5 13.5”: Which is better?

Here is a side by side comparison between Surface Laptop 3 15” and Surface Laptop 5 13.5” specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

Surface Laptop 3 15” Pros

Reasons that Surface Laptop 3 15” is better than Surface Laptop 5 13.5”.

11% larger display

Surface Laptop 3 15” has a 15-inch screen size 11% larger than the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 5 13.5”.

Display size
Surface Laptop 3 15”
15-inch
Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
13.5-inch

Surface Laptop 5 13.5” Pros

Reasons that Surface Laptop 5 13.5” is better than Surface Laptop 3 15”.

Significantly newer manufacturing

2022 vs. 2019

Much faster CPU performance

Intel Core i7-1265U inside Surface Laptop 5 13.5” has a 131% better multi-core CPU performance score than the AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition inside Surface Laptop 3 15”.

Geekbench 5 multi-core score
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” - Intel Core i7-1255U
6,415
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” - Intel Core i7-1265U
6,336
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” - Intel Core i5-1235U
5,715
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” - Intel Core i5-1245U
5,700
Surface Laptop 3 15” - Intel Core i7-1065G7
3,722
Surface Laptop 3 15” - Intel Core i5-1035G7
3,691
Surface Laptop 3 15” - AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,741
Surface Laptop 3 15” - AMD Ryzen 5-3580U Microsoft Surface Edition
2,438
Supports faster memory

Surface Laptop 5 13.5” supports a faster memory speed than the Surface Laptop 3 15”. It supports up to 5200MHz versus 2400MHz of system memory on the Surface Laptop 3 15”.

Memory type and speed
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” - LPDDR5
5,200 MHz
Surface Laptop 3 15” - DDR4
2,400 MHz
About 18% lighter

Surface Laptop 5 13.5” weighed 2.80 pounds, 18% lighter than the 3.40 pounds Surface Laptop 3 15”.

WeightSurface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Pound
3.40 lbs.
2.80 lbs.
Kilogram
1.54 kg
1.27 kg

Key Similars

Similar characteristics share between Surface Laptop 3 15” and Surface Laptop 5 13.5”.

Supports the same maximum memory size of up to 32GB

Both laptops supports up to 32GB of system memory.

Max system memory size
Surface Laptop 3 15”
32 GB
Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
32 GB

Prices

Here are the latest price updates and offers for both devices.

Surface Laptop 3 15” Price
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, 15" Touchscreen Notebook, Intel Core i7-1065G7, 16GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Display(2496×1664), CAM, WiFi, Platinum, Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3, 15" Touchscreen Notebook, Intel Core i7-1065G7, 16GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Backlit Keyboard, Display(2496×1664), CAM, WiFi, Platinum, Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
By Microsoft
$458.00
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Touchscreen Surface Laptop, 2K (2496×1664) Display, Intel i7-1065G7,16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlitkey, DisplayPort, USB Type-C, WiFi, BT Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 Touchscreen Surface Laptop, 2K (2496×1664) Display, Intel i7-1065G7,16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Backlitkey, DisplayPort, USB Type-C, WiFi, BT Windows 10 Pro(Renewed)
By Microsoft
$463.00
New Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 15in Touch-Screen AMD Ryzen 5 Edition - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive Matte Black (Renewed)
New Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 15in Touch-Screen AMD Ryzen 5 Edition - 8GB Memory - 256GB Solid State Drive Matte Black (Renewed)
By Microsoft
$349.00
$499.99 30% OFF
Surface Laptop 5 13.5” Price
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022), 13.5" Touch Screen, Thin & Lightweight, Long Battery Life, Fast Intel i7 Processor for Multi-Tasking, 16GB RAM, 512GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 (2022), 13.5" Touch Screen, Thin & Lightweight, Long Battery Life, Fast Intel i7 Processor for Multi-Tasking, 16GB RAM, 512GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum
By Microsoft
$1,430.64
$1,699.99 16% OFF
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 13.5" Touchscreen Notebook - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 12th Gen i7-1265U - Intel Evo Platform - 16 GB Total RAM - 512 GB SSD - Platinum
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 13.5" Touchscreen Notebook - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 12th Gen i7-1265U - Intel Evo Platform - 16 GB Total RAM - 512 GB SSD - Platinum
By Microsoft
$1,480.09
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 13.5" Touchscreen Notebook - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 12th Gen i7-1265U - Intel Evo Platform - 16 GB Total RAM - 512 GB SSD - Matte Black
Microsoft Surface Laptop 5 13.5" Touchscreen Notebook - 2256 x 1504 - Intel Core i7 12th Gen i7-1265U - Intel Evo Platform - 16 GB Total RAM - 512 GB SSD - Matte Black
By Microsoft
$1,449.00
$1,799.99 19% OFF

