Home » Devices » Surface Go 3 vs. Surface Pro 9 with 5G - Detailed Specs Comparison

Surface Go 3 vs. Surface Pro 9 with 5G - Detailed Specs Comparison

Here's what you need to know what's different between Surface Go 3 and Surface Pro 9 with 5G specs including CPU, RAM, storage, battery, display, and more.

BY Evan Forrest September 29, 2023

Surface Go 3 vs. Surface Pro 9 with 5G

The 2021 Surface Go 3 features the 5W 10th Generation Intel Amber Lake Y dual-core Intel Pentium Gold 6500Y up to dual-core Intel Core i3-10100Y with the boost speed up to 3.90 GHz. While the 2022 Surface Pro 9 with 5G features the 7W Qualcomm Snapdragon 8-core Microsoft SQ3 with a clock speed of 3.00 GHz.

If you are in the market looking for a laptop and don't know what's the difference between the 10.5″ Surface Go 3 (2021) and the 13″ Surface Pro 9 with 5G (2022), we have a detailed tech specs comparison between both devices for you to check out here.

Surface Go 3 vs. Surface Pro 9 with 5G: Specs Comparison

	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it Surface Go 3 See at Amazon	Compare With Please enter device name or part of it Surface Pro 9 with 5G See at Amazon
Key Features
What's new	More Powerful Processors - The Surface Go 3 now features the latest 10th generation Intel Mobile processors, including Intel® Turbo Boost Technology 2.0, resulting in faster speeds up to 3.40 GHz, particularly on the entry-level models. Longer Battery Life - Last up to 11 hours battery life of typical device usage. More Now with the Matte Black option Preloaded with Windows 11 Supports fast charging	Better performance - It's 80% faster for CPU and 77% for GPU than Surface Pro X with SQ2. Built-in NPU - The integrated Neural Processing Unit provides up to 15 trillion operations per second for running exclusive features like background blur, automatic framing, eye contact, and voice focus. Better specs - It comes with Microsoft® SQ3™ with Neural Processing Unit, up to 16GB of 4266 MHz LPDDR4X memory, WiFi-6E, and Bluetooth 5.1. Longer Battery Life - It now offers a better battery life with up to 19 hours of typical device usage. No perimeter venting - It uses passive cooling with whisper-quiet operation.
What's missing		Only available in Platinum No Thunderbolt 4 port

Availability	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Released	2021	2022
Release Info	Introduced: September 22, 2021 Pre-ordered: September 22, 2021 Released: October 5, 2021	Introduced: October 12, 2022 Pre-ordered: October 12, 2022 Released: October 25, 2022
Pricing	$399 Gold 6500Y 4 GB 64 GB WiFi $549 Gold 6500Y 8 GB 128 GB WiFi $629 i3-10100Y 8 GB 128 GB WiFi	Consumer models Windows 11 Home on ARM Microsoft SQ® 3 $1,299.99 8GB 128GB $1,399.99 8GB 256GB $1,599.99 16GB 256GB $1,899.99 16GB 512GB Business models Windows 11 Pro on ARM Microsoft SQ® 3 $1,399.99 8GB 128GB $1,499.99 8GB 256GB $1,699.99 16GB 256GB $1,999.99 16GB 512GB
Amazon Deals	$325.00 Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model) $297.00 Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Black (Latest Model) $533.73 Microsoft Surface Go 3 (8W8-00001) 4G LTE 10.5-inch Touchscreen Tablet Intel Core i3 8GB RAM 256GB SSD Windows 11 Pro (Renewed)	$748.89 Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, 5G Connectivity, Thin & Lightweight, Faster SQ3 Processor for Multi-Tasking, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum (Renewed) $1,399.99 Microsoft Surface Pro 9 Tablet - 13" - SQ3-8 GB RAM - 128 GB SSD - Windows 11 Pro - 5G - Platinum $1,249.99 Microsoft Surface Pro 9 Tablet - 13" - Core i5 12th Gen i5-1245U Deca-core (10 Core) - 8 GB RAM - 128 GB SSD - Windows 11 Pro 64-bit - Platinum

Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5” Price
	Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Platinum (Latest Model) By Microsoft $325.00	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface Go 3 - 10.5" Touchscreen - Intel® Core™ i3 - 8GB Memory - 128GB SSD - Device Only - Black (Latest Model) By Microsoft $297.00	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface Go 3 (8W8-00001) 4G LTE 10.5-inch Touchscreen Tablet Intel Core i3 8GB RAM 256GB SSD Windows 11 Pro (Renewed) By Microsoft $533.73 $775.00 31% OFF	See at Amazon
Microsoft Surface Pro 9 5G Price
	Microsoft Surface Pro 9 (2022), 13" 2-in-1 Tablet & Laptop, 5G Connectivity, Thin & Lightweight, Faster SQ3 Processor for Multi-Tasking, 8GB RAM, 256GB Storage with Windows 11, Platinum (Renewed) By Microsoft $748.89	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface Pro 9 Tablet - 13" - SQ3-8 GB RAM - 128 GB SSD - Windows 11 Pro - 5G - Platinum By Microsoft $1,399.99	See at Amazon
	Microsoft Surface Pro 9 Tablet - 13" - Core i5 12th Gen i5-1245U Deca-core (10 Core) - 8 GB RAM - 128 GB SSD - Windows 11 Pro 64-bit - Platinum By Microsoft $1,249.99	See at Amazon

Display	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Size	10.5 Inches	13 Inches
Info	Resolution: 1920 x 1280 (2.45M Pixels) Density: 220 PPI PixelSense™ Display Contrast ratio: 1500:1 Aspect ratio: 3:2 Inking: designed together with Surface Pen Touch: 10 points multi-touch Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3	13” PixelSense™ Flow Display Resolution: 2880 x 1920 5.53M Pixels. Density: 267 PPI Color profile: sRGB and Vivid Dynamic refresh rate: up to 120Hz Aspect ratio: 3:2 Contrast ratio: 1200:1 Touch: 10-point multi-touch Brightness: 450 nits maximum (typical), 5 nits minimum Gorilla® Glass 5 Adaptive Color

Exterior	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Size Comparison
Dimensions	9.65” x 6.9” x 0.33” (245 mm x 175 mm x 8.3 mm) Width: 9.65” (245 mm) Height: 6.9” (175 mm) Thickness: 0.33” (8.3 mm)	11.3” x 8.2” x 0.37” (287 mm x 209 mm x 9.3 mm)
Weight	Surface Go 3: 1.2 lbs (544 g) Surface Go 3 Keyboard: 0.55 lbs (249 g)	1.95 lb (883 g)
Colors	Platinum Matte Black	Platinum
Keyboard and Trackpad	Surface Go Type Cover Not included Keyboard: Full-size mechanical backlit keyset with 1 mm of key travel. Trackpad: Precision glass trackpad. Trackpad size: 101 mm x 56 mm Supports a five-finger multitouch gesture.	Not included. Compatible with Surface Pro Signature Keyboard Surface Pro X Keyboard Type Cover Features: Activation: Moving (mechanical) keys Layout: QWERTY, full row of function keys (F1-F12) 4 directional keys; Windows, Brightness and Media Controls Keys; LED backlighting Trackpad: Precision glass trackpad. Trackpad size: 4 x 2 inches (101.6 mm x 50.8 mm) Supports a five-finger multitouch gesture. Surface Slim Pen Storage Magnetic dock Automatically wireless charge Surface Slim Pen
Ports	1 x USB Type-C 3.1 Gen 1 Supports Power Delivery and DisplayPort. 1 x Surface Connect™ Supports charging and docking station. 1 x Headset jack 1 x microSDXC™ card reader 1 x Surface Go Type Cover port	2 x USB 3.2 USB-C interface supports USB 3.2, Power Delivery, DisplayPort, and data transfer up to 10Gbps. 1 x Surface Connect+ Supports charging and docking station. 1 x Surface Pro Type Cover port

