Apple Vision Pro vs Meta Quest 3: What’s the Difference?

The Apple Vision Pro has been fully revealed, and it has some wondering if they should hold out for that or just grab the Meta Quest 3. While budgets are going to play a part, if you want the best things in life, it’s a closer call than you’d expect.

Apple Vision Pro vs Meta Quest 3: What’s the Difference?

Let’s get the big one out of the way. The Meta Quest 3 will set you back around $500, while the Apple Vision Pro costs $3499. That’s a hefty difference, and for a lot of people who already believe the Quest 3 to be a little too pricey, the Apple Vision Pro is going to be an impossible sell. Outside of that, though, things are actually closer than you’d think.

While the Apple Vision Pro does have a higher resolution, hitting around 4K per eye, it has both a smaller FOV and a lower refresh rate of 90Hz versus the Quest’s 120Hz. In VR, refresh rate matters a lot, so that’s not an insubstantial difference. Having not tested the audio, we’d expect the Vision Pro to be better, but the Quest 3’s speakers are actually pretty good.

We know that the Apple Vision Pro uses an operating system very similar to an iPhone or iPad, so it might feel more familiar to people already in those ecosystems. We’re also expecting it to be faster, too, and that the passthrough cameras will be better as well. However, every small victory for the Apple Vision Pro begs the question, “Is this worth an extra $3k?”

Apple Vision Pro vs Meta Quest 3: Which Is Best?

In our opinion, while the Apple Vision Pro is undoubtedly more powerful in nearly every way, it’s also literally seven times the price. We don’t think that you get seven times the value with that price tag, and frankly, it’s very hard to justify $3499 on a headset even if you’re a hardcore VR person. We also don’t know for sure that it’s any good, having not actually checked it out.

For now, we’d definitely say to just go for the Meta Quest 3 if you’re considering the two options. If you’re the kind of person who’s got enough cash to put into an Apple Vision Pro, then grabbing the Quest 3 first shouldn’t hurt you. Also, from a gaming standpoint, the Meta Quest 3 has a substantial library of games already, and that’s probably enough for most people.