Availability

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Released20192022
Release Date
  • Introduced: October 2, 2019 (Microsoft October Event)
  • Pre-ordered: October 2, 2019
  • Released: October 22, 2019
  • Introduced: October 12, 2022
  • Pre-ordered: October 12, 2022
  • Released: October 25, 2022
PricingStarting at 1,199$Starting at $999.99
Generations

Exterior

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Dimensions13.4” x 9.6” x 0.57” (339.5 mm x 244 mm x 14.69 mm)
Width: 13.4” (339.5 mm)
Depth: 9.6” (244 mm)
Height: 0.57” (14.69 mm)
12.1” x 8.8” x 0.57” (308 mm x 223 mm x 14.5 mm)
Weight3.40 lb (1,542 g)
  • Metal
    2.86 lbs (1.297 kg)
  • Alcantara
    2.80 lbs (1.272 kg)
Colors
  • Metal
    Matte Black Platinum
  • Metal
    Matte Black Sage Sandstone
  • Alcantara
    Platinum
Keyboard and Trackpad
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size backlit keyboard with the soft-touch feel and full 1.3mm travel.
    • Large palm rest with premium Alcantara® material for maximized typing comfort.
  • Trackpad:
    • Larger size 115 mm x 76.66 mm, glass.
    • Supports up to Five-finger multitouch gesture.
  • Keyboard:
    • Full-size backlit keyboard with a soft-touch feel and full 1.3mm travel.
    • Large palm rest with premium Alcantara® material for maximized typing comfort.
  • Trackpad:
    • Larger size 115 mm x 76.66 mm, glass.
    • Supports up to Five-finger multitouch gestures.

Display

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Size15 Inches13.5 Inches
Info
  • PixelSense™ Display
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Inking: designed together with Surface Pen
  • Touch: 10 points multi-touch
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3
  • 10nm Oleophobic Coating
  • 100% sRGB color, individually calibrated
  • 13.5” PixelSense™ Display
  • Resolution: 2256 x 1504
  • Density: 201 PPI
  • Color profile: sRGB and Vivid
  • Individually color-calibrated display
  • Refresh rate: 60Hz
  • Aspect ratio: 3:2
  • Contrast ratio: 1300:1
  • Touch: 10-point multi-touch
  • Brightness: 400 nits maximum (typical). 5 nits minimum
  • Dolby Vision IQ™ support
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3
    Models with Alcantara keyboard finish.
  • Corning® Gorilla® Glass 5
    Models with Metal keyboard finish.

Ports

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Surface Laptop 3 15” Ports
Image Source: Microsoft
  • 1 x Full-size USB 3.0
  • 1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 2
    Supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort.
  • 1 x Surface Connect™
    Supports charging and docking station.
  • 1 x Headset jack
Left (3)
  • 1 x Thunderbolt 4
    40 Gpbs, USB 4.0 (40 Gbps), Power Delivery, DisplayPort
  • 1 x USB-A
    USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbps)
  • 1 x headphone jack
    Headphone/Microphone
Right (1)
  • 1 x Surface Connect
    Charging, Docking