Internal Specs	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Processor	10th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 6500Y 2 cores, 4 threads, 1.10 → 3.40 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 5W 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-10100Y 2 cores, 4 threads, 1.30 → 3.90 GHz, 4MB SmartCache, 5W	Microsoft® SQ3™ with Neural Processing Unit 8 cores, 8 threads, 3.00 GHz, 8MB Cache, 7W
Integrated Graphics	10th Gen Intel® Pentium® Gold 6500Y Intel® UHD Graphics 615 23 Execution Units, 300 → 900 MHz 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i3-10100Y Intel® UHD Graphics 615 24 Execution Units, 300 → 1000 MHz	Microsoft® SQ3™ with Neural Processing Unit Microsoft® SQ3™ Adreno™ 8cx Gen 3 GPU N/A,
Memory	4GB 8GB 1866 MHz LPDDR3 RAM	8GB 16GB 4266 MHz LPDDR4X RAM
Storage	64GB eMMC 128GB SSD	128GB 256GB 512GB Removable SSD.

Connectivity	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax compatible.	Wi-Fi 6E: IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax compatible.
Bluetooth	Bluetooth Wireless 5.0 technology	Bluetooth Wireless 5.1 technology
	LTE version coming soon.	Location: GPS, Glonass, Galileo, and Beidou Support NanoSIM and eSIM support Supports 5G

Battery	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Size	28Wh Nominal battery capacity. 26.8Wh Minimum battery capacity.	47.7 Wh Nominal battery capacity. 46.5 Wh Minimum battery capacity.
Battery Life	Up to 11 hours of typical device usage	Up to 19 hours of typical device usage
Power Supply	24W proprietary Surface Connect power supply	39W power supply Supports Fast Charge (0-60% in about one hour)

Software

Surface Go 3

Surface Pro 9 with 5G

Windows 11 Home in S-mode

Consumer models

Windows 11 Home on ARM

Business models

Windows 11 Pro on ARM

Built-in Apps

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate one month trial
Microsoft 365 Family one month trial

Preloaded Microsoft 365 Apps
Microsoft 365 Family 30-day trial
Preloaded Xbox app
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate one-month trial

Camera & Audio	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Camera	Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing) 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video 8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p full HD video	Windows Hello face authentication camera (front-facing) 5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p Skype HD video 10.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p full HD and 4K video
Audio	Enhanced dual far-field Studio Mics 2W stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™	Dual far-field Studio Mics 2W stereo speakers

Misc	Surface Go 3	Surface Pro 9 with 5G
Inking	Supports Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) 4096 levels of pressure Tilt sensing Best in class latency Paper feel magnetic storage	Designed for Surface Slim Pen 2 Supports Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP) 4096 levels of pressure Tilt sensing Best in class latency Paper feel 0.1mm precision magnetic storage Supports Tactile signals with Surface Slim Pen 2 The integrated storage and wireless charging for Surface Slim Pen 2 with Surface Pro Signature Keyboard
Sensors	Ambient light sensor Accelerometer Gyroscope Magnetometer	Ambient light sensor Gyroscope Magnetometer Ambient Color Sensor (brightness and color)
Security	HW TPM 2.0 chip for enterprise security Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in	Enhanced security with Microsoft Pluton Enterprise-grade protection with Windows Hello face sign-in Windows 11 Secured-core PC
In the box	Surface Go 3 Power supply Quick Start Guide Safety and warranty documents	Surface Pro 9 SQ3 with 5G Power supply Quick Start Guide Safety and warranty documents SIM Card access tool
Warranty	One-year limited hardware warranty	1-year limited hardware warranty
More	Mechanical features: Signature unibody magnesium design with hidden perimeter venting Kickstand with a full-friction multiposition hinge to 165 degrees Magnetic attach for keyboard fold stability Physical buttons: volumes, power Casing: Magnesium