Internal Specs

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Processor
  1. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G7
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.20 → 3.70 GHz, 6MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7
    4 cores, 8 threads, 1.30 → 3.90 GHz, 8MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    4 cores, 8 threads, 2.10 → 3.70 GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 4MB L3 Cache, 15W
  4. AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    4 cores, 8 threads, 2.30 → 4.00 GHz, 2MB L2 Cache, 4MB L3 Cache, 15W
  1. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1235U
    10 cores, 12 threads, 1.30 → 4.40 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 15W
  2. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1245U
    10 cores, 12 threads, 1.60 → 4.40 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 15W
  3. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1255U
    10 cores, 12 threads, 1.70 → 4.70 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 15W
  4. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1265U
    10 cores, 12 threads, 1.80 → 4.80 GHz, 12MB SmartCache, 15W
Integrated Graphics
  1. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G7
    Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics
    64 Execution Units, 300 → 1050 MHz
  2. 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G7
    Intel® Iris® Plus Graphics
    64 Execution Units, 300 → 1100 MHz
  3. AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    Radeon™ Vega 9 Graphics
    9 Graphics Cores, 1300 MHz
  4. AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition
    Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics
    11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz
  1. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1235U
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    80 Execution Units, → 1200 MHz
  2. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1245U
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    80 Execution Units, → 1200 MHz
  3. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1255U
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    96 Execution Units, → 1250 MHz
  4. 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1265U
    Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
    96 Execution Units, → 1250 MHz
Memory
8GB 16GB 32 GB
2400 MHz DDR4 RAM
8GB 16GB 32GB
5200 MHz LPDDR5 RAM
Storage
128 GB 256 GB 512 GB
Removable M.2 NVMe SSD
256 GB 512 GB 1 TB
Removable M.2 NVMe SSD
Fans Number-1

Connectivity

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Wi-Fi
  • Wi-Fi 5: 2x2 MIMO IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible
Wi-Fi 6: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax compatible.
Bluetooth
  • Bluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology
Bluetooth Wireless 5.1 technology

Battery

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Size45.8 Wh
  • 47.4 Wh
    Nominal battery capacity.
  • 45.8 Wh
    Minimum battery capacity.
Battery LifeUp to 11.5 hours of typical device usageUp to 18 hours of typical device usage
Power Supply
  • 60W power supply with USB-A (5W) (65W total)
  • Supports Fast Charge (0-80% in about one hour)
  • 60W power supply with USB-A (5W) (65W total)
  • Supports Fast Charge (0-80% in about one hour)

Software

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
OS
  • For Consumer: Windows 10 Home
  • For Commercial: Windows 10 Pro
Free upgrade to Windows 11
Consumer models
  • Windows 11 Home
Business models
  • Windows 11 Pro
Built-in AppsMicrosoft Office 365 30-days trialConsumer models
  • Preloaded Microsoft 365 Apps
  • Microsoft 365 Family 30-day trial
  • Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 30-day trial
Business models
  • Preloaded Microsoft 365 Apps
  • Microsoft 365 Business Standard, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, or Microsoft 365 Apps 30-day trial

Camera & Audio

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
Camera
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 720p HD front-facing video camera
  • Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing)
  • 720p HD front-facing video camera
Audio
  • Dual far-field Studio Mics
  • OmniSonic stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™ Premium
  • Dual far-field Studio Mics
  • OmniSonic stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos®

Misc

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
InkingSupports Surface Pen
4096 levels of pressure
Tilt sensing
Best in class latency
  • Designed for Surface Pen 
  • Supports Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP)
    4096 levels of pressure Tilt sensing Best in class latency Paper feel 0.1mm precision
Sensors
  • Ambient light sensor
  • Ambient light sensor
Security
  • HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
  • TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise-grade security and BitLocker support
  • Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in
  • Windows 11 Secured-core PC
In the box
  • Surface Laptop 3 15”
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
  • Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
  • Power supply
  • Quick Start Guide
  • Safety and warranty documents
Warranty
  • One-year limited hardware warranty
  • Commercial: Advanced Exchange warranty service with expedited device replacement
  • 1-year limited hardware warranty
MoreSupports Surface Dial
Supports off-screen interaction only
-

Key Features

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”
At Glance
Released in Late
2019
3:2 2.5K
15”
1664p 60Hz
Weight
3.40 lb
1.54 kg
Up to
AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition
4C/8T, 2.30 → 4.00 GHz
Geekbench 5
721
Single Core
Geekbench 5
2,741
Multi-Core
With integrated
Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics
11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz
Configurable up to
32GB
2400 MHz DDR4
Surface Laptop 3 15” Ports
Released in Late
2022
3:2 2.2K
13.5”
1504p 60Hz
Weight
2.80 lb
1.27 kg
Up to
Intel Core i7-1265U
10C/12T, 1.80 → 4.80 GHz
Geekbench 5
1,336
Single Core
Geekbench 5
6,336
Multi-Core
With integrated
Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
96 Execution Units, → 1250 MHz
Configurable up to
32GB
5200 MHz LPDDR5
Starting at
$999.99
i5, 8GB, 256GB

Comparison Summary

Surface Laptop 3 15” vs. Surface Laptop 5 13.5”

Microsoft has released the Surface Laptop 3 15”, a 15-inch machine, in late-2019. It is powered by up to a quad-core AMD Ryzen 7-3780U Microsoft Surface Edition with a boost clock speed up to 4.00 GHz. The laptop has an integrated graphics option up to Radeon™ RX Vega 11 Graphics (11 Graphics Cores, 1400 MHz).

On the other hand, we have the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 5 13.5” was introduced by Microsoft about three years later in late-2022. It comes with up to 10-core Intel Core i7-1265U with a boost clock speed up to 4.80 GHz. It has an integrated graphics option up to Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics (96 Execution Units, → 1250 MHz).

Geekbench 5 Single Core

Surface Laptop 3 15”1
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G71,00257.13%
2
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G71,08862.03%
3
AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition70340.08%
4
AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition72141.11%
Surface Laptop 5 13.5”1
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1235U1,51086.09%
2
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1245U1,56088.94%
3
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1255U1,754100.00%
4
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1265U1,33676.17%
01,754

Geekbench 5 Multi Core

Surface Laptop 3 15”1
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G73,69157.54%
2
10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1065G73,72258.02%
3
AMD Ryzen™ 5 3580U Microsoft Surface® Edition2,43838.00%
4
AMD Ryzen™ 7 3780U Microsoft Surface® Edition2,74142.73%
Surface Laptop 5 13.5”1
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1235U5,71589.09%
2
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1245U5,70088.85%
3
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1255U6,415100.00%
4
12th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-1265U6,33698.77%
06,415

The Surface Laptop 3 15” has a 15-inch display which is slightly larger than the 13.5-inch Surface Laptop 5 13.5”. In addition, the Surface Laptop 3 15” weighs 3.40 lbs. about 21% heavier than the 2.80 lbs. Surface Laptop 5 13.5”. Moreover, measured at 13.4” x 9.6” x 0.57”, the Surface Laptop 3 15” is considerably bulkier than the Surface Laptop 5 13.5” at 12.1” x 8.8” x 0.57”.

Surface Laptop 3 15”Surface Laptop 5 13.5”

Moving over to upgradability, Microsoft claims that the Surface Laptop 3 15” supports up to 32GB 2400 MHz DDR4 memory. However, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users. Fortunately, it comes with a single removable M.2 SSD slot that users can replace and upgrade in the future.

For Surface Laptop 5 13.5”, it supports up to 32GB 5200 MHz LPDDR5 memory. Like Surface Laptop 3 15”, it has an onboard memory module that is not upgradable by the users. Luckily, it has a single removable M.2 SSD slot that users can replace or upgrade when needed.

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